Happy Union

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker says about Happy Union, out in Hale County. Now, when you're out here on the Texas plains, you start to wonder about the names on the map. Happy Union.

That's not an accident of geography. That's a promise somebody made. Let me tell you how it was kept.

Around 1890, families started arriving in this part of Hale County. The Matslers, the Pearsons, the Longs, the Calverts, the Neils, and others. What drew them out here wasn't gold or glory.

It was inexpensive land and a healthful climate. Practical people, with practical hopes. They took up ranching and raised feed for their stock, and when they needed supplies, they had them sent by rail from Amarillo.

A man named Stant Rhea ran a mail and passenger service that stitched this settlement to the communities around it. So they weren't alone out here. They were connected.

Then in 1897, those pioneers built something that tells you everything about who they were. One room. That's all it was.

But that one room served as a schoolhouse, a community center, and a place of worship, all at once. And the people who built it chose a name for their settlement: Happy Union. The first school trustees were J.

V. Neil, W. H.

Pearce, and H. P. Darden.

Years passed, and the community kept growing into its name. In 1908, Charles P. Shirley deeded two acres of land, and on that ground a new schoolhouse was built.

That building was eventually replaced by a larger stucco one, which served the community until the school disbanded around 1944. By the 1920s, Happy Union had a store and a filling station, built by Gordon and Mae Hansen, a cotton gin, and later a grain elevator. Irrigation came, and with it prosperity.

A farming area that really delivered on what those first families had come looking for. Now, Happy Union never grew into something sprawling or famous. But that's not quite the point, is it.

What the marker wants you to know is that despite its limited growth, this community has held onto a strong sense of identity, a reflection of the pride and rich heritage of the people who chose, back around 1890, to call this place home. One room. Two acres.

A name that was both a description and a decision. Happy Union. Out here on the Hale County plains, that still means something.

What the marker says

Attracted by the availability of inexpensive land and a healthful climate, the families of J. T. Matsler, S. M. Pearson, W. P. Long, J. H. Calvert, J. V. Neil and others began settling this part of Hale County about 1890. They engaged in ranching and raising feed for stock, obtaining their supplies by rail from Amarillo. A mail and passenger service operated by Stant Rhea linked the settlement with surrounding communities. In 1897 the pioneers built a one room building that served as a schoolhouse, community center and place of worship for the settlement, which they chose to call Happy Union. J. V. Neil, W. H. Pearce and H. P. Darden were the first school trustees. Charles P. Shirley deeded two acres of land in 1908 on which a new schoolhouse was built. It was replaced by a larger stucco building that was used until the school disbanded about 1944. By the 1920s the community had a store and filling station built by Gordon and Mae Hansen, a cotton gin, and later a grain elevator. Irrigation helped make Happy Union a prosperous farming area which, despite its limited growth, has retained a strong sense of identity that reflects the community's pride and rich heritage. 1983