Josselet Switch

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Josselet Switch, out in Haskell County. Now, if you want a story that starts on one continent and ends up shaping a corner of West Texas, pull up a little closer to this fire. Victor Joseph Josselet was born in Belgium in 1846.

He made it all the way to 1946. You heard me right. That is a lot of sunrises.

And the man did not spend a quiet one of them. In 1873, he joined his brothers Felix and Paul, and the three of them immigrated together to the United States. They landed in Chicago, working as coal miners.

Underground work, dark and heavy. But those brothers had their eyes on something with a little more sky in it. They pooled what they had and purchased a small farm in Sherman, over in Grayson County.

And it was there in Sherman that Victor met a woman worth crossing an ocean for, even though, technically, he had already crossed the ocean. Her name was Catherine Hugon, born in 1860 in Rosario Oriental, Uruguay. Think about that for a moment.

A man from Belgium and a woman from Uruguay, finding each other in Sherman, Texas. The world has always been smaller than we give it credit for. Victor and Catherine married, and they settled into life in Gainesville, over in Cooke County, where they lived for eighteen years.

Nine children came along during those years. Nine. The Josselets were not a small operation by any measure.

Then the family packed up and moved to Haskell County. In 1900, Victor purchased a large tract of land between Weinert and Haskell and got to work. Ranching, farming, building a large home with several barns, outbuildings, and water tanks.

The family also kept a home in Haskell itself so the children could attend the Haskell schools and the Methodist church. Victor Josselet was a man who thought ahead. On multiple fronts.

Now, here is where the story shifts gears. In 1906, the Wichita Valley Railroad extended their line from Wichita Falls to Haskell. Two years later, in 1908, they completed the connection on to Abilene.

And that same year, the railroad paid Victor Josselet three hundred and fifty dollars for a railroad siding on, and I am quoting the official language here, a strip of land one hundred feet wide, being fifty feet on each side of the line of railroad. Three hundred and fifty dollars and a strip of land, and what came out the other side was Josselet Switch. That siding became an important cattle shipping point, linking area farms and ranches to Fort Worth and the Kansas City stockyards.

There was an empty boxcar maintained right there at the switch for loading cattle. Then came a depot. A grocery store.

An oil and gasoline refueling station for equipment. Josselet Switch was not just a stop on a map. It was the kind of place a community grows up around.

Each of Victor and Catherine's nine children inherited a two-hundred-acre tract of land. Those families spread out and contributed to the growth of the whole surrounding area, supporting the Belew, Gilliam, Powell, Meyers, and Pleasant Valley schools, and the Josselet Home Demonstration Club. But cattle auction barns eventually opened in Haskell, Seymour, and Munday.

And when that happened, the need for a dedicated shipping point like Josselet Switch began to fade. The community declined. That is how those things tend to go.

Still, here is the thing that lands this story squarely on its feet. Today, most of the original Josselet land is still owned and operated by descendants. A Belgian immigrant, a woman from Uruguay, a coal mine in Chicago, a farm in Sherman, eighteen years in Gainesville, a big move to Haskell County, three hundred and fifty dollars, and a hundred-foot strip of Texas dirt.

That family put down roots that are still holding.

What the marker says

Belgian native Victor Joseph Josselet (1846-1946) joined his brothers, Felix and Paul, in immigrating to the United States in 1873. After working as coal miners in Chicago, they purchased a small farm in Sherman (Grayson Co.). While in Sherman, Victor met and married Catherine Hugon (1860-1928), a native of Rosario Oriental, Uruguay. They lived for 18 years in Gainesville (Cooke Co.) before moving to Haskell County. The couple had nine children. In 1900, Victor purchased a large tract of land between Weinert and Haskell and began ranching and farming, building a large home with several barns, outbuildings and water tanks. The family also bought a home in Haskell to attend Haskell schools and the Methodist church. In 1906, the Wichita Valley Railroad extended their line from Wichita Falls to Haskell, completing a connection to Abilene in 1908. That year, the railroad paid Josselet $350 for a railroad siding on “a strip of land 100 feet wide, being 50 feet on each side of the line of railroad.” Josselet Switch linked area farms and ranches to national markets and became known as an important cattle shipping point to Fort Worth and Kansas City stockyards. An empty boxcar was maintained at the switch for loading cattle. Josselet Switch also received a depot, grocery store, and oil and gasoline refueling station for equipment. Each of the Josselet children inherited a 200 acre tract, and the families contributed to area growth that supported the Belew, Gilliam, Powell, Meyers and Pleasant Valley schools and the Josselet Home Demonstration Club. Cattle auction barns in Haskell, Seymour and Munday helped lead to the decline of the community. Today, most of the Josselets’ original land is still owned and operated by descendants. (2013)