The Frijole Ranch, also known as Guadalupe Ranch, Spring Hill Ranch and the Rader-Smith Ranch, is located in
Guadalupe Mountains National Park
Guadalupe Mountains National Park is an American national park in the Guadalupe Mountains, east of El Paso, Texas. The mountain range includes Guadalupe Peak, the highest point in Texas at , and El Capitan used as a landmark by travelers on the ...
in extreme west Texas. It was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
on November 21, 1978,
and represents a significant period in the settlement and ranching of the
Guadalupe Mountains
The Guadalupe Mountains ( es, Sierra de Guadalupe) are a mountain range located in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. The range includes the highest summit in Texas, Guadalupe Peak, , and the "signature peak" of West Texas, El Capitan, both ...
.
History
The ranch was built about 1876 by the Rader Brothers in the Guadalupe Mountains next to Frijole Spring and comprises seven buildings: the ranch house, a bunkhouse, a barn, a double outhouse, a springhouse, a shed, and a school house. With the exception of the barn and school house, the buildings are constructed of local stone rubble, and all buildings are surrounded by a stone rubble wall. The complex represents the most complete early ranching operation in the Guadalupe Mountains.
The ranch was built in close proximity to several other springs, whose surrounding area was inhabited by
Native Americans from prehistory.
The Rader brothers, the first settlers on the southeast side of the mountains, left the area in the late 1880s. The Herring family of North Carolina occupied the ranch for a time between the late 1880s and 1895, with Herring daughter Ida marrying George W. Wolcott in 1888. The Wolcotts moved to
Midland, Texas in 1895. The Smith family occupied the previously vacant ranch from 1906, calling it "Spring Hill Ranch." The Smiths expanded the ranch and operated a
truck farm
A market garden is the relatively small-scale production of fruits, vegetables and flowers as cash crops, frequently sold directly to consumers and restaurants. The diversity of crops grown on a small area of land, typically from under to ...
, expanding the farm house and building the bunkhouse and school house. They invested in a
hydraulic ram
A hydraulic ram, or hydram, is a cyclic water pump powered by hydropower. It takes in water at one "hydraulic head" (pressure) and flow rate, and outputs water at a higher hydraulic head and lower flow rate. The device uses the water hammer ef ...
to pump water and installed a
carbide lamp
Carbide lamps, or acetylene gas lamps, are simple lamps that produce and burn acetylene (C2H2) which is created by the reaction of calcium carbide (CaC2) with water (H2O).
Acetylene gas lamps were used to illuminate buildings, as lighthouse b ...
system in the house, later changing to electric lights operated by a
wind generator
A wind turbine is a device that wind power, converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of list of most powerful wind turbines, large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gi ...
. The Smiths operated a post office at the site from 1916 to 1942.
[
John Smith sold the ranch to Judge Jesse Coleman Hunter of ]Van Horn, Texas
Van Horn is a town in and the seat of Culberson County, Texas, United States. According to the 2010 census, Van Horn had a population of 2,063, down from 2,435 at the 2000 census. The 2020 census results detailed a decline in population to 1,941. ...
for $55,000 in 1942 and moved to Hawley, Texas
Hawley is a city in Jones County, Texas, United States. The population was 634 at the 2010 census. Named for Congressman Robert B. Hawley, it is part of the Abilene metropolitan area.
Geography
Hawley is located in southeastern Jones County at ...
. Hunter assembled the "Guadalupe Mountains Ranch" of , producing, among other things, mohair
Mohair (pronounced ) is a fabric or yarn made from the hair of the Angora goat. (This should not be confused with Angora wool, which is made from the fur of the Angora rabbit.) Both durable and resilient, mohair is notable for its high luster ...
wool. The ranch house was the home of ranch foreman Noel Kincaid from 1942 to 1969. Hunter began to advocate the region for a national park in 1925. Hunter's son, J.C. Junior, inherited the ranch in 1945 and continued his father's work, expanding the ranch to , eventually selling the land to the National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...
in 1966 for $1.5 million.[
]
National Park
The ranch buildings were used by the National Park Service as employee residence and utility buildings from 1969 to 1980. From 1983 to 1991 the house was a Park Service operations center. The house was restored in 1992 and is an interpretive center and museum, known as the Frijole Ranch Cultural Museum.[
]
See also
*
References
External links
Frijole Ranch
at Guadalupe Mountains National Park
{{National Register of Historic Places in Texas
National Register of Historic Places in Guadalupe Mountains National Park
History museums in Texas
Houses completed in 1876
Houses in Culberson County, Texas
Museums in Culberson County, Texas
Ranches on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas
National Register of Historic Places in Culberson County, Texas