Claude was born with the railroad. The Fort Worth and Denver City built through Armstrong County in 1887, and the town that grew up at the tracks took the name of Claude Ayers, the engineer who brought the first train in. When the county organized in 1890, Claude won the county seat over Washburn, by report on Charles Goodnight's tie-breaking vote. It grew as a cattle-shipping point and had a stone courthouse by 1912.
Hollywood came too. Three films were shot in and around Claude: The Sundowners in 1960, Hud in 1963 and Sunshine Christmas in 1977. Hud, with Paul Newman in the title role, used the town's theater for a quiet scene. Homer Bannon and his grandson Lonnie, worried about the herd, go into town to see a movie, and the audience sings along to an animated short of "Oh My Darlin' Clementine."
The theater opened in 1915 as the Claudia, staging live shows before it turned to films. The Armstrong County Museum bought and restored it in 1992 and renamed it the Gem. It is now part of the museum's group of buildings, with a display of vintage movie memorabilia, and it hosts plays and concerts by local and touring companies. The museum's main building is around the corner on West 4th Street.
The closest stops worth working into your route
Roadside plaques and monuments within a short detour