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!