Center, TX

Center is the Shelby County seat in deep East Texas, about 17 miles from the Louisiana border. The 2020 census counted 5,221 residents. The city took its name from its position near the center of the county, and that central role still shows up in the courthouse, county offices, and the roads that feed in from the surrounding area. Center's working identity is tied to poultry production, which gets its annual moment at the East Texas Poultry Festival each October.

The city also hosts the What-A-Melon Festival after the Fourth of July, while the Shelby County Museum, Rio Theater, and historic courthouse give the center a short list of places to stop. The square is where the county's farming calendar becomes a town gathering, and the museum and theater keep the center connected to its older buildings. That combination still endures. Center is a county seat where agricultural work, seasonal festivals, and a few downtown institutions all sit close together.