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HOVEY, TEXAS

Texas Ghost Town
Pecos County, West Texas

On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
and Pecos County Line
24 miles NE of Alpine
40 miles W of Fort Stockton the county seat
Population: 0

Book Hotel Here > Alpine Hotels | Fort Stockton Hotels

Hovey Schoolhouse - Fort Stockton, Texas
Hovey Schoolhouse on display in Ft. Stockton's Historical Center
Open to the public Mon.-Fri. 1PM-5PM

2023 photo courtesy Kirby Warnock, submitted by Barbara Kipgen
Hovey Schoolhouse & Historical Marker

Hovey is here thanks to former resident, Barbara Kipgen, who wrote us. Her letter follows the brief history.

History in a Pecan Shell

Hovey is another of the many Texas towns that is named after a railroad official. In this case it was the Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway, the year was 1913 and the official was G.B. Hovey. They got their post office the same year, but it was closed by the 1930s.

Hovey only had an estimated 25 residents and one business in the early 30s.

We were unable to find it on the TxDoT County Map for Brewster County. Barbara explains that the reason for this is that the entire townsite is now on private property and is not accessible. The good news is that the Hovey School - the town's pride - is permanently on display on the Fort Stockon grounds.

Pecos County Historical Commission recently opened the School to the public Mon.-Fri., 1PM-5PM
Ranch Life in Brewter County
Hovey Schoolhouse & Historical Marker › next page

Hovey, Texas Photo Gallery


Hovey TX bunkhouse
Bunkhouse in Hovey
Photo courtesy Erik Whetstone, April 2006


Former store in Hovey, Texas
"By 1913, Hovey contained a depot, post office/general store"
Photo courtesy Erik Whetstone, April 2006


Hovey Texas old house
An old house in Hovey
Photo courtesy Erik Whetstone, April 2006


Hovey Tx Old Dodge
Old Dodge in Hovey
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, June 2007


Hovey Tx Old Dodge Tag
Old Dodge Tag
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, June 2007


Hovey Tx Old Ford
Old Ford
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, June 2007
More Rust in Pieces


Editor's Note:
In addition to sending us the photo of the Hovey School House, Barbara Kipgen included a description of life on a West Texas ranch. Her mother Edith and Grandmother Lilah Smith are both shown in the photo shortly after the school was dedicated a Texas Historic Landmark.

RANCH LIFE IN BREWSTER COUNTY

Sweeping the yard was the easy part

A typical day of Lilah Smith and Edith Kipgen

As told by themselves and Barbara Kipgen
"Both women have recorded on paper a lot of their experiences on the ranch back in the 30s and 40s. Lilah, doing spring house cleaning [which included] carrying all the mattresses out into a day's sun; washing/ drying all the sheets, etc. and then getting side-tracked by two kids who had "horse trouble." After spending hours finding and retrieving the horse [she came back to] a mess because a rain/wind storm had wiped out the morning's work.

When Edith was about 10 years old, she began helping her father with ranch work. In her teens, she "broke" and trained about 20 young horses for a neighboring rancher over a six year period.

Living on a large ranch in those days was not easy. Everything was done the old pioneer way. Although there were cars and trucks - the work was done with horses and wagons. We cooked with a wood fire and had no running water. The water was hauled in barrels on a wagon pulled by mules. We dipped buckets of water and carried them into the house. We had no electricity.

We lived in a clean 4-room house with a fence. The yard was dirt with no grass or shrubs since there was no way to water them. It was swept with a broom about once a week.

Lilah was a schoolteacher before marrying my grandfather, in Corsicana, Texas. She really missed the trees and vegetation when they first moved to what was the E.L. Ranch in the early 30s.

There was one scraggly mesquite tree near our bedroom window. At first it was ugly and I wanted it dug up and moved out. No one had time to do that. As time went by, I loved that old tree. It was the only living plant in that yard and it became beautiful.

Continued next page - The Old Schoolhouse

Hovey Schoolhouse - Fort Stockton, Texas
Hovey Schoolhouse in 2023
Ft. Stockton's Historical Center

Photo courtesy Kirby Warnock, submitted by Barbara Kipgen
Hovey Schoolhouse


Hovey TX depot
Another view of the bunkhouse in Hovey
Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, June 2007
See Texas Railroads

Hovey, Texas Forum
Subject: Hovey bunkhouse and railroads
Your recent feature about Hovey, Texas contained a photo identified as possibly a railroad depot. It also noted that the railroad was originally the Kansas City, Mexico, and the Orient which I believe was taken over by the Atchinson, Topeka, & Santa Fe Railroad around 1928.

The structure in the photo is more likely a "bunkhouse" for the railroad's maintenance of way employees. Note the multiple doors and chimneys, somewhat like a motel. Similar structures can be found in Odell, Texas and Maryneal, Texas that I am aware of and the line was originally part of the KCMO railroad. There are probably more locations. My family stayed in both while my father was employed with ATSF in the early 1950s. The bunkhouses in Odell & Maryneal were about twice the size of the one in Hovey and had the "L" shaped, two-room unit at each end. These were intended for workers with families. The walls were constructed of poured concrete and originally had a clay tiled roof. I do not know if the bunkhouses were built by the KCMO or ATSF railroad. I regret that I do not have a photo available but I appreciate your good work. - Billy Gilbert, Denton, Texas, February 10, 2018


Subject: Hovey, TX water tower
Hovey TX railraod water tank
I found this photo in my brothers' genealogy records. On the back it says: "Hovey water tank on the Orient Railroad, Texas." There's no date and I do not know who the man is at the top. I suppose they worked on the railroad. -
Jeanie Dopson, July 02, 2014


Hovey, TX Pecos County  1916 Postmark
Hovey, TX Pecos County  1916 Postmark
Postcard canceled with Hovey TX 1916 postmark
Courtesy The John J. Germann Collection


Pecos County TX 1940s Map
1940 Pecos County map showing Hovey near Brewster County line
From Texas state map #4335

Courtesy Texas General Land Office

Take a road trip
West Texas

Hovey, Texas Nearby Towns:
Fort Stockton | Alpine
See Pecos County

Texas Ghost Towns

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Alpine Hotels | Fort Stockton Hotels | More Hotels


Texas Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories, landmarks and recent or vintage photos, please contact us.

This site for Hovey, Texas sponsored by: Barbara Kipgen 7/01 $50.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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