Mercury is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in McCulloch County,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. According to the

Handbook of Texas The ''Handbook of Texas'' is a comprehensive encyclopedia of Texas geography, history, and historical persons published by the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). History The original ''Handbook'' was the brainchild of TSHA President Wal ...

, the community had an estimated population of 166 in 2000. It is situated along FM 502 in northeastern McCulloch County, approximately 22 miles northeast of

Brady Brady may refer to: People * Brady (surname) * Brady (given name) * Brady (nickname) * Brady Boone, a ring name of American professional wrestler Dean Peters (1958–1998) Places in the United States * Brady, Montana, a census-designated plac ...

. It is the community closest to the geometric center of Texas. The community was founded in 1904, shortly after the arrival of the

Fort Worth and Rio Grande Railroad A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

. Mercury became a livestock shipping point and by 1914, had an estimated population of 550. Two major fires in 1919 and 1929 severely impacted the community. In 1938, the struggling community was bypassed by the

- Brownwood highway. Mercury continued to decline and the population fell from 489 in 1933 to 360 in 1949. By 2000, the number of inhabitants stood at 166. Currently there is only one original building standing in the Town of Mercury. It is the Bank Of Mercury building that was built by Thomas Jefferson Beasley in 1903 as a bank and mercantile store. Through the years the building has exchanged hands several times, however in 2012 the Grandson of the original owner, Thomas Lee Beasley purchased the building and is currently trying to preserve the remainder of the building. The only thing that remains of the building are the four outer walls and the vault that Thomas Jefferson Beasley built. It is rumored that the vault has a dome that is filled with sand. Thomas Jefferson's theory was that if someone were to blow the safe, the top would collapse and cover everything in sand. By the time the would-be thieves got to anything everyone in town would be there to see what was going on. Public education in the community of Mercury is provided by the

Rochelle Independent School District Rochelle Independent School District is a public school district based in the community of Rochelle, Texas (USA). The district has one school, Rochelle School that serves students in grades kindergarten through twelve. Academic achievement In ...

References

External links

* * Unincorporated communities in McCulloch County, Texas Unincorporated communities in Texas {{McCullochCountyTX-geo-stub