Canadian, Texas
Posted by: 
YoSam.
N 35° 54.776 W 100° 22.953
14S E 375253 N 3975174
"Canadian is a city in and the county seat of Hemphill County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,649 at the 2010 census. It is named for the Canadian River, a tributary of the nearby Arkansas River." ~ Wikipedia
Waymark Code: WMTPP5
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 12/25/2016
Views: 1
County of city: Hemphill County
Location of city: NW of center in county; crossroads of US-60 & US-83
County located Mid-Central on Eastern border of Texas Panhandle
Location of courthouse: 400 E. Main St., Canadian
Elevation: 2,425 ft (739 m)
Population: 2,937 (2013)
History in a Pecan Shell
"In early 1887 E. P. Purcell and O. H. Nelson, laid out a 240-acre townsite for the soon to arrive Southern Kansas Railway. The site, which was on the South bank of the Canadian River connected to the community of Hogtown (AKA Clear Creek) by a bridge that summer. Residents and businesses crossed from Hogtown to be near the rails.
"A post office was granted in August of 1887 and the town's first hotel - The Log Cabin opened its doors. On Independence Day 1888, Canadian hosted the first annual Cowboys' Reunion rodeo - one of the first commercial rodeos in Texas.
"By 1900 the town was thriving due to its being a division point fort the railroad. The town soon had cotton gins, grain elevators and even a private academy, as well as the usual businesses necessary to a vibrant town. It was estimated that the town once had as many as thirteen saloons.
"The Woman's Christian Temperance Union set up their own building - which also houses the city library.
"The Handbook of Texas acknowledges the names of early business pioneers as George and John J. Gerlach, Harvey E. Hoover, Edward H. Brainard, and Nahim Abraham, who immigrated from Lebanon.
"Mr. Abraham, descendant, is the man responsible for the renovation of Canadian's beautiful Palace Theater.
"Temple Lea Houston, Sam Houston's youngest (and most flamboyant) son once lived in Canadian before settling in what is now Oklahoma.
"The railroad, which had long since been absorbed by the Santa Fe - closed the roundhouse in the 1950s. This might have been a deathblow to a lesser town, but Canadian survived. From the 1950 population of 2,600, it grew to nearly 3,500 by 1980." ~ Texas Escapes