Texas State Travel Guide: 1988 Page: 154
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KILGORE
Pop. 11,266Alt. 371
Map K-21
General-Plantation owners settled area
before Civil War, but town was not estab-
lished until building of Great Northern
Railroad (later Missouri Pacific) in 1872.
Town is center of huge East Texas Oil Field
discovered 1930; over 1,200 oil wells once within city limits; some still pro-
ducing, Some remaining steel derricks are nostalgic reminders of early boom
days, now decorated during Christmas.
East Texas Oil Museum-Every aspect of the oil boom days of the 1930s
is re-created through dioramas, films, sound and mementos of the oil field,
and from the daily lives of the people. An ancient drilling rig is displayed
outside. Inside, stores and a street scene bring the past to life. Also, geologi-
cal exhibits and a simulated 3,800-foot elevator ride to the oil formations
within the earth. Open Tues. - Sat. 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.; Sun. 2 - 5 p.m. U.S. 259 at
Ross St. Tel. 903/ 983-8295. (On Kilgore College campus.) Admission.
Rangerette Showcase-Films and displays of props, costumes, uniforms,
awards and mementos of Kilgore College's world-famous precision drill and
dance team, known for its trademark "highkick" routine. The first of its kind,
the Rangerettes were formed in 1940 as halftime entertainment for local foot-
ball games. Their performance at bowl games and internationally has brought
fame to Kilgore College. Open Tues. - Fri. 10 a.m. - noon, 1 - 4:30 p.m.; Sat. -
Sun. 2 - 5 p.m. On campus on Broadway at Ross; free admission. Tel.
903/983-8265.
World's Richest Acre-On part of one downtown block, actually about
1.2 acres, once stood greatest concentration of oil wells in the world produc-
ing more than 2.5 million barrels of oil. All but one of original derricks were
dismantled in early 1960s. The original derrick and eleven new ones, erected
in a historical preservation program, are monuments to the oil boom of
1930s. A historical marker details history of the plot. An interesting sidelight
is that one well was drilled through terrazzo floor of the Kilgore National
Bank that once stood on site. Business Route Texas 135 at Main and
Commerce Sts.MS4 - mvV.,
Eli, _ 4
13 k
-K- '1930s street scene recalls typical oil-boom town at the excellent East
Texas Oil Museum in KilgoreKILLEEN
Pop. 61,094Alt. 833
Map N-16/17
General-Edged by 217,000-acre Fort Hood.
Named for civil engineer of Santa Fe
Railroad that built across county in 1882.
Largest city in Bell County; home of Central
Texas College, University of Central Texas."World's Richest Acre" in downtown Kilgore
_'1
?t T
\oVisitor information available at chamber of commerce in restored Santa Fe
depot, I Santa Fe Plaza; open Mon. - Fri. 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Community theater productions are held throughout the year at the
Center for the Arts, sponsored by Vive Les Arts Societe.
Killeen lies on U.S. 190, a segment of the Ports to Plains Highway con-
necting the state's heartland to coastal ports.
Fort Hood-Covering 339 square miles of Central Texas, the modern Army
post is staffed with the largest collection of soldiers and fighting machines in
the free world-the only two-division post in the nation. Home of the Army's
III Corps, 1st Cavalry and 2nd Armored Divisions. Visitors welcome at two
museums on the post. The 1st Cavalry Division Museum exhibits more
than 150 years of cavalry uniforms, equipment, arms from sabers to assault
helicopters; emphasis on division combat during World War II, in Korea, and
in Vietnam. Artillery, tanks, trucks and captured foreign weapons; at Building
2218 on Headquarters Ave. The 2nd Armored Division Museum features
unit history from 1940 to today: World War I action in North Africa, Sicily
Museum at Fort Hood exhibits a variety
of military hardware near Killeen"kj
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Texas. Department of Transportation. Texas State Travel Guide: 1988, book, 1988; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1203617/m1/156/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.