Langtry

Langtry began to fade soon after Bean died in 1903, when the commissioners court moved the highway slightly north for a more direct route. In 1926 the Southern Pacific moved its tracks, depot and water tank half a mile away, and the town dwindled to fifty people. It recovered to 100 by 1945, then fell to about forty by the early 1970s. Tourism became its main industry: the Judge Roy Bean Visitor Center welcomed its one-millionth visitor in 1981, and Langtry's population was reported at 145 in both 1990 and 2000.

What the plaque says

Langtry Langtry was created in 1882, when the Galveston, Harrisburg & San Antonio Railroad, later known as Southern Pacific, signed a deed with the Torres Family, who owned the land. The town, which provided water for locomotives, developed from a tent town to a bustling settlement after the rail line was completed. The town was most likely named for George Langtry, who led an area rail building crew. Lore, though, links the town's most famous inhabitant to its naming; Roy Bean, who owned a local saloon and served as justice of the peace, became known as "The Law West of the Pecos." He was enamored of Lillie Langtry, a popular British actress, and although she was probably not the town's namesake, she did visit here in the early 20th century. In addition to the infamous Bean, other local men and women contributed to the town's western ambience. J.P. Torres, part of the town's founding family, also served as justice of the peace and operated a store and saloon. He, like many of the area residents, also raised livestock, most often sheep or goats. Accessibility to the trains attracted many ranchers, who supported local businesses. Langtry supported other industries, including a rock crushing plant created for the railroad. The town also attracted tuberculosis patients who came in hopes of regaining their health. During the Mexican Revolution, soldiers came to Langtry for goods, guns and munitions. The rail line was rerouted in the 1920s, and Langtry's population declined, today existing primarily as a tourist site. The landscape and the remaining buildings still speak to what once was a bustling West Texas town. (2003)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Judge Roy Bean Visitor Center — 0.7 mi
  The state travel center at Langtry, built around the saloon where Roy Bean held court as justice of the peace for twenty years, in a town named for a railroad foreman.
• Pecos River Overlook — 14 mi
  A roadside pullout at the east end of the US-90 bridge, looking down into the gorge that made the Pecos a barrier for travelers and a byword for the edge of the law.
• Seminole Canyon State Park and Historic Site — 17 mi
  The state park west of Comstock where rangers lead visitors down to Fate Bell Shelter and its Pecos River-style paintings, some three to four thousand years old.
• Shumla Archaeological Research and Education Center — 24 mi
  The Comstock research center that documents the Lower Pecos murals, which it calls the oldest books in North America, and opens its headquarters to visitors four days a week.

More markers nearby

• William H. Dodd — steps away
• The Torres Family — steps away
• Law West of The Pecos — steps away
• Langtry School — steps away