In 1839, after years of conflict, the Republic of Texas drove many Cherokees into the Indian territory (Oklahoma). Sam Houston introduced a bill to section off and sell lands they formerly occupied. Boundaries were determined by an 1836 treaty with the Cherokees, but additional surveys were needed. In 1841, surveyor William Angus Ferris ran a 38-mile long line northwest from the Neches River to the Sabine River. The “Old Cherokee Line,” as it was later known, became the starting point for other early surveys in Van Zandt county. Officials later employed the line in dividing school districts, justice precincts, commissioner precincts, stock law districts, and voting precincts, as well as for other uses.