Sanger and the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway

Sanger originated in 1886 at mile post 392.16 as a water stop along the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway Route leading north from Fort Worth to Purcell, Indian territory (now Oklahoma). The stop’s proximity to north Denton county cattle ranches and to the Chisholm Trail led the railroad to construct a side track, cattle pens, loading chute and depot. Mrs. Elizabeth Bullock Huling, who had sold the property for the railroad stop, soon hired surveyors to plat a townsite surrounding it. Mrs. Huling donated land for a wagon yard, well, school, town square, cemetery and methodist church. A saloon, blacksmith shop and the ready hotel, which housed the first post office, opened shortly after. The town, originally known as Huling, and later New Bolivar, was officially named in honor of Sanger Brothers, a prominent Texas dry goods firm. The town was incorporated in 1892. When an 1890 fire destroyed much of sanger, the railroad rebuilt expanded facilities. The 1897 establishment of the Sanger Mill and elevator company, home of silk finish flour, helped to transition Sanger to a farming community. Cattle continued to drive the economy until two meat packing plants were built in Fort Worth ca. 1900, and ranchers began trucking cattle to market. World War II increased rail traffic at the depot and operations were taken over by women as men went to war. Although passenger rail service later ended, the town of Sanger, which got its start as a railroad water stop, continues to grow and prosper.

Sanger and the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway is a historical marker in Sanger, Denton County, dedicated in 2010. It is one of 110 historical markers documented in Denton County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 174 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 33.3623, -97.1697 near Sanger. The nearest cataloged historic site is Sanger Presbyterian Church (historical marker), about 0.4 miles away. Others within a short drive include Partlow, William E., First Mayor of Sanger, Elsasser, Jacob Frederick, and Sanger Cemetery.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5507016443. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.