Due to the area’s productive agricultural opprotunities, rail owners began to take interest in establishing a rail line between Dallas and Greenville in 1886, the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway (later acquired by the Atchison, Topeka & Stanta Fe Railway) ran a track through what is now Garland, bypassing the existing town of Duck Creek by one mile and establishing a depot and newly platted community. The new town, Embree, named after Duck Creek physician Kelley H. Embree, grew as several Duck Creek residents and institutions moved to be close to the railroad. The next year, the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railroad ran a line of its own, laying track less than one mile south of Duck Creek, and platted a new town and a depot. Some residents of the existing Duck Creek, who had not already moved to Embree, moved to the new plat and called it “Duck Creek” or “New Duck Creek.” When area leaders began to scout for a location for the post office, a bitter rivalry ensued between the two towns. To quell the harsh feelings, the new post office equidistant from the two towns, named Garland, was established in 1888. The town of Garland was incorporated on April 4, 1891. Garland eventually absorbed Duck Creek and Embree. Fire destroyed the original Santa Fe Depot but the company built a new one in 1901.
The Town of Garland grew because of its close connection to the rail industry, as agricultural crops transported by rail brought economic growth to the area. Automobile and road technology were in their infancy, therefore people often preferred to travel long distances by passenger railcars. Passenger accommodations like the Pullman rail car became showcases for the latest in transportation technology, including materials, lighting, airflow and passenger comfort. Passenger rail declined mid-century as automobile and airplane technology advanced.