Ellen Rienstra: The Forgotten Settlement of the Kishi Colony

For this episode we're sharing we’re sharing a conversation with local historian Ellen Rienstra about some of the immigrants who first settled southeast Texas including a largely forgotten settlement… the Kishi Colony. In 1982, an official Texas Historical Marker was dedicated at the site of the Kishi Colony near the intersection of FM 1135 and the Kishi irrigation canal seven miles southeast of Vidor. You can learn more about the Kishi Colony online at hirasaki.net/Family_Stories as well as the Handbook of Texas Online at tshaonline.org/handbook… and for more stories relating to the history of Orange County and the surrounding area, check out the book The Long Shadow: The Lutcher-Stark Lumber Dynasty by Ellen Rienstra and Jo Ann Stiles. Our thanks to Ellen Rienstra for sharing this story. Bayoulands TALKS is produced in the studios of 91.3 KVLU Public Radio in Beaumont, Texas by Shannon Harris and Jason M. Miller. For more information and to stream KVLU online visit: kvlu.org. Please remember to share and subscribe to Bayoulands TALKS wherever you find your podcasts. You can also listen on NPR One along with other podcast offerings from KVLU public radio. You can find us on social media platforms at "91.3 KVLU Public Radio" on Facebook and "bayoulands" on Instagram. Photo credit: Jason M. Miller