Tascosa, Texas
Encyclopedia
Tascosa was once the capital of ten counties and a rival of Dodge City, but it is now a Ghost Town
. It is located in Oldham County
in the Texas Panhandle
.
The town grew up around a local crossing place on the Canadian River
where cowboys would cross the river on their way to the Dodge City railhead and cattle markets. It was frequented by such famous Old West characters as Billy the Kid
and Pat Garrett
. The town's post office opened on June 24, 1878. On 21 March 1886 it became the site of the famous Tascosa Gunfight
in which four people died.
When the hoped-for railroad was built 50 miles north of town, it made Tascosa irrelevant to the beef industry. By the 1930s, the town was almost deserted. In 1938, Cal Farley's Boys Ranch was built on the site. The old courthouse (now a museum) and the 1889 schoolhouse are the only buildings from the old town to survive into the 21st Century.
Ghost Town
"Ghost Town" is the title of a 1981 song by the British ska band, The Specials. The song spent three weeks at number one and ten weeks in the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart. Addressing themes of urban decay, deindustrialisation, unemployment and violence in inner cities, the song is remembered for...
. It is located in Oldham County
Oldham County
Oldham County is the name of two counties in the United States:* Oldham County, Kentucky* Oldham County, Texas...
in the Texas Panhandle
Texas Panhandle
The Texas Panhandle is a region of the U.S. state of Texas consisting of the northernmost 26 counties in the state. The panhandle is a rectangular area bordered by New Mexico to the west and Oklahoma to the north and east...
.
The town grew up around a local crossing place on the Canadian River
Canadian River
The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and most of Oklahoma....
where cowboys would cross the river on their way to the Dodge City railhead and cattle markets. It was frequented by such famous Old West characters as Billy the Kid
Billy the Kid
William H. Bonney William H. Bonney William H. Bonney (born William Henry McCarty, Jr. est. November 23, 1859 – c. July 14, 1881, better known as Billy the Kid but also known as Henry Antrim, was a 19th-century American gunman who participated in the Lincoln County War and became a frontier...
and Pat Garrett
Pat Garrett
Patrick Floyd "Pat" Garrett was an American Old West lawman, bartender, and customs agent who was best known for killing Billy the Kid...
. The town's post office opened on June 24, 1878. On 21 March 1886 it became the site of the famous Tascosa Gunfight
Tascosa Gunfight
The Tascosa Gunfight, also known as the Big Fight or the Gunfight at the Jenkins Saloon, was an incident that took place in the Old West town of Tascosa, Texas on 21 March 1886, between members of two Texas Panhandle ranch factions: the LS Ranch's Home Rangers and a group of small ranchers and...
in which four people died.
When the hoped-for railroad was built 50 miles north of town, it made Tascosa irrelevant to the beef industry. By the 1930s, the town was almost deserted. In 1938, Cal Farley's Boys Ranch was built on the site. The old courthouse (now a museum) and the 1889 schoolhouse are the only buildings from the old town to survive into the 21st Century.