Amarillo Sunday News-Globe (Amarillo, Tex.), Vol. 13, No. 33, Ed. 1 Sunday, August 14, 1938 Page: 26 of 264
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PAOE TWO—3H5CTXON A
AMARILLO SUNDAY NEWS ANP GI.OBB. AMARILLO. TEXAS.
GOLDEN ANMTVERSARY EDITION, 193B,
First Daughter of the Plains
By MRS. J. M. WINCHESTER
to the early fall of 1887, Dr. J. A.
OomeliuB and his sick wife, with
his son H. T. (Tuck) and his fam-
ily, started out from East Texas
lor the high plains, hoping that the
climatB might restore the doctor's
wife to health. They had two
"prairie schooners" and camped
Hong the way, driving leisurely.
to move the tow a. H. B. Sanborn
of the Prying Pan Ranch, plotted
a townsite and named the streets.
As future Inducement to change
locations, he erected a three-story
wooden hotel—-"The Amarillo Ho-
tel." The first building to be moved
from the old lake town was Tuck
Cornelius'. It was pulled to its
present, location at Fourth and FiU-
m
Mayvi attended school In Ama.
rtllo and has many charming re-
collections of her girlhood. One of
her pets was an antelope raised on
a bottle, so tame he would come
into the house and follow her
around like a dog. He even went
into the studio and had a picture
taken with her. He lived to be five
or six years old. There was also a
dog named "Sanky" and several
ponies for pets.
Other brothers and sisters came
to swell the family until 10 children
in all were born, among these twin
sisters, the first twin girls born in
Aniarillo, Rosalie and Rosalind,
known for years as the "Cornelius
Twins."
One of the big events of each day
was to go to the depot and see the
train come In. On summer evenings
they played a game called "Tal-
ley Ho," writing with chalk on the
old sidewalks "where to look next."
"This was great fun and would
last until the curlew rang at 9
o'clock, and all the children under
16 had to go home. There were
picnics in the summer, and in the
winter social parties and dances;
but most, important of all was the
Christmas tree entertainment in the
churches. Big cedars would be
brought in from the Palo Duro Can-
yon ancl trimmed with strings of
pop-corn and cranberries and real
candles in little tin holders. Santa
MAYVI AMARILLO CORNELIUS, now Mrs. K. L. Smith,
the first girl born in Aniarillo, with her pet antelope.
They had no particular objective
but planned on locating wherever
conditions seemed to warrant.
One night they camped beside a
Jake. There was a small tent town
end a tiny store building on the
bank, and one of the cowboys said
it was called "Amarillo." from the
color of the soil. Staying a few
days they decided there might be
a future to the town, and Dr.
Cornelius had scarcely got his tent
erected until a rancher, learning a
doctor was near, came after him.
The doctor sent wagons to Clar-
endon for lumber to build a home.
But before it was completed Mrs.
Cornelius died and was buried on
the bank of Amarillo Creek. The
son found plenty of work, but Dr.
Cornelius, Amarillo's first physician,
was dissatisfied after his wife's
death, and in a short while re-
turned to his old home In Jacks-
born.
The Fort Worth & Denver Rail-
road came to Amarillo in 1388, and
when it "tooted" at the wagon
crossing. It marked an epoch in
Amarillo's history. The lake close
to the town was large and the build-
ings wpre inconveniently located
for railroad service, so they decided
I more and, except for the addition
of a front porch, it still retains its
original form.
Mrs. Tuck Cornelius loved flowers
and greatly missed those at her
old home in East Texas, but finally
she found a few varieties which
could withstand the wind and
weather. After that, the yard was
cay with cosmos and marigold.
They still bloom in profusion around
the little white home, a loving tes-
timony to the mistress who has
long since passed on.
On the eighteenth of July, 1833,
while the little white house was
still standing by the lake in the
old town, a small daughter was wel-
comed to the Cornelius home and
named Mayvi Amarillo. Now Mrs.
E. L. Smith, she was the first girl
bom in Amarillo. When the family
moved their home, Tuck opened a
| livery stable and wagon yard. He
also had a meat market and he
owned and operated a second-hand
store which was located next door
to his home. "Uncle Tuck," as he
was called, was the beloved friend
of the cowboys and ranchers of the
, early days. He died May IB, 1926,
and his wife followed him eight
i months later.
MRS. E. L. SMITH
(Mayvi Amarillo Cornelius)
with her husband.
Claus with raveled rope whiskers
! would take the presents from the
! tree and he had at. least one for
I each child. This took weeks of
i preparation, and after it. was over it
I was something to be discussed for
the rest of winter.
Yes, there was plenty of dust even
i before the advent of the nesters.
Mrs. Smith recalls that dust and
sand was banked to the top of picket
! fence along the house, until only
i the tips of the pickets showed above
,the drifts..
• • •
There were blizzards and snow
storms, too. One big blizzard in par-
ticular swept across the plains, driv-
I ing before it a great herd of cattle,
' a number of whom wandered out on
The Soils of
Potter County
By ROY RTDDIJ8
I,ike the settlers who plowed the
first furrows In them, Potter Coun-
ty's soils are. hardy and Independent.
By hardy it Is not meant that they
are all rugged like the land which
falls within the Canadian breaks,
hut that most of those adaptable for
fanning are particularly rich In fer-
tility. They are Independent be-
cause they manage to conserve most
of the moisture that, falls on them.
That Is made possible by their flat,
nature.
Their productivity depends not so
much on the amount, of rainfall they
receive as the manner in which it is
distributed. They do not respond
to most ordinary agricultural prac-
tices, either, as, for example, let-
ting them lie fallow In the expecta-
tion that their fertility will, in a
measure, be restored. Planting them
to the same crop year after year has
been more satisfactory, and has not
resulted in lessening their produc-
tivity, some observers say. In the
case of wheat, the major crop, al-
most as much moisture can be stored
in the summer after harvest as in a
complete season of fallow.
These soils are placed In five
general groups bv E. H. Templin,
Texas Agricultural Experiment Sta-
tion, and A. E. Shearin, United
States Department of Agriculture.
Their classification follows:
1. Good agricultural soils, main-
ly heavy in texture, suited to the
production of small grains.
3. Moderately productive agrl-
the ice of the old lake. They broke
through in the center where it war,
thin, and several hundred were
drowned. A number piled tip in some
of the small canyons and smothered
to death, so only a few of the great
herd survived the winter. One of
the big snows came up to the window
sill.
Leslie Cornelius had pneumonia
that winter and. lacking other medi-
cines, was given snow and whisky.
He recovered—which spoke well for
his sturdy constitution. One day a
horseless carriage came to town. An
inventive genius near Washburn had
put several sails and a steering rud-
der on a little buggy. When the wind
came up he sailed merrily into town.
I He had made splendid time, per-
| haps 40 miles an hour, by tacking
j before the wind. Everyone in town
| came to see it. After buying his
| supplies he was unable to return
home that day, because the wind
I had calmed down. He had to wait
! over several days. This sailboat
] buggy was not practical, of course,
but it did cause great excitement-
While this country has never been
visited by any great tornadoes, still
there has always been plenty of
wind. One day Tuck Cornelius sold
a rancher two 100-pound bags of
: corn and helped him put them on
top of his load. Before he had
! gone very far the wind blew the bags
: away.
Only four of the Cornelius family
live in Amarillo today. The twins,
j Mrs. Knupp (Rosalind), Mrs. Ray-
mond Mock iRosaiiei, and their
families still live in the old Cornelius
i home at Fourth and Fillmore; Mis.
K. L. Smith .Mayvl), at 1Z\3 Fill-
[ more, and H. T. Cornelius at 902
i Adams Street..
cultural soils, sandy In taxtura,
not well suited to tha production
of small grains.
S. Heavy, moderately rood agri-
cultural soils.
4. Sandy, poor agricultural (nils.
5. Nonagricnltural land.
The first group dominates farm-
ing in the county. They are on the
High Plains and In scattered small
areas in the Canadian valley. Tney
comprise 36.1 per cent of the total
area of tha county, and, in 1928, 90
per cent of all the land In crops
was on these soils. Their heavy tex-
ture, if properly tilled, renders them
comparatively Immune to blowing
when the high winds hit. These soils
are not acid and they are well sup-
plied with lime, and they are flat
and thus lend themselves to pro-
duction in large areas by power ma -
chinery. Their total area is 250
square miles, of which 90 7. square
miles were in production in 1938.
when Messrs. Templin and Shearin
made their survey.
• • •
By type, they are classified n~
Pullman silty clay loam, Pullman
stlty clay loam (shallow phase*,
Pullman clay loam, Richfield clay,
Richfield clay (calcareous phase),
Zita rtay loam, Spur clay loam.
Spur fine sandy loam, Miller clav
loam. Miller ciay loam (oolluvial
phase), Yahola fine sandy loam and
Yahola loamy fine sand.
All those with the, exception of
Yahola fine sandy loam and Miller
clay loam (colluvial phase), are in
general very excellent soils.
* • •
The soils of the second general
group occupy only 61 per cent of
the county and are to be found in
the gently sloping areas immediately
north of Amarillo, as at, Pleasant.
Valley. They are adapted to mixed
farming, the production of feedstuff
principally.
Those of the third general group
| occupy 9.4 per cent of the total
area of the county and are shallow
or very sandy soils. They can he
farmed but, they had host be utilized
! as ranch lands.
Sandy, poor agricultural soils com-
] prise 12.7 per cent of the county and
| lie within the valley of the Cana-
dian. Shallow and sandy, they are
submarginal for farm lands but, as
with the third group, they had best
J be utilized for ranch lands. If they
were farmed, also like the third
group they could produce grain
sorghums and other row crops.
The last and fifth group lies in
| the valley of the river, along the
| breaks. It comprises 44.6 per cent of
the county's area and contitutes good
j to excellent, ranch land.
In 1930, there were 322 farms In
Potter County. They averaged one
section, although many comprised
only half a section. The trend then
| was toward smaller farms.
In 1929 there were 42,546 acre."
of crop land harvested. More than
i half the farm operators owned or
had a part interest in their places,
; the 1930 census reveals.
Fifteen per cent of the county's
i land is devoted to large-scale wheat
j farming and 10 per cent to general
| farming; the balance is devoted to
j livestock ranching.
Farming did not get under wa^T
j in the county until about 1905. Prior
to that time, from the coming of the
| cattlemen in 1876 when for a number
of years no crops were raised at. all,
about all that was produced were
j feedstuffs for the cattle. All of the
soils in the county are well adapted
j to gr?.„"<; production.
I AM THE TRAIL
8tf*
J
(Continued from Pag« I)
■1' •}
V
."TV
— L
°'*«i >«a. —«
caused her to feed starving buffalo
calves, and thus save the buffalo to
the world.
Mrs. Cornelia Adair, from far
away England, was with the party.
She seemed tired, but walked with a
stately tread near me while the cat-
tle nooned by one of my surface
lakes.
1 enjoyed the chuck wagon dinner
that day, and I liked the easy com-
radeship of the booted men.
The cows moved on that after-
noon. Little did I know that soon
cattle would graze over nie, that
cowboys would sing to milling herds
by my sides, that countless more
cattle would go up the trail across
me, and that, thousands would be
held by my surface lakes awaiting
shipment to market.
Before 1877 was gone, Bates and
Beale brought LX cattle to the free
range of Hutchinson, Randall, Car-
son, Moore and Potter counties, but
the first ranch to be really mine was
the Frying Pan, which H. B. San-
born established In 1881.
Mrs. Jennie Wetsell, whosi hus-
band was manager of the Frying
Pan. came t.o the Frying Pan In 1832,
to make the first home in my coun-
ty. On Sunday afternoons she often
gathered the cowboys into her home
and they sang religious hymns. I
loved it and so did the boys,
• • •
Lumbering wagons, loaded with
| freight, for the ranches, came over
my paths now. They returned piled
| high with buffalo bones. I was glad
j when the bones were gone. Their
stark whitenesr, marred my Plains.
Men stretched barb wire across
| me about this time. I hated it, but
i I suppose it was all for the best.
As men prepared to build the rail-
road in 1887, there was much bustle
i and confusion. I was somewhat
! frightened when the first locomotive
train thundered over the iron rails
I men had laid on my bed. I know
| the train was useful. I knew It
then, but it was a long while before
| I could see any beauty in it,
I heard the term ''nester" In 1387.
One evening a wagon stopped by my
.-ide. A man and a woman got out.
As they looked out over my rolling
Tlalns, the man asked, "Well?"
"It's home, Jim," was the reply.
Jim and I were both happy as ha
went about digging their dugout
home. Soon after, the man cut fur-
rows in my land and planted seed.
Later Jim Pot.tlnger and his wife
set out fruit trees at this, the first
; farm home in my county.
I have never been alone since 1887
! when Amarillo was founded. My
paths branched out and grew di; -
tlnct as stage coaches and mail
hacks made scheduled runs over me.
1 have seen many modes of trans-
I portation, seen the auto and the air-
plane. Once two boys, I.em Brown-
ling and Bud Wallace actually rode
over me from the station of Pullman
io Amarillo and back to Pullman In
a. sail wagon. I enjoyed that, those
! boys seemed so free.
I am not lonely for the old da.vs.
| Today is also good, but T do like
to remember back, for I have seen
j my countrv grow.
J am the trail.
v>feg|L
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llggOSfr
HE History of Potter
County for the past fifty
years is practically a history
W 9 J J
of Aniarillo, the Largest ami
Most Important City in West
Texas,
POPULATION IN 1890
POPULATION IN 1900
POPULATION IN
POPULATION IN
POPULATION IN
482
1,442
1910 9,957
1920 15,494
1930 43,132
POPULATION IN
1938 55,000
FORECAST FOR
1950 75,000
POPULATION
POLK STREET, AMARILLO, LOOKINO NORTH FROM TENTH AVENUE, i:i3*
Amarillo and Potter County
J
have never none backward
J. KAY
Real Estate Investments
mm
r.uiji ti .u-Afcii-/s
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Amarillo Sunday News-Globe (Amarillo, Tex.), Vol. 13, No. 33, Ed. 1 Sunday, August 14, 1938, newspaper, August 14, 1938; Amarillo, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth299921/m1/26/: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Hutchinson County Library, Borger Branch.