|
Filling Tank
Cars from the Phillips Refinery
1942 photo by John Vaschon, Courtesy Library of Congress |
History in
a Pecan Shell
Rancher James
A. Whittenburg founded the community of Whittenburg
nearby in 1926. Whittenburg acquired a rivalry with Pantex, Texas
(which soon was renamed Phillips for the dominant employer.) The
Phillips Petroleum Company completed the Alamo Refinery in 1927.
It was the first of its kind built in the Panhandle.
The company built a new $77,000 school in 1936 and also provided
housing for teachers and student scholarships. In 1938 Whittenburg
and Pantex became Phillips, Texas by a vote of the
people. Phillips had a population of over 4,000 in 1947 and although
the 1936 high school was destroyed by fire in 1950, it was soon
rebuilt.
Many of the businesses in Phillips moved to Borger
in the 50s and 60s, and the population dropped from 3,600 in 1960
to around 2,500 for the 1980 census. A huge explosion in 1980 obliterated
part of the industrial area and some homes.
|
The Story of
Phillips, Texas
The Demise
of Phillips, Texas
Phillips, Texas was not destroyed by the explosion in the 80's.
The town was wiped out due to the death of Mr. Whittenburg who owned
the land the town sat on. In his will there a clause stating that
the property that the township sat on could not be sold without
the approval by the Citizens of Phillips. The children (the ones
who ran M & M Cattle Company) went to court and had the will changed
so that they could sell the property to Phillips Petroleum. Once
the sale was final Phillips began evicting the Citizens. The citizens
fought back by hiring F. Lee Bailey to fight the eviction. This
injunction staved off the eviction about 6 months. Several homes
were moved to a location just south of Electric
City on a the rim of the Canadian River Canyon and others were
moved to Stinnett and Amarillo.
I was an older teenager when this happened and my Grandparents lived
in Phillips at 212 Cook St. Their house now is in Stinnett.
The explosion that occurred was in the unit of the plant call the
Cat Cracker. My Grandfather was a boiler maker on that unit and
was one of the persons that went in and did the body recovery after
the explosion. There was damage in the town. Mostly blownout and
cracked windows, but that was it. I can also safely say if the sale
of the property did not happen, Phillips Petroleum would have gotten
the town shutdown for environmental reasons. One being an open sewage
system in the town. Sewer water had run into the Canadian River
all the years I can remember. I truly miss the old town and wish
it still existed." - Victor Taylor, October 17, 2009
The Demise
of Phillips, Texas
Thank you for posting the follow-up from the individual setting
the record straight about the town of Phillips, Tx. continuing to
exist. The town did not survive the explosion of January 1980, and
the 1987 was the last class to graduate from there. The town has
pretty much been reduced to this website: http://www.phillipsblackhawks.com/
. This is a collection of pictures, commentaries, stories, etc.
of those that attended the school during it's existence. It will
give one a small feel for the kind of town that Phillips was. -
Joe (Class of 1984), November 18, 2005
The Demise
of Phillips, Texas
On your website you state that Phillips, Texas continues to stand
as a community. This is COMPLETELY false. Phillips 66 oil company
made everyone move after that big explosion. There is nothing there
but the old high school and the refinery. The churches were leveled,
the homes that were not moved out were leveled. It was one of the
most tragic stories of small town life being overtaken by business.
People lost everything. No one has a hometown to go back to....it's
all leveled and you can't even drive in to look at your old school....armed
security guards come after you. - [Name withheld by request], October
24, 2005
Phillips
and Borger
Our family was from Borger,
Texas, and my dad's brother, Sydney Wilson Bennett, worked in nearby
Phillips at the refinery. I was born in Borger in 1948 and left
for Wyoming in 1953. My aunt "Frankie" and uncle Wilson would babysit
me and my sister at their company home in Phillips. We spent many,
many a happy time there in the early years of our lives.
About 30 years ago, I took my wife to see Borger
and Phillips. We had our first child with us, and we parked our
travel trailer across from my aunt and uncle's house in a friendly
neighbor's driveway. I took my wife on a "tour" of Phillips and
Borger , and we left a
few days later, following a tornado. I just did not want to sit
through another Panhandle tornado!
I only learned of the demise of Phillips today! My aunt and uncle
moved away when he retired from Phillips, to relocate in Bowie.
Both are now deceased. I can't imagine Phillips having been leveled.
- Jim Pixley, Corona, California, May 24, 2007
Growing
up in Phillips, Texas
Phillips was a wonderful place to grow up. Teachers and administrators
instilled in us a unique sense of pride in the fact that we were
from Phillips. Being from Phillips automatically made us winners.
What a great way to prepare students for life! We learned that if
we worked hard, we could do almost anything.
Our sports teams were legendary for their accomplishments. Furthermore,
due to the academic leadership of many, many teachers, a large percentage
of Phillips graduates have become doctors, lawyers, engineers, and
other professionals.
But most importantly, people who grew up in Phillips genuinely cared
for each other because we shared a common love for the community
that was Phillips. And we understood that Phillips was Phillips
because of its people.
I miss it. There will never be another Phillips. Unfortunately,
there's no way to fully understand the loss unless you're a Phillips
Blackhawk. - Carrie McFerron, Class of 1976, February 10, 2006
|
 |
Employees of
the Phillips Refinery getting off work.
1942 photo by John Vaschon, Courtesy Library of Congress |
|
|
The
Phillips Petroleum Company Building built in 1927 still stands in
downtown Bartlesville, Oklahoma
TE Photo, February, 2005 |
| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories,
landmarks and recent or vintage photos, please contact
us. |
|
|
HOME
