Branch T. Archer

Branch T. Archer. . Archer County was given its name Jan. 22, 1858 by an act of the Texas Legislature in honor of Branch Tanner Archer's service in the Texas Republic. Archer was born in Virginia on Dec. 31, 1790, where he later studied medicine. He came to Texas to fight in the Battle of Gonzales., Archer was instrumental in securing funds from the eastern states for the war for Texas independence., He died Sept. 22, 1856 and is buried in Brazoria County., After the Native American Indian conflict was resolved the first settlers began to move into the area in 1874. First following the Buffalo but quickly turned thier attention to cattle due to the tremendous strength of the grass. Numerous native grasses have the ability to grow year-round on limited rainfall., Average rainfall for the area is 29 inches. , Archer County is known as the “Shortgrass Ranching Capital of the Nation.", Archer County was duly organized July 27, 1880. Originally the Archer County survey was part of Clay. After the county court of Clay county approved a petition delivered by Archer area residents. This process of organization was delayed and protested with bitter opposition by large cattle interests in this part of the state in that they felt another boundary would limit their access to grazing rights., The Act of 1876 designated that a county seat Town should be called Archer. The Town of Archer was surveyed in 1876 to lie mostly in the center of the county and in the future path of 3 developing Railroads., After the stagecoach stopped running from Wichita Falls in 1892, the post office was renamed to Archer City., However, it did not become a city officially until Feb. 25, 1908 when it was incorporated into a General Law "A" type City governed by City ordinances and the General Laws of Texas., Archer City's first one teacher school was started in 1881 in a small building on the square. As the population of Archer City began to grow, the school changed locations three times before 1910., A permanent brick building was erected in 1925 with funding support from local families. It remained as High school until 2012, when a new school was built on the same location. Today the Archer City ISD is a "District of Innovation"., By the early 1900's the city had 2 churches including First Baptist and First United Methodist. A bank and a hotel were also established. The City became a thriving center for live-stock dealers and hosted a robust cotton trade largely due to the 2 Railroads; the Wichita and Southern and the Southwestern, that were stopping in Archer City by 1908., In 1911 the first successful oil well was drilled south of Archer City to a depth of 920 flowing 10 barrels a day and produced for some 70 yrs. becoming one of the longest producing wells in the state. The Business of the "Oil Business" had begun and Archer City became a hot-bed for drilling, and to this day, "Oil", still has a major impact on the Archer City economy., Archer City Volunteer Fire Dept. , After a devasting fire destroyed most of a city block east of the courthouse in 1925, city leaders decided that Archer City needed fire protection. The Archer City Volunteer Fire Dept. was created with one truck purchased by the city to be housed in a local garage., Today the Dept. has 40 members and operates out of a 5000 sq. ft. building that houses 10 trucks. Most volunteers are certified first responders and trained fire fighters., What was first called the Archer City Roundup Days where area Cowboys came to town to show off thier skills and horses, competing in ranch related events, later inspired a group of ranchers in 1945 to create the Archer Livestock Association, aka, Archer County Rodeo. Organized each year by a revolving nine-man board this on going local treasure takes place every third weekend in June., In 1969, Archer City was the filming location for "The Last Picture Show "and Academy Award winning film, based on the novel by native son, Larry McMurtry., In 1988, crews returned to film the sequel, "Texasville". Peter Bogdanovich directed both films., By his own count, McMurtry is author of 50 works, including Pulitzer Prize-winning "Lonesome Dove" and Oscar-winning screenplays and films based on his books. Larry brought world wide attention to Archer City with the opening of his rare and used book store, "Booked Up', carrying an estimated half million titles., Trails through Archer , The Historical accuracy of this walking tour would not have been possible without the incredible collection of information found in local author Jack Loftin's book, "Trails Through Archer". His chronicling of the Earliest Tracks including Dinosaurs, Indians and the French, gives us insight as to what happened here in the beginning of Archer City. Mr. Loftin passed away Feb. 22, 2015 but left a lasting legacy., This facility has been made possible in part by the Texas Department of Transportation. The Archer Economic Development Corporation and the Walsh Family of Archer City. This area and the Visitor Center building was originally a full-service gas station run by four brothers Frank, Fred, Tom and Jay Walsh. For over 50 years the station was the hub for information and fittingly referred to as "Knowledge corner".