City of Canyon

Duane's take

Now, I'm drawing this one straight from the official marker — here's how Canyon, Texas got its story told. Christmas Day, 1887. Most folks were inside by a fire somewhere, but L.

G. Conner was out surveying land on the High Plains of the Texas Panhandle. That's dedication — or stubbornness — or maybe just the particular brand of grit that built this part of the world.

Conner didn't just survey the site, either. He donated land for numerous civic improvements, leaving his mark on the place before it even had a name on a map. And what a name it got.

Canyon — named for the colorful Palo Duro Canyon, twelve miles to the east. You can imagine standing out on that flat, wind-scoured plain and knowing that just a short ride away the earth drops away into something spectacular. Now, the High Plains did not make it easy.

Snow. Sandstorms. And grasshopper plagues — the kind that darken the sky and strip a field clean before you've finished watching.

Despite all of that, the pioneer citizens pushed ahead. By 1889, the first school was organized, six students strong. Six.

You could seat them all at one table and still have room for the teacher's lunch pail. Then in 1896 came the telephone line — and here's where it gets good. They built it using barbed wire fence posts as poles.

Out here, you work with what the land gives you, and the land gave plenty of barbed wire. Whether those early calls came through crisp and clear is a question the marker politely leaves unanswered. Church services were going on from the early days too, with all groups worshipping together in the courthouse.

One building, every denomination, no arguments recorded — at least not on the marker. Then 1898, and the Santa Fe Railroad rolled in. Towns along railroad lines had a way of either exploding or disappearing, and Canyon exploded.

By 1901, 1902, and again in 1908, Canyon is said to have shipped out more cattle than any other city in the world. The whole world. Let that settle over you for a moment.

Six schoolchildren in 1889, and not twenty years later, more cattle moving through this one spot than anywhere else on the planet. In 1906, Canyon incorporated, pushed along by a lawyer named Jasper N. Haney, who was then elected the town's first mayor.

Lawyers founding towns and getting themselves elected — some things are a Texas tradition. That same boom year of 1908 brought an electric power plant. It ran only in the evenings at first.

Then, as the marker tells it with a kind of deadpan charm, it was extended to the afternoons — for women to do the ironing. Progress, measured in daylight hours and hot irons. Then 1910, and Canyon stepped into a new chapter altogether.

West Texas State University opened here, and from that point on, the marker says, the city and the university have advanced side by side. A cattle town that became a college town, without ever stopping being either. And the citizens of Canyon weren't content to stop at their own borders.

They initiated the Buffalo Lake Conservation Project, dedicated in 1939, contributing greatly to the development of the entire Panhandle region. From a surveyor working on Christmas Day to a university town anchoring the Panhandle — Canyon built itself out of barbed wire and stubbornness, one improbable year at a time.

What the marker says

Site surveyed Christmas Day, 1887, by L. G. Conner, who also donated land for numerous civic improvements. Named for the colorful Palo Duro Canyon, 12 miles east. Despite a harsh environment characterized by snow, sandstorms, and grasshopper plaques, pioneer citizens pushed ahead. The first school, with 6 students, was organized in 1889. First telephone line was built in 1896, using barbed wire fence posts as poles. Church services were held from early days, with all groups worshipping in the courthouse. Arrival of the Santa Fe Railroad in 1898 also spurred town growth: In 1901, 1902, and 1908 Canyon is said to have shipped out more cattle than any other city in the world. Canyon incorporated 1906 at the urging of Jasper N. Haney, lawyer, who was elected first mayor. More strides were made when an electric power plant was built 1908. It first ran only in the evening, but later was on in the afternoon - for women to do the ironing. Canyon became an educational center in 1910 when West Texas State University was opened here. Since then, the two have advanced side by side. Canyon citizens initiated Buffalo Lake Conservation Project, dedicated 1939, and have contributed greatly to the development of the entire Panhandle region. (1968)