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PONTOTOC,
TEXAS
Mason County, Texas
Hill Country
Hwy 71 and FM 501
W of Llano
About 95 miles NW of Austin
Population: 125 est.
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TE photo
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Ruins
in Pontotoc
Photo courtesy Erik Whetstone, August 2005 |
History
in a Pecan Shell
The owner of the town's first store came from Pontotoc, Mississippi
so that's likely the source. The town dates from the arrival of several
families in 1859 and a post office was established in 1880.
The San Fernando Academy was founded in 1882 and Pontotoc's success
seemed a certainty. That was until a typhoid fever epidemic decimated
the population.
In Van Horn they bragged
the town was so healthy they had to shoot a man to start a cemetery.
In Pontotoc it became so unhealthy that in 1887 they filled up one
cemetery and had to open another in 1888.
A proposal was made in 1890 for Pontotoc to become the county seat
of a new county to be named Mineral. But the citizens of Mason felt
it would take too much Mason County acreage and they collectively
threw a wrench in the legislative works.
Pontotoc never got a railroad although several came within a few miles
of the town. The Academy closed in 1890 and the decline began.
A small boom in the form of a mica-mining operation came about in
the 1920s which increased the population by 50% but even then - it
only reached 300.
A disastrous fire in August 1947 took out a good portion of the stores
downtown.
The town wisely left several of the fire-gutted stone buildings and
the photo opportunities are worth driving out of the way for.
© John Troesser |
| Photo
courtesy Erik Whetstone, August 2005 |
| Photo
courtesy Erik Whetstone, August 2005 |
In Pontotoc,
even the ruins have a picket fence
Photo by John Troesser, September 2000 |
L -
The handsome ruins of the former San Fernando Academy
R - Well drilling business in Pontotoc
Photos by John Troesser, September 2000 |
Another
view of the ruins
Photo by John Troesser, Sept. 2000 |
Pontotoc
Texas Post Office
Photo by John Troesser, Sept. 2000 |
Downtown
Pontotoc
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, January 2006 |
A closed
gas station
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, January 2006 |
Pontotoc
Texas Forum
In Everyone
We Trust
Back in the Summer of 2001, my family and I were on a trip and stopped
in Pontotoc. We had recently moved to San
Angelo and were in route to Austin
.
In that part of Texas, there are few towns between the cities so
when we saw a sign for Pontotoc, we decided to stop and find a store.
The town looked just like the pictures you have posted and to our
surprise, there actually was a little store, so to speak.
Having 3 small children, invariably somebody had to go to the bathroom
and everybody wanted a drink. We went into the store but found nobody
there. Assuming somebody would show up, we waited for about10 minutes
but nobody appeared. I happened to notice that on the counter there
was a note pad where people had put their names and what they had
purchased. After 10 minutes alone in the store, we decided to write
down what we were purchasing, we noted how much each item cost (guessed
if the price was not on the item) and left a suitable amount of
money to cover the tab. We merrily left the store realizing what
a unique town Pontotoc is. Over the next couple of years while we
lived in San
Angelo, every time we drove through Pontotoc, my wife and I
would laugh about our experience at the Pontotoc store. - Grant
Nichols, San Antonio, June 01, 2007
I had the
chance to drive through Pontotoc last Saturday. I decided to check
your superb website for a taste of what I missed but could see again
this weekend. I was surprised to see "Pontotoc still has a newspaper
(The Enterprise) for its estimated population of 125" written on
the Pontotoc page. I was curious enough to call the post office
to ask if the Enterprise was still being printed (as there was no
phone listing for the paper). The two ladies I spoke to said Pontotoc
didn't have a newspaper (one has lived in Pontotoc for 50 years).
For the record, they wish there was a newspaper. Since I believe
in the accuracy of your site, I'll ask around this weekend. In the
meantime, do you know if the Pontotoc Enterprise is still published?
Have you seen an edition? Thanks. - Bill Turner, August 12, 2004
Anyone with stories, photos or incidents of Pontotoc's history is
invited to share them with our readers. Please contact
us.
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