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History
in a Pecan Shell
In 1870 the Texas legislature voted on a bill for the creation of Delta County.
One of the sponsors for this bill was L. W. Cooper of Houston
and it was Cooper the county seat was named after. The town was granted a post
office the following year and Cooper incorporated in 1881. The population in 1885
was 300.
Further growth was enhanced by the construction of the Texas Midland
Railroad. By 1896 Cooper had an estimated population of 1,000 with two churches
and all the essential businesses a growing town needed including two feed mills,
two cotton gins, two blacksmiths and two weekly newspapers. The town also supported
an unheard of (even for a county seat) seven general stores. Since the rest of
Delta County was made up of smaller towns, Cooper's growth continued for years.
Its high-water mark was reached in 1925 when 2,563 people called the town home.
The population predictably declined during the 1930s, grew somewhat after
WWII and underwent another
decline in the 1980s. It reached 2,349 in the early 50s and went nearly unchanged
for the next 20 years (2,258 in 1970).
The former railroad depot is now
in use as the Delta County museum. Cooper
Chronicles
Delta
County Courthouse |
Cooper,
Texas Landmarks/Attractions
Three
Photographers' Visits |
Bright
and Early Coffee and Tea
Photo courtesy Barclay
Gibson, April 2009 |
| "The
roads around the old courthouse square in Cooper are paved with red brick. The
current courthouse is actually
one block west of the square. This gazebo sits on the foundation of the 1900
courthouse." - Terry
Jeanson, June 2007 |
Cooper Chronicles:
The
Smith Brothers by Bob Bowman ("All Things Historical")
Four brothers from Delta County lived with an ordinary name in the mid-1800s,
but they were far from ordinary... In 1968, the Texas Historical Commission erected
a state historical marker to the Smiths' legacy on a site three and a half
miles west of Cooper beside Texas Highway 64. Delta
County Courthouses | |
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