Ireland (Coryell County/Hamilton County) - March 2013 photos

A lot of communities in Texas became ghost towns because railroad tracks were never laid anywhere in the vicinity of these sites. Ireland, however, is an example of a town that gained a railroad, then lost it.

Ireland, which straddles the Coryell/Hamilton county line about 16 miles northwest of Gatesville, got its start as the rural community of Hamco, which took its name from the first letters of each county. In 1911, however, the St. Louis Southwestern Railway Company (better known as the Cotton Belt Railway) ran a line between Gatesville and Hamilton that ran right through Hamco, which blossomed into an actual town through the work of the Mid-Texas Improvement Company. The locals then petitioned for a post office to be named in honor of John Ireland, a former Texas governor. The post office was granted, and Ireland was born in earnest.

The handsome train depot at Ireland, now on private farmland

A closer look at the depot

The new town attracted cotton farmers who were eager to sell their crops to European nations, where World War I drove up prices for agricultural commodities. Ireland's population swelled to 400 by 1921, when a two-story brick schoolhouse was built on the county line to replace its previous wooden frame schoolhouse. In addition to the school, Ireland now boasted a bank (also two stories) with $20,000 of capital stock and a chamber of commerce as well as three churches, three general stores, a drug store, a restaurant, and several other businesses.

A general store in downtown Ireland

Another general store that converted into a gas station

Unfortunately for Ireland, agricultural prices collapsed in 1921, making it harder for farmers to realize a profit on their crops. Then the Great Depression hit in 1929, and Ireland's downward spiral was now unstoppable. Families who couldn't sell their land often had it foreclosed by the banks. The Cotton Belt Railway stopped passenger service to Ireland in 1936, finally pulling up its tracks in 1942. By the end of World War II, only 40 residents remained.

Foundations and vault of the bank in Ireland

A closer look at the vault

Historical marker designating the location of the schoolhouse, which was finally demolished in 1984

Front steps and foundations of the school, now on private property (Thanks to Jamye Carr for discovering this)

Table inscribed with JUNIORS 31 just outside the school (Thanks again, Jamye)

A water cistern (?) behind what may have been a gymnasium for the school

A state marker at Ireland Cemetery

This tree stands vigil over Ireland's dearly departed

Various gravestones at Ireland Cemetery

Resting place of Ella Stewart, wife of W.R. Stewart

Ireland's post office managed to linger on until 1970, when it became a rural branch of the Gatesville service. The population grew to 60 in 1990 and stayed there for at least 10 years. A recent estimate says that there may now only be 20 people living at the townsite. One of the churches has also been converted into a private residence.

Today, Ireland is a quiet place, farmed and ranched by the few diehards who stayed behind, and friendly dogs play amongst the building foundations that straddle Farm Road 932 on the county line. Jamye and I truly enjoyed our visit to this once-promising Texas ghost town, built on cotton and the railroad, but doomed by outside forces beyond its control.

Exploring ghost towns - with a friend

Phew! I just got back in town from Coryell County, where I've been running around for the better part of Saturday with my friend Jamye Carr. We had a lot of fun exploring The Grove, which I visited before back in August of 2010, but this was Jamye's first time to visit this historic and picturesque Hill Country ghost town. And yes, the town well still has water in it to this day. We made sure to check closely this time.

Afterwards, we paid a visit to Ireland, which straddles both Coryell County and Hamilton County. We discovered the downtown area, the cemetery, and the remains of the historic school in Ireland. (It must have been historic - Texas erected a historical marker in its memory.)

I'm very happy that this was my first ghost town expedition with a running buddy, and we're already looking forward to our next expedition together. I will share my photos from Ireland soon, but as many of you know, I've been swamped with work and other commitments lately, and right now I'm just flat out tired. Going home to relax and adjust myself to Daylight Savings Time. Spring forward, remember?

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Experience the sounds of a ghost town - without leaving your keyboard

I want to try something a little different, and I hope you enjoy it.

Last month, I took a microphone out to Gilliland in Knox County during my visit to the ghost town, and I made some field recordings while snapping pictures. When I got home, I did some research into music that suited the frame of mind that Gilliland put me in as explored the site, trying to capture just the right moods. I then mixed the music and field recordings together, boiled it down into a stereo mix, and voila! My first attempt at an audio ghost town essay.

Click here to listen on Mixcloud if you're interested in checking it out. The entire piece runs for a little under 50 minutes. Listen at home, at work, in your car, wherever you feel the need for some minimal, contemplative music.

As a shameless plug, the Mixcloud suite also features a performance by my good friend, Laura Ainsworth. Click here to visit Laura's website or to learn about her debut album, Keep It To Yourself. You can also click here to follow Laura's Twitter feed. The mix also includes performances by Stars of the Lid, Rafael Anton Irisarri, and many more.

I hope to do more of these in the future, and unlike this blog, the "Ghost Town Essays" might not be restricted to Texas sites. There are other fascinating abandoned towns all across the Southwest, and I would also love to set foot one day in the perpetually smoldering mining ghost town of Centralia, Pennsylvania - that would make for a compelling audio project.

UK television host scheduled to visit Texas ghost town

Ben Fogle, who has done extensive work for the BBC in the past, is now working on a series for the UK's Channel 5. Titled Where the Wild Men Are with Ben Fogle, the series will track Fogle as he visits some of the most remote places on Earth and interacts with locals. One of his destinations is reportedly a ghost town in Texas, but the identity of the town is unknown to me at present.

Click here for more information on the upcoming Channel 5 series.

Obligatory holiday ghost town photo!

Taken at the townsite of Silver Lake on December 26, 2012. This old gas station sits close to the line that divides Van Zandt County and Smith County, which Silver Lake straddles.



I'll present a more complete picture of Silver Lake real soon. Best wishes to everyone for a happy and peaceful New Year!

La Reunion - A different sort of expedition

If you haven't checked out the December 19 edition of The Dallas Morning News yet, take a look at this article.

Joe Ramirez has been in contact with me a couple of times looking for the scant remains of the La Reunion ghost town west of downtown Dallas, and when he came across what might be the old DeLord homestead, he found he found the site in disarray just as I had in March. Suspecting that the site was being used as a meth lab, Joe tried in vain to get various Dallas organizations to pay attention to the old colony site.

That's when Joe led a small expedition to the DeLord homestead, as recorded in The Dallas Morning News.

I don't want to spoil the story, and besides, the paper would appreciate a few more on-line visitors. But please read it - the article's not too terribly long.

I'm happy that this blog played some part in shining light on a forgotten chapter of Dallas' history, and I'm proud of Joe for staying on the case and not letting this site fall through the cracks.

Gilliland (Knox County) - December 2012 photos

Some ghost towns in Texas have long and detailed histories replete with tales of ambition, grandeur, innovation, and sometimes lawlessness and mayhem. And then there are ghost towns like Gilliland, which is located on Farm Road 1756 in north central Knox County, within an hour's drive from the Panhandle.


Downtown Gilliland today

Located smack dab in the middle of nowhere, Gilliland never grew to any great size - boasting a reported peak of 120 residents in 1947 - but those that called Gilliland home worked hard to build it into a community that could take care of itself. The first white settlers to put down roots here established a community called Coyote, and their efforts managed to attract some Norwegian families from Bosque County, who migrated to Coyote in 1890. The community established its own school district on May 1, 1892, and opened the doors of its school in 1895, with Oma Aker serving as the community's first teacher. When Coyote resident O.M. Olson opened a post office inside his home in 1907, the post office was named after district judge W.A. Gilliland, and the name quickly stuck to the town itself.


Abandoned and deteriorating general store at Gilliland


Remains of Gilliland's garage


A peek inside the disheveled garage

A cotton gin was built just outside Gilliland in 1910 and later modernized in 1936. Gilliland's population grew from 50 in 1925 to 120 in 1947, with the school, four businesses and one church serving the town's needs.


Gilliland's abandoned gas station and grocery


Closer look at the rusting Esso gasoline pumps (today, Esso is known as ExxonMobil)


One of numerous derelict houses in Gilliland being reclaimed by the elements

The most important building in Gilliland appears to have been its school. Although small compared to many modern school buildings in Texas today, Gilliland's school featured numerous classrooms, a cafeteria, and a gymnasium that doubled as an auditorium for plays and assemblies. Over the years, the school absorbed other schools in the region, which undoubtedly contributed to the town's growth. In 1948, however, it was Gilliland's turn. The town's high school was transferred to the city of Munday, some 20 miles south of Gilliland, leaving the town with only a grade school that continued to operate until the school itself was closed down in 1975.


Gilliland's school building as seen from the rear

Weatherbeaten swingset at the Gilliland school

Ingenious front gate to Gilliland's school - students can fit through, but cattle cannot

Front door to Gilliland's school building


Stage in the gymnasium, still outfitted for a school play


Bleachers in the gymnasium


Hallway between classes with rotting and deteriorating floor - walking on the floorboards is NOT recommended

The closing of Gilliland's school appears to mirror the fortunes of the town itself; in 1990, the population was reported as 103, but ten years later, the number plunged to only 25. Today, there may be even fewer than that.


Front gate to Gilliland Cemetery


Some of the numerous graves at the cemetery


Memorial to World War I and World War II veterans at the cemetery


One of Gilliland's denizens had a striking name


Tombstone for a nurse

Gilliland Cemetery is approaching its sesquicentennial, and unfortunately some of the older gravestones have been damaged or disappeared completely. A couple of graves caught my eye in the far corner of the cemetery - the only known African-Americans buried in Gilliland. Whoever interred them apparently felt the need to not only isolate their graves from the general population at the cemetery, but also to stamp the word "Negro" on each of their headstones.


Grave marker for Herman Williams

Looking back at the photographs I took of Gilliland, while I am proud of the images I've been able to share with you, there were so many more images of the ghost town I could have captured. I've been looking forward to visiting Gilliland for a long time, and while the chances are remote that I will ever set foot in the townsite again, if I ever do, I will definitely have to grab more photos of this small but proud town nestled in the Rolling Plains, just southeast of the Panhandle. Sometimes, the best stories come out of the smallest towns, and in the case of towns such as Gilliland, it's not just a matter of what the town has built - but also what it has left behind.