Klondike, Delta County, Texas facts for kids
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Klondike is a small, quiet community in Delta County, Texas, United States. It's not a city or a town with its own government, but rather an "unincorporated community." This means it's a group of homes and businesses that are part of a larger county. Klondike is located in the southwestern part of Delta County, near the roads Farm to Market 1528 and 2890. In the year 2000, about 135 people lived there.
Contents
Klondike's History
Klondike has a long history that began in 1852. Back then, it was known as Pleasant Grove. A local landowner named John Hunt gave some land for a cemetery for the community.
Early Days of Pleasant Grove
By the early 1860s, a school opened to teach the children in the area. This school shared its building with a small Methodist church. It was a simple start for the community.
Becoming Klondike and Growing Up
Pleasant Grove started to grow in 1895. This was when the Texas-Midland Railroad built a track through the community. The railroad helped the area become more successful. By 1897, the population had grown to 75 people.
A well-known citizen named Joel Jefferson Hunt asked for a post office for the community. He decided to name it Klondike. This name honored the Canadian Klondike, which was famous for a gold rush at that time.
In 1901, the Klondike Baptist Church of Christ built its own building. Before this, they had shared a building with the Methodist church. Just three years later, Klondike's population was more than 150 people. By 1905, the community had two schools. These schools had a total of 183 students.
Klondike continued to thrive, especially because of the cotton industry. Farmers grew cotton, and businesses processed and shipped it. By 1914, Klondike was a busy place. It had three doctors, several businesses, a bank, and a telegraph station. There were also two large cotton gins, which separated cotton fibers from their seeds. The population reached 400 people.
Facing Tough Times
The 1920s brought challenges to Klondike. A pest called the boll weevil damaged cotton crops. This caused a lot of trouble for the community. Then, the Great Depression hit, which was a very difficult economic time for the whole country. These events ended Klondike's period of growth. By 1933, the population had dropped to 154 people.
In 1945, the school building was destroyed by fire. Because of this, Klondike's schools joined with schools from another Delta County community called Shiloh. They formed the West Delta Independent School District. However, by 1970, children from Klondike were going to school in Cooper, a nearby town.
Klondike Today
Even with these challenges, Klondike's population has stayed about the same since the 1960s. In the year 2000, about 135 people were still living in Klondike. It remains a small, quiet community with a rich history.
