Historical Markers in Amarillo, Texas

Potter County · 1936

Formed from Young and Bexar Territories. Created August 21, 1876. Organized August 30, 1887. Named in Honor of Robert Potter 1800-1842. Signer of the Declaration of Independence. Secretary of the Navy. Senator in the…

Self Sacrifice of Padre Fray Juan de Padilla - 1544 · 1936

Front - Self Sacrifice of Padre Fray Juan De Padilla - 1544; Back - Built to the glorious and perpetual memory of Father Fray Juan De Padilla, O.F.M. Franciscan Missionary, first martyr for Christianity in the United…

Fort Smith-Santa Fe Trail Gregg Route, 1840 · 1964

Southwest of this marker are dim traces of overland trail to connect river ports of Fort Smith and Van Buren, Ark. with Santa Fe, a trade and travel center since 1609. This road was pioneered by Josiah Gregg, a Santa Fe…

Old First Baptist Church · 1964

Organized September 1889 by 16 charter members. In 1890 built this meeting house at 500 Pierce. First belfry consisted of cedar posts. Baptistry was filled by water buckets, while hot rocks warmed it in wintertime.…

A.T. & S.F. No. 5000 "Madam Queen" · 1965

A star of the age of steam transportation. Pride of Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway, which came into Texas in 1886, has its Panhandle and Santa Fe General Offices in Amarillo, and served much of this area.…

Amarillo · 1965

County seat, Potter County; founded in 1887. Incorporated 1892. Named for Arroyo Amarillo, Spanish name of nearby creek. Transportation, financial, cultural, and medical center. Gateway to: Alibates Flint Quarry…

Amarillo · 1965

County Seat, Potter County; founded in 1887. Incorporated 1892. Named for Arroyo Amarillo, Spanish name of nearby creek. Transportation, financial, cultural and medical center. Gateway to: Alibates Flint Quarry National…

Amarillo Helium Plant · 1965

This plant, operated by the United States Bureau of Mines, was the first to produce helium from the extensive helium resources in the Texas Panhandle. From 1929 until 1943, it furnished almost all of the world's supply…

Bivins Home · 1965

Prominent area rancher Lee Bivins (1862-1929) built this elegant town home in 1905. The brick and stone structure features classical styling. In addition to his large cattle operation, Bivins pioneered much of the…

Bivins Library (PLATE 81) · 1965

Great Spanish Road_First Ranch in Potter County_First Store in Potter County · 1965

GREAT SPANISH ROAD Near course of the Canadian River, early as days of the American Revolution, men from Santa Fe went past this spot on trips to meet traders from San Augustine, Nacogdoches, and other Spanish towns of…

The Fort Smith-Santa Fe Trail Marcy Route, 1849 · 1965

Clearly visible to the northeast and southwest are ruts of the Old Fort Smith-Santa Fe Trail, the overland route connecting river ports of Fort Smith and Van Buren, Arkansas with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Route gained…

First Hospital on the High Plains of Texas_St. Anthony's Hospital_Founded 1901 · 1966

This marks site of Potter County's first hospital organized by Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word on invitation of Father David H. Dunne, Pastor of St. Mary's Church in Clarendon, Texas, and David Fly, M.D.,…

First Transcontinental Air Service to Texas Panhandle, Amarillo Municipal Airport · 1966

Regular air service to Amarillo was inaugurated May 29, 1929, at Old Municipal Airport, 4 miles west of here. It was initiated by Western Air Express, using a 12-passenger Fokker trimotor plane flying round trip from…

Fort Worth and Denver City Railway, First Railroad through the Texas Panhandle · 1966

Pioneered transportation in the old buffalo and Indian frontier and the open-range cattle empire. Organized by Fort Worth citizens. Although chartered by the Texas Legislature on May 26, 1873, the actual building was…

General Ernest O. Thompson · 1966

Acknowledged world leader in petroleum conservation. A third generation Texan. Left college for World War I, earning battlefield promotion to Lieutenant Colonel--youngest in the U.S. Army. In 1930 gained national…

Site of Significant Archaeological Find, American Mammoths · 1966

When this Santa Fe Railway general office building was erected in 1928, the remains of a mammoth were excavated from the basement and were placed in the Panhandle Plains Historical Museum, Canyon, Texas. The extinct…

Dr. Charles Newton Gould · 1967

Pioneer in Texas Geology and Paleontology Dr. Charles Newton Gould (1868 - 1949) One of early scientists to use geology in search for oil and gas. This region's rapid economic growth in 1920's and 30's was result of…

First Cemetery in Potter County · 1967

On the old _X (LX), first ranch in Potter County, established in 1877 by W.H. Bates and D.T. Beals, Boston (Mass.) industrialists. The earliest burials occurred after the LX was sold, 1884, to American Pastoral Land and…

The Canadian River · 1967

A travel route and dwelling site for over 12,000 years, the Canadian River supported stone and adobe Indian villages from the 12th to the 14th centuries. This waterway was also one of the first interior rivers of the…

The Canadian River · 1967

A travel route and dwelling site for over 12,000 years, the Canadian River supported stone and adobe Indian villages from the 12th to the 14th centuries. This waterway was also one of the first interior rivers of the…

Helium Time Columns Monument and Museum · 1968

Erected 1968, commemorating the 100th Anniversary of discovery of helium in the gaseous atmosphere surrounding the sun. (The discovery of traces of helium on earth was first announced in 1895.) The four time columns are…

Homesite of Judge James Nathan Browning · 1969

Cowboy, lawyer, state official and jurist. Born in Arkansas, Browning received only a few months formal education, but taught himself by reading at night by the dim light of a pine knot. At 16, he came with his family…

Amarillo · 1970

Named for Arroyo Amarillo, nearby creek given its designation by Spaniards in early days. In 1887, when the Fort Worth and Denver City Railroad was building through this region, a group represented by J. T. Berry…

Amarillo Livestock Auction · 1970

Established to serve the first permanent industry in the Texas Panhandle--ranching. Now famed for handling more cattle than any other commission auction company in the United States. The years 1874-1878 saw Indians…

Potter County, Establishing of · 1970

Named for Robert Potter, Secretary of the Navy (1836) and Senator (1840-42) of the Republic of Texas. In territory ranged by Apache, Arapaho, Cheyenne, Comanche, and Kiowa Indians, and since 1600 familiar to Spanish…

Henry Bradley Sanborn · 1971

(1845-1912) Principal early-day developer of Amarillo. Born in New York state; employed 1875 by barbed wire inventor J.F. Glidden as his Texas sales agent. With Glidden he established the famous 250,000-acre Frying Pan…

McBride Ranch House · 1971

(Built 1903) A pioneer settler quarried Alibates dolomite from the canyon rim to build this house, mortared with lime burned on the site. Wood in ridge beams, door and window lintels, ice house, and corral came from old…

The _X (LX) First Ranch in Potter County · 1971

Established by W. H. Bates and D. T. Beals, Colorado merchants and ranchers on the Arkansas River since 1870. "Crowded conditions" there resulted in moving herd and brand to the Panhandle of Texas in 1877 -- three years…

The H. B. Sanborn House · 1971

Built 1902 in 500 block, South Buchanan, by principal early developer of Amarillo, Henry Bradley Sanborn (1845-1912). At original site were also owner's office building, carriage house, stables for six coach horses, and…

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad, The Amarillo Story · 1973

Construction of a railroad across the Panhandle led to the founding of Amarillo as County Seat of Potter County, Aug. 30, 1887. For the ensuing ten years, Amarillo had a monopoly on trade from the South plains, and was…

The United States Topographical Engineers in the High Plains of Texas · 1973

This region and much of western America was mapped under adversity, as territory held by hostile Indians. With the dual aims of compiling scientific data and opening the way for settlers, U.S. Army topographers covered…

Houghton House · 1981

This two-story residence was constructed in 1914 for Kentucky native John Malcolm Shelton (1852-1923), a prominent Panhandle cattleman and businessman. Built by W.M. Rice, it was designed by Amarillo architect Joseph…

St. Mary's Academy · 1982

Established by the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word in 1899, St. Mary's Academy was originally located in Clarendon (60 mi. SE). In 1913 the institution was moved to Amarillo through the efforts of The Rev.…

St. Francis Catholic Church Community · 1983

Attracted by the colonization efforts of Illinois residents Dr. Guy Clifford Powell and The Rev. Francis J. O'Reilly, German Catholic settlers began moving here in 1907. The pioneers formed the nucleus of the St.…

Henry B. Sanborn · 1984

In 1875 Henry B. Sanborn (1845-1912) began a long association with the state of Texas when he became the Texas sales agent for Joseph F. Glidden's newly patented invention, barbed wire. A native of New York, Sanborn had…

William Henry Bush · 1984

(1849 - 1931) The Frying Pan Ranch was founded in 1881 by Amarillo pioneer Henry Sanborn and J.F. Glidden, the inventor of barbed wire. The partnership was dissolved in 1894. Glidden sold the ranch to his son-in-law,…

Melissa Dora Oliver-Eakle · 1985

A descendant of two prominent 17th-century families in Virginia and Georgia, Melissa Dora Callaway (1860-1931) was a graduate of Georgia Female College. In 1884, she married industrialist Capt. William Oliver. Following…

Llano Cemetery · 1987

Land for this cemetery was given by T. B. and Hattie M. Clisbee in 1891, although a number of burials had already taken place by that time. The earliest known burial, that of Lillian Morrow, occurred in 1888. According…

H. W. and Katie Galbraith House · 1991

Constructed in 1912 for lumber merchant H.W. Galbraith (d. 1936) and his wife Kate (d. 1969), this two-story residence reflects the Craftsman style. Exhibiting quality materials in the clapboards, exposed rafters, and…

Herring-Crudgington House · 1991

Built in 1910 for ranchers Will and Eula Jo Day Herring, this Classical Revival style house features a pedimented entry portico with paired colossal order columns, a wraparound porch with Ionic columns, and a Palladian…

Shuford-Killough House · 1991

This residence, built for cattleman J.D. Shuford, was completed in 1913. Designed by the Kansas City architectural firm of Shepard, Farrar, and Wiser, the house reflects the Prairie School style with its hipped roof and…

Clarence and Lorraine Eakle House · 1994

Noted Amarillo architect Guy Carlander designed and Byron Singleton built this house in 1925 for early Amarillo business and civic leaders Clarence and Lorraine Eakle. The house exhibits elements of the Tudor Revival…

Eakle-Archer House · 1994

Prominent Amarillo architect Guy A. Carlander designed this dramatic craftsman "airplane bungalow" for the Clarence M. Eakle family. Built in 1923, it features a "cockpit-like" upper floor and sweeping multiple gable…

Mary (Masterson) and John Fain House · 1994

This house and its "twin" next door were built by sisters Mary Masterson Fain and Anna Belle Masterson Krister. Designed by Walter Whitley of Dallas, the houses were built in 1930. Mary Fain was the youngest daughter of…

Wild Horse Lake · 1994

At various times this playa lake served as a reliable water source for buffalo, wild horses, nomadic native americans, explorers, cattle drivers, traders, and pioneers traversing the high plains. The lake area, also…

Amarillo Natatorium ("The Nat") · 1996

The Natatorium, an open air building surrounding a swimming pool that measured 36' by 101', opened in July 1922. "The Nat" was enclosed in 1923 for year-round use. In 1926 the building was converted into a dance hall…

Northwest Texas Hospital School of Nursing · 1996

Prominent Amarillo Architect Guy Carlander designed this structure in 1924 as part of a larger hospital complex. The Panhandle oil boom of the 1920's strained municipal and medical facilities and a public teaching…

Potter County Courthouse · 1996

Organized in August 1887, Potter County erected its first courthouse in 1888 in old town Amarillo. The building was constructed by Mays, Hightower, and Jackson for a cost of $191. Over the years, three more courthouses…

Route 66 in Amarillo · 1996

Commonly called the "Main Street of America" and also the "Mother Road," Route 66 became the first paved transcontinental highway in the U.S. spanning from Chicago to Los Angeles; the route in Texas crossed 7 panhandle…

Alice Victoria Ghormley Curtis House · 1997

Designed by local contractor J. D. Singleton and built for the widow of prominent Texas Ranger and rancher W. R. Curtis, the Alice Victoria Ghormley Curtis House was erected in 1906-1907. Mrs. Curtis (1869-1923) moved…

Potter County Library · 1997

The Potter County free library was organized in 1902 by twelve local women. Many citizens donated books, and held bazaars, candy sales, and other activities to raise money to purchase more books. Mr. and Mrs. J.H.…

Santa Fe Building · 1997

Built in 1928-30 at a cost of $1,500,000, this structure was designed by Santa Fe Railroad Architect E.A. Harrison. The 14-story building was the tallest in Amarillo until the 1970's, and housed the offices and division…

Amarillo Tri-State Fair · 1998

A number of organized fairs and horse races occurred in this area beginning in the 1890s. The Panhandle State Fair was organized in 1913, but due to World War I large fairs were suspended from 1917 to 1921, when…

Amarillo Globe Dream House · 2008

This house was built in 1925 as a joint project of a real estate development firm and the local evening newspaper. The Tudor revival style red brick dwelling has a steeply pitched cross gabled roof, massive chimney, low…

Ordway Hall · 2008

Architect Guy Carlander designed this administration building for Amarillo College. It was built in 1936-37 and later named for George Ordway, who with James Guleke obtained legislative authority to establish the…

Russell Hall · 2008

The administration building and the gymnasium were the first two permanent structures built for Amarillo College. Originally known as Badger Gymnasium for the school's athletic teams, this facility was renamed to honor…

Smith-Rogers House · 2008

THIS HOUSE WAS BUILT FOR EARLY AMARILLO SETTLERS JAMES BYNUM AND MARIE LOWERY SMITH c. 1904, AND WAS ORIGINALLY LOCATED AT 1101 SOUTH TAYLOR STREET. THE HOME WAS PURCHASED IN 1945 BY JESSE A. ROGERS, WHO PLANNED TO MOVE…

St. Francis Catholic Church · 2008

St. Francis Church commemorates a century of Eucharistic clebrations growing in love of God, family, land and country as a strong fiath community-March 13, 2008.

Polk Street Schools · 2010

During the 20th century, Polk Street was home to three public schools. The first opened in 1900 to meet the needs of the rapidly-growing Amarillo community. Bounded by Polk, Tyler, 12th and 13th Streets, the Red Brick…