Graham

Graham is at the intersection of U.S. Highway 380 and State highways 16 and 67, in southeastern Young County. The site was first settled in 1871 by Gustavus A. and Edwin S. Graham, who gave their name to the townsite. The Grahams moved from Kentucky to Texas after the Civil War and purchased 125,000 acres in Young County. The population of the county had dropped considerably during the war, and the Graham brothers helped to revive the area. After the brothers purchased a saltworks in 1872, Gustavus Graham surveyed the townsite. The Wilsons, the first family to settle after the arrival of the Graham brothers, started the first store, and the Grahams promoted the sale of lots near the north line of the former Brazos Indian Reservation. The post office opened in 1873, and Graham won an election over Belknap to become the county seat in 1874, after the county's reorganization. The county used vacant rooms and small buildings for court days until a frame two-story structure was built on the west side of the square in 1876. In 1884 a fine three-story limestone building was built. The east door of the 1884 building still stands in the middle of the square. The present courthouse was begun in the early 1930s, and the old courthouse was razed in 1932.

J. W. Graves started the Graham Leader in 1876, a year before the Cattle Raisers Association (now the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association) was organized in Graham. J. E. Dowdle operated a combination gristmill and sawmill and a cotton gin. Other early businesses included a saltworks, a brick kiln, two hotels, and several stores. Dr. J. E. Ryus built a large two-story brick building on the west side of the square in 1879 to house his drugstore and the Federal District Court in the upper story. The federal court was moved to Abilene in 1896. Graham was incorporated sometime before 1900. In 1903 service of the Chicago, Rock Island and Texas line from Fort Worth began, and in the 1920s Graham was connected to Breckenridge, Ranger, and Dublin by the Wichita Falls and Southern line. In the 1920s Lake Eddleman was constructed in the hills north of town to provide water and recreational opportunities. The municipal airport dates from 1929.