As a railroad division point for two branches of the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railroad, Somerville is named for the railroad's first president. Settlers arrived soon after the town was surveyed in 1883. Population and development increased after establishment of railroad tie plant in 1890s. Somerville is the trade center for the surrounding agricultural areas, and is the gateway to the huge Somerville Reservoir. There are four U.S. Army Corps of Engineer parks, one city park, and two state parks around the huge lake. Big Creek and Yegua Creek parks have a half-mile-long nature trail.
Somerville lies on Texas 36, a segment of the Ports to Plains Highway connecting the state's heartland to coastal ports.