|
History in
Pecan Shell
According to the
Handbook of Texas, the community was named after the creek and the
creek was "probably derived from some cattle-driving mishap."
The town was granted a post office in 1883 which stayed open through
1901. It wasn't until 1933 when the community peaked with 62 residents
(served by a single business).
After WWII,
it had declined to thirty people and had only the school, church and
one business. It hit rock bottom in the mid 1960s when ten residents
were reported - the same number used for the 2000 census.
|
A Country Drive
to Stampede
FM
116: In The Shadow of Fort Hood
by Clay Coppedge
Driving north from Copperas Cove
to Gatesville on FM 116 you're never
far from Fort Hood. ... Copperas
Cove is ringed by five hills, a pattern drivers will see repeated
on the way to Gatesville. A few
miles out of town you come to FM 580, and if you just feel like it
you can detour to the town of Topsey...
If, instead of heading to Topsey you
get on 116 you will drive up on a green, bowl-shaped valley cut by
scenic creeks. Nestled between the hills and creeks is the community
of Pidcoke, named for the Pidcocke
family, early English colonists to the area. It's not hard to see
what drew the Pidcockes here. The creeks would have been as good a
reason to settle here as anything. This is good ranch country; the
best side of the grass is already topside.
A detour in Pidcoke to see the local cemetery is a good one, but follow
the road past the cemetery to catch some fine glimpses of Bee House
Creek and a couple of panoramas of the valley. Bee
House was once the home of a communal house called Bee House Hall.
Residents wanted to name the community Bee Hive but the post office
decided it would be Bee House instead.....
Six miles southeast of Pidcoke used to be the community of Stampede,
which had about 40 families living there in 1917. The town disappeared
when Fort Hood was established in the early 1940s. Looking for it
today, the only reminder might be the sound of artillery sounding
like thunder off in the distance.... [Read
full article] |
 |
1907
Texas Post Map showing Stampede
(In northern Bell County
near Coryell County
line)
From Texas state map #2090
Courtesy Texas General Land Office |
| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories,
landmarks and recent or vintage photos, please contact
us. |
|
|
HOME
