Jones County Texas Archives - Early Stamford History - 1929 *********************************************************** Submitted by: Dorman Holub Date: 19 January 2020 Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/tx/jones/jonestoc.htm *********************************************************** The Stamford American Friday, July 19, 1929 Vol. 6, Number 14 First Business House Erected Here Giving Way to New Structure Passing Recalls Events in Early stamford history Building was elected by Penick-Colbert-Hughes Early in 1900 The first building erected in Stamford is being razed this week to make way for a modern brick structure. Erected by the Penick-Colbert-Hughes Company early in 1900 as a ÒboomÓ structure, the historic old building has given a little over 29 years of service and housed lines of business varying from bank to a machine shop. During recent years the building has been owned and occupied by John Cook, operating the Stamford Garage & Machine shop, with parts of the building rented out for other enterprises. This week workmen began tearing down the building and it will be replaced by a brick 55 by 80 feet. Mr. Cook has let the contract to Frank Kiner to be completed in September. The new building will be occupied by Mr. Cook’s machine shop and Billington’s battery shop. Col. R.L. Penick, who was on the ground and waiting when the townof Stamford was started, recalls some interesting events in the early history of the town centering aroudn the old building. Colonel Penick says this was the first business building erected in Stamford, However, there was a small frame building which he moved here from Anson complete and in which he opened a bank on January 8, 1900, “when there wasn’t another house in sight.” this small building is now located back of the City Drug Store and used for storage, though it was originally placed on the lot where the furniture department of the Penick-Hughes Company now stands. Materials for the large buildilng which is now being torn down were hauled here from Abilene, according to Colonel Penick’s account. “The materials were placed here, on an adjoining section, before the townsite was opened,” he said. “They wouldn’t allow us to place materials on the townsite. We started the building on the morning of January 15, 1900. The front and the shelving were made in Anson. When the first train came in on the Texas Central on February 12, we had in a stock of goods. However, the front and back walls of the building had not been put in at that time. The bank which had been started in the small building was moved into the new store. Our firm at that time was the Penick-Colbert-Hughes building was 50 by 100 feet, constructed of galvanized iron and wood. It was erected on the site where the three story brick building of the Penick-Hughes Company now stands, being moved to the site on Weatherbee street where the new building was erected in 1909. Colonel Penick says it was remarkable the way the people flocked to Stamford during the boom. It was soon discovered that there were a great number of children in town with no school and no assessable property values, as the town had been started after January 1 and all improvements made after that time. However, five firms of the town loaned the school board $4,000 without security and an eight-room school building was erected and school opened in September 1900.