Whitney

Whitney is at the intersection of State Highway 22 and Farm roads 933 and 1244, two miles southeast of Lake Whitney and twelve miles southwest of Hillsboro in western Hill County. It was established in 1876 when the Houston and Texas Central Railroad built a line through Hill County to Cleburne. On November 25, 1879, the town lots were auctioned from a wagon on the site of the future depot. The land, which was originally part of the Sterling Robertson grant, was purchased by the railroad from I. E. Griffith, C. C. Hicks, and Lewis Raborn for fifteen dollars an acre. The sale, which served as entertainment for Hill County residents, netted $32,000 for the lots that sold for $100 to $750 each. The town was named for Charles A. Whitney, the son-in-law of Charles Morgan, and a principal stock holder in the H&TC. Whitney became a boom town with merchants setting up tents to serve as temporary stores. Merchants from nearby communities, such as Towash, moved their businesses and buildings to Whitney because of the growth expected from the railroad. The postmasters of Towash and Hamilton Springs, two nearby communities, moved their post offices to Whitney. Several months later John Napier was appointed the first official postmaster, and Whitney officially had a post office in 1880. Hill County crops in 1880 were a failure, and the railroad promised that the first train to town would bring a bushel of corn for each person in the area. Many residents had not had bread for months, and the trains carried carloads of corn for months. In 1882 a good crop sent 22,000 bales of cotton from Whitney.

In 1880 Whitney was incorporated, and the first bank opened. By 1883 the population was estimated at 1,200. School was held in a store and then in the Presbyterian church before enough money was raised through donations to build a schoolhouse in 1884. In 1885 Whitney was incorporated as a school district and levied a school tax. That same year a black school was built. By then the town had a newspaper named the Whitney Messenger, the Boesche Lumber Company, and four churches, Methodist Episcopal, Cumberland Presbyterian, First Baptist, and Church of Christ. After 1883 the population of Whitney began a decline. A fire in 1885 destroyed thirty of the community's frame buildings. By the end of the decade most of the frame buildings had been replaced by brick. In 1890 the population was 400, and businesses included two gristmills and cotton gins, grocery stores, millinery shops, saloons, and shoemakers. The railroad shipped cotton, grain, livestock, and wool. Because of the declining population the citizens of Whitney decided to promote their town with a picnic in 1891. The community barbecued 3,500 pounds of meat, and special excursion trains ran from as far as Brenham to bring people to Whitney. There were political speakers, tournaments, races, and dancing. The picnic was a success. Six thousand people attended, and by 1895 the population was once again over 1,000. The town was incorporated and unincorporated several times and finally incorporated permanently in 1912. The city government was established in 1915. At that time they purchased the water and electric company, founded in 1896, which supplied water with very low pressure and electricity only at night. After the decline of the cotton market in 1915 the population began to decline. By 1930 Whitney had 750 residents and thirty businesses. During the Great Depression Texas relief funds provided some jobs on roads and opened a cannery by 1934. The Work Projects Administration provided funds to build a concrete bridge to replace a wooden one, a lighted athletic field, and a sewer system in 1935. When the Whitney Dam and Reservoir Project was authorized in 1944 a bond election was held to raise taxes to improve city services. The reservoir project began in 1946, and Highway 22, relocated over the dam, was opened in 1951. The power plant was in operation by 1953. In 1950 Whitney had a population of 1,379 and fifty businesses.

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Lisa C. Maxwell | © TSHA

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Adapted from the official Handbook of Texas, a state encyclopedia developed by Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). It is an authoritative source of trusted historical records.

Belongs to

Whitney is part of or belongs to the following places:

Currently Exists

Yes

Place type

Whitney is classified as a Town

Location

Latitude: 31.95134000
Longitude: -97.31820600

Has Post Office

Yes

Is Incorporated

Yes

Population Count, 2021 View more »

2,033