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History in a Pecan
Shell
The
town was named for the Spanish word for oval - after the oval-shaped valley which
led to Buffalo Gap. The site became a stopover
for trail drivers and before them - buffalo hunters.
The town got off to
its modern start with the arrival of the The Abilene and Southern Railroad nearby
in 1909.
The railroad owned 50% of the town through its townsite company.
Lots were up for auction in 1909 and within a year the town was thriving with
over 40 businesses. The one-room Bald Eagle School served area children until
a new building was constructed in 1910. The school was renamed Ovalo School but
during the late 1940s it and other area schools consolidated to become the South
Taylor (County) school.
The 1920 population of 200 doubled by the start
of the Great Depression. In the late 1980s the population was the same as the
1920 Census of 200 - but with many fewer businesses and buildings. |
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