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“Irion County is on U.S. Highway 67 and State Highway 163 in southwest central Texas, bounded on the west by Reagan County, on the south by Crockett and Schleicher counties, and on the north and east by Tom Green County. It was named for Robert Anderson Irion.”
“On January 8, 1865, the battle of Dove Creek was fought at the junction of Spring and Dove creeks between 1,400 Kickapoo Indians and 370 state border guards under Capt. Henry Fossett. The Kickapoos were eastern Indians who had been uprooted by the American government and removed to reservations in Indian Territory; they were attempting to move to Mexico when intercepted by Fossett’s troops. Thirty-six whites were killed and sixty wounded in the battle; Indian casualties totaled eleven dead and thirty-one wounded.”
“In 1874 the area became part of Tom Green County, which was formed that year from 12,500 square miles taken from Bexar County.”
“Cattle and sheep thrived on the well-watered range. John Arden brought the first flock of sheep from California in 1876, and in 1880 the 7D Ranch was established by Billy Childress with longhorn cattle from Atascosa County. Beginning in the 1880s a few pioneer farmers built small irrigation systems, and several ranchmen planted hay and grain.”
“In 1889 the Texas legislature formed Irion County from Tom Green County, and that same year the county was organized with Sherwood county seat.”
“Sherwood, the county seat, began to decline when it was bypassed by the railroad, while Mertzon-which was on the line-grew and began to challenge Sherwood for the role of county seat. In a 1927 election held to determine which town should be county seat, voters chose Mertzon over Sherwood by 286 to 231. Sherwood retained its status, however, because a two-thirds plurality was required for a change. After another election in 1936 Mertzon was chosen county seat by a vote of 453 to 222.”
“Irion County has no manufacturing, little tourism, and only a modest agricultural income; the county is one of the most lightly populated areas in the state.”
William R. Hunt and John Leffler, “IRION COUNTY,” Handbook of Texas Online
Still standing in the ghost town of Sherwood, the retired 1901 Second Empire structure now infrequently serves as a community center. It was my first stop in Irion County, while the 1930s modern courthouse in Mertzon was my second.
I came to both Sherwood and Mertzon on August 13, 2013
IRION COUNTY COURTHOUSES:
Architect: Martin & Moodie (Sherwood), David S. Castle (Mertzon)
Year: 1901 (Sherwood), 1937 (Mertzon)
Number for the County: First (Sherwood), Second (Mertzon)
Style: Second Empire (Sherwood), Moderne (Mertzon)
Whatever remains of Downtown Sherwood
The courthouse in Sherwood is located behind a chain-link fence, accessible through the gate you see in the right of the picture.
One of the decorative owls that adorns either side of the courthouse’s northern door. These owls are a defining characteristic of this historic structure.
The clocks are painted on. Urban legend has it that the hour and minute hands are frozen at the time of Abraham Lincoln’s death.
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Spring Creek runs north-south and is located east of Mertzon and west of Sherwood. This bridge lies on the outskirts of Mertzon.
The town of Mertzon as seen from the hill the courthouse is located upon