During the peak of his career, someone asked John Barrymore, the patriarch of America's famous family of thespians, what he thought about Texas.
In his deep, resonant voice, Barrymore replied: "Texas is a no man's land where sudden death lurks in every bistro."
He had good reason for feeling that way.
In 1879, after performing in a play at Marshall's old Mahone Opera House, Barrymore and his co-star, Ellen Cummings, walked to the Marshall railroad depot to wait for a train that would carry the stage troupe to another city on their tour.
While at the depot, Barrymore, Miss Cummings and fellow actor Ben Porter decided to have a late dinner in the railroad restaurant.
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