Brokeback Mountain: Our Community's Common Bond > The Lighter Side
ROAD TRIP: A BBM Game
MaineWriter:
Tuff, TX
A post office was opened in Tuff in 1901 but was discontinued in 1926. The town was once called Crockett after Andy Crockett – the man who donated land for the first school (1883). In 1914 the town had a population of 50 and a store. By 1925 the population was down a mere ten Tuffites. The school consolidated with Medina in 1930. The community all but disappeared.
Recently some original buildings have been restored by local people who can't bear to see the town disappear without a trace.
The post office and general store in Tuff:
L
Meryl:
Fossil, WY
Fossil was founded in 1889 by my great grandfather Richard H. Lewis. He was a cattle rancher. Other families followed.
The first town consisted of the Depot, the section house, a saloon, a store, and houses of settlers. My great grandma Cook opened a restaurant to feed the workers of the railroad. Because Fossil was built on a hilly area(and trains had trouble stopping), it was moved to it's next location in front of the Butte. New Fossil was founded in 1939 by E.J. Waters and John W. Twiggs.
The prospect of oil brought many new settlers to Fossil, the town peaked at a population of 150. But when engines started to go diesel, the town dwindled.
All that is left today is the depot, the section house, the saloon, and an old barn. The saloon is owned by the Ulrich's. And everything else is owned by my family, the Lewis Ranch. They use the land to graze cattle on. The last Fossil resident, my grandmother Gertrude Lewis, died last year March 4.
Fossil Butte National Monument brings many visitors by the old town. The Ulrich's have a fossil gallery, and hopefully soon I plan to rebuild the old depot hole into a gift shop and a museum Fossil town.
The weather is perfect Wyoming weather. Snowy, when it should be. And sunny and warm in the summers.
---Bridget Larson, 29 March 1998
Earnest Family, 1899, Fossil, Wyoming
nova20194:
Lousana, AB
Lousana is located in south-central Alberta.
The community was named for Louisiana.
MaineWriter:
Avinger, TX
A settlement called Hickory Hill was nearby in the early 1840s. A post office opened there in 1848 and the East Line and Red River Railroad arrived in 1876. A station was built where Avinger would later appear.
The businesses from Hickory Hill stared relocating to be near the rails and by 1877 even the post office moved. Dr. H. J. Avinger, who also operated a store, had the town renamed in his honor. The population was 100 by 1892 and by 1914 it was estimated to be 500.
Prior to the Great Depression, the town was up to 700 which declined to 450 through the 1930s. The Lone Star Steel Plant was built just west of town during World War II. In 1949 the town renewed itself by rebuilding its infrastructure and paving its streets. A new high school was built as well as a water and sewer system.
The population peaked at 750 people in 1960. The 1990 Census reported 478 people which has remained at about that level in 2000.
L
Meryl:
Royalty, TX
Royalty is at the intersection of Farm Road 1219 and State Highway 18, two miles north of Grandfalls in southern Ward County. It was named for royalties paid to landowners after the discovery of oil at Grandfalls in 1927.
Royalty was established to serve the neighboring oilfield and its workers. Before a post office was opened in 1929, it was known as Allentown, after an early landowner. In 1933 Royalty had an estimated population of twenty, and a hotel, drugstore, cafe, pool hall, barbershop, and laundry. Its population peaked at 750 in 1940, when it reported thirty-five businesses. With declining oilfield activity, the population had fallen to about 190 by 1968. The population dropped to twenty-nine in 2000.
(XYZ rule applies)
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