Clarendon, Texas: The Athens of the Texas Panhandle

The last town on our journey north on US 287 was Clarendon, Texas aka The Athens of the Texas Panhandle. It was one of the three original panhandle settlements in the 1800s.

It was founded by a Methodist minister as a "sobriety settlement" vs. some of the other boomtowns that were rowdy. In 1878, the town was originally near Carrol Creek but they moved the town when the creek kept flooding. In 1887 the Fort Worth & Denver Railroad came through town but not where the original site was. That sealed the deal. They moved.

I found this old photo of the train depot on the internet. I've found a few different theories on how the town was named. One was that it was named after Clara Carhart, the town founder's wife. Another says it was named after Carhart's son, Clarendon Lamartine Carhart and a third suggests it was named for a town in England. If I had to vote, I'd go with the first one. It's a little more romantic.

Donley County was organized in 1876 and named for State Supreme Court Justice Stockton P Donley. Clarendon won the prized county seat beating rival towns Hedley and Jericho. The county courthouse was built in 1890 and is rumored to be the oldest courthouse still in use. It seems like I've written that before. Hmm...It's very castle like with its turrets.

I found this photo of the 1890 Donley County Jail that used to sit behind the courthouse. It's not longer there but it was typical of jails at the time. Partial residence, partial jail. 

On the town square was Clarendon City Hall. It looks like an old newspaper office.

Speaking of, the Donley Enterprise offices were across US 287 on Kearney Street over by the railroad tracks. I suspect the train depot was in this area as well. The layout of Clarendon is a little different than most of the towns we've stopped in. The courthouse isn't surrounded by businesses, it's mostly on it's own, aside from a couple of buildings. There are homes and churches. The business section is one block over or across the highway here on Kearney Street.

This is the Mulkey Theater, named for Homer Mulkey, a photographer who had a studio here. It was built in 1946 replacing a theater called the Cozy that burned to the ground. It was a first-run movie theater until it closed in 1986. It sat vacant for 30 years before someone took an interest and it was restored. It reopened in 2019 and supposedly shows first-run movies, classics, live performances and can host meetings.

Clarendon has the Saints Roost Museum (using the nickname of the town). It's in the old Adair Hospital. The building was erected in 1910 as the Adair Hospital. This is where cowboys that worked on the JA Ranch as well as local residents received medical care. By the 1980s, the town outgrew the facility and the hospital moved. The building was repurposed as the Saints Roost Museum. I was disappointed that we didn't have the time to stop in and I'm hoping that the next time we make a trip in this direction we can stop.

Clarendon College was stared in 1898 and is the basis of the nickname "Athens of the Texas Panhandle".

1,900 people live in Clarendon. They have a Lowe's Market for groceries and the only chain restaurant I saw there was a Sonic. The biggest employers are the Clarendon ISD and Clarendon College. It's an hour drive to Amarillo, which is where I would assume most people go when they want to shop, etc.

I was a little disappointed in Clarendon given the longevity of the town. I thought there would be more happening on a Friday afternoon. But that was just me. Don't take my word for it. Check it out yourself!