Huckabay is a

census designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) in

Erath County Erath County () is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Texas. According to the United States Census bureau its population was 42,545 in 2020. The county seat is Stephenville, Texas, Stephenville. The county is named fo ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, United States, at the intersection of

Texas State Highway 108 State Highway 108 (SH 108) is a state highway that runs from Strawn to Stephenville. Route description SH 108 begins at an intersection with SH 16 in downtown Strawn, and travels east out of town on Housley Street. The highway turns south i ...

and

Farm to Market Road 219 A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

, northwest of Stephenville. It had a population of approximately 150 in 2000.

History

The small town of Huckabay was founded in the late eighteen hundreds. Gerldine Griswold wrote of how the community was started by John A. Huckabay, Ben Fincher, John and W.C. Copeland, John Gentry, Abe Metsgar, John W. Jones and others who were moving west from

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

and

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

. The head of the Bosque was the area where they settled which was known as "Flatwoods," but was changed to Huckabay, when John Huckabay established a post office. One hundred and sixty acres was claimed by each of the families, which was where they built their homes. After the settlers had wells dug and their homes built, churches, schools and other public buildings began to go up. Ryan Patrick Huckabay is the current mayor of Huckabay.

Historic businesses of Huckabay

The families who started settling the land now known as Huckabay worked hard to build buildings and dig wells. A smoke house and a

storm cellar A storm shelter or storm cellar is a type of underground bunker designed to protect the occupants from severe weather, particularly tornadoes. They are most frequently seen in the Midwest (" Tornado Alley") and Southeastern (" Dixie Alley") ...

were the first two buildings to be constructed. The smoke house was where the citizens put fresh meat to begin curing, while the storm cellar was a place of storage for fresh fruits and vegetables and protection for families. In the late 1870s, the community began to expand. With the purchase of a

gin Gin () is a distilled alcoholic drink flavoured with juniper berries and other botanical ingredients. Gin originated as a medicinal liquor made by monks and alchemists across Europe. The modern gin was modified in Flanders and the Netherlands ...

by Bill Rigsby in 1879, cotton was what supported the town until the peanut production took over for a short period of time. When peanut production decreased, the dairy industry took over. The milk production in this area still remains important to the community. The first store was opened by G.W. Glenn in 1878. The main economic base for Huckabay has changed many times. Over time, the community grew to the point, it had general merchants,

drug stores Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it links healt ...

grocery stores A grocery store ( AE), grocery shop or grocer's shop ( BE) or simply grocery is a retail store that primarily retails a general range of food products, which may be fresh or packaged. In everyday US usage, however, "grocery store" is a synonym f ...

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

shops, and a well-equipped

. These businesses were located along the main street of Huckabay. The town did establish the West Texas State Bank at one time but it did not survive. Over time, the community has disintegrated to only a school, two churches and a few antique houses. In 1975, a

historical marker A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, bearing text or an image in relief, or both, ...

was placed on FM 219 to preserve the memory of the small community.

Past congregations of Huckabay

Huckabay, being a small community, did not have many churches. The Church of Christ was an early church that was built in 1876. The community also had two other churches, the Baptist Church and the Methodist Church, both which were organized in 1881. John Haven organized the Methodist while Joe Lockhart the Baptist. Three acres, only costing one hundred dollars, was purchased in 1910 in order to build a

tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instru ...

. The tabernacle was used for various community and religious activities. Although it is over ninety years old, it still stands today. The antique structure is used for annual Huckabay Homecoming Reunions and many other school and community affairs. Today, Huckabay still has two community churches that hold services regularly. The Huckabay Baptist Church is located a few hundred yards down from the tabernacle, and The Huckabay Church of Christ is located up the hill from the tabernacle a few hundred yards.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by relatively high temperatures and evenly distributed precipitation throughout the year. The Köppen Climate System describes the weather as

humid subtropical A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between la ...

, and uses the abbreviation ''Cfa''.

Demographics

Huckabay first appeared as a

in the 2020 U.S. Census.

2020 Census

Education

The

Huckabay Independent School District The Huckabay Independent School District is a public school district based in the community of Huckabay, Texas, Huckabay, Texas (United States). The district has one school, Huckabay School, that serves students in grades kindergarten through ...

serves area students and home to the Huckabay High School Indians.

Photo gallery

Image:Huckabay Texas.JPG, Huckabay, Texas Image:Huckabay_Cemetery.jpg, Huckabay Cemetery Image:Huckabay Baptist Church.JPG, Huckabay Baptist Church

References

External links

Huckabay, Texas
from the Handbook of Texas Online * * History of Huckabay, Texa

{{authority control Census-designated places in Texas Census-designated places in Erath County, Texas