Everything Stanton is known for
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Stanton, Texas. It might seem like a quiet spot on the map, nestled in Martin County, but this place has a way of producing folks who leave their mark. You see, even small towns can be a crucible for talent, a place where ambition takes root.
Stanton sits where it does because of the railroad. Like many towns on the West Texas plains, it wasn't much until the Texas and Pacific laid tracks through here in the late 19th century. Suddenly, there was a way to move cattle and crops east, and a place for ranchers and farmers to get supplies. The county seat ended up here, probably because of that rail connection. Now, what draws people to Stanton? Well, it's not exactly a tourist mecca. But it's a good place to live, quiet and close to Midland and Odessa for work. Folks passing through on I-20 might stop for gas or a bite, but the real reason people stay, according to the locals, is the community. It's the kind of place where everyone knows everyone, and they look out for each other. That sense of belonging, that small-town West Texas hospitality — that’s what keeps Stanton going. It’s not about the big attractions; it’s about the people.
Stanton sits squarely on the rolling plains of the Permian Basin, a vast, geologically ancient landscape formed hundreds of millions of years ago when a shallow sea covered West Texas. That sea left behind layers of sediment, rich in minerals and, eventually, oil. The land here is mostly flat, broken only by shallow draws and the occasional mesquite tree stubbornly clinging to the hardscrabble earth. The soil is sandy and reddish, stained by iron oxides, and the wind always seems to be blowing, carrying the scent of dust and distant rain. You can feel the sun beating down most days, baking the earth and reminding you of the raw power of this place. This land has shaped the people of Stanton in profound ways. The promise of oil wealth drew folks here, hardy souls willing to endure the harsh climate for the chance at prosperity. Ranching, too, has always been a part of the story, with families carving out a living from the sparse grasslands. There's a resilience in the people here, a quiet strength forged by the land itself. They understand the boom-and-bust cycles tied to the oil industry, the constant dance with the elements, and the enduring beauty of the wide-open spaces that define this corner of Texas.
Christian Dominikus Peters, a Carmelite priest and colonizer in West Texas, was born on October 5, 1844, in Breberen, a Westphalian village, to Gottfried and Kornelia Sophia (Tholen) Peters. The elder Peters was a Catholic farmer. Upon reaching manhood, Peters decided he would become a teacher and entered college at Kempen, near Breberen. It is believed he was engaged to be married, but his fiancee died before the wedding. On October 6, 1869, Peters joined his younger brother, Peter Leonardus (who later became Father Boniface), at Boxmeer, Holland, to study to become a priest. He completed his studies on October 6, 1870, after which he was ordained a deacon and sent to Straubing, Bavaria. He became a Carmelite priest on September 23, 1876, in Regensburg, Germany, and changed his name to Anastasius Peters. In 1876 he and other Carmelite priests were sent to southwestern Pennsylvania. In July 1879 several of them were sent to Scipio, Kansas, where Peters was appointed prior and pastor; Father Boniface joined the group there. On August 15, 1881, Father Anastasius, three other Carmelites, and Adam Konz moved to Grelton, a place at the end of a railway line being built by the Texas and Pacific, 280 miles west of Fort Worth. On August 29, 1881, Peters celebrated the first Mass in the area. Before long he petitioned the Texas and Pacific Railway to change the name of Grelton to Marienfeld; the site is now Stanton, Texas . On October 25, 1881, the priests completed a wooden church, which they named St. Joseph's. More priests were expected from Kansas, and in the fall of 1882 the Carmelites began erecting a two-story adobe building to be used as a school for boys and as a monastery for candidates to the priesthood. Father Boniface instructed the priests, and Father Anastasius was in charge of the church, the monastery, and spreading the faith to other places. The area assigned to the Carmelites included much of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. Only the largest settlements could support churches, and in smaller towns Mass was celebrated in the homes of parishioners. Father Peters was also a promoter of civic affairs, for which legal records indicate his name as P. A. Peters. He organized the settlers in Marienfeld into a society called the German Catholics of the Carmelite Association, and this group contracted with the Texas and Pacific to purchase land. Peters solicited money from Germany and tried to attract more German settlers. The railway and the priests tried to prove that Marienfeld was an attractive town by growing crops on a demonstration plat. Their crops did well, and they took them to New Orleans where they won a prize. In 1885 Marienfeld was at its peak of success, but in 1886–87 a serious drought forced most of the colonists to move. In April 1888 Peters and several other Carmelites moved to Bayou Pierre, near Mansfield, Louisiana. The entire Carmelite area in Texas and Louisiana was made into the Commissariate of the South on June 16, 1890, and Peters was appointed commissary general. He was also appointed United States postmaster at Bayou Pierre. The climate took its toll on the Carmelites, several of whom died. As early as 1892 Peters's health also began to fail, partly as a result of overexertion. In 1894 he tendered his resignation and moved, with several other Carmelites, to Thurber, Texas , where he was a local superior for a brief time. In 1895 fathers Boniface and Anastasius and some other Carmelites left America and settled at Maria Taferel, sixty-five miles southwest of Vienna, Austria. Boniface died there on September 30, 1902. Anastasius continued at Maria Taferel as father confessor until 1906, when he became Mass celebrant at nearby Maria Sessal. His health continued to fail, and on January 28, 1912, he had himself carried to the top of a hill to offer the Mass that was to be his last. He died on February 16, 1912, and is buried at Ybbsitz, Austria.
In 1882, six German friars from St. Boniface monastery in Scipio, Kansas, founded a new Carmelite monastery at Grelton Station, halfway between Fort Worth and El Paso on the Texas & Pacific Railroad. They renamed the station Marienfeld and established a German Catholic colony. Under the leadership of Anastasius Peters, the Carmelites attracted immigrant farmers to the area, some of whom joined the religious order. In 1884, this building was constructed to serve as the living quarters for the friars; it was expanded in 1886. From here they journeyed all over west Texas and eastern New Mexico, ministering to the Catholic families in communities along the rail lines and starting new Catholic parishes. Their work in Marienfeld had a direct impact on the town's development and on the formal organization of Martin County in 1884. In 1888, the Marienfeld Carmelites numbered 34, but severe drought during that period resulted in an economic depression that led to faltering support for the friars and the colony. By 1891, only five friars remained, and they left in 1901. In 1897, the Carmelites sold the monastery building to the Sisters of Mercy, who developed an academy on the site in 1898 and used this building for their living quarters and chapel. Soon after a 1938 tornado swept through the complex, the Sisters of Mercy withdrew, and the property was sold. Built of adobe in the Gothic Revival style, the monastery features four-foot thick walls, a stone foundation, Gothic pointed-arch windows and a wrapround porch. It is the only building remaining from the Carmelite occupation of the site. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2000
With the purpose of founding a monastery and a German Catholic colony, Carmelite Monks, in 1881, began the first Catholic church between Fort Worth and El Paso. The adobe and brick monastery was completed in 1884, and St. Joseph's Church in 1885. Sisters of Divine Providence opened a short-lived school, 1887; reopened, 1894, by Sisters of Mercy. In 1897, Carmelite Monks disbanded and sold property to Sisters of Mercy, who operated a convent and academy until abandonment after tornado of June 11, 1938. All that remains are a dormitory, ruins of other buildings, and the cemetery. (1973)
Former name of Stanton. Begun as German colony by 5 German Catholics from Kansas, who pitched tents here, near new Texas & Pacific Railroad in 1881. The site -- with a water tank, section house, telegraph office bore name Grelton, but settlers had it changed to Marienfeld, German for "Field of Mary." County was created 1876 and named for Wylie Martin, senator in Republic of Texas. When the county organized, town became county seat. First commissioners court met here December 13, 1884. Through Protestant influence, town was renamed Stanton, 1870. (1970)
Martin County, on the southern High Plains of west Central Texas, comprises 911 square miles and is bounded on the north by Dawson County, on the west by Andrews County, on the east by Howard County, and on the South by Midland and Glasscock counties. Its center lies at 32°18' north latitude and 101°70' west longitude, twenty-five miles northeast of Midland, and its elevation is 2,550 to 3,000 feet. Soils are predominantly red sandy loam; trees include hackberry, wild china, willow, plum, and mesquite . The annual average rainfall is 15.72 inches. The January minimum temperature averages 30° F, and the average maximum in July is 95° F. The growing season of 215 days produces a $36 million annual agricultural income, 90 percent of which is derived from the production of cotton, small grains, and corn, with the remainder from cattle, hogs, and goats. In 1982 the county produced 8,859,780 barrels of oil valued at $234 million. Sulphur Spring Creek, a tributary of the Colorado River, and Mustang Creek, a tributary of the North Concho River, drain the northern and southern portions of the county, respectively. Comanche Indians displaced Lipan Apaches in the region in the mid-eighteenth century and were in turn forced out by the United States Army after the Civil War . Martin County was formed on August 21, 1876, from Bexar County and named for Wylie Martin , one of Stephen F. Austin 's Old Three Hundred colonists. Martin County was attached to Mitchell County for administrative purposes for five months and then attached to Howard County until 1884, when the county was reduced to its present size and organized with Mariensfield (now Stanton) as the county seat. The first White settlement in what is now Martin County was Grelton (later known as Mariensfield), which was established in 1881 by John Konz and his family under the sponsorship of the Texas and Pacific Railway. Railroad promotion was a key element in attracting settlers to West Texas. "It is emphatically the country for the poor man," urged one railroad brochure. "No matter how poor a man may be, if he has health he may easily become the possessor of independent wealth in a few years." In support of such optimistic forecasts the railroad started a twenty-acre experimental farm at Grelton for wheat, barley, rye, and oats. The region was pleasing in appearance and well watered by springs, including Mustang Pond, where United States Army officers had once observed Indians watering 1,000 mustangs. "This beautiful country," said one pioneer, "was just a lush garden with green plums, prairie chicken, and quail galore." In 1881 the Texas and Pacific line began service to its lands in the Martin County area, which it sold to settlers for $1.50 to two dollars per acre. The drought of 1886 almost depopulated the nascent community. Settlers planted grain, cotton, vegetables, vines, and orchards and hunted antelope, deer, quail, and the few buffalo still remaining, to become self-sustaining. Cattle and, especially, sheep were introduced in greater numbers in the mid-1880s to utilize range not already preempted by Christopher C. Slaughter and others who had run cattle since 1877. Slaughter's 37,500 section Lazy S Ranch extended into Martin County and had its headquarters at Mustang Spring. By 1890, 3,316 cattle and 12,600 sheep were in the county; by 1900, however, sheep raising was clearly on the wane, while cattle ranching had increased significantly. In 1890 only 663 sheep but 32,000 cattle were reported. Sheep farming would not really become an important part of Martin County's economy again until the 1930s. Immigration to the area intensified after Konz encouraged a group of Carmelite priests from Anderson County to move to Martin County to establish a monastery. The name of the original settlement, Grelton, was changed to Mariensfield (Field of Mary) by German settlers from Anderson County. Encouraged by Christian D. (Father Anastasius) Peters , immigrants also mov
97 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.
Stanton, Texas. It might seem like a quiet spot on the map, nestled in Martin County, but this place has a way of producing folks who leave their mark. You see, even small towns can be a crucible for talent, a place…
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You're driving through Stanton, where Methodists originally shared a Union church with Baptists. In 1904, a revival led nine people to form their own Methodist congregation. They built their first sanctuary just three…
Former name of Stanton. Begun as German colony by 5 German Catholics from Kansas, who pitched tents here, near new Texas & Pacific Railroad in 1881. The site -- with a water tank, section house, telegraph office bore…
Christian Dominikus Peters, a Carmelite priest and colonizer in West Texas, was born on October 5, 1844, in Breberen, a Westphalian village, to Gottfried and Kornelia Sophia (Tholen) Peters. The elder Peters was a…
In 1882, six German friars from St. Boniface monastery in Scipio, Kansas, founded a new Carmelite monastery at Grelton Station, halfway between Fort Worth and El Paso on the Texas & Pacific Railroad. They renamed the…
You're driving through Stanton, the county seat of Martin County. This town, originally called Grelton, owes its existence to a determined German Catholic colony organized by John Jacob Konz and Father Christian Peters…
Martin County, on the southern High Plains of west Central Texas, comprises 911 square miles and is bounded on the north by Dawson County, on the west by Andrews County, on the east by Howard County, and on the South by…
You're driving past the Connell House, built in 1882 as the very first building in Stanton, originally a home for Carmelite Priests. Later, Dennis and Mary Connell made this their family home, raising eight children…
You're driving through Stanton, Texas, a town that owes its very existence to a surveyor named Adam Konz. In 1881, Konz arrived with a group of settlers looking for a place to build a new community. They found just a…
You're driving past the old Martin County Jail in Stanton. Its cell block was originally part of the 1885 courthouse, built when this town was called Marienfeld. When that courthouse came down in 1908, the cells were…
With the purpose of founding a monastery and a German Catholic colony, Carmelite Monks, in 1881, began the first Catholic church between Fort Worth and El Paso. The adobe and brick monastery was completed in 1884, and…
You're driving through Martin County, where about 1900, J. E. and Nettie Millhollon arrived with their cattle. They settled here, acquiring this homesite and over twenty thousand acres. Their impressive house was built…
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The most unique story in Stanton is its beginning as a German Catholic colony called Marienfeld, or 'Mary's Field.' In August 1881 a scouting party that included the Carmelite Father Anastasius Peters reached a little…
The dream of Marienfeld nearly died in 1886. The German Catholic colonists who founded this place had picked their ground in a good stretch of years and had no idea what West Texas could actually do. Then the weather…
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Big Spring's biggest name walked the halls of Big Spring High School: Ryan Tannehill, who would go on to spend a dozen seasons as an NFL quarterback. He grew up here a three-sport kid — football, basketball, and track —…
In the autumn of eighteen forty-nine, a United States Army captain named Randolph Barnes Marcy came riding across this country, and the spring you are near got its place on the map. Marcy was leading an expedition back…
There is a hard twist in this town's name, and it is worth telling straight. The spring that gave Big Spring its name eventually ran dry. When the Texas and Pacific Railway pushed through in the early eighteen eighties,…
Here is the honest story behind the name you just passed. Big Spring is called that for one reason, a single large natural spring that once flowed cold and clear from a chasm in the limestone near a bluff called Scenic…
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Long before there was a town here, the big draw to this spring was, quite literally, the herds. Picture a landscape where the American bison, the animal most folks call the buffalo, moved across these plains by the tens…
Look up from the spring and you will see the bluff the whole town knows as Scenic Mountain, the high shoulder of rock in Big Spring State Park. Here is something that catches people off guard. That mountain is built out…
Here is a small myth worth clearing up, because even old accounts get it wrong. You will often read that the famous spring sat right in Sulphur Draw, the long, shallow valley that snakes across this part of West Texas.…
The very first version of this town grew up because of the spring, and it was a rough one. In the late eighteen seventies, buffalo hunters were working the last of the great southern herds across these plains, and they…
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