Brownfield Municipal Power Plant

The plant was built for a town in a hurry. The automobile reached Brownfield around 1910 and the railroad in 1917, after citizens donated the right-of-way and station grounds, and the town incorporated in October 1920 with 1,200 people. In the Depression the William Randolph Hearst interests finished 10,000 cattle there in a single year, and by 1937 the town had 3,100 people. In 1940 it was the leading grain center on the South Plains. Oil followed, and the population rose from 6,160 in 1950 to 10,286 in 1960.

What the plaque says

Brownfield Municipal Power Plant During the 1920s, when much of rural Texas was still without electricity, the town of Brownfield took a leap toward modernization. The town incorporated in 1920 and one year later held a vote on the issuance of bonds for the creation of a power plant. Citizens voted against the proposal, but undeterred, a group of residents formed a light and ice company - many electrical plants of the time were linked to ice manufacturing - and worked to get a new bond package. In 1921, voters overwhelmingly approved new bonds for a municipal plant. Building soon began, and by 1923, Brownfield had electricity. The plant closed in 2003 but is maintained as a distribution control center. (2006)

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• City of Brownfield — steps away
• Colonel B. F. Terry and Terry's Texas Rangers — steps away
• First Baptist Church of Brownfield — 0.3 mi
• Maids and Matrons Club — 0.4 mi