United States / Muleshoe vicinity, TX

Harden A. Douglass. (Aug. 20, 1885 - Feb. 24, 1955) Born in Bosque County. Came to this area in 1904. Elected first sheriff and tax collector of Bailey County, 1919. He served in this capacity until 1930. Married Maudie Ellen Vaughn and had two sons and three daughters. Recorded - 1968 #2372

?, Muleshoe vicinity, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03752

Townsite of Old Hurley. First town in Bailey County. Promoted in 1907 by land company of Stevens A. Coldren (d. 1924). He had a townsite surveyed and named it for Patrick J. Hurley (1883-1963), New Mexico political leader. Company built general store, hotel and livery stable. Wide plowed furrows indicated future streets. In August 1907 a post office was established. Settlers came in and a church and school were begun. In 1913, however, the railroad bypassed town. Efforts to start "New Hurley"-- on the rail line failed. After Muleshoe became county seat, 1918, Hurley expired. (1970) #3752

?, Muleshoe vicinity, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #04909

Site of Virginia City. Part of a land promotion scheme begun 1908. Advertised as future metropolis by shrewd dealers, who implied that good rains and bumper crops were typical of region. Naive buyers were treated to tours through town, where they saw shops, a lot reserved for the courthouse, and a roadbed for the railroad. Town was named for wife of an early county landowner. Although a local cowboy had remarked that Virginia City's biggest crop was "suckers", many people bought land, only to face a ruinous drought, 1909-1912. Most soon moved, leaving site vacant. (1968) #4909

?, Muleshoe vicinity, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #11719

Bailey County Cemetery. When Mariah "Aunt Rye" Long died in 1918, Emil and Anna Wellsandt offered a parcel of their land on this site for use as a public burial ground. Several others were buried in 1918, most of them victims of the influenza epidemic. The Bailey County Cemetery Association was formed that year. The cemetery served primarily the northern part of the county. The "hill-top" area of the cemetery was established in 1950 for the burial of indigents. Many early Bailey County settlers are interred in this cemetery, as are a number of war veterans. Neglect and vandalism spurred the defunct cemetery association to reorganize in 1996. The Bailey County Cemetery remains a chronicle of the area's pioneer settlers and their descendants. (1999) #11719

?, Muleshoe vicinity, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #03530

Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge. Founded in 1935 as a wintering area for migratory waterfowl, Muleshoe Wildlife Refuge is on the "central flyway" in a chain of refuges from Mexico to Canada. Migrating birds begin arriving in August and remain until April. The largest wintering concentration of sandhill cranes in North America is most noticeable here from October through March. The site, covering over 5,000 acres, provides habitat for many other species of birds and wildlife. Muleshoe is one of several national wildlife refuges in Texas that protect migratory waterfowl, endangered wildlife species, or unique natural habitats. (1967, 1985) #3530

?, Muleshoe vicinity, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #01732

First Irrigation Well in Bailey County. Dug by hand in 1909 on farm of Willard Burns. A pit well (large enough for workmen to enter), it measured 6 by 10 feet across and 15 feet deep. A 10-inch centrifugal pump removed 1,000 gallons of water per minute. Upon its completion, settlers from miles around gathered to hold a "water carnival", which became a local custom whenever wells were dug. Hundreds of such wells made agriculture profitable in this low rainfall area. Well and pump were abandoned when turbine pumps came into use, 1920s. No signs of it remain. (1972) #1732

?, Muleshoe vicinity, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #05456

XIT Ranch South Line. (About 100 feet south of this marker) One of most famous boundaries in Texas. Marked edge of XIT -- ranch empire bartered away by Texas for its Capitol building. The 16th Legislature in 1879 designated a 3,000,000-acre tract to be used in payment for the Capitol. The grant extended 200 miles north from line here. Besides portion in this county, it included lands in counties of Castro, Cochran, Dallam, Deaf Smith, Hartley, Hockley, Lamb, Oldham, and Parmer. Heading the investors who built the Capitol were wealthy Chicago merchants, John V. and C. B. Farwell. Their surveying was begun in 1886. (1970) #5456

?, Muleshoe vicinity, TX, United States

Texas Historical Marker #01103

Coyote Lake. One of numerous natural salt lakes in the Texas Panhandle. Its waters, although brackish, have been welcome enough at various times to Indians, buffalo hunters, and thirsty cattle on hot, dry days. The lake, having a shoreline of over six and a half miles and a bed area of 829 acres, is one of the largest of the many saline lakes in the region. In early days, the Comanches were masters of this area, but after the 1874 Battle of Adobe Walls, they no longer hindered settlement of the Staked Plains. Today, artifacts found near the lake shore show that this was once a favorite Comanche camp site. Even while Indians were still a menace, buffalo hunters swarmed into the Panhandle, and they, too, often camped on Coyote Lake. Until 1877, they killed so many of the huge, shaggy beasts that the southern herd, once numbering millions, nearly became extinct. From 1885 to about 1910, Coyote Lake served as a watering spot for cattle on the huge (3,050,000 acres) XIT Ranch, which blanketed the western Panhandle. In 1898 when the Pecos and Northern Texas Railroad built through Bovina (30 miles north), the lake watered thousands of cattle en route from southern ranches to the railroad, and from there to northern markets. (1968) #1103

?, Muleshoe vicinity, TX, United States