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Dilley. TE Photo |
History
in a Pecan ShellWith
all of the strange place names in Texas, perhaps this is the only town to be named
after the first man to step off a train. The first man in this case was George
M. Dilley of Palestine, Texas.
Maybe it was the first rich and influential man to step off the train, for George
was the president of Dilley Foundries - the firm that made the rails for the International
and Great Northern Railroad, or at least the portion that went to Laredo.
If the legend is true, then there are many far worse names that Dilley could've
taken. Darlington was Dilley's working title when George showed up. It's not known
if a Mr. Darlington stepped off an earlier train.
Before the railroad,
stray longhorns were driven to Kansas up the Chisholm trail, and this provided
an income for the few residents in the area. Later, irrigation provided a way
to produce produce. They referred to this as truck farming to avoid sentences
like the last one.
Our source states that in the 1920s tourists would
ride the train from San Antonio
to "enjoy the winter sunshine." Today we're not impressed with being 60 miles
closer to the equator, but evidently they were in the 20s. |
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| 1935
Flood scene of the Frio River north of Dilley, Texas |
Dilley Today
Dilley has fewer citrus trees and more production of watermelons and peanuts.
An oil boom occurred in the 1970s/ 80s. A large watermelon in the city park adds
Dilley to the roster of towns that have larger-than-life animals, vegetables and
minerals on their squares (Floresville,
Seguin, Hidalgo,
Ft. Stockton
et. al.).
Book Your Hotel Here & Save:
Dilley Hotels
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Dilley Attractions
The lobby of the Dilley State Bank has a gallery of Texas landscapes in oil.
Dilley Tourist Information
Chamber of Commerce: Miller
and Main Streets - 830-965-1742
Book Your Hotel
Here & Save:
Dilley
Hotels |
Dilley,
Texas Forum
Subject: Enjoyed Dilley, Texas website
I had to locate Dilley in association
with my job duties and was very impressed with your Dilley, Texas website. I look
forward to visiting with my family someday to say we've been to Dilley. Thanks
for the smiles this morning. - Renee Zeller, Katy, TX, September 29, 2006
© John Troesser
Our source for Dilley Information was Little Towns
of Texas, Jayroe Graphics, Jacksonville, Texas, 1981 | |
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