Tatum, Texas

The Handbook of Texas says Albert and Mary C. Tatum settled the area in the 1840s and established a large plantation in 1848. The town is named for them.

The Santa Fe line came through in 1885. Paul (Uncle Fox) Tatum then laid out the streets, and a post office opened in 1886 with him as postmaster. A bank followed in 1903.

The early town had hard years. A tornado destroyed part of Tatum in 1904, and in 1905 a fire razed nearly all of the north side. The Handbook describes Tatum as "a farming, dairying, and lumbering center for most of its history." It counted 154 residents in 1904, 599 in 1954 and 1,339 in 1984.

In 1976 a marker was placed for Trammel's Trace, an early trade route through the area.

City Hall is at 680 Crystal Farms Rd. The city council meets at 5 p.m. on the second Monday of each month.

Texas Parks and Wildlife places Martin Creek Lake 3 miles southwest of Tatum on State Highway 43. The 4,981-acre lake was impounded in 1974 to provide cooling water for a power plant, and Luminant manages it.

That plant is the Martin Lake Power Plant, which KLTV places southwest of Tatum in Rusk County. It is owned by Vistra and operated by Luminant.

Because of the plant, the water stays warm year-round. TPWD says largemouth bass here spawn about two months earlier than in nearby lakes. It rates the catfish fishing as excellent, the bass and sunfish fishing as good, and the crappie fishing as fair.

Martin Creek Lake State Park is at 9515 County Road 2181D. It has a boat ramp, a lighted fishing pier and a fish-cleaning station. TPWD also lists camping, paddling, lake swimming, hiking and biking, water-skiing and picnicking there.

The city's things-to-do page also points visitors to Lake Cherokee, Lake Murvaul and the Sabine River.

Tatum ISD has four campuses: Tatum Primary, Tatum Elementary, Tatum Middle and Tatum High School. The Texas Tribune lists about 1,330 students across the district. The teams are the Eagles, and the city's own website calls the football team "beloved."

The Eagles have two state titles to point to:

• 2005 football. The Eagles finished an undefeated season by beating Hutto 38–34 at Texas Stadium for the Class 3A Division II championship.
• 2025 boys basketball. On March 7, 2025, the Eagles beat Columbus 84–49 for the 3A Division I title. KLTV reported it as the boys basketball program's first state championship.

The City of Tatum lists these yearly events:

• Tatum Pecan Pie Festival. Last Saturday of April. It was founded in 2012 to bring free or low-cost mammograms to women who might not otherwise afford them. It features food, crafts and an antique car show. KETK reported that the Tatum Economic Development Corporation hosted the 14th festival in 2025 in the Tatum High School parking lot. That year it included a pie bake-off and low-cost mammograms from UT Health.
• Tatum Wild Flower Trail. April 15 to May 31. It is a drive on historic Rusk County roads. Stops include the C.E. Rogers & Son General Store, which the city says opened in 1889.
• Jingle Bell Bop & Shop. Second Saturday of December. It was founded in 2015 to raise money for Blue Santa, and it has vendors, entertainment and photos with Santa.