New York, Texas & Mexican Railroad and The Community of Hungerford
Hungerford, Wharton County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Attracted by the State of Texas' offer of free land to railroad developers, a charter for the New York, Texas & Mexican Railroad was secured in 1880. Its major investor, John W. Mackay, made his fortune in the Nevada silver mines. His brother-in-law, count Joseph Telfener of Lombardy, Italy, arranged for the construction. Work began in 1880 on the 91-mile stretch of railroad track between Rosenberg and Victoria. The pasta diet of many of the Italian laborers lent itself to the railroad's nickname, the "Macaroni Line." Telfener and Mackay established six stations along the line--Inez, Louise, Edna, Hungerford, Telfener, and Mackay and named them for themselves and family members. The community of Hungerford was named for their father-in-law Daniel E. Hungerford, who served as vice-president of the New York, Texas & Mexican Railroad. Not the successful business venture they had envisioned, the company was sold to Southern Pacific Railway in 1885. With an economy based on farming and ranching, the community of Hungerford has continued to flourish over the years. Its origin is a reflection of the varied history of the railroad in Texas. (Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986.)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In 1880, lured by Texas's offer of free land to railroad builders, investors chartered the New York, Texas & Mexican Railroad to run 91 miles between Rosenberg and Victoria. Silver-mine millionaire John W. Mackay bankrolled it and his brother-in-law, Count Joseph Telfener of Italy, oversaw construction using Italian laborers whose pasta rations earned the line its nickname, the "Macaroni Line." The promoters named six stations for family members, including Hungerford, honoring their father-in-law and the railroad's vice-president. The venture faltered and was sold to Southern Pacific in 1885, but the little farming and ranching community it seeded endured.
Why it matters
It captures how speculative railroad land grants stitched together rural Texas and drew immigrant labor into the American West, leaving behind towns that outlived the companies that founded them.
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Related people
- · John W. Mackay
- · Count Joseph Telfener
- · Daniel E. Hungerford
Related events
- · Chartering of the New York, Texas & Mexican Railroad (1880)
Themes & tags
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