Sutton County Centennial County Marker - Sonora, TX
N 30° 34.191 W 100° 35.238
14R E 347781 N 3383004
The Sutton County 1936 Centennial pink granite block county marker stands along the OST along the old SH 27/US290, now State Loop 467, and could use some MAJOR TLC.
Waymark Code: WMTV0K
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 01/08/2017
Views: 2
As a commemoration of the Centennial of Texas statehood, the Texas State Highway department commissioned pink granite blocks with bronze plates on top and bronze medallions on the front. 254 of these markers were designated county markers, and contained short facts about the organization dates, namesakes, and sometimes important events that took place in each county. One of these category of markers was placed in each Texas county, either at the county line, at the county courthouse, or in the newly-conceived roadside parks (we know them today as rest areas).
The Sutton County marker was placed along the Old Spanish Trail at a highway rest area outside of Sonora. Every traveler along the OST who passed by here would have seen this distinctive block of pink granite with the Centennial bronze logo in the center.
Many of the pink granite blocks had their bronze plates replaced in the 1960s/1970s with more accurate or complete information, or to remove disparaging adjectives, especially about Native tribes, that were accepted in the 1930s but were recognized by he 1960s as being negative and hurtful.
It is a lot of fun to see a rare 1936 Centennial marker with its original bronze plate intact. All of these true relics of the Centennial marker program did not need any revisions to text to reflect changing attitudes.
The Centennial marker along the OST east of Sonora had its plate replaced in 1965, and in 2016 its distinctive Texas state seal is missing (hopefully awaiting replacement), but as this was a standard alternative for placement, Blasterz believe it is still in the same place that OST travelers would have seen it in had they been driving by in 1936.
The historic marker reads as follows:
"SUTTON COUNTY
Has traces of culture at least 20,000 years old, occupied by Apache Indians up to founding of Fort Terrett, 1852. Anglo-Texan settlement began 1879 at Sonora, a trading post on San Antonio-El Paso Road.
Created April 1, 1887, from land then in Crockett County; organized November 4, 1890, with Sonora as the county seat.
Named in honor of John S. Sutton (1821-1862), a member of Santa Fe Expedition, Texas Ranger and Indian fighter, soldier in Mexican War and colonel of Mounted Volunteers, who died of wounds received in Civil War Battle of Val Verde. 1936/1965"
The vestiges of the Old Spanish Trail in Texas are found on the various Main Streets that run through the center of little downtowns and on the frontage roads that parallel the modern I-10 highway. Many of the FM roads, State Loops, and State Highways that parallel, diverge from, and return to the I-10 as it makes its way from San Antonio to El Paso. That's where you will find what’s left of the old US 290, known before 1926 in this part of West Texas as the Old Spanish Trail.
In Sonora, the OST in its earliest 1916 routing came into town on SH 27 from Junction. We were able to see the old Sonora TexDOT maps from 1987 online. Those maps still showed old SH 27. From those, we were able to retrace the old OST route onto modern maps, and see how it had changed over the decades.
In 1922, SH 27/OST came to Sonora on SE2nd street from the east. Then it turned onto South Water Avenue to pass in front of the courthouse, before turning south onto Main street through downtown, and eventually leaving town along N Crockett Street/US 290/277.
In 1926, the OST through Sonora was designated by the US and state governments as the US 290. Part of the OST was also co-signed with the US 277, whose route was first laid out from Wichita Falls to Del Rio in 1932. In 1968 the US 290 designation was dropped, and what had been the US 290 in Sonora was redesignated SL 467.
The old SH 27 actually tracks pretty close to the modern SL 467, except it enters town on SE 2nd street, instead of North or South Crockett Avenue (depending on which side of Main Street you were on), and it doglegs to go through downtown, where the SL 467 goes past downtown without going through it.
Despite all the name and routing changes, you can still see the traces of the OST era as you drive through Sonora, if you pay attention.
State Loop 467 branches off from the I-10 east of Sonora, at I-10 exit 404. After crossing over the I-10, it follows the route of Crockett Avenue/Old US 290/Old Spanish Trail through Sonora until it rejoins the I-10 west of town.
Submission Criteria:
Period Culture
Distinctive or Significant Interest
Website with More Information: [Web Link]
Address of Waymark:
SL 467 about 4 miles E of Sonora
Sonora, TX USA
|
Visit Instructions:
When visiting a waymark, please take a picture that clearly shows the point of interest (feel free to include you and/or members of your group in the photo as well). Also, tell us about your experience at the site.