Former Site of Hogtown
Canadian, Hemphill County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Forerunner of town of Canadian. Sprang up, 1886, as a tent city for railroad gang working on Southern Kansas line. Named for poor appearance-- like a hogpen. After landowner Sam Pollard and railroad disputed price for land, line moved across river, taking populace with it. (1969)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Hogtown sprang up in 1886 as a tent city for the railroad gang laying the Southern Kansas line, earning its unflattering name from its rough, hogpen appearance. It was the forerunner of the town of Canadian, but when the landowner Sam Pollard and the railroad could not agree on a price for his land, the company simply moved the line across the river—and the people followed. The tent town was left behind, one of the West's many settlements that lived and died with the rails.
Why it matters
Hogtown's brief life shows how completely the railroads held the power of life and death over frontier towns, able to erase a settlement over a single land dispute.
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Related people
- · Sam Pollard
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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