In 1899, as the Texas and New Orleans Railroad extended its line from Kemp to Athens, a new community arose about midway between those towns near the crossing of Clear Creek. William L. Moseley sold right-of-way across block 12 of the J.M. Beltram Survey to the railroad; several transactions dated January 8, 1900 were all in the proposed town of Moseley. Families from existing communities, including Payne Springs, Goshen and Cottonwood, bought more than half the lots in one day at a public sale. James Hansford was reportedly the first person to move to the new site, and while the railroad was under construction, he opened a small café under a tent, furnished with large crate boxes. A post office named Jolo opened March 9, 1900, named for Joe L. Pickle, who served as the town’s blacksmith for fifty years. In April, the name changed to honor Civil War Veteran and county official W.T. Eustace. Early businesses included a grocery and dry goods store operated by first postmaster John W. Moore, saloons, drugstores, lumberyards, and a bank. Cotton was the predominant area crop; Jack Isler opened the first cotton gin. A frame railroad depot served the town beginning in 1903. Methodists organized the first church, followed by Baptist, Primitive Baptist and Church of Christ congregations. In 1904, a fire destroyed many frame businesses on the south side of the railroad tracks. Citizens later established a public square on the north side and many brick buildings were erected. The city of Eustace incorporated in 1926. The local economy shifted from cotton to stock raising and small-scale truck farming in subsequent years. The community has grown steadily, from a reported population of 150 in 1900 to 450 in 1940 and 991 in 2010.