Marathon, Texas: The Gateway to Big Bend

On our travels through west Texas we landed in Marathon, home of the Gage Hotel. Marathon is in the middle of nowhere. It's at the intersection of Highways 90 and 385. The closest town is Alpine and that's 26 miles away. There's no chain grocery store or chain restaurants. There's no chain anything! If you want a Starbucks, you have to drive 114 miles to Pecos to get one.

So why does anyone go to Marathon? Why does anyone do anything?

Marathon is the second largest town in Brewster County. It was founded when the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway came through this area in 1882. It was a water stop for the steam engines that traveled through here. These days, the tracks are still here and the trains still run but they don't stop here anymore.

It's called the Gateway to Big Bend because if you stay outside the park, this is one of the closest towns with one of the nicest hotels. It's still an 80 mile hike!

In March of 1882, Captain Albion Shepard bought land there and established the Iron Mountain Ranch. He was a sea captain and then a surveyor for the railroad. Later that year, he applied for and received a post office for the town he named Marathon. This is his house which was built around 1887. It's a hotel now, part of the Gage Hotel Conglomerate.

By then, because of the railroad, the town was a shipping point for local ranchers.

The first school was built in 1888. This one room building also served as a church and a community hall. It was restored as a study club in 1926. Today it's the Marathon History Museum. I read that you can stop by the Chamber of Commerce and pick up a key to go in.

In 1898, the Marathon Baptist Church was organized. This building was completed in 1910.

In 1908, St. Mary's Catholic Church was founded. Their church was completed in 1909.

And finally, in 1910, The Marathon Methodist Church was built.

In 1907, oil was discovered in front of this building, the Chambers Hotel. A well was dug but only water was found. I read that, at least for a while, this became a private house. It's on the opposite side of the tracks from the rest of the town.

The French Grocer is the only grocery store in town. Their prices reflect the fact that they are in the middle of nowhere. Your other option is to drive 60 miles to the Walmart in Fort Stockton. But these guys do other stuff too. They have music shows and other events as well.

This is the United States Post Office. I wonder if it's the original that was granted to Albion Shepherd back in 1882. In 1911, Douglas MacArthur was stationed here to quell the raids from across the Rio Grande during the Mexican Revolution. His group was relieved by another group led by George S. Patton. Who knew?

In 1927, Alfred Gage, a local rancher, commissioned the building of this hotel. There weren't many accommodations "in town" so he enlisted famed designer Henry Trost from El Paso to build the hotel. He kept on of the rooms as his office.

The lobby of the Gage Hotel. The first time we stayed here it seemed like this was all of the hotel. Now there's a whole section of rooms further down the road. There's also a spa/fitness center where for an additional fee you can work out or enjoy some spa services. As I mentioned before, they also run the Captain Shephard house as well as a place across the railroad tracks.

Our room in the original building of the Gage. It's nice and this is why you go to Marathon. The room was close to $300 a night. A lot of people stay here as a jumping off point to Big Bend. 

One of the cool things about the Gage Hotel is that it's pretty old fashioned. There was no elevator. It's only two stories and they still use old fashioned keys. 

Marathon in March is quite nice. Not too hot, not too cool. The Gage has the only restaurants in town that I'm aware of. You can eat at the French Grocer but the main restaurant and the BBQ place next door are both owned by the Gage.

Walking around after dinner is a great way to enjoy the views. The mountains are particularly nice.

The sunsets are amazing.

When we visit these places, I try to find out as much about the history as possible. As we were walking around town, we saw these "remains" of buildings that were right next to the railroad tracks and I can't help but wonder what they were. Train depot? It's not really shaped that way. Strip mall? Probably not.

Next time I visit, maybe I'll have a chance to as one of the 400 people that still live here what that used to be. 

Fort Stockton, Texas: The Heart of Pecos County

On our travels through West Texas, we stopped in Fort Stockton, which was actually a fort. In 1859, the US Army sent soldiers to take a post out along the Comanche Springs. It was a very popular rest stop on the road between San Antonio and El Paso. The soldiers were sent to protect the travelers from Indians.

During the Civil War, the US Army abandoned the fort. But afterwards, in 1867, the fort was established once again. This time, it was staffed with African Americans. The Indians called them "Buffalo Soldiers" because the soldiers' hair reminded them of buffalo fur.

Several of the buildings are still there. This inside the enlisted men's barracks. When the troops came back, they built a larger, more permanent fort.

There were three buildings for Officer's quarters. This one is actually a private residence now, which I find a little weird. I assume it's been remodeled and enlarged as the remaining buildings on the fort were quite small. The military post was abandoned in 1886.

After the Civil War, settlers were pouring in. In 1868, Peter Gallagher, an Irishman from San Antonio invested in land in the area. He platted a town and called it Saint Gaul. Unfortunately, his town was bypassed by the Texas and Pacific Railroad. Peter, a Catholic, donated land in 1875 for St. Joseph's Catholic Church. 

The parish started earlier. The first mass was held in 1872. Construction on the building began in 1875 after the donation of the land. It was remodeled in the 1960s.

In 1870, a German immigrant named Frederick William Young moved to town. He owned this mercantile store. The building was originally part of the fort. It housed an officer's club and living quarters for laundresses from the fort. Young, a retired Sergeant, bought the building in 1876. Though he and his family lived there, they operated it as a General Store and Saloon.

It 1875, Pecos County was incorporated and Fort Stockton named the county seat. The citizens didn't like the name Saint Gaul and, in 1881, renamed it Fort Stockton.

In 1883, the county courthouse was built. This photograph of the original courthouse was in the Annie Riggs Memorial Museum.

In 1912, the courthouse was expanded and modified. 

Inside the courthouse, the two staircases lead up to the courtroom. It was pretty cool.

In 1884, Herman Koehler, another German immigrant from San Antonio, opened this store. One side was a General Merchandise Store and the other was a saloon. It became a hotel of sorts when the men were too drunk to go home, they slept on the floor of the saloon.

This is the Annie Riggs Memorial Museum. It was built as the Koehler Hotel in 1901, named for Herman Koehler. Shortly after the hotel opened, Annie Riggs started working there, running it.

Annie Frazier Johnson Riggs was the daughter of George Frazier. He was one of the pioneer families in Pecos county. When the county incorporated, George was elected county judge. At the time, Annie was married to James Johnson. He was elected to county Sheriff but only stayed at the post a few months before he went on to be County Treasurer. (Photo: Annie Riggs. From the Annie Riggs Memorial Museum).

Despite her devout Catholic faith, Annie divorced Johnson and, in 1891, married Barney Riggs. Prior to moving to Fort Stockton, Barney had been in jail in Arizona convicted of murder. During a prison riot, Barney saved the life of the superintendent and was pardoned on the condition that he would leave Arizona and not come back. He took that deal.  (Photo: the lobby of the Annie Riggs Hotel).

Barney moved to Fort Stockton to help his younger brother Tom who had a ranch there. Tom was married to Annie Johnson's daughter, Mary Jane. 

In 1892, A J Royal was elected Pecos County Sheriff and he chose Barney Riggs to be his deputy. But even though he was a lawman, that did not preclude him from feuding with and, in some cases, killing people. Barney and Annie had four children but it was a turbulent marriage and in 1901, Annie divorced Barney. Annie's son-in-law, Buck was handling the settlement. Angry about the divorce, Barney threatened Buck's life and Buck shot him in self-defense. (Photo: The courtyard of the Annie Riggs Hotel).

Barney had no will so the courts awarded his estate to Annie. She used this money to buy the hotel that she'd been managing. She changed the name to the Riggs Hotel and ran it with the help of her daughter, Eva, until she died in 1931. The cost of a room for the night was $1 if you wanted to the whole room. $0.50 if you would share the bed with a stranger. Meals were $.035 (Photo: Rules of the House at the Annie Riggs Memorial Museum).

A J Royal met a rather bitter end. He lost his reelection bid for Sheriff in 1894. But before he left office, he was sitting at his desk. A shotgun barrel poked through the window of his office. Someone called his name and then he was shot. (Photo: The desk Royal was sitting at when he was killed. There is a bloodstain in the open drawer. The desk is at the Annie Riggs Memorial Museum).

This is the Historic Pecos County Jail. The first jail was built in 1877. This one was built in 1882. The bottom story was the office and residence of the Pecos County Sheriff. The upper level contains the jail cells themselves.

The cells on the upper floor were used from 1883 until 1973. There was no air conditioning or heating so the inmates were exposed to the elements based on whether the windows were open or closed. I can only imagine that it got pretty hot in there in the summer.

This room was part of the Sheriff's residence. The Pecos County Sheriff lived in this structure until 2000. The last sheriff to live here was Sheriff Bruce Wilson with his wife Martha. Some of the old tenants have brought items to put on display. When Sheriff Cliff Harris declined the option to live here, the building was turned into a museum.

Fort Stockton became a ranching and farming community and was on the decline until, in 1926, oil was discovered nearby.

In the early part of the 20th century, the Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway came to town. The train depot is now the visitor center. They have a pretty elaborate display outside on the grounds depicting the history of the town.

They don't have a "Greetings from" mural, but they do have lots of signage.

This is the mascot of the city (the big bird, not the guy standing in front). It's Paisano Pete! He's a road runner and has been the mascot of the city since 1980.

This is the old Fort Stockton Cemetery. There are no military burials here but there are some local famous folks. Remember Annie and Barney Riggs? They are buried here.

Also buried here is A J Royal, the Sheriff who was murdered in his office. His widow had the word "Assassinated" put on his headstone. This is the only unsolved murder in Fort Stockton or Pecos County.

The Grey Mule Saloon was built around 1899. A J Royal (see above) was in the process of buying the saloon when he was killed. Now it's a wine bar open in the evenings.

Downtown Fort Stockton. 

This building in Downtown Fort Stockton was erected in 1912 and held the First National Bank of Fort Stockton. This bank failed during the Great Depression. The Pecos County State Bank was located here until 1960. Now this building houses a bar. I'm just glad they didn't tear it down.

The Comanche Springs Pool - the Springs started it all. This is where the travelers would stop and rest when coming through the area. It was also the springs that were used by the ranchers and farmers for irrigation. 

The pavilion was built in 1938 over the Big Chief Spring. It was the largest spring in the Comanche Springs system and flowed 65 million gallons of water a day. The pool, as it exists today, was constructed in 1953 and serves as host to the annual Fort Stockton Water Carnival. The first Water Carnival was held in 1936. It is now an annual event observed the third weekend of July. The event continues a long tradition of community celebration, volunteerism and entertainment.

Fort Stockton is off of Interstate 10 and has about 8,400 people. They have your standard low-end hotels like the Holiday Inn Express, Fairfield Inn and Hampton Inn. They have a Wal-mart Superstore and a Lowes Market for groceries. There are a couple of fast food chains but we didn't see any sit-down restaurant chains.

I liked Fort Stockton. I thought it was a cool little town with a big, but violent history. There was lots to see. The Annie Riggs Memorial Museum was very cool and interesting. The tour of the Historic Pecos County Jail was very informative. We enjoyed our time here. If you're in the area, stop in and check it out!

Pecos, Texas: Home of the World's First Rodeo

On our travels through west Texas, we stopped in Pecos. When I think of that town, I think of Yosemite Sam yelling, “I’m the fastest gun north, south, east, aaannnd west of the Pecos!” He was talking about the river, of course. 

Pecos is one of the many towns that popped up along the railroad. It’s about 75 miles west of Odessa along Interstate 20. It originally started as a camp for cattle drives up the Pecos River. The land was once owned by George Knight. In the 1880s, he offered the land to the Texas & Pacific Railway and the company accepted and the town of Pecos Station was born. In 1881, the tracks came through.

In the late 1800s, there were several ranches around and in 1883, a friendly argument was started about which ranch had the best cowboys. 

To resolve the dispute, the cowboys devised a number of competitions. The ranch owners put up $40 as the prize for the winner. On July 4, 1883, the contest was held. This became the first rodeo. The tradition continues with the West of the Pecos Rodeo held annually in June.

Meanwhile, Reeves County was formed in 1884 and Pecos became the county seat. In 1886, the first courthouse was built. 

It was demolished and a new courthouse was built in 1937.

 
By the 1890s, however, the town had a reputation for violence. It was not unusual for there to be gunfights in the street. I read that “Pecosin” was a term coined to mean “to ambush and rob a man before tossing his body in the river.”  Yikes.

In 1896, a saloon was built across the street from the train depot. This is the original building for the Saloon. It had 11 guest rooms as well. I read that it was the scene of a double homicide but there were no details to that story. Perhaps, they are inside the museum.

In 1907, it became the Orient Hotel and was run by an ex-Texas Ranger named R. S. Johnson. It is now the West of the Pecos Museum. Once again, we were foiled by a Monday. The museum looks very interesting and we hope to go back. The museum is open Tues – Sat, 10 – 4 and is $5 to go in.

During World War II, there was an Army Airfield training facility in Pecos called the Pecos Army Air Field. This stone cottage is one of the remnants of the Army housing for the trainees. Unfortunately, the base was deactivated in the 1980s, resulting in a depletion of the population.

The Union Pacific Train depot which holds the Rodeo Hall of Fame is across from the West of the Pecos Museum. Unfortunately, in December 2024, there was an accident where a train collided with a semi-truck. The other end of the depot was damaged and, sadly, people were killed.

Santa Rosa de Lima Catholic Church in Pecos. The church was started in a wooden shack donated by local families back in 1889. The church was built in 1924 using stones the parishioners hauled from 15 miles away. It is part of the diocese of El Paso.

Downtown Pecos. I liked Pecos. I liked the vibe of the town and would liked to have spent more time there. It's a big agricultural town. They are famous for their cantaloupes but they grow other stuff like onions, cotton and watermelon.

We stopped through there on the way home. They have a Wal-Mart but it's not a full grocery store, which was surprising to us. The grocery store is called United. They have your standard interstate fast food - McDonald's, Dairy Queen, etc., but it looked like they had a few good looking local spots as well. Pecos also has the distinction of housing the worlds largest private prison, the Reeves County Detention Complex.

We'll definitely be back...just not on a Monday.