Pontotoc, Texas
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Pontotoc is an
unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
on Pontotoc Creek in northeastern
Mason County, Texas Mason County is a rural county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. At the 2020 census, its population was 3,953. Its county seat is Mason. The county is named for Fort Mason, which was located in the county. History ...
, United States. The community is located at the junction of State Highway 71 and Ranch to Market Road 501.


Settlement

M. Robert Kidd, proprietor of the first general store, and originally from
Pontotoc, Mississippi Pontotoc is a city in and the county seat of Pontotoc County, Mississippi, located to the west of the larger city of Tupelo. The population was 5,640 at the 2020 census. Pontotoc is a Chickasaw word that means, “Land of the Hanging Grapes. ...
, is said to have given the community and the creek their names. In 1859, Benjamin J. Willis was one of the first settlers in this community, that historically was a junction of roads leading to San Saba from
Fort Mason Fort Mason, in San Francisco, California is a former United States Army post located in the northern Marina District, alongside San Francisco Bay. Fort Mason served as an Army post for more than 100 years, initially as a coastal defense site a ...
and from Llano. A few other families arrived in the same period, establishing the community by 1878. Pontotoc included a hotel, general stores, mills, and businesses related to the horse industry. Agriculture products, mainly cotton and pecans, helped support a community economy that included wool and cattle. Pontotoc fell victim to a
typhoid Typhoid fever, also known simply as typhoid, is a disease caused by ''Salmonella enterica'' serotype Typhi bacteria, also called ''Salmonella'' Typhi. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often ther ...
epidemic in 1887 of such severity that it caused the establishment of a second cemetery to serve the community's needs. In 1890, a move was made to found a new county called Mineral County out of parts of McCulloch, Mason, San Saba, and Llano Counties, with Pontotoc as the county seat. Mason residents petitioned and were able to stop the movement. Various efforts to bring a railroad through Pontotoc also failed.


Post office

Benjamin J Willis was appointed postmaster when Pontotoc received its post office on January 5, 1880.


Pontotoc and San Fernando Academy

In 1972,
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark Recorded Texas Historic Landmark (RTHL) is a designation awarded by the Texas Historical Commission for historically and architecturally significant properties in the U.S. state of Texas. RTHL is a legal designation and the highest honor the st ...
number 11294 was designated to acknowledge the 1883 establishment of the Pontotoc and San Fernando Academy. At its peak, the school had a student body enrollment of 200 for generalized education or achievement of teaching certificates. The principals were K. T. Hamilton and W. C. Roaten. With so much of the population decimated by the typhoid epidemic, the school went under in 1889. It was sold to the Pontotoc public school system, which used the academy as a public school until 1927. The ruins of the academy collapsed into rubble during a storm in 2016. The closing of the academy affected the local economy and was a factor in the decline of the population.


20th and 21st centuries

Pontotoc had a local newspaper in 1906 and received its first telephone in 1914. A mica mining operation was begun in 1924. In 1941, Pontotoc had seven businesses. In 1947, a fire that began in the local theater swept through the town. Some of the structures were rebuilt, but the burned-out shells of the others stand today. Now, Pontotoc is a rural community with a small population. It was the birthplace of US Air Force Gen.
Ira C. Eaker General (Honorary) Ira Clarence Eaker (April 13, 1896 – August 6, 1987) was a general of the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. Eaker, as second-in-command of the prospective Eighth Air Force, was sent to England to form an ...
.


Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
, Pontotoc has a
humid subtropical climate 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 ...
, ''Cfa'' on climate maps.Climate Summary for Pontotoc, Texas
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References

{{authority control Ghost towns in Central Texas Unincorporated communities in Mason County, Texas Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks Unincorporated communities in Texas