African-American resident Milton M. Holland, formerly enslaved, served as a Union sergeant and earned a Medal of Honor.

[6][circular reference] After the Civil War, population growth was slow, but large amounts of cotton, corn, sweet potatoes, oats, and sugarcane were produced in the county.

After World War II, this gas field was developed and proved to be the largest in the United States.

In 1947 Panola County Junior College was established in Carthage and founded KGAS-AM 1590 which began broadcasting in 1955.

As a result of 19.6% population growth between 1970 and 1980, documented by U.S. Decennial Census; Panola General Hospital was established in 1997.

Today the ETMC Carthage operates a 24-hour emergency department which is designated a Level IV trauma center by the state of Texas.

On September 16, 1998 KGAS-FM began broadcasting a country music format in Carthage, and was featured in "Bernie", the 2011 American biographical black comedy crime film directed by Richard Linklater.

After losing her husband, widow Marjorie Nugent, an 81-year-old resident of Carthage, became friends with Bernie Tiede, the assistant funeral director in town.

Nine months after her death, her friend and companion, 39-year-old Bernie Tiede, was brought in for questioning by police and confessed to killing her.

After a habeas corpus challenge, he was paroled on a $10,000 bond in 2014, but in 2016, Tiede had a resentencing hearing, and was sentenced to 99 years to life.

[9][10] Panola County District Attorney Danny Buck Davidson said initially that few in the community questioned no longer seeing the elderly woman.

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters.

The Texas Country Music Hall of Fame is located in Carthage, which also houses the Tex Ritter Museum.