Near Snyder in Scurry County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
Home County of Famous Frontiersmen J. Wright Mooar
(August 10, 1851 - May 1, 1940)
Photographed By Mark Hilton, September 16, 2015
1. Home County of Famous Frontiersmen J. Wright Mooar Marker
J. Wright Mooar was a champion hunter of buffalo, largest game animal in North America. A native of Vermont. He came west at age 19 and in 1870 began hunting to supply hides for market. In partnership with his brother, John W. Mooar, he established the first buffalo hunting camp in the Texas Panhandle in 1873. On October 7, 1876, at his first camp in Scurry County (2.8 miles south of this site on County Road 253, near the Old Mooar Ranch headquarters) J. Wright Mooar killed a rare albino buffalo, one of two known to have been killed in Texas. The albino hide was shown at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair and on many other occasions.
Mooar hunted regularly until 1879. In 1881 he helped furnish game and hay to construction crews building the Texas & Pacific Railroad in West Texas. During his career, he shot about 22,000 buffalo, a record probably unsurpassed. His ability to hit a vital spot from a distance of 1,000 feet or farther won the respect of Comanche Indian Chief Quanah Parker, who became a friend in later life.
The Mooar Brothers began ranching in 1877. Highly esteemed by their fellow citizens, they owned a livery stable in Colorado City from 1881 to 1905.
Erected 1995 by Texas Historical Commission. (Marker Number 2520.)
Topics. This historical marker is
this page online
Location. 32° 50.275′ N, 100° 59.629′ W. Marker is near Snyder, Texas, in Scurry County. Marker is at the intersection of U.S. 84 and County Road 253, on the right when traveling east on U.S. 84. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Snyder TX 79549, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 9 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Dermott (approx. 1.9 miles away); Scurry County's Billionth Barrel of Oil (approx. 3.7 miles away); The Block 97 Controversy (approx. 7.6 miles away); Von Roeder Cotton Breeding Farms (approx. 7.8 miles away); Former Townsite of Light (approx. 8.7 miles away); Fluvanna Mercantile Company (approx. 8.8 miles away); Fluvanna (approx. 8.8 miles away); Snyder Cemetery (approx. 9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Snyder.
More about this marker. Originally erected in 1967.
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker.
Also see . . . Texas State Historical Association article on J. Wright Mooar. (Submitted on September 21, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.)
Photographed By Mark Hilton, September 16, 2015
2. The view east on U.S. 84 towards Snyder, Texas.
Photographed By Mark Hilton, September 16, 2015
3. The view south towards North County Road 253.
Public Domain
4. J. Wright Mooar
Credits. This page was last revised on January 20, 2020. It was originally submitted on September 21, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,276 times since then and 136 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on September 21, 2015, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama.
