Series 'Texas Historical Marker'
Texas Historical Marker #03913
Palacios Pavilions. In 1903 the Palacios townsite company arranged with the Southern Pacific Railroad to extend its line to the new city. The first train arrived on June 29, bringing prospective settlers from Midwestern states. The company began construction of a pavilion on the South Bay in June 1904. Designed by Victoria Architect Jules Leffland, it was built on a pier extending 400 feet into the bay. Called the Pleasure Pavilion, it consisted of a central round two-story open-air pavilion with boat docks and bathers' dressing rooms extending along the pier. It quickly became the social center of the town, offering such activities as swimming, boating, dancing, skating, and basketball games. The Pleasure Pavilion sustained hurricane damage in 1915, 1919, and 1934. Under the direction of a local seawall commission and with funding from the federal public works administration, it was razed in 1935 and replaced with a new pavilion, called the roundhouse. The roundhouse pavilion continued to be the focal point of community activities, especially during the war year of the 1940's and the early 1950's. It was destroyed by hurricane Carla in 1961, and eventually the city erected a smaller open-air pavilion in its place. (1991) #3913
?, Palacios, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03914
Palacios Preparatory School. Opened in 1910, the Palacios Preparatory School was located at this site, behind the family home of its founder, Martha Pearl Dickson McGuire (1876-1962), and her family. Music instruction was given in upstairs rooms of the home. It was the first Palacios school to offer courses in cultural arts in addition to academics. Students performed twice a year in public programs. As many as sixty pupils were enrolled, and parents often traded labor on school projects for childrens' tuition. The school closed in 1918, when the McGuire family moved to Palestine, Texas. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986 #3914
?, Palacios, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03915
Palava Cemetery. Originally named Center Point, the town of Palava traces its history to early settlement in this area in the late 1870s. It was renamed when the U.S. Government granted a request to establish a post office here in 1900. Stella A. Daniel, member of a pioneer Fisher County family, served as the town's first postmaster. As more settlers arrived in the early 1900s, the town grew into a cotton marketing center. At its peak Palava boasted homes, four churches, a school, and such businesses as a cotton gin, retail stores, blacksmith shop, barber shop, and cafe. Although the oldest documented burials in the Palava Cemetery date to 1893, it is believed there are unmarked graves from as early as 1855. Interments include those of veterans of the Civil War, World War I, World War II, and Vietnam. Also buried here is Charles Byrd (d. 1912), who served as a Texas Ranger in the Frontier Battalion in the 1870s. After the Palava School was consolidated with the Sweetwater School District in 1954, the community began to decline. The Palava Cemetery is now the only physical reminder of a once thriving town. It serves as a memorial to the area's pioneers. (1990) #3915
?, Roby, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03916
Palestine Missionary Baptist Church. Twenty-one former slaves gathered together at the corner of Convent and Depot streets on June 27, 1868, and formally organized the First Colored Baptist Church in Victoria County. It was renamed Palestine Missionary Baptist Church on September 11, 1868. That same month property was conveyed for the town's first freedmen's school, named Brauns Colored School. Early Baptist worship services were held in Brauns school and at Frazier Colored Methodist School at the corner of Convent and River Streets. Under the leadership of the Rev. Mitchell Harrison, the members of Palestine Missionary Baptist Church built their first sanctuary between 1871 and 1873. It was replaced in 1886 with a larger structure built on the corner of Convent and Navarro Streets. A new brick church building was erected at the corner of Convent and Depot streets in 1953. Throughout its history, this church has maintained programs with an emphasis on educational, social, civic, and missionary responsibilities. Members of the church have played an important role in community activities, and over the years four additional congregations were formed from the Palestine Missionary Baptist Church fellowship. (1991) #3916
608 E. Convent Street, Victoria, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03917
Palmetto Pilings. These Palmetto piling are the remains of the Boca Chica Crossing of the Railroad from Boca Chica inlet to White's Ranch on the Rio Grande. Begun by General Francis H. Herron, U.S.A., in 1864 and completed in 1865 by General Philip H. Sheridan for the transportation of military supplies. The Cypress piling 1,000 feet north are what remain of a floating bridge constructed across Boca Chica Inlet by General Zachary Taylor in 1846 as a part of the road from Brazos Santiago to the White Ranch Landing and Clarksville on the Rio Grande, for transportation of military supplies. #3917
?, Brownsville, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03918
Palo Duro Canyon. Two miles north of here General Ranald S. Mackenzie, 41st U.S. Cavalry, ordered shot the 1450 horses captured from Indians in battle in Palo Duro Canyon, September 28, 1874, to prevent their possible recovery by the Indians to return to their reservations on foot. #3918
17 mi. E on SH 86, Tulia, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03919
Palo Pinto Cemetery. This cemetery traces its history to 1857 when a 320-acre tract of land was surveyed for the original Palo Pinto townsite. The town was platted in 1858 and one block was laid around an existing cemetery. In 1880 Palo Pinto citizens purchased the graveyard from the county. The oldest legible grave marker is that of George W. Slaughter (May 6, 1843-June 15, 1860). Those interred here include area pioneers, military veterans, Texas Rangers, and prominent Palo Pinto citizens. The Palo Pinto Cemetery Association was organized in 1974 to provide maintenance for the cemetery. (1992) #3919
?, Palo Pinto, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03920
Palo Pinto County. Created August 27, 1856, from Navarro and Bosque counties; organized in 1857. Spanish name Palo Pinto refers to spotted oak, a common regional tree having bark with a mottled appearance. Good hunting and abundant water made area a favored indian locality. The first anglo-american settlers arrived in 1850's, including Texas cattlemen and trail-blazers Charles Goodnight and Oliver Loving. The discovery, in 1880, of mineral water and arrival of Texas & Pacific railroad brought an influx of settlers and helped establish a strong economy. The county seat, first named Golconda in 1856, was renamed Palo Pinto in 1858. Erected by the State of Texas -1973 #3920
?, Palo Pinto, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03921
Palo Pinto Methodist Church. Methodist services in this area began about 1859, when the Rev. Matt Williams, a circuit-riding minister, helped organize this congregation. A church building was erected that year, and in 1866 the Rev. Melton Jones was appointed to the Palo Pinto Mission. The Methodists shared a structure built in 1885 with other denominations. A new Methodist sanctuary was built in 1936. Additional facilities were later built for educational and social activities. A part of Palo Pinto history for more than a century, this church remains an integral part of the community. (1994) #3921
?, Palo Pinto, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03922
Pampa. In 1888 a telegraph station on the Southern Kansas Railroad developed here, and was named Glasgow. Renamed Sutton a year later, a post office was established in 1892 and the town was named Pampa by George Tyng (d. 1906), manager of the White Deer Land Company. Surveyor A. H. Doucette (1884-1964) laid out the town in 1902. The first school opened in 1903 and the first church was organized in 1906. J. N. Duncan (1858-1941) became Pampa's first mayor in 1912. Following a 1920s oil boom, the county seat was moved here from Lefors in 1928. #3922
1 Albert Square, Pampa, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03923
Pampa City Hall. Construction of this and other major downtown buildings in Pampa came as a result of the Texas Panhandle Oil Boom of the late 1920s and early 1930s. Designed by architect William R. Kaufman to complement the Gray County Courthouse, which he also designed, the City Hall was completed in December 1930. The beaux arts style building features triumphal arch entrances with classical detailing and pilaster elements around the perimeter. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1987 #3923
1 Albert Square, Pampa, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03924
Pan American Airways Blind Flying School. The development of Mexican oil fields by North American corporations during the 1920s led to a need for reliable transportation into Mexico's interior. As a result, Brownsville soon became a pioneer training center for the now highly technical craft of blind flying, or piloting an aircraft by the use of navigation instruments. In 1929, the Mexican division of Pan American Airways opened a school for instrumentation flying at the Brownsville Airport. The training course was later extended to all divisions of the company. #3924
?, Brownsville, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03925
Pan American Round Table. Mrs. Florence Terry Griswold (1875-1941), a native Texan reared along the Mexican border, provided aid to refugees of Mexico's 1910 revolution. On October 16, 1916, she and 21 friends met at the historic Menger Hotel to found the Pan American Round Table, a union of women dedicated to mutal knowledge,understanding and friendship among women of the wesern hemisphere. Growing to include 166 tables in 16 countries by 1989, the movement has promoted its goals with such projects as contributions to libraries and awarding of scholarships. #3925
?, San Antonio, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03926
Panhandle. In 1880s, capital of Panhandle area. Settled when slaughter of buffalo sent Indians to live on reservations. Terminus of Santa Fe Railway, 1887. Here immigrant trains brought colonists, who plowed old Indian range into wheat fields and civilization. Settlers banked here, saw the dentist, got supplies, lumber, mail, windmills, fencing. Was made county seat when Carson County was organized in 1888. Nearby is site of first oil well in area, drilled 1921. Also nearby, Pantex Farms of Texas Technological University, on site of World War II Ordnance Plant. #3926
117 South Main, Panhandle, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03927
Panhandle Cemetery. The oldest documented graves in this cemetery date to 1889, three years after the founding of Carson City (later renamed Panhandle), the first town in the county. Among those buried here are Civil War veterans and area pioneer families. Gravestone designs range from simple to elaborate, and the cemetery also contains many unmarked graves. The Panhandle Cemetery has also served people in surrounding communities. Additional land acquisitions have increased the size of the graveyard over the years, and a small chapel was built in 1965. #3927
?, Panhandle, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03928
Panhandle Herald. Published since 1887. Oldest newspaper in the Texas Panhandle, second oldest business in the area. Founded by H.H. Brookes. Principal owner 1926-58, David M. Warren, oil man, banker, a Regent of the University of Texas. Don and Norene Peoples owners at 75th Anniversary. In Memoriam - David M. Warren (1894-1958) by Mrs. David M. Warren, David M. Warren, Jr., Randolph J. Warren. #3928
319 Main Street, Panhandle, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03929
Terminus of the Santa Fe Railroad-Panhandle, Texas. Originally "Carson City", town name was changed 1887 when this site appeared to be the future metropolis of the Panhandle: it was to be at the junction of Santa Fe (under name "Southern Kansas") and Fort Worth & Denver City Railroads. Plans changed, however, and the F.W. & D.C. took a route 16 mi. south, bypassing Panhandle. (Amarillo was soon founded on the F.W. & D.C.) Even so, Panhandle became a major shipping center. During great ranching era and again in 1926 oil boom, it moved more freight than any other town on Santa Fe line except Chicago. #3929
?, Panhandle, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03930
Panhandle-Plains Museum. In 1932 the State of Texas matched $25,000 of private funds to construct the original unit. Since 1935 the museum, through Works Progress Administration projects, has increased its archeological and paleontological materials beyond the facilities of the building. An allocation of $25,000 was used to construct and equip a basement addition designed by Rittenberry and Carder, Architects, to provide ten thousand square feet of additional floor space. The museum is located on the campus of the West Texas State College and is operated by the Panhandle-Plains Historical Society. #3930
2503 4th Ave., Canyon, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03932
Pansy Baptist Church. The Pansy Baptist Church was organized in 1905 by J. V. Leatherwood, John Holt, P. H. Leatherwood, Snow Loyd, and J. M. Leatherwood to serve the residents of the Pansy Community. Church services were conducted in the school building until 1916 when the congregation constructed its first sanctuary. An arbor was built on the church grounds for revival services. The church building was moved two miles south in 1946 for the convenience of the membership. A parsonage was erected in 1947 for the congregation's first full-time pastor. A new sanctuary was built and was dedicated on July 16, 1950. The church building burned in August 1965, and services were held in a church member's barn until December, when a new structure was completed. The church supported a strong mission outreach program. Through the years population dwindled in the rural community of Pansy. In 1995 the remaining members of the Pansy Baptist Church voted to disband. The church building was donated to the Mt. Zion Baptist Church, an African American congregation in Floydada. The building was moved 32 miles by 140 volunteers from Crosbyton, Pansy, Floydada, and Wiley. (1996) #3932
?, Crosbyton, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #03933
Panther Gap. Landmark on ancient Indian trail, and early route of travelers and military west of Fort Chadbourne (20 miles east) before the Civil War. After 1880, was used extensively to connect this area with the railroad at Colorado City. Named for panthers (cougars), which still roam the region. (1973) #3933
?, Robert Lee, TX, United States