Vernon, Texas: Bacon City USA

Our final stop on the first leg of our journey north on US 287 was Vernon, Texas. It's known as the Hibiscus Capital of Texas, the Birthplace of Roy Orbison and Bacon City USA. That's a lot for a small town in Texas.

Vernon was occupied by the Tankawa Indians back in 1858. Then Daniel Waggoner bought a lot of the land just south of town to establish his cattle ranch. After the Civil War, settlers like Robert Franklin Jones moved into the area. In 1880, he donated land for a townsite that would eventually be called Vernon. The town was named either for George Washington's Mount Vernon or (and I like this one better) a traveling whiskey salesman named Vernon Brown.

In 1885, the Fort Worth & Denver Railway came to town and the Vernon Depot was built. What was interesting is that it still shows up on Google maps as a landmark. So when we drove out here, this is what I was expecting.

This is what I found, a junk yard. Such a shame! 

Vernon incorporated as a town in 1889 and in 1890, the Wilbarger County Courthouse was built. It's gorgeous. A tornado demolished the tower at some point and then by the early 1920s, it was determined that a new courthouse was needed.

In 1928, the new courthouse was built and it's still a functioning courthouse today. It's not as fancy as the original but it's nice. I'm just glad they didn't feel the need to "modernize" the design. 

The old Wilbarger County Jail is about a block from the courthouse. It was built back in the late 1880s and included a residence for the sheriff, as most of these small towns do. the residence would have been in the front by the awning (on the left) and the jail to the back (the barred door on the right). The building ceased to be a jail in the late 1970s and became a museum. We drove 200 miles to check out this museum that, according to the website was open, only to find they had changed the hours to "by appointment only". Who makes an appointment to visit a museum?

The Great Western Trail was a cattle drive that started in South Texas and went all the way to Nebraska. Vernon was a stop on that trail bringing prosperity to the town. In 1886, when the railroad came to town, it replaced the cattle drives. Luckily, Vernon was part of that as well.

"Oh, Pretty Woman, walking down the street..." No! it's not Van Halen! It's the original, Roy Orbison! He was born in Vernon in 1936. He lived here until his family moved to Fort Worth in the 1950s. 

Harvey Dean is famous in Vernon. He was an African American man who supported his family by selling tamales from a push cart. For 40 years, he was seen around town selling his wares and he made enough money to support his family and send his kids to college. An American success story.

In 1922, a few local men started a meat business in the back of their grocery store in downtown Vernon. They started wood smoking bacon and slicing it thick. The bacon became a big seller and Roy Wright had to find bigger digs to manufacture his product. They opened a plant here and started Wright Foods Inc. At one point the bacon packing plant employed 200 people! In 2001, the company was taken over by Tyson but the plant is still there and still operational. In 2022, they celebrated 100 years of business and the city officially renamed themselves Bacon City USA. This is called the "bacon strip" and it goes right down Main Street.

This is an interesting building. It's the Robert L. More Tire Company. It started in the mid-1930s as a tire shop and gas station. In 1942, the building was remodeled and More's extensive bird egg collection was housed on the second floor. I'm not sure when they closed but the building stands empty as a historic landmark. I wonder if those eggs are still in there. Too bad they don't make this into a museum or something.

This cool building on Fannin Street was built in 1928 by C.T. Herring, a local rancher. The first tenant? Montgomery Wards! I used to love that store. 

The motif at the top in the green panels is the "Spirit of Progress" popular with Montgomery Ward. The whole chain closed in 2000 after 128 years in business. I'm not sure when this particular store closed.

About 10K people live here. They have a Walmart, a Brookshire's and a United Supermarket. There are no chain restaurants but they do have some chain fast food places. I imagine that when people need to "go into town", this is where they come for their grocery needs, etc. Tyson Foods, Walmart and Wilbarger General Hospital are the biggest employers in Vernon.

In addition to the Wilbarger Historical Museum, they have the Red River Museum. We were so intent on getting to the historical museum that we forgot about the other one. Vernon was a dusty old town that had a lot more history that I thought. Make an appointment and come check it out!

Wichita Falls, Texas: Gateway to Texas

One of the bigger cities on our journey north on US 287 is Wichita Falls. It's the county seat of Wichita County. Located near the Oklahoma border, it's known as the Gateway to Texas.

I read a rumor that the land upon which the town of Wichita Falls was established was won in a poker game by John Scott in 1837. Years later, his heirs found the deed in his papers and promptly followed up. They had the town platted along the Wichita River.

In 1876, the platted town included a small waterfall that was eventually washed away by the river. These fake falls were installed later. I had to get the photo off the internet because the falls had been turned off for repair. 

The original settlers built their homes and then moved on. The Barwise family from Dallas are considered the first permanent settlers coming in 1878 to check things out and returning to stay. The town didn't really get started until the Fort Worth & Denver Railway came to town. As the tracks were being laid through Decatur and Bowie, the team realized they were off course from having the line go through Wichita Falls.  JH Barwise donated the land and in 1882, the the first train came through town. This was the Union Depot which was torn down in 1968 when passenger traffic really slowed down.

This is the Wichita Falls Depot built in 1909 for the Kemp and Kell Railroad. Now it's the Wichita Falls Railroad Museum. It was founded in 1980 and is only open on Saturdays. Bummer because they have cool trains that you can go into as well as the building.

Downtown Wichita Falls. No cool postcard mural but they have this instead. The town was incorporated in 1889 and became the county seat for Wichita County. The railroad companies just kept coming! There were five more railroads that came through town making Wichita Falls a transportation hub for North Texas and Oklahoma.

The Wichita Theater was originally an opera house that was built in 1908. In 1934 it was renovated to become a movie theater which closed in 1980. Now it's a live performance theater.

J.A. Kemp was one of the town's most prominent promoters. He arrived in Wichita Falls in 1882 and opened a dry goods store. Then in 1892, he erected this building near the railroad tracks. JA Kemp Wholesale Grocery was housed here until about 1927 when it closed. The Industrial Supply Company occupied this building during the oil boom of the 1930s and continued to provide petroleum products for the next 34 years.

This is the United States Post Office and Courthouse in Wichita Falls. It was built in the 1930s. Today, the Post Office occupies the first floor and the upper floors house luxury apartments.

As I mentioned, Wichita Falls is the county seat of Wichita County. This was the second county courthouse (the first being a log cabin of sorts) built in 1886. Wichita Falls outgrew this courthouse by 1916 and it was demolished to make way for the new one.

The third county courthouse was built in 1916. It looks really cool.

Then this happened. It's the same courthouse but it got a tragic makeover in the 1960s.

This is the Frank Kell house. Remember J.A. Kemp who owned the wholesale grocery? Frank Kell was his brother-in-law and another prominent businessman in the early days of Wichita Falls. The house was built in 1909 and remained in the family for the next 70 years. Now it's a museum but it's currently closed for renovations.

This is the Newby-McMahon building aka The World's Littlest Skyscraper.  In 1912, oil was discovered around Wichita Falls and the town grew in importance. Deals were made on the street because they lacked office space. A guy named J.D. McMahon decided to add a "skyscraper" to the existing Newby building. He got $200,000 from investors (about $3.7M today) and built this. He was sued and won because of one little typo in the contract. It said the building would be 480" not 480'. Inches, not feet. Originally, there weren't even stairs! You had to use a ladder to climb to the upper floors. Meanwhile, JD took his money and left. I don't think it's anything now but it was a small shop for a while but the space inside is unusable for offices. A staircase was added and it takes up room. Now it's a historical monument.

I'm a fan of Bonnie and Clyde lore. I know they were bad people, killers even but I still find it fascinating. This is Riverside Grocery and Market. The lower floor was a grocery store and the upper floor had room to let. It's a rumor that Bonnie and Clyde hid out here 

It's a pretty remote location now but I imagine back then, it was a great place to lay low. They didn't ever have to seen anyone, just go up those side stairs, maybe park in back. I would love to have gone in there but it doesn't appear to be a going concern. I read that it was a barbeque place now and you can see the sign but I don't think it was there anymore.

Wichita Falls was a bit of a surprise. I enjoyed our time there. We stopped at the Wichita Falls Museum of Art on the campus of Midwestern State University. We drove around downtown and checked out all the cool buildings. They had one other museum downtown, a history museum, but it wasn't open until Thursday. 

There are 102K people that live in this city. It's the 43rd largest city in Texas. The biggest employer is Sheppard Air Force Base followed by the Wichita Falls ISD. Other big employers include Midwestern State University and Walmart.

They've got all the big restaurant chains and fast food places along with your mid-level hotel chains. I actually liked Wichita Falls more than I thought I would. But don't take my word for it. Check it out!

Henrietta, Texas: The Pioneer Town of North Texas

As we continued along the US 287 corridor, we stopped in Henrietta, Texas. It's the county seat of Clay County and was formed in 1857. The county was named for Henry Clay. The town? Hmm...there are several suggestions like it's the femininization of Henry Clay's name or that it was named for his wife, Lucretia. I'm not sure how you get Henrietta from Lucretia but, what do I know.

Early settlers to the town had to contend with numerous attacks by Native Americans. So much so that they fled and abandoned the town in 1862. But, by 1870, the settlers were back and this time for good. One of the settlers was Goodleck Koozer, a Quaker who mistakenly thought if he treated the Indians with respect, he would be fine. He was killed by Comanche Chief Whitehorse and his family was abducted. They were later released.

The Clay County Courthouse was built in 1884. The jail was originally located in the basement of the courthouse. It's the oldest continuously used courthouse in Texas.

In 1890, this county jail was built. Note the bars on the windows to the left along with the bars on the door. That side was the jail. The section on the right was the home to the Clay County Sheriff and his family.

The residence had its own entrance on the front so that the family could go in without having to see the prisoners. The residence probably had a parlor, a kitchen and dining area, bedrooms upstairs and an office for the Sheriff. There was also a gallows on the second floor of the jail but nobody was ever executed there.  There are rumors that members of Bonnie and Clyde's Barrow Gang may have been detained here but there are no records confirming that. Most of these small town jails were temporary holding sites until the criminals could be moved to a larger, more secure facility.

This building ceased being the jail in 1973 and is now a museum that's open Thurs, Fri & Sat. It's free. Unfortunately, we were there on a Wednesday.

This is one of the buildings in the commercial district in downtown Henrietta. I think the top floor was a Masonic Lodge. The bottom floor would have been retail. If only people kept records! I would love to know what went on here.

In 1882, the Fort Worth & Denver Railway came to town helping to make Henrietta a great travel center as this was also on a major Stagecoach route. You would take the train to Henrietta then hop on the stagecoach to your final destination. This red train car is a 1920s rail car. It's currently the home of the Henrietta Chamber of Commerce.

This used to be the lodge for the International Order of Odd Fellows, a fraternal organization that focuses on community service. The building was erected in 1909 and the second floor was most likely used as the meeting place for the lodge members. I'm not sure when the Olsen-Stelzer Boot company moved in but Carl Olsen was a shoemaker from Norway. He met Julius Stelzer when they both worked for Justin Boots. In 1934, Julius moved to Henrietta and teamed up with Olsen. Olsen designed the boots and Julius mass produced them. The company is now in Dallas and this building has become an Ace Hardware store.

Only three thousand people live in Henrietta so there aren't many businesses there. The grocery store is a Dollar General and I didn't even see any fast food places let alone chain restaurants. Chances are that most people who live here work in Wichita Falls.

For the last 90 years, Henrietta has hosted the Pioneer Reunion and Rodeo. It starts off with a parade and includes a barbeque and three days of rodeo action. It usually takes place in September. It's called the Pioneer Town of North Texas because of it's early origins in the area.

I wish we'd been able to check out the museum. I can only imagine that it would have been interesting. It's a cool little town and if you don't need much, it would be cool to live there. Maybe buy one of those old buildings on the town square and renovate it into a home. 

If you're in the area, check it out!

Bowie, Texas: Home of the World's Largest Jim Bowie Knife

On our journey up the US 287 corridor, we finally stopped in a town called Bowie, Texas. 

Bowie is in Montague county and was established in 1881 but it didn't really take off until the Fort Worth & Denver Railroad came to town the next year. By 1884, it became a market and financial center for farmers and ranchers in the area between Fort Worth and Wichita Falls.

The town was named for Jim Bowie, hero of the Alamo.

The First National Bank of Bowie was started in the early 1880s. It was in this location where the Legend Bank building is now. In 1884, it was robbed by four men. They stole $10K in gold coins, a pretty hefty sum back then. After the robbery, a posse was formed, the men were captured and were hung. Then in 1941, the bank was robbed again! This time by a guy named Rex Beard, Jr.  Known as the "paper sack bandit", he was captured and then escaped from the Montague County Jail.

There are a lot of cool old buildings in Bowie. This looks like it was an old gas station.

This is at Mason and Wise. It looks like it was something important. A hotel maybe? The railroad is at the end of the block. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any documentation.

This is Smythe Street. Between 1882 and 1907, it was full of brothels and saloons. Then in 1907, two of Bowie's marshals were shot down in cold blood by two brothers, Walker and Bob Hargrove. The people had had enough! The next day they met and demanded the removal of these businesses and within 48 hours, they were gone. That's the power of the people! The two men must have escaped because Walker Hargrove was killed in a bar fight in Fort Worth the next year. Bob lived until 1954.

At the corner of Tarrant and Mason is Matthew, Heard & Cady, an old Dry Goods store that was around in the early days of town. I read that the town was restoring the building and was going to open some kind of business here. I think it's such a shame that these cool old buildings go to waste. In a small town the size of Bowie, you'd think there would be a need for businesses in town but based on what I see, maybe not.

Here it is! World's Largest Bowie Knife! I have to tell you, it was a bit of a disappointment. It wasn't as large as I had imagined. When you think "World's Largest", you think BIG.

When shown next to a person, you can see it's bigger than a normal Bowie knife.

There are about 5K people that live in Bowie, Texas. The biggest employer is the Faith Community Health System followed by the Bowie ISD. They have a Brookshire's, which most small towns have but they also have a Walmart now. No big chain restaurants but some chain fast food places like McDonald's, Sonic and Chicken Express.

Bowie was an interesting place. There was character there. But don't take my word for it. Check it out!

Decatur, Texas: Eighter From Decatur

On our latest adventure, we traveled up the 287 corridor and stopped in the county seats along the way. Our first stop was Decatur, Texas.

Wise county was established in 1856 and the county seat, then called Taylorsville after Zachery Taylor, named at the same time. Absalom Bishop, one of the early settler protested. In 1858, he arranged to have the name of the town changed to Decatur, named for Stephen Decatur. Stephen was a Commodore in the Continental Navy during the Revolutionary War.

Driving into Decatur, you can see the clocktower of the courthouse from most anywhere.

Another of the early settlers was a guy named Sam Woody. Sam was from Tennessee and moved to Decatur in 1854 when he built this cabin. It originally sat near Deep Creek, which is a couple of miles south of Decatur. Sam was part of a Texas Ranger unit that helped protect settlers. During the Civil War, he fought for the Confederacy. The cabin was moved to this site in 1976.

These are the remnants of what was once Decatur Baptist College and then the Wise County Historical Museum.

Decatur Baptist College was established in 1892. It was the first two-year college in Texas. Surprisingly for the time, it was also coeducational. In 1965, the college moved to Dallas and became Dallas Baptist College (now Dallas Baptist University). In 1967, the Wise County Historical Society took over the building and turned it into a museum. Tragically, in 2023, the museum caught fire and all that's left are the remnants from the first photo.

This is the Wise County Courthouse. It's gorgeous! It's made of pink granite and was built in 1896. Prior to that, they had a wooden courthouse. While we were there, it was undergoing a little bit of maintenance and that makes me happy. There are rumors that the courthouse has underground tunnels to various locations around the square, including the jail but I'm not sure which jail. Unfortunately, there were no confirmed findings of any tunnels.

This is the old Stone Prison (maybe this one had tunnels?) that was built by prison labor in 1859. It was the Sheriff's house. The prison cells were in the basement of the house. Meals were sent down via a dumbwaiter that was on the outside east end of the house. Weird. From 1888 to 1938 it was the home of the city waterworks. From 1938 to 1967, it was a private residence. That would be creepy to live in an old prison. In 1967, the Wise County Historical Society bought it. I wonder if they ever plan on doing anything with it, like making it a museum?

The Decatur town Square. The Majestic Theater is now the headquarters for the Wise County Historical Society. It opened in 1908 as a move theater. A fire in 1917 destroyed this whole section of the square but it was rebuilt. It closed in 1950. It was essentially torn down in 1954. A replica of the sign was installed in 2016. The historical society moved in after a fire destroyed the museum in 2023.

Can I just say Wow? I love these old murals. I'm guessing this one is maintained very well.

This cool looking building is the McMurray-Gettys Building. It was built in 1917 after that fire destroyed this section of the square.TJ McMurray and CT Gettys were attorneys that occupied the second floor of the building. The first floor was retail.

The Decatur Masonic Lodge is across the square from the courthouse and was erected in 1913.

This is an internet photo of El Castile, the majestic home of Daniel Waggoner. Waggoner was a rancher and built this house in 1883. It sits on the top of a hill surrounded by 13.5 acres of land. It has 16 rooms, eight fireplaces, marble bathrooms and stained-glass windows. I read that this house was the inspiration for the one in the movie Giant. In 1942, the house was sold to Phil and Clara Luker. It has since been sold again but, for some reason, it's been left to rot. It's not open to the public. What a shame. It's a beautiful house and part of the history of the town. The owners should sell it to the Texas Historical Commission if they aren't going to use it.

In 1927, E. F. Boydston built this gas station out of wood. In 1935, he covered it with chunks of petrified wood turning it into a tourist attraction.

In 1931, Boydston added these cabins that had garages. It's rumored (but unconfirmed) that Bonnie and Clyde stayed in these cabins. It's unconfirmed because back then there were no written records and people paid in cash but it seems like the kind of place they would stay. It's on the outskirts of town and the garage would help keep them hidden.

I liked Decatur. We stopped there on a Wednesday morning about 10-ish and there was a lot of traffic downtown! I was very surprised. The traffic made me feel a little rushed and I didn't spend as much time there as I would have liked.

There are about 6,500 people that live here. They have one of those Lowe's Markets that you find in small towns. That must have been their only option until the Walmart moved in. I'm surprise that didn't put the Lowe's Market out of business especially since they are almost neighbors. 

Surprisingly, they have all the hotel chains: Holiday Inn Express, Fairfield and Hampton. They have most fast food along with a Chili's. The biggest employers are Walmart and then a couple of manufacturing companies. But they are only 25 miles from Denton and an hour from Plano so many people could probably commute if they wanted the peacefulness of a small town.

I wondered about the "Eighter from Decatur" motto. In the dice game craps, an "eighter" is lang for rolling an eight, which is a "desirable outcome" when shooting dice. The rumor is that the Fort Worth and Denver railroad came to town in 1882, connecting the city to Fort Worth. The railroad workers would shoot dice and one of the guys said "Ada from Decatur", a chant for good luck when shooting the dice. It later became "Eighter from Decatur". The town adopted the phrase as their motto to harness good luck and because they liked the "playful" spirit associated with it.