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Vancourt, Texas
By Clint
Skinner
The town of Vancourt is located in the eastern portion of Tom
Green County along U. S. Highway 87. Twenty miles southeast of
San
Angelo, it relies upon farming and ranching for its livelihood.
William C. Dickey and his wife Ida opened the area's first business
during the 1800s. Their stage station served as a place where exhausted
horses and other animals could be replaced by fresher ones in order
to quicken travel along nearby routes. W. S. Kelley established the
town's post office in his quest to provide a mail route for the El
Paso Mail Company and named it after his wife Mary Ann Van Court.
In 1907, White Swan School moved from its location outside Vancourt
and established itself within the town's perimeter on the south side
of U. S. Highway 87. On the other side of the roadway, Calvin J. York,
Jr. opened a general store in 1908, which remained the only store
in town. That same year, records indicated a population of 125. The
1920s brought about the construction of a cotton gin and the Works
Progress Adminstration provided a brick schoolhouse in 1937. Three
years later, the school was closed and replaced.
During the 1970s, York's general store served its last customer. The
1980 Census brought the amazing news that the population had not changed
since 1908 with 125 people claiming residence. In 1988, Vancourt had
two cotton gins, two grain storage facilities, and a mill. In 2016,
the estimated population was 64. |
Bibliography
Tshaonline.org
Wikipedia
Bestplaces.net
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Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
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