The Junior Historian, Volume 11, Number 6, May 1951 Page: 3
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THE JUNIOR HISTORIAN
Then came the Black September of
1873. Jay Cooke and Company in the
East failed, causing the stoppage of
the railroad six miles west of Dallas.
Fort Worth's soaring prices plunged
downward, numerous businessmen faced
bankruptcy, homes were abandoned half-
completed, and the roads to the East
were cluttered with discouraged people
deserting the town, which a short time
before had been so eagerly sought. Be-
cause of his faith in the ultimate growth
of the city, Paddock was not shaken
by the disaster.
Among those men who deserted the
city was Robert E. Cowart, a young
writer, who made his home in Dallas.
Because of his familiarity with the
city's troubles, he wrote in a Dallas
newspaper that Fort Worth was so
(lead that a panther strayed into the
central part of town and, undisturbed,
slept overnight on the main street.
Headline for his story read:
Fort Worth Citizens in Cold Sweat
Mass Meeting of Citizens Called
Panther Loose in the Streets
No attempt was made by Fort Worthers
to deny this charge. Instead Paddock,
entranced with the publicity possibili-
ties of the idea, designed a panther for
.the masthead of his paper. Soon mem-
bers of a progressive fire company
christened their group "Panther" and
proudly displayed two caged panthers
at their fire house. "Panther" stores,
"Panther" saloons, and "Panther" meat-
markets appeared. Later in a Dallas
parade these caged firehall panthers,
escorted by Paddock and other leading
Fort Worth citizens, were dragged
through the streets. So attractive did
this story become that many tourists
came to see the "Panther City," some
even remaining there to live.
Paddock's efforts to increase Fort
Worth's population did not stop there.
Whenever a newcomer or visitor came
to the city, the editor took him whirling
over the prairie behind a team of fast
horses, pointing out where various
future buildings and railroads were tobe built and what chances a man might
have if he settled there. Thus he proved
to be Fort Worth's first great promoter.
Once, when Paddock learned that an
excursion train from the East was to
visit Texas, he bundled up several copies
of the Democrat which praised Fort
Worth and boarded the train at Texar-
kana. He distributed the papers to all
the passengers. So friendly and amiable
did the group find Paddock that by the
time the locomotive pulled into the Dal-
las station, the men had decided not
to remain overnight in that city, but
to accompany Paddock to Fort Worth.
When the hour for the Dallas reception
came, no visitors appeared. Mayor Ca-
bell of Dallas remarked that he had
heard of various thefts but never of
a stolen excursion. Many of the mem-
bers of this excursion party later settled
in Fort Worth.
So strong was Paddock's belief that
railroads would come to Fort Worth
that when the nearest railroad was
twenty miles away in 1873, he drew
a map picturing a wheel with nine
railroads as spokes and Fort Worth as
the hub. This map he tacked to a post
in front of the courthouse and pub-
lished in every issue of his paper there-
after. Recalls one pioneer: "Captain
Paddock's railroad map was our one
moving picture show, and that rolled
out with every issue of the Democrat."
In later years Paddock assisted in
securing the construction of each of
the lines shown on the map, all of which
had been completed by 1885.
Meanwhile the editor had been busy
building a home on the broad prairies
southwest of the city so that his wife
and children might come to Fort Worth
to be with him. Because he knew that
Emily's love for growing things might
be stifled by the barrenness of the
prairie town, he lovingly transplanted
sapling trees and shrubs from the banks
of the Trinity to the lawn of the
newly-built house. He wrote Emily
about Texas life-of the picnics on the
shady banks of the Trinity, of the
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Texas State Historical Association. The Junior Historian, Volume 11, Number 6, May 1951, periodical, May 1951; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth391577/m1/5/?q=%22mex-tex%22: accessed July 3, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.