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High School
in Iowa Park
1900s photo courtesy texasoldphotos.com |
History
in a Pecan shell
The town, originally named Daggett Switch was founded in 1888 alongside
the tracks of the Fort Worth and Denver City Railway by D. C. and
A. J. Kolp. When the Texas Panhandle Company brought in prospective
buyers from Iowa around 1888, it seemed that a change of name was
in order. It occured with the opening of the post office that year.
The town was officially launched on a disasterous note. Shortly after
incorporation, a good portion of the town burned. It soon became a
shipping point for cotton and wheat. Hard times came in the early
1890s when a drought hit, but by the time 1900 arrived the town had
a respectible population of nearly 800.
The population fell during the mid teens but an oil discovery in 1918
righted the dip. By 1926 the population was just over 2,000. A cement
highway connecting Iowa Park with Wichita Falls was built in 1927.
In the mid 30s Iowa Park managed to keep its populatiuon near 2,000
while most other towns declined.
Sheppard Air Force Base provided a shot in the arm in the 1950s but
by the end of the decade the population was still hovering around
the 2,100 mark. By the late 60s the pulation had swelled to nearly
5,000 and increased further to 6,200 in the 70s. |
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