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Uvalde
at dusk
TE photo, 2001 |
History
in a Pecan Shell
The town was founded by Reading W. Black in 1854. The name he chose
for the new town was Encina.
A monument to Black in the form
of a huge petrified tree trunk sits in the very spacious and under-used Pioneer
Cemetery which is the entire 500 block of N. Park Street.
A historical
marker telling the story of notorious King Fisher is also found here.
The flamboyant and
handsome John King Fisher was a gunman turned lawman. He occasionally protected
the area against banditti from Mexico
- but it may have also been to protect his huge claim of land. Fisher wore Leopard
chaps - obtained legend says, when he shot a caged tiger at a circus and paid
the circus manager the going rate for leopards.
Fisher was shot in the
staircase of a Vaudeville theater in San
Antonio with Ben Thompson, Austin's
Marshall. Both were slain by assassins before they could draw their guns in the
narrow stairwell. |
Founder's plaque
TE photo | |
| | One
of Uvalde's former citizens was brought home from Mexico for burial
TE photo |
| | Fort
Inge, just one and a half miles south and east of town, protected Uvalde's
citizens from Indian raids. The county was organized in 1856 and the following
year they were granted a post office.
The town and county were named
after Juan de Ugalde, the former Spanish Governor, but the name was corrupted
with time into the current spelling.
The population of Uvalde
was 2,000 people in 1890 and in addition to the East-West Railroad - shorter lines
extended North and South to Camp
Wood and Crystal City.
Uvalde
High School, TE photo |
| | Garner
Memorial Museum in Uvalde
TE photo |
John
Nance Garner, Vice-President of the United States under Roosevelt bequeathed
his home for use as a museum and is buried just west of town. Garner was famous
for his fairness, his outspoken manner and his crusty personality.
Garner loved this part
of Texas. He was very good friends with fellow Texan Sam Rayburn of Bonham.
© John Troesser
|
PEOPLE
FDR by Mike Cox ("TexasTales"
Column)
... In his memoir, Smith remembered Sept. 27, 1942
as a quiet, hot day. When the special pulled into the small Uvalde depot about
noon that Sunday, only one man in town, and only a handful in Texas, knew why
the train had stopped or who sat in one of the cars... more
The
Day I Rode with the Newton Boys by Linda-Kirkpatrick
The notorious
Newton Boys played havoc on banks and trains during the Roaring Twenties... The
Boys called Uvalde home off and on and it is ironic that the movie of their life
starred Uvalde native, Matthew McConaughey. |
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The Uvalde
Grand Opera House c. 1891
TE photo |
Uvalde
Attractions The
Uvalde County Courthouse
Pioneer
Cemetery
Fort
Inge County Park on the Leona River -
site of former U.S. Cavalry outpost
c. 1849.
Garner
State Park : 26 miles North of town off Hwy 83For
scenic drive, continue onto Leakey,
take FM
337 to Vanderpool
to Lost
Maples Natural Area.
Aviation
Museum of Texas: Just East of Uvalde at the airport.
Garner
Memorial Museum: 333 N. Park St. Grand
Opera House c. 1891:
Open Monday through Friday 9 to 3 for tours.
Fish Hatchery:
FM 481 South -
A Federal facility for warm water fish.
Chamber of Commerce: 300 E. Main St. Uvalde, TX 78801
830-278-3361
Website: www.uvalde.org
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