Woodville is home to lakes and hunting land in the Pineywoods of Texas
Known colloquially as the "Dogwood Capital of Texas," Woodville is surrounded by what locals refer to as "the Pineywoods," a dense pine-oak forest characterized by lowland swamps and lakes. Within a couple of hours from the beach and big-city living, Woodville is a rural township just north of Beaumont, where locally owned restaurants and big-game hunting are popular pastimes. "It's a different living experience. People come here for work, or they are from here," says Tess Utzman, property manager at Dogwood Terrace Apartments in Woodville. If you're commuting to work in a bigger city, it's like, do you want to sit in traffic or drive through the woods?"
Ranch-style homesteading properties in wooded surroundings
With acres of evergreen and oak forests, Woodville has plenty of homesteading properties and land. Area architecture includes New Traditional and sprawling ranch-style homes, with prices ranging from $50,000 to $680,000. Prices can increase for larger home sizes and extended acreage. Houses at the top of the price range can be larger than 5,500 square feet, and parcels of land can reach up to 50 acres. "People live for hunting around here," Utzman says. "People hunt and fish because there's not much else to do. They move out here for land, ranches and stuff like that."
Like much of Southeast Texas, Woodville experiences extreme summer heatwaves, with multiple days per year where temperatures exceed 110°F. It is also located in Tornado Alley, meaning it can experience high winds due to the currents, which may include tornadoes that could damage properties, power lines and forests.
Outdoor activities at lakes, trails and paddle-friendly waters
The Martin Dies, Jr. State Park is a popular destination for paddle sports on the Steinhagen Reservoir, featuring more than 14 miles of waterways for kayaking and canoeing, as well as 7 miles of hiking trails. Visitors may glimpse alligators, armadillos or foxes throughout the park. The Tyler County Softball Field and Hennigan Park have diamonds a few miles west of town. About 10 miles north, Lake Tejas has a swimming beach with diving structures and wooded cabins. "People who are big into fishing gravitate toward this area," Utzman says.
Many restaurants and Southern food in the historic Pickett House
Woodville has a diverse range of restaurants, from recognizable chains to sushi and Mexican establishments. The Pickett House is a historic saloon-style building with vintage posters and artwork from the region. Its menu includes traditional Southern cuisine, serving items such as cornbread, cobbler and dumplings. "It's cute, like an old schoolhouse with a bunch of circus posters on the wall. It's like a family-style chicken dinner, where they bring out a bunch of food," Utzman says. "If someone was going to visit me in Woodville, that's where I would take them." Wild Bill's Grill is another option, serving breakfast scrambles and fried catfish in a space with Western decor. Residents can pick up groceries at Brookshire Brothers or Walmart Supercenter.
The annual Dogwood Festival and historic lumber town exhibits
The Tyler County Dogwood Festival celebrates the blooming spring season across three weekends in the spring, each featuring different events, including an arts and crafts fair, a Western rodeo, and a beauty pageant. "The fair and the rodeo are a big deal. I wasn't brought up on the farm, but that's the lifestyle out here. There are lots of farms and the rural country type," Utzman says. The Heritage Village and Museum is a replica of a 19th-century pioneer lumber town. Its museum features artifacts and vintage displays from the era, with occasional live reenactments.
Woodville ISD offers welding and construction training
Woodville Elementary School serves prekindergarten to second grade and earns a B-minus grade from Niche. Woodville Intermediate has a C+ Rating, serving students in grades three through five. Woodville Middle School receives a C, and Woodville High School scores a B-minus. The Woodville Independent School District offers a career and technical program that includes trades such as welding and construction, teaching students how to build trailers and deer stands.
Highways and airports connect Woodville to major cities
Multiple highways connect Woodville to the surrounding towns, including U.S. Highways 69, 190 and 287. Beaumont is approximately 55 miles south on US-287. Houston is about 105 miles southwest on US-190. "People do commute to Beaumont for work," Utzman says. "If someone wanted to go to Houston, they could get to a baseball game or the airport. You can go straight south to Galveston and be at the beach in two hours." The nearest emergency room is the Tyler County Hospital, about a mile west of Magnolia Street in the town center. The Jack Brooks Regional Airport in Beaumont has direct flights to Dallas-Fort Worth. In Houston, roughly 90 miles southwest, the George Bush Intercontinental Airport has connections to cities all over the world.
