City of Krum

Krum's wheat boom was loud and short. In 1900 the railroad shipped at least half a million bushels, and the town leaned on a claim to be the largest inland grain market in the world, a boast the Handbook of Texas records only as local reputation. By 1905 the Flour Mill and Elevator Company and three other elevator firms were working there. The mill burned in 1915, and the town peaked at about 750 people around 1925 before cars and trucks carried trade to larger markets and young people left for college or city jobs.

What the plaque says

City of Krum Located in west-central Denton County, the city of Krum began as a pioneer settlement, known as the Jackson community, near present-day Krum Jackson Cemetery in 1876. Soon, the families decided to establish a school. Mr. and Mrs. J.J. Barrett and C.H. Jackson deeded land for the school and a cemetery. The town of Krum was founded in 1886 when the Gulf, Colorado, and Santa Fe Railway purchased acreage from Louis L. and Gabrilla Finley for the town site, named in honor of Charles K. Krum, a railroad official. Businesses quickly opened and a home for the station agent was built in town. The post office was established in 1888 and was first housed in the Finley store with S.D. Chadwell serving as the first postmaster until Mr. Finley took over later that year. A hardware store, blacksmith shop, saloon, drug store and a hotel opened to serve the growing town. To serve the community's spiritual needs, the First Baptist Church organized in 1882 in the Jackson schoolhouse, and in 1891 the Methodist church moved from the Jackson community to Krum. The Church of Christ of Krum was established in 1893 and the Presbyterian church in 1901. The rich soil in the region produced bountiful wheat harvests for which the town became famous, known as the largest inland grain market in the early 1900s. Wheat grown in the area earned awards, including the grand prize for the "Rainbow Flour" at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. Agricultural production plants and factories were established to process goods, and banks opened to assist families and businesses in the area. Krum was officially incorporated in 1955 and continues to focus on the growth of this rural town while preserving its rich historical heritage. (2017)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Denton County Courthouse-on-the-Square — 6.3 mi
  An 1896 courthouse by W. C. Dodson in Denton limestone, pink granite and two sandstones, restored in 2004, now a free county museum on a lawn holding the grave of John B. Denton.
• Wise County Courthouse — 21 mi
  J. Riely Gordon's granite Romanesque courthouse of 1895-96 in Decatur, built after fire destroyed the Second Empire courthouse and set off a fight over the county seat.

More markers nearby

• First University Building — 5.6 mi
• University Gardens, Texas Woman's University — 6.2 mi
• Ponder — 6.2 mi
• Texas Normal College — 6.3 mi