Virtual Tour
- Tarleton Up Close
- Where is the office...?
- Centers & Locations
- Campus Buildings
- Landmarks
- Sports Facilities & Parks
- Residence Halls
- Virtual Tour Home
- Maps and Directions
Return to Top
W. K. Gordon Center - Thurber, Texas
| Location | Thurber, TX |
|---|---|
| Main Phone Number | 254-968-1886 |
| Main Website | http://www.tarleton.edu/gordoncenter/ |
Overview / Features
Historical Overview
The W.K. Gordon Center, a museum and research facility of Tarleton State University, is located on Interstate 20 at the site of the Thurber ghost town at exit 367 midway between Fort Worth and Abilene.
Thurber was a coal mining town seventy miles west of Fort Worth that boasted 10,000 inhabitants. With an economy based on underground mining for bituminous coal and the manufacture of bricks fired in kilns fueled by coal, the town thrived from the 1880s to the 1930s. The TPM&M Company as a subsidiary of the coal company operated the town and ran all of its commercial enterprises. These included mercantile stores, theater, livery stable, printing shop, drugstore, lumberyard, water system, gas system, ice plant, and even saloons.