Ibex, TX, oil boom ghost town history, refinery ruins photos, travel. (original) (raw)

Refinery smokestacks ruins
Photo courtesy Dusty Martin, June 2018

History in a Pecan Shell

Ibex has no 19th Century history, appearing in 1921 with the discovery of oil by the Colorado oil company Ibex (hence the name). Eager to exploit the reserves, a huge and costly ($300,000) refinery was constructed. Ibex became a boom town - a magnet for unemployed roughnecks and roustabouts plus their families.

A post office opened in 1923 although it's lifespan was brief. Ibex had the necessary businesses for longevity, including civilizing amenities like a four room school that saw triple duty as a church and meeting house.

Ibex's death was the result of a fire in 1925. Production decreased to a fraction of its previous output and people fled, seeking work in other boomtowns or cities with a more stable economy.

Enough people remained for 48 people to be counted in 1948, but by 1960, it had dropped to a mere 35 residents - a figure it has retained for the 1970, 1980 and 1990 census. It has transformed into an agricultural community but its brief "golden years" are in the distant past. In the mid 1990s the population was somewhere around 25.

Plans for an upcoming Centennial celebration / observation are still under discussion as of September, 2018.

Ibex Historical Marker
FM 601, 9 miles SE of Albany
Photo courtesy Dusty Martin, June 2018

Ibex smokestack & foundations
Photo courtesy Dusty Martin, June 2018

Smokestacks & foundations
Photo courtesy Dusty Martin, June 2018

Foundations among cactus
Photo courtesy Dusty Martin, June 2018

Texas Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories, landmarks and recent or vintage photos, please contact us.