Welcome to Childress Texas

Welcome to

CHILDRESS Texas

Experience

2016 Summer Travel Season

400 Madison Avenue

Amenities and Services:

Childress • 940.937.3500

For Your Comfort

• Business Center • Business Phone Service • Complimentary Printing Service • Fax • Meeting Rooms • Modem • Photo Copying Service • Printer

• Beverage Area, Complimentary • Breakfast Area, Complimentary • Coin Laundry • Electric Service • Elevators • Guest Activity/Recreation Desk • Lounge • Luggage Hold • Multilingual Staff • Safety Deposit Box

We Offer:

• Cribs • High chairs

For Your Fitness and Recreation Convenience

• Fitness Room • Pool

We love having you here!

Childress Owned and Childress Proud Since 1909 Services • Personal Checking and Savings and Loans • ATM & Debit Cards, Safe Deposit Boxes, Direct Deposit • Personal Loans, Commercial Loans, Auto Loans, Mortgage Loans, Home Equity Loans • Commercial Checking, Merchant Card Service, Commercial Savings and Loans • Mobile Banking • Online Bill Pay

We have two locations to best serve your banking needs.

Downtown 301 Main Street 940.937.3611 Gateway Branch 2006 Avenue G NW 940.937.9013 Our easy to access ATM is located outside our Gateway Branch located at the crossroads of Hwy 287 and Hwy 83

Visit us on the web at fbtchildress.net

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 4

Beautiful Fair Park Lake in Childress.

Childress is one of a kind!

T

here are many great towns in Texas, but only one Childress!

Childress has been named of of the best places to raise a family in Texas and is known for it's low cost of living.

This year, SmartAsset named Childress No. 1 in Texas for getting the most "Bang for their Buck" on property taxes.

Childress Regional Medical Center was recently names one of the Top 20 rural hospitals in the United States.

Childress’ low crime rate and terriďŹ c climate make the town an attractive place to call home or simply stay the night.

The city is currently undergoing growth. A member of the Texas Main Street Program, several buildings in the downtown corridor are being repurposed and restored.

The city is the regional hub for shopping and commerce.

Main Street Childress is undergoing a transformation.

From our beautiful parks and StoneyRidge Golf Course to the Childress ATV Park and brand new Events Center, Childress has much to offer!

Visiting Childress, Texas, is a great choice!

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 5

Fun Facts!

• Walter P. Chrysler worked at a mechanic shop in Childress and later went on to establish the Chrysler Motor Corporation.

• The County and City of Childress is named for George C. Childress, author of the Texas Declaration of Independence.

• The county comprises 699 square miles of rolling prairies and rough river bottoms.

• Native American farming communities existed in the area now known as Childress County between A.D. 1000 and 1600.

• The elevation of the county ranges from 1,600 to 1,900 feet above sea level; the annual growing season averages 217 days, and annual precipitation averages 20.67 inches.

• In 1930, Childress County had a population of 16,044.

• Besides cotton, wheat, hay, sorghum, grapes and peanuts are grown in Childress County.

The Childress ATV Park is great entertainment!

Residential • Farm and Ranch Commercial• Lease/Rentals Salads, Sandwiches, Gourmet Flat Bread Pizzas & Desserts Open Monday - Friday Closed the first Monday of the month Lunch served from 11 -2 Open till 5:30 for Desserts, Drinks and Gift Shop

Hwy 287 ~ Childress ~ 940-937-8480

www.mashburnrealty.com

940-937-3136 Diane Mashburn Broker/Owner

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 6

Get to know us!

C

hildress, the county seat of Childress County, is at the intersection of U.S. Highways 287, 62, and 83, in the central part of the county.

The town is named for George C. Childress, author of the Texas Declaration of Independence.

The city developed out of two separate townsites, Childress City and Henry, which were platted about four miles apart on land previously occupied by the OX Ranch.

When Childress County was organized upon the arrival of the Fort Worth and Denver City Railway in February 1887, the two towns contested for the position of county seat. In the first election, held on April 11, 1887, Childress City, which already had three businesses, won the honor.

A wooden courthouse was built under the supervision of Amos J. Fires, the “Dean of the Panhandle Lawyers.” However, the Donley

Crews are shown laying the brick streets of downtown Childress.

Continued on Page 9

7769 US-287 • Childress • 940-937-3693 Monday-Saturday 7:30 A.M.–5 P.M.

Salon Boutique Makeup

Hair Products Clothes Shoes

The cutest store in town!

237 N Main St. • Childress • 940-937-6677 Tuesday-Friday 9 a.m.-6 p.m.

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 8

Childress visitors are welcomed when arriving from the east.

ST. LUKE’S Event Center Est. 1911

We are too and we’d love to help you care for your pet.

Critter Care Vet Clinic 940.937.6065 406 19th St. NW Hwy 83S Childress

A place where dreams become reality!

Call today to reserve for your event!

940-937-8843

300 2nd St. Ne Childress

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 9 Continued from Page 6 attached for judicial purposes at the time) canvassed the election and declared it illegal.

R.E. Montgomery, the railroad’s right-ofway and townsite agent, had always favored Henry as the county seat because of the rougher terrain at Childress City, which he claimed would prevent the railroad from building a depot there. Significantly, he had also purchased half the property in Henry.

After the court’s action, Montgomery proposed that the railroad give those owning lots in Childress City lots in Henry.

Furthermore, when Henry was chosen county seat in another election, the company offered to change the name of Henry to Childress.

Fires and his associates agreed to this compromise, and the businesses and residences were moved to the new Childress by September 1887.

The town then enjoyed a boom from the railroad, which constructed the Dwight Hotel, the section house, and the depot.

The Childress Lumber Company opened for business soon afterward. Dr. J. H. Christler became the first physician and one of the town’s first businessmen.

Fires, who was elected county judge, started the first bank and helped organize the first school system.

James S. Harrison began the town’s first newspaper, the Childress County Index (later The Childress Index and

Hotel Childress once thrived in downtown. now The Red River Sun), in 1888.

Four churches, Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, and Church of Christ, were established in Childress by 1889.

The city was incorporated in 1890. It had a post office, a livery stable, a boarding house, a restaurant, three stores, a local YMCA, a theater, and a population of 621.

There were also several saloons at first, but in 1904, a fatal shooting prompted the citizens to vote the town dry.

In 1901, when the Fort Worth and Denver City began considering Childress as a division point, the citizens approved bonds and donated land to build shops, roundhouses, and terminal facilities. These businesses, in addition to the influx of farmers and homesteaders, provided more jobs and resulted in a population increase to 5,003 by 1910.

Walter P. Chrysler served as general foreman of the Childress railroad shops in 1905 and 1906 before working as a master mechanic in Iowa and subsequently founding the Chrysler Motor Corporation.

After a fire destroyed the first courthouse in 1891, an elaborate stone building was constructed and used until the present courthouse was built in 1939.

For years a large windmill in the middle of Main Street served as the city’s water source.

The railroad continued as the industrial mainstay of Childress into the 1940s. Construction of the Fort Worth and Denver Northern line from Childress to Pampa and increased activity in the railroad shops in Childress helped reduce the economic hardships of the Great Depression.

Aerial photo of the T.L. Roach Unit.

Continued on Page 10

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 10 Continued from Page 9 In 1941 a move on the part of the railroad to discontinue its shops was thwarted by the citizens, in cooperation with the Interstate Commerce Commission. Various social clubs and lodges helped to promote the community, as did Childress Army Air Field during its existence from 1942 to 1945.

In the 1920s a brick high school building was completed.

After the depression and Dust Bowl era, the advent of modern farm machinery and improved highways reduced the town’s rate of growth; the population was 6,464 in 1940.

Furthermore, the railroad experienced a decline, and by the 1970’s, several shops in Childress had been torn down.

Various manufacturers opened and closed from the 1960s through the 1980s but Childress remained viable.

Childress is now the home of the T.L. Roach Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. It is also home to the Childress District Headquarters of the Texas Department of Transportation.

Childress Regional Medical Center is a $50,000,000 hospital and is regarded as one of the top rural hospitals in the U.S. Over 22,000 vehicles travel through daily and the town has become the regional hub for hotels, restaurants, and shopping.

According to the most recent data, Childress has a The Palace Theater sign lights up downtown. population of 6,091.

Personal Banking t Personal Checking t Money Markets & Savings t Personal Loans t Home Equity/Home Improvement Loans

Business Banking t Business Checking t Agriculture Loans t Oil & Gas Loans t Commercial & Industrial Loans t Real Estate Loans More than 40 locations in Texas and Oklahoma!

We are located at 501 Avenue F NW Childress, Texas 79201 940.937.6114

www.interbank.com

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Gordon’s Furniture

Home of the Spartan

Downtown Childress 940.937.3218

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 12

E

ngine 501 was presented to the City of Childress in 1959 by the Fort Worth and Denver Railroad.

Engine 501 stands downtown in R. Wright Armstrong Park.

The history of Childress was once centered around the railroad that created the town in 1887.

Engine 501 locomotive is a Pacific 4-6-2 class service used passenger and yard weight of engine and tender:

401,925. Purchase price: $25,688.94.

Manufacturer was Baldwin Locomotive works, Philadelphia Pa. It was built in 1911 and had mileage of 2,250,000 miles when it was retired.

Directions to R Wright Armstrong Park: From Highway 287 turn South on Main Street, go 5 blocks to Ave A, turn west, and Engine 501 is sitting there in the middle of the block in the park.

Life’s great at Super8!

Enjoy your stay in Childress when you book a room at Super8. Our friendly staff will make you feel at home.

Whether in town for business or pleasure, you can count on Super8 to treat you great!

We Offer: • Heated Indoor Pool and Hot Tub • Fitness Center • Large Family Suites • Guest Laundry Facilities • Well Lit Parking Lot • Complimentary Super Start Breakfast • All guess rooms offer: 42” HD flat screen TV’s with Direct TV programming, microwave/fridges, high speed wireless Internet, tabletop USB charging stations 411 Avenue F NE • 940.937.8825 • Childress, Texas 79201

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The 501 Winery 109 Avenue E Northwest • Childress • 940-937-8155

• Wine Tasting • Reception Facilities • Artisan Breads and Cheeses • Gift Shop Monday-Friday 10:30 A.M.–6 P.M. Saturday 10:30 A.M.–5 P.M.

“From our vineyard to the bottle”

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 15

T

he Childress Motocross and ATV Park is eight miles west of Childress on Highway 287. The park has over 28 miles of rider friendly trails.

The park has four different canyons for jumping and hill climbing and a large pit for climbing the walls or jumping off the side.

A 3/8 mile mini motocross track and a pro style 1 1/2 mile motocross track are also available at the facility.

Over 25 acres of parking and a restroom facility are available.

Whether you’re here for a day, a week or a lifetime, welcome to Childress! We hope you enjoy all we have to offer!

blackburn media group

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 16

Area Attractions: • Baylor Lake and Lake Childress (12 Miles west of Childress near Carey) • Childress ATV Park (7287 US Highway 287 West) • Childress County Heritage Museum (210 3rd Street NW) • Childress Event Center (West Fair Park) • Engine 501 and Armstrong Park (Downtown Ave. A NW) • Fair Park (North Commerce) • Palace Theater (206 North Main Street) • Prairie Dog Fork of the Red River (11 miles north of Childress) • Robert E. Lee Park (Southwest Childress) • St. Luke's Event Center (300 2nd Street) • StoneyRidge Golf Course (910 FM 2530) • Scott Lake (5th Street SW) • The 501 Winery (109 Ave. E NW)

Hole No. 4 at StoneyRidge.

Fishing at Scott Lake.

75-year-old Fair Park Stadium.

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 17

The Childress Event Center and Exposition Hall is now complete and is slated to host several events and activities.

Looking to plant your roots in Childress?

We can help.

REAL ESTATE

Camie Holland, REALTOR® P.O. Box 541 Childress, Texas 79201 940.937.2200 Office 806.205.0352 Cell

www.chadhollandrealestate.com

REGISTERED (ADN) NURSING VOCATIONAL NURSING COSMETOLOGY NAIL TECH INDUSTRIALMAINTENANCE RANCH & FEEDLOT OPERATIONS ASSOCIATE DEGREES SMALL CLASS SIZES LOW TUITION & FEES

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LocaƟons in Clarendon, Pampa, Childress & Amarillo

800.687.9737

www.ClarendonCollege.edu

We have something new for you...

Book it today!

From rodeos and wedding receptions to corporate meetings and birthday parties, the Childress Event Center is here for you!

For Reservations Please Contact: Sheabree Nix 817.602.9195 eventcenter@cityofchildress.com

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 22

Childress is home to some of the most dramatic sunsets in North America.

Checking • Savings • CDs • Consumer Loans • Home Equity Loans Business and Commercial Loans • Real Estate Mortgages • Bill Pay Internet Banking (NETTELLER)

National Bank of Commerce 501 Commerce St. • 940.937.2514 www.fnbwaupaca.com

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2004 Ave G NW 940-937-8550 Childress

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SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 25

Childress County History

C

hildress County, on the eastern edge of the Panhandle, is bounded on the east by Oklahoma, on the south by Cottle County, on the West by Hall County, and on the north by Collingsworth County. The county is named for George C. Childress, author of the Texas Declaration of Independence.

The county seat, Childress, is located 116 miles southeast of Amarillo, on the Fort Worth and Denver Railway and U.S. Highway 287. The center of the county lies at approximately 34°35' north latitude and 100°13' west longitude.

The elevation of the county ranges from 1,600 to 1,900 feet above sea level; the annual growing season averages 217 days, and annual precipitation averages 20.67 inches. The average minimum temperature is 26° F in January, and the average maximum is 99° in July. The major water feature of the county is the Prairie Dog Town Fork of the Red River, which bisects the county as it flows eastward towards the main channel of the Red River. This

Childress County Courthouse. stream and its tributary creeks (Dry Salt Creek, East Salt Creek, and Spiller, or Buck Creek) render much of the central and northern part of the county unfit for farming.

Thus, ranching retained a significant role in the local economy. Baylor Lake and Lake Childress, two small bodies of water, lie to the northwest of Childress and provide

Continued on Page 26

Childress County is located in the Rolling Plains of Texas.

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 26 Continued from Page 25 recreation.

Archeological discoveries along the banks of the Prairie Dog Town Fork of the Red River indicate that permanent Indian farming communities existed in the area now known as Childress County between A.D. 1000 and 1600. The Indians lived in half dugouts and used stone and bone tools; they made pottery and supplemented their diet with buffalo, deer, dogs, turtles, and mussels.

Apaches occupied the area from about 1600 to about 1700, when the more warlike Comanches entered the region to begin a rule of the Panhandle and South Plains of Texas until they were crushed by the United States Army in the Red River War of 1874. As the Comanches retreated to reservations in Indian Territory during 1875 and 1876, buffalo hunters spread across the area. By the late 1870s the buffalo herds were exterminated and ranchers entered the local picture. The Texas legislature formed Childress County in 1876.

In 1879 the OX Ranch, owned by A. Forsythe and Doss D. Swearingen, was established in the southern part of the county. This large ranch occupied the entire southern half of Childress County and parts of Cottle and Motley counties. The Shoe Nail Ranch, owned by Chicago meat packer Gustavus Franklin Swift, was started in 1883

The Lighthouse fountain in Fair Park. in the northern part of the county, while the Mill Iron Ranch spilled into the northwestern part of the county from Collingsworth County. These ranches dominated the local economy, and the unorganized county remained a sparsely populated ranching area until farmers began to appear in numbers during the early twentieth century. In 1890 the United States Agricultural Census enumerated 3,982 cattle in Childress County; in 1900 the number was almost 25,500.

Farms began to be established in the Childress County in the 1880s after the Fort Worth and Denver City extended its tracks into the area. This railroad began construction of its line from Fort Worth to the Texas-New Mexico border in 1881 and crossed into Childress County in April 1887. Organization of the county soon followed. A move to organize the county began even as the rails were being laid across it.

In July 1887, Henry became the county seat; its name was changed to Childress. The old Childress City disappeared as all its buildings were moved to the new town.

With both organization and a rail link to the East accomplished, farmers began to move into the county, settling on unclaimed or state lands and usually entering into stock farming to make a living.

By 1890, 153 farms and ranches in the county encompassed almost 79,350 acres (including 39,671 acres classiďŹ ed as "improved" land), and the county's population

Fair Park’s Rock Field is the home to Childress Little League.

Continued on Page 29

We are the story... of

Childress!

Childress County Heritage Museum 940-937-2261 210 3rd St NW, Childress Tuesday-Saturday 10 A.M.–5 P.M. childressmuseum.com

Where the past never grows old!

Apparel Children’s Apparel Construction Do it Best Hardware Graceland Buildings Grills

Hardware Home Décor Hunting Jewelry Lawn & Garden Trailers

3200 AVE. F N.W. • Hwy 287 West • 940.937.2337 • snydersteel.com Monday - Friday 8 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. Saturday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 29 Continued from Page 26 increased to 1,175. At this time, county farmers planted only about 1,300 acres in cereal crops such as corn, oats, and wheat, and only fourteen acres in cotton.

Population figures reflect a gradual shift in the county's economy during these years. The population swelled from twenty-five in 1880 to 1,175 in 1890 and 2,138 in 1900, as a small but steady stream of settlers moved into Childress County. By 1900 there were 262 farms and ranches in the county.

After the establishment of this base, farming expanded quickly in the county in the early twentieth century, as old ranches were divided and farmers opened more land to the cultivation of corn, wheat, and, especially, cotton. By 1910 961 farms and ranches were in operation in the county; cotton culture occupied more than 45,000 acres of the county that year, and wheat was planted on more Gazebo Park on Main Street downtown. than 12,000 acres. Local farmers had also planted more than 6,300 fruit trees, mostly peach. By World War I all readily tillable land in the county had been sold to the new farmers. The ranching industry survived, however, since the nonarable portions of the large ranches were sold to smaller ranchers during this same period; the county enumerated almost 12,900 cattle in 1910 and almost 12,000 in 1920.

The county's agricultural economy experienced a brief downturn after World War I, but quickly recovered and began to expand again in the 1920s. There were only 861 farms and ranches in the county in 1920, but by 1925 the number had jumped to 1,322, and by 1930 to 1,348. Cotton, already the county's most important crop by 1910, became even more important during this time.

By 1930, almost 135,000 acres of county land was devoted to cotton cultivation. Wheat production also increased during this time, so that by 1930 over 40 percent of the land in the county was under cultivation. By this time poultry had also become a significant part of the local economy; in 1929 Childress county farmers owned almost 71,000 chickens and sold more than 289,000 dozen eggs. Smaller ranchers also increased their production, and in 1930 more than 18,719 cattle were counted in Childress County.

During the first half of the twentieth century, Childress County emerged as the center of a transportation network. The construction of the railroad through the county gave it an early advantage. Shortly after the turn of the century, the Fort Worth and Denver City moved its division point and shops from Clarendon to Childress, a process that began in 1901 and ended in late 1902. The addition of the railroad facilities boosted an already expanding economy and population. The construction of the Fort Worth and Denver South Plains Railway from Estelline to Plainview and Lubbock in 1927–28 further stimulated the Childress County economy because Childress served as the terminal for that branch line.

Childress also served as the terminal for the Fort Worth and Denver Northern Railway, built from the main line at Childress to Pampa via Wellington and Shamrock during 1931 and 1932. Thus by the early 1930s Childress County's economy benefited from both the Fort Worth and Denver City's mainline and two of its major branch lines. Construction of the Fort Worth and Denver South Plains and the Fort Worth and Denver Northern lines in 1929 and 1932 led to a doubling of the yard force at the Childress shops of the Fort Worth and Denver City Railway.

Between 1900 and the early 1930s, this expansion of transportation facilities in Childress, combined with the expansion of agricultural activity in the county, resulted in a substantial increase in the local population. In 1900 only 2,138 people had been counted by the census in Childress County; by 1910 the population had jumped to 9,538, by 1920 to 10,933, and by 1930 to 16,044.

The hard years of the Great Depression, combined with effects of the Dust Bowl and farm mechanization, however, worked to reduce the number of small farmers and farm laborers in Childress County during the 1930s.

Harvested cropland dropped from more than 183,000 acres in 1929 to only 114,467 in 1939; cotton production was reduced to about 57,000 acres, and the number of farms dropped from 1,348 to 904 during the same period. Railroad workers were also hurt during the depression, as the conversion from steam to diesel locomotives and the mechanization of some shop activities reduced the number of railroad employees during most of the decade. By 1940 the Childress is home to several Classic Car

Continued on Page 32

enthusiasts.

We’ve grown up!

Childress is an economically progressive center of commerce for the southeastern Texas Panhandle and its small town atmosphere makes it a fantastic place in which to raise a family.

With a healthy mix of retail business, service industries, and governmental agencies, Childress is strategically positioned at the intersections of United States Highways 287, 83, and 62. As such, over 22,000 vehicles travel through town each day bringing people from all over the country. These major thoroughfares make it easy for shipping goods and our mid-continent location makes the town conveniently located.

Aside from physical transportation routes, Childress also has the digital backbone for business. Because of the democratization of the digital technologies, engineering firms, various professional services, and retail stores are taking their businesses worldwide.

Therefore, the buzz is true. Childress is a great place to be.

Services: The Business Incubator At the heart of the CEDC is our business incubator. Consisting of over 10,000 square feet of space, the incubator is a place where new businesses come to grow.

Business Loans The CEDC maintains a revolving loan fund that startup and expanding businesses can access providing that various criteria are met.

Additional Services Don’t need space or money but just need a place to bounce ideas? We do that too.

Russell Graves, Executive Director Kelly Greer, Executive Assistant 1902 Avenue G, NW Childress 940.937.8629 info@childresstexas.com

Stand out from the crowd!

Over 10,000 Readers Over 3,300 Likes RedRiverSun.com

Over 1,500 Weekly Visitors Over 300 Twitter Followers

226 Main Street • Childress • 888-400-1083

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 32 Continued from Page 29 population of Childress County had declined to 12,149.

The presence of Childress Army Air Base probably kept the population from declining further during the 1940s; but after 1950 the population declined continuously, to a low of 6,505 in 1970. The loss is related to the great reduction in railroad operations and the unproďŹ tability of small-scale farming. Though the county's population increased slightly to 6,950 in 1980, in 1992 only 5,953 people lived in Childress. By 2000, however, the population had grown to 7,688.

By the mid-1920s "improved" and paved roads linked Childress to Wichita Falls via Quanah, Vernon, and Electra, and to Amarillo via Memphis, Clarendon, and Claude. This major route, originally U.S. Highway 370, is now U.S. 287. "Improved roads" also linked Childress to Canadian by way of Wellington, Shamrock, Wheeler, and Mobeetie, while a more primitive dirt road ran from Childress to Paducah. During the 1930s and 1940s a network of crude farm-to-market roads developed. This system was paved during the 1950s and 1960s. By the 1980s U.S. Highway 287 ran through the county, U.S. 83 (from Laredo to Perryton) passed through Childress, and a complex system of paved farm-to-market roads was centered around that city and its larger road systems.

In the 1980s Childress County continued with an economy based on agriculture, both farming and ranching. Small oil

Childress County’s climate varies from a low average of 26 degrees in January to 99 in July.

Bishop Vineyards (above) and The 501 Winery (below) prove Childress County is great for growing grapes.

discoveries made in 1961 contributed little to the local coffers; production was only 8,472 barrels in 1982, about 13,600 in 1990, and about 20,000 in 2000. Between 1961 and 2001 county production totaled 1,448,114 barrels, not a large output. In 2002 agricultural receipts in the area totaled $13,592,000, down 32 percent from 1997; crop sales accounted for $7,258,000 of that sum. In 2002 368,782 acres in the county were devoted to agriculture. Of those, about 42 percent were planted in crops, primarily cotton, wheat, hay, sorghum, and peanuts. Beef cattle also played an important role in the county's economy. By the 1980s small industry in Childress included the manufacture of clothing, mobile homes, fences, and wood products.

Because of this, by 1980 most of the county's population lived in that town.

In the late 1980s, a committee was formed and secured the T.L. Roach Jr. Unit for the country. The prison houses over 1,200 inmates.

The county has been transformed in recent years with an electrical infrastructure presence. Massive power lines can be seen across the county. The lines travel to the $40,000,000 Tesla Substation near Kirkland.

Childress County experienced a severe drought from 2011-15 and the area was blessed by over 40 inches of rain or more between May of 2015 and the end of April 2016.

Childress County has a large wildlife population including deer, mule deer, turkey, hogs, dove, and quail. Hunters have become big business for the county.

The county is located in a prime grape-growing climate and is home to Bishop Vineyards and The 501 Winery. Other vineyards should begin producing this year.

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 34

Childress Chamber of Commerce Members Aaron’s Sales & Lease Allen Insurance Agency, Inc. Amazing Grace American Legion Post #65 American Electric Power American Inn Apollo MedFlight LLC Arvis Davis Chevrolet Atmos Energy Ballyhoo Beyond Integration Group LLC Billy’s Truck Service Bird Bird Rabe Bishop, Adam & Amy HS Black Boles Communications J. Boles Brown Auto Supply, Inc. Capital Farm Credit Caprock Building Systems Carey Baptist Church CASA of the Rolling Plains Chad Holland Real Estate Cherry Electric Jay Anna Cherry Childress ATV & Moto Park Childress Banking Center Childress Church of Christ Childress County Heritage Museum Childress County Historical Commission Childress County Old Settlers Childress Critter Care Childress Economic Development Corp Childress Elks Lodge 1113 Childress Glass Childress Healthcare Childress Independent School District Childress Lumber Company Childress Outpost Pharmacy Childress Police Department Childress Regional Medical Center Childress Rotary Club Childress Specific Chiropractic Childress Theatre Company, Inc. Childress We Can Care Childress Women’s Council Childress Women’s League Christmas In The Park

Chugs of Childress City of Childress Clarendon College Clark ETS Inc. Gary Clark Communication Connection Continental Credit Vicki Cook Cornerstone Insurance Cottage Village of Childress Country Gal Cowboy Roy’s World Famous Texas Pit Bar BQ Crossroads Tire Service Irma Custer Joe Davis Dawson Family Restaurant Days Inn DF Frames & Logo Edward Jones Investment El Sombrero Kenneth Ellis 4-Ward Communications Fairview Manor Apartments Family Eye Care Farmers CO-OP Gin First Baptist Church First Bank & Trust First Childress Agency First United Methodist Church Foster & Lambert, LLC Fun Family Fitness Gate City Mixed Martial Arts Academy, LLC Golden Fried Chicken Gordon’s Furniture Greenview Apartments Dave Griminger Hampton Inn & Suites Holiday Inn Express Childress Home Medical Equipment Hometown Insurance of Childress Hope 4 U I SPA Integra Care Home Health Interbank J Ferg Roofing & Foam Jim Freeman Real Estate Johnson Funeral Judy Johnson

SUMMER 2016 GUIDE TO CHILDRESS Page 35

Childress Chamber of Commerce Members Justin Brands, Inc. K-Bobs Steakhouse KCTX & KCHT Radio Terry & Susan Keener Keep Childress Beautiful Dr. Kevin Keys, DDS Kimley Horn Engineering KLSR Radio Karen Leonard Livingston Audiology & Hearing Aid Center Lonestar Construction & Remodeling Lorie’s Catering Lott Home Center Lori Loveless Main Street Program Mashburn Realty McDonald’s of Childress McGee Electric, Heating & Air Conditioning, LLC Belinda Moore Moss Fire Arms National Bank of Commerce OK Concrete Orkin Pest Control Outreach Family Life Center Dr. Daren Overmiller Pak A Sak Parkview Baptist Church Perfectly Posh Perry, Senator Charles Pierce Engineering, LLC Pilot Flying J Preston Insurance Agency Quality Inn of Childress Red River Sun Red River Taxidermy Red Roof Inn Richeson Companies Rollin’ IN The Dough, Inc. Shady Grove Home Apartments Produced in 2016 by Blackburn Media Group, Inc., Childress, Texas, in cooperation with the Childress Chamber of Commerce and Childress Main Street Program.

Original photography by Russell Graves and Chris Blackburn.

Smith Realty Snyder Steel Sonic Drive In of Childress South Plains Electric Cooperative Spears Cleaners Rep. Drew Springer Roy Stalnaker State Farm Insurance Statham Photography Stellar Restoration StoneyRidge Golf Course Street Toyota Suddenlink Sun Loans Super Eight Motel T & J Willis Equipment Taylor Pest Control, Inc Rick Teran Thai Kitchen Restaurant The 501 Winery The People’s Federal Credit Union The Personal Touch The Store The Trading Post &Loan Top Notch Texas BBQ Tractor Supply Trinity Worship Center United Supermarket Villa Palma Restaurant Villyard’s Plumbing Wal-Mart Supercenter Ware Chevrolet-Buick Wellington Care Center Wellington State Bank Dr. J J Westenburg Western Equipment Kathy Williams Younique

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Fair Park Stadium - Childress greenbeltbowl.com