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RANKIN,
TEXASUpton
County Seat, West
Texas
Highways 67 and 349
55 miles S of Midland
32 miles SE of Crane
28 miles W of Big
Lake
22 miles N of Iraan
Population: 800 (2,000) 1,011 (1990) |
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History in a Pecan Shell
Established in 1911, Rankin is the oldest town in Upton County.
Named
after rancher F. E. Rankin, the town came into being when the former county seat
of Upland (11 miles North) was bypassed by the Kansas City, Mexico and Orient
Railway.
A post office was established in 1912 and most of the population
moved to town from Upland. Rankin however did not officially become county seat
until 1921.
With the discovery of oil in the twenties, the population
rose to an estimated 1,500 by 1928 and the town was incorporated that year.
The boom created funds to expand Rankin's infrastructure and explains the
presence of the over-sized Yates
Hotel (now the Rankin Historical museum).
The boom also funded a
brick school, the courthouse
and a two-story office building.
Oil close to Rankin was not found (at
that time) and the population moved on to new fields. The population declined
to 935 by 1931 and declined further during the Great Depression.
By 1940
the population was a mere 672 but an oil discovery north of Rankin came in building
the town anew and bringing the population nearly up to what it was during the
first boom.
Rankin has retained a population between 1,000 and 1,500
from the 1950s through the 2000 census with oil, sheep and cattle remaining the
economic base. |
Rankin Chronicles
Rankin
Beach by
Mike Cox
It marked a rough time in Rankin’s history, when bootleg booze
and black gold flowed with equal ease...
more
Rankin
Hotel by
Mike Cox
"At one time, as many as 10 hotels of sorts did a flourishing
business in Rankin, but the Harlan and Yates amounted to the Waldorf Astoria and
Ritz of the town once claiming a population of 10,000." ... more
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