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Texas Ghost
Town
AYR, TEXAS
Deaf Smith County,
Texas
Panhandle
No directions available
SW of Amarillo
Population: 0
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History
in a Pecan Shell
In January 1890 the Fort Worth and Denver City Railway sent fifteen
surveyors to survey a potential spur. The FW & D was in competetion
with the Santa Fe Railroad and the mission (to create a shipping point
for area ranches from Roswell, New Mexico to Big
Spring) was a secret one.
Five miles from the center of the county a townsite was platted and
named for the Scottish city of Ayr. Early the next spring, land buyers
came to the region and settlement was begun. A store was built and
a post office opened. Success looked assured - except for the rival
town of Grenada. This town, which later changed its name to La Plata,
was under the direct control of the XIT Ranch.
The all-too-familiar battle for county seat status began. It looked
so serious that Texas Rangers were stationed at Ayr as a precaution.
In October of 1890, La Plata won the election. The count was 97-7.
There were allegations of fraud, but the vote stood. The spur project
was abandoned and the post office was discontinued.
Ayr's brief life-span was a mere five years. |
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