The Houston and Texas Central Railroad built tracks through Corsicana en route to Dallas in 1871, and in 1872 Ennis was platted along this line on 647 acres selected by Captain W.G. Veale and named for railroad official Colonel Cornelius Ennis. The Houston and Texas Central began an extension from nearby Garrett to Paris in 1882. Railroad magnate Hetty Green purchased the line in 1892, it was extended to Ennis in 1894, and the railroad was named the Texas Midland Railroad. Because of strong community involvement, Ennis became a division point, and the Houston and Texas Central established a roundhouse, machine shops, and its northern division headquarters there under an agreement that the shops would never be moved while Ennis could supply water for them; two lakes were built for this purpose in 1891 and 1895. The Southern Traction Company was chartered on March 12, 1912, and beginning October 20, 1913, operated an interurban line from Dallas to Corsicana via Ennis; in Ennis, it ran along McKinney Street, turned onto Baylor Street, continued east one block, and then proceeded south on Dallas Street. In Dallas, the interurban connected to Southern Traction's line to Waco. Southern Traction merged with Texas Traction in 1917. The interurban railway was abandoned in February 1941, the rail line to Paris was abandoned between Ennis and Kaufman in 1942, and all Texas Midland lines were closed by 1975. At the dawn of the 21st century, the Houston and Texas Central Railroad line that established Ennis was owned and operated by the Union Pacific Railroad.