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Frio
River
Photo courtesy Linda Kirkpatrick, October 2007 |
| The Frio River
runs parallel between Highway 83 and FM 112 from Leakey
. The 200 mile river flows into the Nueces River - a mile south of Three
Rivers - after joining with the Leona River and Sabinal. (See
Swimming to Mexico ) |
Lombardy
Irrigation Ditch Historic Marker
TE photo, 2001 |
History in a Pecan
shell
The town was settled between 1856 and 1860 and many early settlers
had previously lived in Leakey . Rio
Frio's population has never exceeded seventy-five people.
Rio Frio was
once known only as "The Ditch" after an irrigation ditch dug by the Lombardy
Trading Company. Very near the tree the same company opened an Academy for the
education of the area children which soon became a well-regarded institution.
A short
timeline of significant historic events in Rio Frio
1868: Local businessmen constructed a gravity-flow irrigation canal off
the Frio River.
1871: A school was established
1875: A charter
was granted for the Lombardy Irrigation Company and the town was granted
a post office. The Irrigation Company then sold small plots to arriving settlers
who had the responsibility of maintaining the canal.
1918: Real County's
last cotton gin closed after a boll
weevil infestation and this gave birth to the mohair business.
1920: A church building was built - serving both Baptists and Methodists.
The building was later made a mission serving the Mexican and Mexican-Americans
of the area. |
Rio
Frio Cemetery
Photo courtesy Linda Kirkpatrick, October 2007 |
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