West Texas Woolen Mills

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the West Texas Woolen Mills, out in Schleicher County. Now settle in, because this one's got stone walls, army blankets, and a governor cutting a ribbon, and it all starts with a sheep. Well, more than one sheep.

Considerably more than one sheep. Sheep were introduced to this area back in 1883, and by the time the 1930s rolled around, they existed in large numbers throughout the region. That is a lot of wool just waitin' on somebody with a plan.

Enter two men with exactly that. Joseph B. Christian, a prominent local banker, and his son Joe Muller Christian, a textile engineer by trade, put their heads together and erected a native stone building right there in the region to house what they called the West Texas Woolen Mills.

A banker's vision, an engineer's hands, and good honest stone pulled from the land itself. Now, when you open something like that, you want to make a statement. And they did.

Texas Governor W. Lee O'Daniel attended the grand opening in 1941. That's the kind of send-off that tells a town this is real, this matters.

Then, just one year later, in 1942, the plant was awarded a major World War II contract to manufacture Army blankets. Think about that. Those stone walls were now in the war effort, turning out blankets for soldiers overseas.

After the war wound down, the mill made a successful conversion to postwar production and went right on becoming a major contributor to the area's economy. The Christians had built something that lasted. They finally sold the landmark mill in 1963.

The wool kept movin'. The stone walls stayed standing. And somewhere out there, there might still be an Army blanket with Schleicher County in its threads.

What the marker says

Introduced to this area in 1883, sheep existed in large numbers throughout the region by the 1930s. Prominent local banker Joseph B. Christian and his son, textile engineer Joe Muller Christian, erected this native stone building to house the West Texas Woolen Mills. Texas governor W. Lee O'Daniel attended the grand opening in 1941. In 1942 the plant was awarded a major World War II contract to manufacture Army blankets. After a successful conversion to postwar production, the mill became a major contributor to the area's economy. The Christians sold the landmark mill in 1963. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1995