Site of Old Springer's Road Ranch
Canadian, Hemphill County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(12.2 mi. east) First post office in Hemphill County. Unique for tunnel from dugout home-store to corral. On 1870's trail from Ft. Elliott (35 mi. SW) to Ft. Supply, Ind. Terr., to Ft. Dodge, Kans. Established by A. G. Springer; besides running 300 head of cattle, Springer's was a stagecoach stand, tavern; store (mainly for teamster, hunters) had liquor, canned goods, hunting equipment. Poker-expert Springer was frequent host to soldiers seeking entertainment in tavern. In 1877, he and Tom Ledbetter, his partner, were killed in gun battle with angered soldiers and were buried at the ranch. (1967)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
On the 1870s freight and military trail linking Fort Elliott, Fort Supply, and Fort Dodge, A. G. Springer built a road ranch that became Hemphill County's first post office—famously connected to its corral by a tunnel from the dugout store. It was stagecoach stand, tavern, and supply house for teamsters and buffalo hunters, and a favorite stop for soldiers seeking a card game. In 1877 the poker-loving Springer and his partner Tom Ledbetter were killed in a gunfight with angry soldiers and buried at the ranch.
Why it matters
Road ranches like Springer's were the lonely waystations that made overland freight and travel possible, and their frontier violence captures the rough edge of the unsettled Panhandle.
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Related people
- · A. G. Springer
- · Tom Ledbetter
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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