| |
| | "Buffallo
Mop"
2002 photo courtesy of Bonnie Keeley |
History
in a Pecan Shell
Odds had originally been called Buffalo Mott but was later renamed
to avoid confusion with other Texas towns with the word Buffalo in the name. Odds,
Kentucky is said to have been the source of the new name. We called Kentucky to
see what we could find out there, but there's no listing for Odds. Perhaps the
namesake has also become a ghost. (See Forum
below.)
The area had been settled by a man named David Baron in 1854
and growth was rather slow. A store and post office were in operation in 1890
and by 1906 the post office was discontinued. Mail was later routed from Thornton,
Texas.
By 1946 Odds had sixty citizens, one business, a school, and
two churches. At one time Baptist and Methodist congregations shared a union church
- the preachers saving souls on alternate Sundays.
Odds school had been
in the Little Brazos School District before it was consolidated into the Groesbeck
ISD in 1965. School consolidations nearly always drained the lifeblood of communities
and the population in 1967 was reduced to only 20. With no school or businesses,
Odds was a ghost by 1990. |
| | "What
is left of the cotton gin my dad used many times in Odds."
2003 photo
courtesy of George
Lester |
| | The
steps and some foundation piers where a store once stood
2003 photo courtesy
of George
Lester |
| | Ruins
in Odds
2002 photo courtesy of Bonnie Keeley |
Odds,
Texas Forum Subject:
Odds, Texas and Odds, Kentucky.
DEar
TE, My name is Danny K. Blevins. I am an educator and author in Johnson County,
Kentucky. I have looked at your site many times and I found it very interesting
to find a Texas Ghost Town by the name of Odds, Texas. According to your site,
it was named for Odds, Kentucky. You stated that you were unable to find anything
about Odds, Kentucky and that maybe it too had become a ghost town.
Well,
Odds, Kentucky is located in southeastern Johnson County, Kentucky. The U.S. Post
Office of Odds was closed in the 1920's. Today, it is served by the Van Lear,
Kentucky Post Office. Most of the Odds, Kentucky area was settled by the Richard
Wells Family. My mother happens to be a member of this family and I have always
been told that members of our family left Odds and relocated in Texas. It maybe
that one of my family members may have brought the name from Kentucky? I would
be interested in knowing if there were ever any families with the surname Wells
that lived in Odds, Texas. - Danny K. Blevins, President Emeritus, Van Lear
Historical Society, Inc., February 25, 2011
Subject:
Odds Store
My father Earl Hancock operated the Odds store from 1934-1943
and during that time there were two other stores. As a child I can remember wagon
loads of cotton waiting to be ginned. There was a lot of activity around the gin
in those days. The Great Depression brought hard times to the area. Also, I remember
that a young man with his wife and young child came to our store one day after
walking from Thornton, TX.
He had been hurt while taking his family off a train in that town. They were very
hungry and needed help. The young man asked my Dad if there was any work he could
do to pay for a meal for his family. My Dad said "Go pick up that broom over
there by the wall." The young man did as he was told. My dad then said, "Now
put the broom down." The family was well fed and were bedded down in the
cotton seed warehouse across the road from our store. While leaving the next morning
the young man got my Dad's mailing address. Ten years later my Dad received a
check from California with a note thanking him for the help. Thanks, Earl Hancock
Jr., Woodway, Texas, March 13, 2008
"[While
attending a] family reunion in Marlin
Sunday, [we] drove through Odds coming to and leaving Marlin.
The first time I missed the location because I couldn't find the familiar landmark
of the old cotton gin. When we came by the second time I slowed down and saw what
had happened. The old gin building had evidently collapsed from old age and was
lying flat on the ground. The sight almost brought tears to our eyes. Now there
will be nothing to mark the spot where the town once was." - George Lester,
Elkhart, Texas, July 17, 2005
Well
I just came back home to Montana from visiting my family in Austin. We took a
trip up to see where Odds was at. This is what we found.
From Kosse
on Hwy7 & FM 339 go North West to FM 147, turn toward Marlin
to FM 339, this road goes NorthWest again. At the corner of FM 339 and FM 147
is Odds.
Ruins consist of a brick fireplace chimney, tin barn, concrete
square and a large foundation with steps of concrete. There is a large red barn
at the junction of 147 and 339 that says BUFFALO MOP.
I really enjoyed
the trip and seeing the places. Also visiting the cemeteries around where my family
was buried. I am working on my family genealogy and came home with lots of info.
I love TEXAS and really miss it. - Bonnie Keeley,
Montana, June 30, 2002
Odds, Texas was suggested by Bonnie Keeley of
Montana, whose mother Thelma Beatrice (Tabor) Carlisle once lived in Odds.
Where to Stay - Odds Area Hotels
Waco
Hotels
Area Destinations: Central
Texas North
Related Topics: Texas | Towns
A-Z | Texas Ghost Towns |
|
| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories, and vintage/historic
photos of their town, please contact
us. | |
| Save on Hotels
- Book Here |
|
