The Santa Fe Railroad in Plainview

The line that reached Plainview was the Pecos and Northern Texas Railway; its arrival in 1906 was celebrated with a dedication the next day, January 1, 1907. The city incorporated in 1907 and by 1910 had almost 3,000 people and ninety businesses, twenty of them land agencies, and a local editor took to calling it the Athens of West Texas. Cotton, first tried in 1903, and irrigated farming after 1910 followed the rails. In 1909 the line was extended south to Lubbock.

What the plaque says

The Santa Fe Railroad in Plainview Operating in the Texas Panhandle since 1886, the Santa Fe Railroad about 1900 laid plans to extend its line into the rich agricultural domain of the South Plains. Meantime, Plainview leaders saw the need for better transportation and in 1903 raised $75,000 to use in promoting a rail connection. J.N. Donohoo, Dr. Lee Dye, W.E. Dyer, L.S. Kinder, L.A. Knight, Charles McCormack, J.H. Slaton, R.P. Smyth, and Dr. J.H. Wayland led this endeavor. The city and the Santa Fe came to terms, and the first train reached here on Dec. 31, 1906. Regular service soon followed, and oldtimers rejoiced when train whistles heralded and end to isolation. Once or twice a week, land agents arrived with trainloads of prospective settlers. Local builders constructed a courthouse, new schoolhouse, new city hall, an electric plant, an opera house, residences and business buildings. Soon the Wayland Literary and Technical Institution was under construction. Railroad service made a major contribution to the economic development of Hale County, opening acreage to settlement and agricultural expansion. (1975)

Where it stands

More markers nearby

• Site of Lake Plainview — steps away
• Plainview Daily Herald — 0.3 mi
• Former Office Site of Texas Land & Development Company — 0.5 mi
• Schick Opera House — 0.5 mi