Mineola is a city in the U.S. state of Texas in Wood County. It lies 26 miles north of Tyler. Its population was 4,823 at the 2020 census. The town was incorporated as the railroads arrived in 1873. A railroad official, Ira H. Evans, combined the names of his daughter, Ola, and her friend, Minnie Patten, to create the city name Mineola.