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History in
a Pecan Shell
No 19th Century
history here except for the three ranches that would comprise the
future town of Fritch. J. M. Sanford, J. H. Johnson, and Roy B. Wright
were the ranchers – and as you can see – there isn’t a Fritch in that
list. H. C. (Fred) Fritch wasn’t a rancher, but a VP of the of the
Rock Island Railroad, it was Fred who arranged the purchase (1924)
of the right-of-way, and therefore he was the honored namesake. Fritch
also platted the town in the early 1930s.
During the 1920s Panhandle
oil boom, as many as five oil companies fought for leases and had
field offices in Fritch.
But boom towns in the 30s weren’t what they were earlier. The town
managed to get through the Great Depression a bit easier than other
towns, but the 1940 census only showed a population of 75.
With the proposed construction of Sanford Dam and Lake
Meredith, Sanford incorporated
in the late 1950s. In the mid 1960s, when the Dam was completed and
Lake Meredith was rising,
the town had already acquired nearly 3,000 new citizens.
Oil and gas production fell in the late 1960s, dropping the population
to 1,778 for the 1970 census. The 1970s energy crisis ramped up oil
activities in the region and by 1980 the population had increased
to nearly 2,300.
Fritch hosts the National Park Service HQ for Lake
Meredith National Recreation Area and the Alibates Flint Quarries
National Monument is just across the county line in Potter
County.
The population for 1990 was given as 2,335 declining slightly to 2,235
for the 2000 census. |
by Mike Cox ("Texas
Tales" Column)
Like many Texas towns, Fritch owed its existence to the railroad...
more |
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Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
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