By Mary Leak Post offices are in most towns, and are a surer way to determine the abandonment of a city when looking through history. If a post office closes, it’s likely due to the town being abandoned, closed, or the population falling so low that the town can no...
By Mary Leak Gomer Gower is a name mentioned in many books about Thurber. He was a resource for Mary Jane Gentry in her master’s thesis, “Thurber: The Life and Death of a Texas Town,” “A Way of Work and a Way of Life” by Marilyn D. Rhinehart, and various...
By Shala Scarlato Collections are a land of stories and mementos waiting for their time to shine. They sit in covered boxes so that outside elements don’t further degrade them. The question often asked is, “Why not just restore it?” That’s a good question. Why not? To first understand why...
By Scarlet Weber Led by Thomas Winfield Jordan, the Jordan family came to Erath before the town settled. The Jordan family fruit farm was established in 1885 and was located 2.5 miles south of Thurber. This was one of several farms that provided Thurber with fresh fruit. While many families...
By Mary Adams Colonel Robert Dickie Hunter, president of the Texas Pacific Coal Company, and associates from St. Louis believed that opening a brick plant would expand the Company’s economic power. After countless negotiations and investments, the Green and Hunter Brick Company opened in Jun 1987, and by November, brickmakers...
By Mary Adams After the coal mines and brick plan closed and a fire destroyed much of the downtown, the Texas and Pacific Coal Company had a decision to make, to rebuild or to close the town. They chose to close and salvage every piece they could. They sold houses...