Visitors to the Starr Family State Historical Site just might feel like they're traveling back in time.

As soon as one sets foot on the 3.1-acre property, modern noises of people and traffic fade away, leaving only the chittering of birds and the gentle sounds of wind blowing through the leaves of maple trees.

The Starr Site is yet another Texas Parks and Wildlife Department attraction in East Texas, and chronicles the 150-year history of a family prominent in Marshall and in the state of Texas.

It began in 1870, when Dr. James Harper Starr purchased a home on the property called Rosemont. Through the years, four generations of the Starr family adapted and added on to the land and buildings, including today's main appeal of the site, the Maplecroft Mansion.

"We think that it's a shining star of Marshall and Texas," said site superintendent Cathy Marshall of the entire site.