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History · Spur

Spur’s post office opened in 1909

Most of Spur was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1958. Below: 6 old photos and papers from 1939 on.

1909first post office
0on the National Register
8%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Spur’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Spur began

When was Spur founded?

1909

The Spur post office opened in 1909, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, Dockhum Ranch (1882), Dockum Ranch (1885) and Espuela (1891), opened inside today’s city and later closed.

2020 census: 863117 years
Founding year: the first Spur post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Spur’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Lost villages3 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Spur, and 1 old place names are still on the map.Old housesHalf of Spur’s homes were built before 1958.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices and old corners

Spur’s post office has been open since 1909. Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Dockhum Ranch
1882–1885
Dockum Ranch
1885–1891
Espuela
1891–1910
Spur
1909–today
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Dockum

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

The story

How Spur came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Spur.

Read it all →

Spur began after E. P. Swenson and associates purchased Spur Ranch in 1907 and subdivided land for settlers.

The Colorado and Southern Railway then built the Stamford and Northwestern Railway northwest 82.2 miles from Stamford to the future site of Spur. On November 1, 1909, the first train, operated by the Wichita Valley Railway, arrived at the new depot, marking the opening of Spur.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Spur, 1882 to 1963

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1882Post officeThe Dockhum Ranch post office opens
  3. 1885Post officeThe Dockhum Ranch post office closes
  4. 1885Post officeThe Dockum Ranch post office opens
  5. 1891Post officeThe Dockum Ranch post office closes
  6. 1891Post officeThe Espuela post office opens
  7. 20th century
  8. 1910Post officeThe Espuela post office closes
  9. 1927Born hereRed McCombs is born here
  10. 1934Born hereJoe James is born here
  11. 1939In the archiveFarmers in town
  12. 1943Born hereRaymond Beadle is born here
  13. 1963Born hereRobb Kendrick is born here
By decade

Spur, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s6 items
Farmers in town1939Farmers in townFarmers in town1939Farmers in townCowboy on cattle ranch near Spur, Texas1939Cowboy on cattle ranch near Spur, TexasTightening cinch. Cattle ranch near Spur, Texas1939Tightening cinch. Cattle ranch near Spur, TexasBranding scene on ranch near Spur, Texas1939Branding scene on ranch near Spur, TexasCowboy petting his horse. Cattle ranch near Spur, Texas1939Cowboy petting his horse. Cattle ranch near Spur, Tex…
1940s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Farmers in town
Retake this viewFarmers in town, 1939

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Spur’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

5 famous people were born in Spur

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
R
Red McCombsAmerican businessman · b. 1927
R
Raymond BeadleAmerican racing driver · b. 1943
R
Robb KendrickAmerican photographer · b. 1963
J
Joe JamesAmerican football coach · b. 1934
A
Aaron LathamAmerican journalist, music critic, screenwriter · b. 1943
Help out

Finish Spur’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewFarmers in town: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Spur’s history

What year was Spur founded?

The Spur post office opened in 1909, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From the Library of Congress (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.