|
|
SAN ANGELO,
TEXAS
Tom Green County,
West Texas / Panhandle
State Highways 126, 208
US Highways 67, 87, 277
220 miles from San Antonio
86 miles SE of Big
Spring
43 miles SE of Sterling
City
Population: 88,439 (2000)
|
|
|
Cactus
Hotel Lobby
Photo courtesy Lou Ann Herda, 2001 |
| |
|
|
San
Angelo from the 15th floor of the Cactus Hotel
Photo courtesy Lou Ann Herda |
| |
SAN ANGELO
LANDMARKS and ATTRACTIONS:
|
Tom
Green County Courthouse
The Orient-Santa
Fe Depot: 703 S. Chadbourne Street - Museum featuring West Texas
Railroading.
Concho
Avenue: Many fine examples of San Angelo's early architecture,
beautifully restored.
San Angelo
State Park: Camping, boating and fishing on 7,000 acres on O.
C. Fisher Reservoir.
3900 - 2 Mercedes San Angelo TX 76901
325-949-4757
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/park/sanangel/
|
|
|
Fort
Concho:
The best preserved of the chain of forts across Texas. Twenty-three
buildings on 40 acres make up this National Historic Landmark.
|
|
|
Running
of the Sheep
by Audrey A. Herbrich
On the last Saturday in September, local West Texan’s showcase
their idea of “fun” by releasing a herd of sheep in the downtown
streets.
|
|
History in
a Pecan Shell
San Angelo had originally been named after the wife (or some say
the sister-in-law) of Bartholomew DeWitt. Mr. DeWitt had bought
the 360 acres opposite Fort Concho for $1.00 per acre. The town
had been spelled San Angela but that spelling was rejected by the
postal authorities for its "ungrammatical construction". They would
accept either Santa Angela or San Angelo and so the city fathers
chose the easier-to-pronounce San Angelo.
San Angelo grew as a direct result of its proximity to Fort Concho.
The town was a pretty rowdy place, and so was the fort. But Fort
Concho's post hospital (built in the 1870s) served as the city hospital
until St. John's Hospital and Health Center was constructed in 1910.
Five miles away from the fort - a rival town was prospering and
indeed, it became the county seat. But the town, later to be named
Ben Ficklin was washed away in an 1882 flood. Ben
Ficklin's colorful story is worth reading.
After the courthouse at Ben Ficklin was swept away, San Angelo became
the logical choice for the county seat. Shortly after the flood,
Oscar Ruffini showed up and asked if anyone needed a courthouse.
They did.
Ruffini had been sent west for his health and ended up outliving
his "healthy" brother by decades. He stayed in San Angelo and made
it his home, dying in the late 1950s. He is said to have contributed
more than 40 buildings to the city - some of which are still standing.
Between Oscar and brother F. E. - the Ruffini Brothers dotted the
Texas landscape with courthouses, jails and durable structures from
McKinney (The Collin
County Prison) to the Concho County courthouse in Paint Rock.
San Angelo has always had a diverse economy. It developed a sheep
raising industry in the 1870s and the railroad came through in 1888.
Oil discoveries helped and in 1940 Goodfellow Air Field was developed,
which later became Goodfellow Air Force Base.
|
San
Angelo Chronicles
Dead Ellis
by Mike Cox (From "Texas Tales" Column)
Docents guiding tours of Fort Concho's reconstructed hospital
still tell the story of “Dead” Ellis. |
|
|
A
postcard image of The Cactus Hotel
TE archive |
San Angelo
Tourist Information
San Angelo
Chamber of Commerce
500 Rio Concho Drive, San Angelo, Tx 76903
Phone: 325-655-4136, 1-800-375-1206
Website: www.sanangelo-tx.com
Book Your Hotel Here & Save
San
Angelo Hotels
More
Hotels
|
San Angelo
Texas Forum
I recently
purchased a travel book on Texas here in Germany, in which they
focused on about five cities in Texas and San Angelo was one of
them. They pointed out that San Angelo, in their opinion, is the
real Texas, with genuine friendly people, etc. I am very proud of
my home!! Take care and best greetings from Hamburg, Germany - Glenn
Du Pree, December 2001
Anyone
wishing to share travel, history or photos of San Angelo, please
contact
us.
© John Troesser
|
|
|
