Isom

Isom. . In 1876 the Texas legislature created Hutchinson County, naming it for attorney and judge Anderson Hutchinson. The county remained sparsely populated for several years and was not organized until 1901. Pioneers and ranchers John F. and Maggie (Deahl) Weatherly settled near this site in 1898. They built a dugout on their homestead, later building a two-story house near the future site of Frank Phillips College in Borger. They named their settlement Granada. A post office opened on June 30, 1900, with Lutie S. Ford as the first postmaster. , John Weatherly opened Isom’s first store in the basement of their ranch house. Maggie Weatherly was serving as postmaster when the town name changed. The Weatherlys submitted three choices-Agnes and Opal for their two daughters, and Isom for their former home Maury County, Tennessee. The postal name changed to Isom on July 7, 1906. A school opened on the Weatherlys’ land in 1907, and Maggie operated a café. They were also instrumental in securing a telephone exchange. The post office closed in 1919 and the Weatherlys moved to the town of panhandle, but wisely retained ownership of their land here. , When oil was discovered in the area in early 1926, Missouri businessman Ace Borger and John S. Miller bought 240 acres from John Weatherly. They formed a corporation and platted a new townsite named Borger for its major promoter. Isom was also officially platted, bounded by Washington and Maple (later Mcgee) streets and the Panhandle and Santa Fe railroad. The adjoining rival towns vied for oil industry warehouses and related businesses throughout 1926. Borger grew larger and was the more successful city. The Weatherlys did sell lots in Isom and used proceeds to donate land for parks, churches and many other civic projects. By 1928, the Isom community was absorbed into the corporate limits of Borger.