Whitney

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Whitney, Texas — and friend, this is a town that came into this world with a picnic and never really slowed down. Whitney holds the distinction of being the first railroad town in Hill County, and it got its start in 1879 on the route of the Houston and Texas Central Railroad. The town was named for Charles A.

Whitney, a railroad investor — a man who put money into iron rails and got his name on a map in return, which is not a bad trade. Now, how do you launch a brand new town? Well, the folks behind Whitney had an answer for that.

They threw a Grand Picnic on November 25, 1879, and they sold lots right there. An eager crowd showed up, and those lots went for anywhere between a hundred dollars and seven hundred fifty dollars apiece. That's not pocket change.

People were serious. And they weren't waiting around either — merchants who bought lots didn't go home and draw up blueprints and schedule contractors. They put up tent stores.

While those canvas walls were flapping in the Hill County breeze, carpenters were working night and day to raise wooden frame stores in their place. Night and day. The town was in a hurry to be a town.

And it got there. Before long Whitney had a post office, a bank, a school, several churches, civic organizations, a newspaper, and more businesses than you'd expect from a place that started as a picnic. There was even an opera house — the cultural center, the marker calls it — putting on theatrical and musical productions, and later, movies.

Now, here's where the story earns some of its weight. Several devastating fires burned much of the downtown area over the years. Not once.

Several times. And each time, the citizens rebuilt. You want to know something about a community, watch what it does after the fire.

Whitney kept building. Then came the dam. The building of Whitney Dam brought the town's population expanding in the late nineteen-forties and early nineteen-fifties, and with it came tourism — people drawn to the newly created Lake Whitney.

A town born from a railroad found new life from a reservoir. And that town turned a hundred years old on November 25, 1979 — exactly one century to the day from that first Grand Picnic. They marked it with a parade, musical entertainment, and fireworks.

A party to close the loop on a party. Whitney came into this world with celebration, and it celebrated right on through.

What the marker says

Whitney, the first railroad town in Hill County, was established in 1879 on the route of the Houston and Texas Central Railroad and was named for railroad investor Charles A. Whitney. Lots in the new town were sold at a "Grand Picnic" on November 25, 1879. An eager crowd bid on the lots which sold at prices ranging between $100 and $750. Several merchants who purchased lots established "tent stores" while carpenters worked night and day to complete wooden frame stores. Soon a central business district was in operation. The new town included a post office, bank, school, several churches, civic organizations, a newspaper, and many businesses. The opera house was the cultural center for entertainment, offering theatrical and musical productions and, later, movies. Several devastating fires burned much of the downtown area over the years, but the citizens rebuilt each time. The building of nearby Whitney Dam caused the town's population to expand in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and brought increased tourism from those visiting the newly created Lake Whitney. The town of Whitney observed its 100th birthday on November 25, 1979. A centennial celebration included a parade, musical entertainment, and fireworks.