Texas Historical Marker #05495
Tokio School. Early classes in the Tokio area were held in the ranch house of the J Cross Ranch near the turn of the century. In 1911, a school building was constructed near the center of town (about 300 feet N), and classes were relocated. Larger school buildings later were erected, once due to fire and twice due to changing space needs. The school facilities continued to serve the community's educational as well as religious and civic needs until 1941 when Tokio School was consolidated with the Brownfield Independent School District. #5495
14 mi. W on US 380/82, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #02211
Gomez. In 1903, owners of land here in center of then-unorganized Terry County platted this town, secured a post office named for Spanish-American patriot Maximo Gomez, drilled a public water well, and induced merchants and citizens to move here. This was the first inhabited townsite in the county. Its promoters hoped it would be the county seat, but that honor went to Brownfield (4.4 mi. E) in 1904 when the county was organized. Gomez had a post office until 1926, school until 1941. A church, some businesses (.75 mi. NW), and the old cemetery retain the name. #2211
4.4 mi. W on US 380, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #02212
Gomez Baptist Church. On August 3, 1903, nine worshipers gathered together to organize a Baptist church. Led by the Rev. J. R. Miller, the congregation met once a month in the Gomez schoolhouse. A one-room sanctuary, erected in 1909, was moved three-quarters of a mile northwest when Gomez was relocated due to highway construction. A larger church building was erected in 1936, and by 1942 the church had its first full-time pastor. The Gomez School, converted for church use in 1953, was destroyed by fire in 1960 and was replaced by a new structure. 1988 #2212
6 mi. W on US 380, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #02213
Gomez Cemetery. Established in 1902 in Gomez (then 0.5 mi. W of here), first settlement in Terry County. Original 4-acre tract was deeded to Gomez School trustees in 1906 by pioneer settler H. F. Adams. Some of earliest settlers are buried here. Many graves were moved to Brownfield in 1918. (1970) #2213
?, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #05233
Terry County. Formed from Young and Bexar territories; created August 21, 1876, organized June 28, 1904. Named in honor of Colonel Benjamin Franklin Terry 1821-1861. Leader of the famous Terry's Texas Rangers. Brownfield, the county seat primarily a farming area. #5233
10 mi. E on US 380/82, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #05387
The Oak Grove. Landmark for pioneers, freighters, these "Shin-Oaks" are unusual for growing spontaneously on treeless high plains. #5387
US 62/82 at north city limits, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #00056
A. M. Brownfield Home. A. M. Brownfield, for whose family this town was named, came to Terry County as a rancher in 1900. An early community leader, he organized the Brownfield State Bank in 1905. Built as a home for his family in 1928, this structure exhibits influences of the Spanish colonial style of architecture. The concrete and clay building materials were used to make the home as fireproof as possible, since an earlier family residence had been destroyed by fire in 1915. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1985. #56
600 E. Cardwell, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #00881
City of Brownfield. County seat of Terry County, founded in 1903 by developers W. G. Hardin and A. F. Small. Named for Brownfield family, prominent property owners and ranchers in the area. Measuring with only 100 feet of wire, Hardin and Small laid out a town on this site (then a pasture) and offered a lot to each voter in county. Streets (named for first settlers) were designated and a general store, hotel, and school were built. In 1904 the town vied with Gomez for county seat, winning by slim margin. Present economy is based on farming and oil. (1971) #881
US 380, at Courthouse, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03159
M. B. Sawyer Ranch House. Home of Monroe Brown Sawyer and wife Rebecca (Skeen); built 1902. One of earliest homes in Terry County, it predated town of Brownfield. Building material for original five rooms was hauled from Colorado City and Big Spring by wagon. House has been remodeled extensively. In 1881 and 1882 M. B. Sawyer was a Texas Ranger, Company C, Frontier Battalion. He expanded 21 sections of land, bought in 1901, into a 33-section ranch. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1970. #3159
7.3 mi. S on FM 403; 0.25 mi. E on Co. Rd., Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03186
Maids and Matrons Club. In 1906, three years after the founding of Brownfield, eleven women gathered together to form a club. Named Maids and Matrons, the club became primarily a study group in 1907, and the members founded the town's first library that year. Affiliated with the Texas Federation of Women's Clubs in 1915, the club continued to operate at the library and supported numerous civic causes. When the Kendrick Memorial County Library was organized in 1957, the club donated their 3,000-volume collection of books to form the nucleus of the institution's holdings. #3186
702 E. Broadway, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #12226
Forrester Cemetery. Longtime residents recall the burial of a woman, probably Mrs. W. C. Lusk, on this site in 1922 or 1923. Other burials occurred here as well, in what was then an open field on J. A. Forrester's farm. Forrester and his wife Nealie sold a two-acre plot, which became known as Forrester Cemetery, to the Union Independent School District in 1925. The first recorded burial was that of Edna Mae Edwards, an infant who was born and died on April 23, 1926. The many unmarked and children's graves reflect the harsh conditions of farm life in the early part of the century. The last recorded burial was that of Melvin Hill in 1961. The cemetery is all that remains of the community. (1998) #12226
?, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #13052
First Baptist Church of Brownfield. Circuit riding preachers led early Brownfield settlers in religious services at a local schoolhouse. On April 1, 1906, several area residents formed a Baptist church. The Rev. M.D. Williams became the congregation's first pastor. The church built its first sanctuary in 1910 in the 300 block of West Hill Street. The Woman's Missionary Society raised funds for the lumber, and the men constructed the building. Facilities were added as needed until 1923, when the church began plans for a new house of worship at the present site. The mission-minded congregation and its facilities have continued to grow, sponsoring projects locally and worldwide. (2004) #13052
219 W Main, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #13231
Site of Joe T. and Laura Hamilton Home. In 1885, Joseph Thomas Hamilton (1856-1932) married Laura Letha Franklin (1867-1936) in Franklin County, Texas. Natives of southern U.S. states, the couple moved west with their first three children and settled here in 1902, before Terry County was organized. In 1907, they established a home near this site. Joe was a stock farmer, carpenter, mail carrier and livery worker, and he was one of three men contracted to build the county's first courthouse. Laura, in addition to managing a large household, often assisted neighbors as nurse and midwife. Today, ths site is a link to the early pioneers who built Brownfield and surrounding communities. (2005) #13231
US 385, US 62/82, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03718
Old Daugherty House. Built for F. M. Daugherty about 1904, one year after son-in-law A. M. Brownfield helped found town. Lumber was hauled here by wagon. Style is typical of era. Site of early gatherings. Later home of the local midwife. Has been remodeled. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1969. #3718
1206 Tahoka Road, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #05234
Terry County's First Jail. Terry County, organized in 1904, had no jail facility until this frame structure was erected in 1916 on the southeast corner of the courthouse square. The one-room building with two steel cells was replaced in 1926 by a jail located on the top floor of the new courthouse. This small structure then became property of A. T. Fowler, who moved it to his farm in the 1940s. The outside walls were plastered and the interior used for storage. Given to Terry County Heritage Museum in 1974 by A. T. and Terrell Fowler, the old jail was transferred to this site and restored. #5234
608 E. Cardwell, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #12225
Brownfield Cemetery. The first public burial ground in the new Terry County seat of Brownfield was begun in 1904 when 19-year-old Jessie Hill died and was interred here. By 1907, this land belonged to M. V. Brownfield; records do not indicate whether the cemetery was named for him or for the town. During World War I, the Great Depression and World War II, the cemetery fell into decline as local residents were unable to maintain it. Hispanic farm workers began to settle in this area in the 1940s and 1950s, and by the 1970s the cemetery reflected the change in population. A reorganization of the cemetery association in 1980 led to much-needed improvements. More than 2,000 graves, about 375 of them unmarked, graced the cemetery in 1999. The cemetery remains a chronicle of Terry County. (1999) #12225
?, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #00957
Colonel B. F. Terry and Terry's Texas Rangers. Native of Kentucky. Came to Texas 1831. Member Secession Convention. Commanded reinforcements of state troops sent to Rio Grande for the capture of Federal arms, property at Fort Brown. Went to Virginia hoping to be in first battle of war. Cited for valuable volunteer service in first Battle of Manassas. Returned to Texas with orders to raise cavalry regiment which soon attained fame as Terry's Rangers. Accepted his commission only when men elected him Colonel. Killed Woodsonville, Kentucky leading unit's first charge. His loyal Rangers carried his name until war's end. Buried Glenwood Cemetery, Houston. Terry's Texas Rangers - Ten companies of the "Kid Glove" gentry of Texas enlisted for the duration of the Civil War, forming the famed Terry's Texas Rangers. With their able leaders, this 8th Texas Cavalry Regiment joined Johnston's command in Kentucky. History finds it easy to call these Texas men fighters. They were excellent horsemen, marksmen, utterly reckless. Individual heroism was not uncommon. Their deeds were praised at Shiloh, Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, Bragg's Raid into Kentucky and their last charge at Bentonville, N.C. Called upon to cover retreats, to invade enemy lines to get information, harass the enemy and to lead charges. #957
US 380, at courthouse, Brownfield, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03188
Site of Mail Relay Station. (500 yards west) By 1903, W.J. (1858-1930) and Mary E. (1863-1958) French had built a two-story home near this site, and it was a stop for freighters from the Texas & Pacific Railroad. Freighter rigs usually consisted of two wagons drawn by several horses, and the Frenches offered a campground, water, hot meals and a horse pen. Cattle drovers also rested here on their way through the area. In 1905, the French home became a stop along a mail route from Lamesa, known then as Chicago, through Brownfield to Gomez, a 40-mile trip. The mail hacks also carried passengers. The mail service was discontinued in 1910 when the mail was rerouted. (1973, 2006) #3188
14.5 mi. SE on SH 137, Brownfield, TX, United States