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.