Big Sandy, TX

Big Sandy is an Upshur County town on U.S. 80 and Texas 155, west of Gladewater and Longview. The 2020 census counted 1,231 residents. A lake with the town's name is cut nearly in half by the highway, and the Sabine River runs just south. Big Sandy began as Big Sandy Switch after the Texas and Pacific Railroad met the Tyler Tap line; it incorporated in 1926, so the town's present road-and-water map still carries the old rail junction underneath.

One of Big Sandy's defining institutions sits beyond ordinary town government: the International ALERT Academy operates on a 2,200-acre East Texas campus and grew from the area's earlier Ambassador College history. The town itself runs city utilities, police, court, public works, and volunteer fire services; Big Sandy ISD serves local students, and Applegate Park and the recycling site give everyday municipal life a physical center. Big Sandy is a small East Texas town with a highway lake, a religious training campus, and a current civic network close to downtown.