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History on
a Pinhead
The town was established
in the 1890s and supposedly named after “a South American town” by
a local merchant. Oplin was granted a post office in 1903 and reached
its high-water mark in 1915 with an estimated population of 300. Ten
years later it had declined to only 100.
The 1940 census reported 200 residents – the last substantial numbers
before a post war decline. The town lost its post office in the early
1960s and the 1990 census reported 75 Oplinites – the same for 2000.
The current Jot-um
Down Store is the former bank and the 1938 High School is now
used as a local music venue.
Photographer's Note
“I noticed the picturesque store
but there were no cars around or any indication that the place was
open. But the sign said open, so I walked up the porch, turned the
knob and went inside.
There sat the store’s 75-year old proprietress, a jewel of a lady,
as you can see in the photo.
She was sitting there, content, watching television. She told me that
the store
had once been a bank (note the vault
door) as well as the town’s post office and a telephone exchange.
In addition, she told me that she and her husband had taken the place
over in 1985. She said it had been a big mess when they bought it
and they had to do a lot of work cleaning it up.
The store
was named after the location for the once-immensely popular Lum
and Abner radio program. Besides carrying the staples and necessities
of rural householding, they have added a kitchen and grill in the
back corner of the store
where she cooks hamburgers to order.” - Gerald
Massey, July, 2010 |
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| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories,
landmarks and vintage/historic photos, please contact
us. |
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