DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it — this one's about a town that rose fast, served well, and faded quiet. Out here in Fisher County, the land doesn't give up its stories easy. But if you know where to look, the ground itself will talk.
And right here, you're standin' at the approximate southern boundary of what used to be a town square — a real, live, bustlin' town square — for a place called Royston. It all started in 1906, when the Texas Central Railroad built a line through this area. That railroad was the whole reason Royston came into existence.
Before the tracks, there was nothing much. After the tracks — well, hold on, because the people came fast and they came with ambition. First came the depot.
Then the homes. Then the businesses, and brother, they did not hold back. Somebody put up a thirty-room hotel.
Thirty rooms. Out here. That tells you something about how much traffic this town expected to see.
There was a weekly newspaper — the Royston Record — keepin' the community informed. The Royston Mercantile Company, the Royston State Bank, a cotton gin, a tin shop, a grocery and hardware store, a drug store, a restaurant, and not one but two lumberyards. By 1907, Royston had its own post office.
There were churches too — Methodist, Baptist, and Pentecostal — and a public school that ran for decades, all the way until 1947, when it was consolidated with McCaulley School. Now, Royston sat at the center of a rich agricultural area, and for a good long while, that was plenty. But then 1928 arrived, and the ground offered up something else — oil.
The discovery of oil in the area broadened Royston's economic base, gave it another reason to keep on keepin' on. The railroad ran freight and passenger service all the way until 1972. That's a long run.
Royston served as an important supply center for the surrounding agricultural area for a number of years. But somewhere along the way, the town began its slow, gradual decline. The railroad company came back through and removed the rails.
The depot, the hotel, the two lumberyards — gone the way things go when the road moves on. Today, Royston is a ghost town. The marker says so plainly, and there's a kind of dignity in that plainness.
A ghost town, yes — but an important part of Fisher County history. The town square had a southern boundary once, and you're standin' on it right now. Not every story ends with the town still standin'.
Some of the best ones don't.
What the marker says
The town of Royston came into existence in 1906, when the Texas Central Railroad built a line through this area. In addition to the railroad depot, homes and businesses were soon established in the new town. The Royston Post Office was established in 1907. Businesses included a 30-room hotel, the "Royston Record" weekly newspaper, the Royston Mercantile Company, the Royston State Bank, a cotton gin, tin shop, grocery and hardware store, drug store, restaurant, and two lumberyards. A public school was in operation until 1947, when it was consolidated with McCaulley School. Churches in the town included Methodist, Baptist, and Pentecostal. The center of a rich agricultural area, Royston's economic base was broadened after the discovery of oil in the area in 1928. The railroad continued both freight and passenger service until 1972, and Royston was an important supply center for the surrounding agricultural area for a number of years. The town of Royston gradually declined, and the rails were removed by the railroad company. This site marks the approximate southern boundary of the town square. Now a ghost town, it is nevertheless an important part of Fisher County history. (1988)