Wichita Falls, Texas, Wichita County Seat. (original) (raw)

Wichita Falls was named after the river that was named after the Indians. The original falls have been lost, but replica falls have been built in recent years. Conveniently located off I-44.

A timeline of Wichita Falls significant events:

• John Scott acquires land in poker game that becomes Wichita Falls (folklore)
• 1875: John Converse opens first store in the area
• 1876: Town platted by M. W. Seeley, hired by heirs of John Scott
• 1879: 1879 Post Office approved
• 1880: 1880 First School opened
• 1882: The Fort Worth and Denver Railroad reach Wichita Falls
• 1883: Major flood washes away the town's namesake waterfall/ Joseph Kemp opens store
• 1900: Lake Wichita Project set in motion
• 1917: Population is 18,000 - mostly agricultural employment
• 1918: Discovery of oil at Burkeburnett increases population to 40,000
• 1920: Irrigation Project allowed irrigation for Wichita, Archer and Baylor Counties
• 1928: Airline passenger service is started
• 1941: Sheppard Field Opened for Air Corps training
• 1979: Huge tornado hits the city killing 45 and destroying 20% of homes

Oil Fields in Wichita Falls
Postcard courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/

Oil Capital

In the first quarter of the 20th century, Wichita Falls had offices for the major players in the oil business - The Texas Company (Texaco), Sinclair, Magnolia, Sun (Sunoco), Prairie (bought out) and Humble.

The Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad as well as the Fort Worth and Denver made Wichita Falls their headquarters.

In the 1920s Wichita Trucks were manufactured here and were sold in 68 Countries around the world.

During the oil boom multiple tracks were laid to Burkburnett and two additional railroads (The Wichita Falls and Northwestern and the Wichita, Ranger and Fort Worth) were financed by oil money. There were 30 refineries in the area, with 13 of them in the city limits.

Wichita Falls Landmarks / Attractions

The Kemp Building in Wichita Falls
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, April 2009

J.A. Kemp Wholesale Grocery Building historical marker
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, April 2009

St. James Hotel Historical Marker
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, April 2009

• Kell House: Historic home of Frank Kell - 900 Bluff Street
• Wichita Falls Fire and Police Museum:
  Avenue H and Giddings Street
• Wichita Falls Hotels

Nearby Destinations

• Lake Arrowhead State Park:
  229 Park Road 63, Wichita Falls, TX 76310. 940/528-2211
  524-acre park with camping, fishing, swimming and boating.
  14 miles South on 281 then East on FM 1954.
• Nearby lakes include Kemp, Kickapoo and Wichita.
• Wichita County Towns
• Do not miss Clara, Texas Escapes' favorite ghost town, or Fargo and Doan's Crossing in Wilbarger County.
• Wichita Falls Hotels

Wichita Falls - Lucy Park
Photo courtesy Holly Gibson, April 2015

Wichita Falls Chronicles:

• "I'm Shocked...Shocked..." by Mike Cox
  Long forgotten is an "I'm shocked...shocked..." editorial published on page one of the long-defunct Wichita Falls Daily Tribune on the morning of June 27, 1915. It's hard to believe the newspaper editor who wrote it had been as naive about his city as he professed to be, but maybe he was.
  To set the stage, Wichita Falls, founded only 33 years earlier, was then enjoying a boom thanks to major oil and gas discoveries in the area. And the party was just getting started. Within two years the town would be going crazy with oil wells sprouting between there and the Red River like so many weeds after a week-long rain.
  Wichita Falls was crowded with men come to make an honest living in the oil patch and men--and women--intent on making a less-than-honest living. But the editor of the Wichita Falls newspaper professed to be aware only of the first class of workers, not the second. That lasted until the night of June 26...
• The Haunted Asylum of Wichita Falls by Mike Cox
  Mix mentally ill stereotypes with death and you have the ingredients for some pretty frightening ghosts stories.
• Wichita Falls Falls for Flim Flam Brit by Mike Cox
  Before the wild oil boom that came with the discovery of a rich field, Wichita Falls was just a cattle town of around 5,000 folks. When a crisp and proper gentleman who spoke with a classic British accent arrived and took a room at the city�s best hotel, word got around quickly...
• Two Ranchhands Meet Judge Lynch by Mike Cox
  In the late winter of 1896, two Waggoner Ranch cowboys took a notion that robbing banks would be less work � and definitely more profitable -- than wrangling cattle... William Foster Crawford and Elmer �Kid� Lewis left the sprawling ranch and rode toward Wichita Falls... Bursting into City National Bank with pistols drawn...
• Ida Lee by C. F. Eckhardt
  On March 21, 1924, Mrs. Ida Lee Daughtery of Hall, Texas, died. She was a woman of some reputation�not as a �soiled dove,� but as a devoted wife.
• Elephant Execution in Witchita Falls by Mike Cox
  "Someday, perhaps, a work crew laying cable or pipe will unearth a large set of bones near a busy Wichita Falls intersection...."

Wichita Falls Vintage Photos

Downtown Wichita Falls
Postcard courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/

Wichita Falls' Bob Waggoner Building
Postcard courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/

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