Dawson County History 1922

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Dawson County History Written in 1922

Dawson County. Perhaps no county in the Plains country of West Texas has developed more rapidly since the beginning of the present century than Dawson. The county boundaries were assigned in 1858, but the county received only scant attention even from the stockmen, and its population did not justify a county government until 1905. In 1880 only twenty-four persons were enumerated in the county ; in 1890 the population remained about the same, twenty-nine inhabitants being reported ; in 1909 the population was thirty-seven, but by 1910, 2,320 inhabitants were found in the county, and in 1920 there were 4,309.

The development which was carried on so rapidly during the first decade of the present century came in advance of the first railroad. The Pecos & Northern Texas Railroad was opened as far as Lubbock in 1910, and has since been continued south to the town of Lamesa in Dawson County. Since then population has continued to increase, and there has occurred a general breaking-up of the large ranch holdings into small farm areas.

In 1900 only five individual farms or ranches were enumerated in the entire county. This number was increased to 330 by 1910. In 1900 thirty-five acres were reported as in cultivation, and in 1910 about forty-three thousand acres. The total area of the county is 577,920 acres, and 177,432 acres were included in farms in 1910. The census reported 5,729 cattle ; about 1,400 horses and mules, and 1,606 hogs. In 1920 the enumeration is : Cattle, 10,500 ; horses and mules, 2,625. In 1909, 7,290 acres were planted in kaffir corn and milo maize ; 3,287 acres in corn ; 1,438 acres in cotton, and about 8,000 orchard fruit trees were enumerated and some other fruits. The valuation of property in 1913 was $2,838, 026, and in 1920, $6,554,646. - History of Texas, 1922, by W. Barrett Travis.