The History of Canadian, Texas.
In Canadian and Hemphill County, we take pride in actively preserving and telling the stories of our rich history and heritage. From pre-historic cave and cliff type dwellings in the blue hills North of Canadian, generations of nomadic Kiowa, Comanche, Cherokee and Apache tribes followed the Buffalo and made their winter homes on the Washita. By the mid 1800’s, Buffalo Hunters and early adventurers from forts and settlements ventured North and West and began exploring present day Hemphill County.
From the historical and culture changing Red River War of 1874-1875, the wild and wooly open range period erupted and the rough and rich land between the Canadian and Washita rivers provided welcome and shelter to all. Hemphill County hosted the Buffalo Soldiers, mysterious outlaw types, cattle drives and those following the Military or Gold Rush trails. For years, Canadian boasted more saloons than churches, more cowboys and adventurers than families. That all changed with the introduction of the railroad and barb wire, along with the ladies of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. Canadian gradually evolved into a noteworthy home of ranchers and entrepreneurs; a place where cattle breeds were developed, and cattle and land deals were made. In 1888, the world’s first public rodeo was held, along with the first selling of city lots and blocks, as part of Canadian’s first official Three Day Fourth of July Celebration.
Over 130 years later, Canadian is still the home of ranchers, dreamers and entrepreneurs. It’s also one of the last places on earth where you can visit historic working family ranches and expect to see real cowboys pull up in their pickups, with horses in the trailer, wherever you stop for dinner.
You can read all about this exciting history on the website of the River Valley Pioneer Museum, or better yet, come spend some time with us and see it for yourself.