Eldorado, Texas

Christopher Columbus Doty, pioneer sheepman and settler of Schleicher County, son of Mr. and Mrs. A. C. Doty, was born in Barry County, Missouri, on April 16, 1857. His formal education was limited to three months in a country school, but he continued studying at night. At the age of twenty-one he moved from Missouri to Uvalde, Texas, where his uncle, W. T. Moore, operated a sheep ranch. After gaining experience as a sheepman Doty purchased his uncle's sheep in 1882 and established his headquarters ten miles north of the site of present Eldorado, at the Ten-Mile Water Hole. He was the first settler in Schleicher County; he also drilled what was reputed to be the first windmill on the upper Edwards Plateau , a well that facilitated the future settlement of West Texas and the development of Schleicher County. In 1884 prairie fires and a depressed wool market forced Doty to sell his sheep ranch and move to his family's farm in Fannin County. He was soon discontented with farm life and returned in 1886 to West Texas, where he worked sheep for various employers. He eventually went to work as a sheep boss for William L. Black , a prominent Menard County sheep rancher. By 1889 Doty had saved enough money to open a store on the South Concho River in Tom Green County, where he established a post office. He wanted to name his town Christobal, but the postal authorities erred and the town was named Christoval. Later that year a fire destroyed Doty's business. He took a job as manager of a 1,500-acre irrigated farm near Dove Creek, owned by Joseph Tweedy . Doty worked for Tweedy for two years and then entered the cattle business. From 1896 to 1902 he and a partner named Sheppard leased a nine-section ranch in Schleicher County. In 1901 Doty was elected Schleicher County's first tax assessor, an office he held until 1908. In 1909 and 1910 he worked as a bookkeeper for the First National Bank in Eldorado. After 1910 he remained active in ranching and served as justice of the peace in Eldorado for fifteen years. By 1925 he had sold his land and stock and purchased a leather-repair shop. Later that year he sold the shop and purchased a grocery store, which he still owned in 1930. Doty married Alice Pancost on June 3, 1889, in Christoval. The couple had one daughter. Doty was a Mason and a devout Methodist who organized the first Sunday school between San Angelo and Del Rio. He died on October 16, 1944, in Ozona and was buried in Christoval. See also SHEEP RANCHING .

Introduced to this area in 1883, sheep existed in large numbers throughout the region by the 1930s. Prominent local banker Joseph B. Christian and his son, textile engineer Joe Muller Christian, erected this native stone building to house the West Texas Woolen Mills. Texas governor W. Lee O'Daniel attended the grand opening in 1941. In 1942 the plant was awarded a major World War II contract to manufacture Army blankets. After a successful conversion to postwar production, the mill became a major contributor to the area's economy. The Christians sold the landmark mill in 1963. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1995

The first town in Schleicher County, Verand was established about 1890 near the headquarters of the Vermont Ranch. Although short-lived, the town, platted in 86 lots, included a stagecoach station, post office, store, and hotel, as well as homes for twenty to thirty families. The citizens of Verand ultimately had difficulty obtaining clear title to their land so in 1895, in answer to an offer of free land by Eldorado founder W. B. Silliman, they moved five miles south to the new town. The site of Verand soon returned to its natural state. (1968, 1996)

1823-1879 Chief purchasing agent, army engineer department for Southern armies West Mississippi. Bought desperately needed intrenching tools, iron, steel, lead and turpentine. Imported much material from Europe through Mexico by the exchange of cotton, "life blood of Confederacy." Established two engineer depots in Texas, designed fortifications and ponton trains. Repaired tools from surrendered U.S. frontier forts. A memorial to Texans who served the Confederacy. Erected by the State of Texas 1963

Schleicher County (SHLI-ker) is in west central Texas 290 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico and ninety miles northeast of the Texas-Mexico boundary. It is bordered by Tom Green, Concho, Menard, Kimble, Sutton, Crockett, and Irion counties. Eldorado, the county seat, is at the intersection of U.S. highways 190 and 277, forty-five miles south of San Angelo. The county's center lies five miles northeast of Eldorado at 30°54' north latitude and 100°31' west longitude. Situated in the Edwards Plateau , the county comprises roughly 1,309 square miles of rolling to hilly terrain at elevations ranging from 2,100 to 2,400 feet above sea level. The dark, loamy soils support a variety of tall grasses, as well as some oak, cedar, and mesquite . Between 11 and 20 percent of the land is considered prime farmland. The southwestern part of the county is in the Rio Grande basin, with the uppermost tributaries of the Devil's River draining the runoff south; the rest of the county lies within the Colorado basin and is drained by the upper reaches of the San Saba River to the east and by the South Concho River to the north. Wildlife in the area includes deer, turkey, javelina, bobcat, coyote, badger, fox, raccoon, squirrel, and skunk, as well as a variety of birds, fish, and reptiles. Among the county's mineral resources are dolomite, limestone, industrial sand, oil, and gas. The climate is subtropical, with an average minimum temperature of 32° F in January and an average high temperature of 96° in July. The growing season averages 229 days annually, and the rainfall averages twenty inches. The Central Texas region, including Schleicher County, has supported human habitation for several thousand years. Archeological evidence discovered in several hundred mounds in the county suggests that hunting and gathering peoples established themselves in the area as early as 10,000 years ago. Spanish explorers in the sixteenth century found that the Jumano Indians living in the region were receptive to efforts to convert them to Christianity. Fray Juan de Salas and Father Juan de Ortega did some missionary work among the Jumanos in the 1630s, but by 1700 the Jumanos had disappeared, possibly absorbed into the Lipan Apache culture that had moved in from the north. The Comanche Indians dominated the region by the mid-eighteenth century, making their first recorded raid in 1758 against the Santa Cruz de San Sabá Mission in neighboring Menard County. Francisco Amangual led an expedition across the area in December 1808 and found the Indians to be friendly; nevertheless, the Spanish did not attempt further colonization in the area, probably because Amangual also reported no sign of American encroachment on the Spanish frontier. Schleicher County was part of the Fisher-Miller Land Grant , made by the Republic of Texas in 1842, but none of the immigrants who settled within the limits of the grant came so far west. Settlement of Schleicher County occurred well after the annexation of Texas to the United States. Some people may have moved into the easternmost part of the county after the United States War Department opened Camp San Saba ( see FORT MCKAVETT ) in western Menard County in 1852, but it was not until the mid-1870s that permanent ranches were established. The Texas legislature established Schleicher County from Crockett County in April 1887 and named it in honor of Gustav Schleicher , an early surveyor, engineer, and politician. It is not clear why the legislature decided to form the county at that time; there is no evidence available to suggest any lobbying efforts by local residents. In fact, because the county had such a small population, it was attached first to Kimble County and later to Menard County for judicial purposes. It was not until July 1901 that Schleicher County residents elected their first county officials. The first census of Schleicher County was recorded in 1890 and listed 155 residents, of whom 134 were listed as