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Texas
Railroads were unquestionably the biggest economic force in Texas
after the Civil War and before the discovery
of oil. Towns were born, nurtured or killed
at the whim of railroad planners.
In this feature we examine the locomotives
and perhaps some of the loco motives behind the planning. After the early immigrations,
prior to the Civil War, railroads opened up the rest of the state to new groups
or to people transmigrating from other parts of the U.S.
Here are railroad
stations, steam engines, cabooses and rolling stock. Here are short line railroads,
railroad bridges and even a few train wrecks. It's a collection of railroad relics,
railroad stories and railroad towns discovered during our statewide research.
It's brightly painted heavy metal with a light coat of oil. |
| The
Fredericksburg & Northern Railroad |
| | The
Little Engine That Couldn't by C. F. Eckhardt
"...
Even after the War, with much improved roads and a much lessened Indian problem,
it still took freight wagons the better part of a week to travel from San Antonio
to Fredericksburg... The people north and west of San Antonio wanted and needed
a railroad..."
Photos courtesy Sarah Reveley and Terry JeansonRailroad
in the Red, and Brazilian Bats by Mike Cox
"Some three million
Brazilian free-tailed bats live in the abandoned tunnel from May through October
each year, along with a much smaller population of Cave myotis bats." |
Storms,
railroads shape area history by Delbert Trew 3-6-12
Long
before the town of Spearman was born, the settlement of Hansford became the county
seat with the winning votes for the election swung by “the use of a three-seated
hack and liberal doses of Dodge City tarantula juice.” Their new frame courthouse
was nearing completion in 1891 when a cyclone struck...Best
western was not always best by Delbert Trew 2-28-12
Until
the driving of The Golden Spike in 1869, signaling the coming of The Railroad
Age, accommodations along the various trails, stage routes, freight routes and
river routes were a tragedy to most travelers.Sawyers
and Flatheads by Bob Bowman 2-22-12
In the Northwest,
they were called lumberjacks, but in East Texas they were called “sawyers” or
“flatheads.” A hardy breed with a broad streak of independence, they were as colorful
as they were hard working.Trew
Ranch hosted Rockledge rail site by Delbert Trew 1-7-12
From
1900 to 1902, Rock Island Railroad built tracks from Oklahoma to Tucumcari, N.M.
From today’s Jericho to Alanreed, the track followed Old Trail’s Ridge, dividing
the Salt Fork of the Red River and McClellan Creek watersheds. It also was the
early day mail route from Old Clarendon to Mobeetie... The
Beer Train by Mike
Cox
A wreck blocking the mainline between Austin and San Antonio was bad enough,
but this derailment was even worse. Not only had there been casualties, ... the
refrigerated cars telescoped on each other held a liquid cargo capable of causing
problems. While not explosive or toxic, a trainload of beer could be problematic.
Area
full of historical tidbits by Delbert Trew
The
1929 train wreck in Twist, TexasThe
Longest Train Ride by C. F. Eckhardt
"Train #1 of the Gulf & Interstate
Railroad, which left Beaumont, Texas, at 7:00 AM on September 8, 1900, to make
the run to Port Bolivar, about 85 miles away by modern highway, arrived at Port
Bolivar at 11:10 AM, September 24, 1903—three years, sixteen days, and ten minutes
late. Some of the original passengers were still aboard..."
Pioneer
Texas railroad system drew snickers by Delbert Trew
The career of friend
Gerald Hook of Russellville, Ark., spanned nearly 40 years in railroading plus
he is an avid historian on the subject. Among the more interesting history of
railroads is that of the Texas Panhandle. Here are a few tidbits... |
| | Tracks
by Billy B. Smith
"I have always loved railroads, both the
trains and tracks... One railroad line in particular has been for me an umbilical
cord that has connected me to my roots and my life. I have lived close to this
line for most of my life. It always reminds me of where I've been and where I
could have gone." |
Orphans
find homes in West by Delbert Trew
The Orphan Trains.Train
travelers owe much to service pioneer by Delbert Trew
Every traveler today,
no matter what mode of travel he prefers, owes a salute to the organizational
genius of Fred Harvey. This slender wisp of a man was all gentleman and laid the
groundwork and quality goals for travel hospitality, making such trips comfortable,
reliable and enjoyable.
Built
it and they will ride it by Archie P. McDonald
Most motorists traveling
down Bremond Street in Houston, Lufkin, and Nacogdoches, or likely any street
along US Highway 59 from Houston to north of Nacogdoches, haven't a clue of the
debt East Texas owes to Paul Bremond... The
Conroe, Byspot and Northern: A Tram Railroad That Time Forgot by W. T.
Block, Jr.
The Conroe, Byspot and Northern was never a chartered short-line
railroad, but it nevertheless carried on many of the activities typical of a chartered
railroad... |
Amarillo
Symphony by Mike Cox
"For all Amarilloans, those whistles
— long since replaced by more prosaic air horns — represent the sound of a city’s
history."
Bet-A-Million
Gates by Archie P. McDonald
John Warne Gates, a native of Winfield,
Illinois, became associated with three of Texas’ most important items: barbed
wire, railroads, and oil."Struck
on the head by a Locomotive" Early Waco Obituaries 1874-1908.
Judging by these entries, the good old days didn't quite live up to the reputation.Railroads
by Archie P. McDonald
Trains are still crucial for moving freight,
despite competition from trucks. Airplanes and cars move people. Some folks are
fond of these. Johnny Cash and I have a thing about trains.Hell
Either Way Taken by Archie P. McDonaldDenison,
Birth Place of a President by Archie P. McDonaldRevisiting
The Rabbit by Bob BowmanA
Railroad Centennial by Bob BowmanThe
Iron Road Sorority: Penelope, May, Pearl, and Venus by John TroesserSlaton
Harvey House |
Texas
Train Robberies
Bud
Newman Gang by Mike Cox
A little more than a year after the Comstock shooting,
newspapers readers learned that west-bound SP passenger train No. 20 had been
robbed around midnight on Dec. 20, 1896 near Cow Creek less than a mile west of
Comstock....
Bud Newman, part II by Mike
Cox
About 11 p.m. on June 9, 1898 at a point called Coleman Switch about four
miles west of Santa Anna, Newman and three other masked men descended on a Santa
Fe passenger train...A
Railroad Holdup by Bob Bowman
Railroaders love to tell stories,
and the one they relish the most is about the railroad president and the holdup
man.The
Tall Texan : The Story of Ben Kilpatrick by Arthur Soule The
Last Full-sized Train Robbery in Texas by Brewster Hudspeth |
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