Disappearing Towns of Northwest Texas - Ghost Towns in the Making

Since the 1950s a large swath of northwest Texas has experienced tremendous population decline. In this video, we highlight a few of the many towns that have been hit hard by this phenomenon. If things don't change, the only thing left here in 50 years will be empty buildings and hunting ranches.

#texas #westtexas #westtx #town #smalltown #ghostown #abandoned #panhandle #historic #historical #historicalbuildings

[victorguzman]

I went to school in McAdoo back in the late 70's. I often go back just for the memories. I remember the whole school letting out early at times to eat watermelon just to the west of the gym. Great times

[SealedOrPorted]

I had forgotten how many Texas towns have the red brick roads in their downtown squares. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.

[GwenMotoGirl]

I had a feeling Paducah was in this list. I used to travel there for work and stayed in the Hunters’ Lodge, a former funeral home. It’s lovely. First time there, I rode with my supervisor. He dropped me off at the lodge and stayed somewhere else. On foot during the few days I was there, I explored Paducah after work and met some residents, all friendly. The courthouse is beautiful and interesting, one of unique courthouses designed by architects Voelcker & Dixon. Really something. I wonder (hope) if more people working remotely, like me, means the revival of some of these towns. I considered moving there for the low cost of housing and living. Childress is only 30 minutes away and offers quite a bit. Nice video.

[gilmangus]

Borger? I remember, at age 11, taking a chartered train from San Angelo, Texas, to frigid Borger to see our San Angelo Bobcats play a nonconference game there. Those Borger Bulldogs were tough. They beat a superb San Angelo high team that went on to the playoffs. The train ride, 5 hours each way was fun. Students sold food and drink in one train car. My dad, now 94, always talks about our trip together to see the mighty Bobcats and Bulldogs play.
This video on virtual ghost towns is soooo melancholic...

[BigTexan]

I was born in Abilene and lived all over west Texas and the Panhandle. These towns are all in a perpetual state of winding down for good. If they're lucky, they still have a Dairy Queen to lure weary travelers off the highway and there's almost always a closed down Higginbotham-Bartlett lumber yard, a neat little church, grain silos (the tallest structures in town) and the remains of a cozy town square and courthouse surrounded by uneven brick paved streets. If you took the time to listen, all you'd hear is the roar of outbound interstate traffic and the howling of the wind.

[GeronimoRex]

Having been born and raised in Texas it is sad to see the possible end of small town life. Small towns have a charm all their own.

[johngiromini]

Having been born and raised in Amarillo, my wife and I have seen a large share of Small Town USA in the Texas Panhandle: from Texline to Canadian, from Adrian to Shamrock, from Muleshoe to Paducah, these small towns were just parts of our life. As a college student, I worked at McKesson Robbins and part of my job was delivering to those towns, like Fritch, Pampa, Borger, Dumas, Hereford, and Canyon. Being in HS in Canyon, we played basketball in Tulia, Happy, Dimmitt, and Bushland. It's said that change is inevitable; there's no mention of the sadness involved.

[sal]

So i come from a migrant family, and I remember spending some summers there in Memphis back in the late 70's early 80's. My family's job was to walk down what seemed to be miles of cotton fields, and pull the weeds out with a garden hoe, from dawn to dusk. I was too young to work and get paid, but helped the family by being the water boy. I used to wear an old army belt with 3 canteens full of water. When one of my family members canteen was empty, I'd replace it with a full one, and walk all the way back to the station wagon and fill them back up. As an adult I think back at what a strong woman my grandmother was, she'd get up around 3am and make breakfast, and lunch for everyone ( there was 8 of us)go out to the fields and work all day out in the hot Memphis sun, and come home and cook dinner. Sure do miss my grandma. I still stop by Memphis once in a long blue moon when I drive from Ft Worth to Colorado Springs to visit my old army buddies.

[trex]

It’s so flat you can watch your dog run away for three days

[karoleigharmstrong]

I lived in Borger, in the late 1990's and early 2000's. Lovely people, almost no crime. I hated the idea to move there, and cried when we had to move.

[ltlshuttledriver]

I live in central Tx but I drive a truck and I’ve been to all these towns. I hate to see this happening. The panhandle and west Tx are my favorite places.

[karleenewest]

We traveled through Memphis every time we went west on 287 from Dallas. I often think of these small towns and the lives lived in their heyday. Thanks for sharing.

[CameronHall]

My wife and I watched this last night on our tv. She was particularly interested in your video and really liked it. I really like seeing these cool little towns. Its cool seeing how even though the town seems to be dying, there is still some cool parts and architecture of each to see. The brick roads and town squares are really neat. Its a neat part of Texas. Thanks for the video.

[walterconn]

A lot of these towns were created 30 miles apart along railroads so the steam engines could fill their boiler with water.

[udmpinkert]

I grew up in Seagraves, Tx. It’s another small town community that has suffered from population decline. My folks are buried there. It’s very sad to see the decline when we go to visit them at the cemetery.

[greyjay]

Texas, West Virginia, Nevada, Montana, Nebraska ... no matter where you go, little towns are dying. Whole counties are emptying out. Its so sad.

[TC-Guitar]

I am from Amarillo and worked as a firefighter/EMT in Borger for a long time. A lot of industry still exists in Borger like the Phillips 66 refinery, but these towns are fading for sure. I live in Yakima, WA now, beautiful place but I sure miss the people. Great vid, cheers :)

[mikemartin]

Thank you for this video. I had an Aunt that lived in Paducah. Most of my family, that didn’t move to California in the 30’s are from Pampa, Childress and Amarillo area. It’s so sad to see these towns like this.

[DE-vsxy]

Wal Mart built the coffins, Amazon hammered in the nails.

[elsajohnson]

I grew up in a dying town here in NH. I had to leave at 18 because there was no work. Its painful to watch the death of a town.