The earliest settlers in the area were Andrew "Andy" Bragg and Nelson Sneed, Black farmers and former slaves who moved there in 1870. They were later joined by other freedman farmers, landowners, and tradesmen, and the settlement became known as Andy. In 1916, former Palestine banker H.L. Price moved to the community and, encouraged by its potential as a commercial and agricultural center for Blacks, directed the formation of the Andy Real Estate Company. He was joined by his son Cuney Price, W.D. Thomas, J.Z. Thomas, W.A. Hall, and John Bragg. The firm renamed the town Cuney for Price's son, who had been named for the prominent Black business and state political leader Norris Wright Cuney. Statewide promotion brought rapid growth, and Cuney soon had churches, stores, gins, sawmills, a railroad station, a hotel, and a baseball team. Nelson Sneed donated land for community schools. Cuney declined after World War One as agricultural prices fell and residents moved to other towns for work, and it remains a reminder of the area's pioneers and their significant contribution to the heritage of Texas' Black community.