Gainesville, Henrietta and Western Railway

Gainesville, Henrietta and Western Railway

Infobox SG rail
railroad_name=Gainesville, Henrietta and Western Railway
start_year=1886
end_year=1887
hq_city=
locale=Texas
The Gainesville, Henrietta and Western Railway Company was chartered on July 23, 1886, to build a rail line from Gainesville in Cooke County, Texas, to Seymour in Baylor County, Texas, a distance of mi to km|130. The line was to cross Montague, Clay and Wichita counties.

History

Between Gainesville and Henrietta, only the town of Saint Jo existed. Other towns vied for access to the railroad, such as Montague, Texas; however, land for the right of way was offered across northern portions of Cooke, Montague, and Clay counties, and the railway would produce new towns along the route, to include Myra, Muenster, Bonita, Nocona and Belcherville, Texas. The town of Ringgold, also along the line, would develop after the crossing of the Rock Island line in 1892.

Before the line was completed in 1887, it was sold to the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad. The line was initially completed only from Gainesville to Henrietta, a distance of mi to km|70. It began moving cotton and people across the farming communities of north central Texas. The rail line brought prosperity and settlers to the area, and towns bypassed by the line quickly vanished as citizens moved to towns on the line. Nocona, a mid-point on the railway, particularly prospered as settlers from northern Montague County moved into town. It became the largest town between Gainesville and Wichita Falls as a result.Fact|date=February 2007

By 1900, the line had been extended, parallel to the Fort Worth and Denver Railway, into Wichita Falls, connecting to lines that ran to Abilene and into Oklahoma.

Demise

The automobile and America's love affair with it brought the end to the small-town rail lines. In 1969, the line was abandoned with the exception of a small stretch near Wichita Falls. In 1971, the tracks were removed and sold for scrap metal. Many of the towns that developed along the line vanished long before the railroad, but others continue to prosper without it. Portions of the old right of way can still be seen in various places (between Henrietta and Nocona, particularly). On the eastern side of Henrietta, a U.S. Route 82 bridge over nothing still stands as a reminder of the Gainesville, Henrietta, and Western Railway and its contributions to north central Texas.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Henrietta, Texas — Infobox Settlement official name = Henrietta, Texas settlement type = City nickname = motto = imagesize = image caption = image mapsize = 250px map caption = Location of Henrietta, Texas mapsize1 = 250px map caption1 = subdivision type = Country… …   Wikipedia

  • List of Texas railroads — Current common carriers * Alamo Gulf Coast Railroad (AGCR) * Amtrak (AMTK) * Angelina and Neches River Railroad (ANR) * Austin Area Terminal Railroad (AUAR) * Blacklands Railroad (BLR) * Border Pacific Railroad (BOP) * Brownsville and Rio Grande… …   Wikipedia

  • Nocona, Texas — For the Intel Xeon Nocona, see Xeon. Nocona, Texas   City   Nocona Welcome Sign …   Wikipedia

  • Belcherville, Texas — Belcherville is an unincorporated community along U.S. Route 82 and Farm to Market Road 1816 in Montague County, Texas, United States. The population is less than 50.HistoryThe settlement was first called Belcher for local ranchers of the same… …   Wikipedia

  • Red River Station, Texas — Red River Station once existed as a small community south of the Red River at Salt Creek in north western Montague County, Texas, United States. History Native Americans long used the fertile areas near the Red River for farming and hunting. In… …   Wikipedia

  • Bonita, Texas — Bonita is an unincorporated town in north central Montague County, Texas, United States north of U.S. Route 82 on Farm to Market Road 1815.The West Texas historical preservationist Myna Potts was born in Bonita in 1927. History Bonita was… …   Wikipedia

  • Bulcher, Texas — Bulcher is a small, unincorporated community in far northwestern Cooke County, Texas, United States, approximately 1 mile (2 km) south of the Oklahoma border.HistoryThe area was first settled in 1872 as the threat of Indian raids began to wane. A …   Wikipedia

  • Fort Worth, Texas — Fort Worth   City   City of Fort Worth Montage of Fort Worth …   Wikipedia

  • Muleshoe, Texas —   City   The National Mule Memorial at the Muleshoe Chamber of Commerce office …   Wikipedia

  • Laredo, Texas — City of Laredo   City   …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”