Post is a city in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Garza County,

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. Its population was 4,790 at the 2020 census. According to 2023 census estimates, the city is estimated to have a population of 3,486. The

Triassic The Triassic ( ; sometimes symbolized 🝈) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.5 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.4 Mya. The Triassic is t ...

reptile ''

Postosuchus ''Postosuchus'', meaning "Crocodile from Post", is an extinct genus of rauisuchid reptiles comprising two species, ''P. kirkpatricki'' and ''P. alisonae'', that lived in what is now North America during the Late Triassic. ''Postosuchus'' is a ...

'' is named after the city.

History

Post is located on the edge of the

caprock Caprock or cap rock is a hard, resistant, and impermeable layer of rock that overlies and protects a reservoir of softer organic material, similar to the crust on a pie where the crust (caprock) prevents leakage of the soft filling (softer materia ...

escarpment of the

Llano Estacado The Llano Estacado (), sometimes translated into English as the Staked Plains, is a region in the Southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas. One of the largest mesas or tablelands on the North A ...

, the southeastern edge of the

Great Plains The Great Plains is a broad expanse of plain, flatland in North America. The region stretches east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. They are the western part of the Interior Plains, which include th ...

. It is at the crossroads of U.S. Routes 84 and

380 Year 380 ( CCCLXXX) was a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augustus and Augustus (or, less frequently, year 1133 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 380 for t ...

. The land had been on

John Bunyan Slaughter John Bunyan Slaughter (December 15, 1848 – November 11, 1928) was an American rancher and banker. Born to a ranching family, Slaughter ranched in Texas and New Mexico before acquiring the U Lazy S Ranch in Garza County, Texas, in 1901 and managi ...

U Lazy S Ranch The U Lazy S Ranch, formerly known as the Square and Compass Ranch, was a ranch in Garza County, Texas, United States. History The ranch was established as the Square and Compass Ranch in 1884. By 1901, when it was acquired by John Bunyan Slaug ...

. In 1906 Slaughter sold it to Charles William (C. W.) Post -->, the

breakfast cereal Breakfast cereal is a category of food, including food products, made from food processing, processed cereal, cereal grains, that are eaten as part of breakfast or as a snack food, primarily in Western societies. Although warm, cooked cereals li ...

manufacturer, who founded "Post City" as a

utopian A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia'', which describes a fictional island soci ...

colonizing venture in 1907. Post devised the community as a model town. He purchased of ranchland and established the Double U Company to manage the town's construction. The company built trim houses and numerous structures including the Algerita Hotel, a gin, and a

textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...

plant. They planted trees along every street and prohibited

alcoholic beverage Drinks containing alcohol (drug), alcohol are typically divided into three classes—beers, wines, and Distilled beverage, spirits—with alcohol content typically between 3% and 50%. Drinks with less than 0.5% are sometimes considered Non-al ...

s and

brothel A brothel, strumpet house, bordello, bawdy house, ranch, house of ill repute, house of ill fame, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in Human sexual activity, sexual activity with prostitutes. For legal or cultural reasons, establis ...

s. The Double U Company rented and sold farms and houses to settlers. A post office began in a tent during the year of Post City's founding, being established (with the name Post) July 18, 1907, with Frank L. Curtis as the first postmaster. Two years later, the town had a school, a bank, and a newspaper, the ''Post City Post'', the same name as the daily in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

. The Garza County paper today is called the ''Post Dispatch''—by coincidence, also the same as the current daily in St. Louis. The railroad reached the town in 1910. The town changed its name to "Post" when it was incorporated in 1914, the year of C. W. Post's death. By then, Post had a population of 1000, 10 retail businesses, a

dentist A dentist, also known as a dental doctor, dental physician, dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry, the branch of medicine focused on the teeth, gums, and mouth. The dentist's supporting team aids in provi ...

, a

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

, a sanitarium, and

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

, and

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

churches. From 1910 to 1913, Post experimented with attempts at rainmaking. Explosives were detonated in the atmosphere at timed intervals. Precipitation records, however, showed that the efforts failed.''Texas State Travel Guide 2011'', p. 131 The C. W. Post estate pledged $75,000, and the town raised $35,000 in 1916 to bid unsuccessfully to become the site of the proposed West Texas Agricultural and Mechanical College. Postex Cotton Mills began production in 1913 with 250 employees. When the Post interests sold the business in 1945 to Ely and

Walker Walker or The Walker may refer to: People *Walker (given name) *Walker (surname) *Walker (Brazilian footballer) (born 1982), Brazilian footballer Places In the United States *Walker, Arizona, in Yavapai County *Walker, Mono County, California * ...

Dry Goods Company of St. Louis, the plant was producing six million yards of cloth a year and employed 375 workers, who manufactured Postex cotton sheets and Garza pillow cases. Ely and Walker sold Postex in 1955 to

Burlington Industries Burlington Industries, formerly Burlington Mills, is a diversified American fabric maker based in Greensboro, North Carolina. Founded by J. Spencer Love in Burlington, North Carolina in 1923, the company is a subsidiary of Elevate Textiles and ha ...

, the world's largest textile manufacturer at that time. By 1973, the company employed 450 persons. The mill has since closed. Oilfield service companies have been important to the economy, as have farming and ranching. In 1989, Post had two libraries, a hospital, a nursing home, an airport, the ''Post Dispatch'' (founded 1926), and 90 businesses. The population reached 3,400 in 1928, declined to 2,000 in 1940, but increased to 3,100 during the 1950s. With the development of the local oil industry, the town's population attained its highest level of 4,800 in 1964. The 1980

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

showed a population of 3,864, but by 1988 the ''

Texas Almanac The Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) is an American nonprofit educational and research organization dedicated to documenting the history of Texas. It was founded in Austin, Texas, United States, on March 2, 1897. In November 2008, the ...

'' reported 4,162. In 1990, the population was 3,768. Many ranchers and civic boosters live in Garza County, among them Giles McCrary, a former mayor, who until his death in 2011 operated the OS Museum, a hybrid of exhibits from both the

American West The Western United States (also called the American West, the Western States, the Far West, the Western territories, and the West) is census regions United States Census Bureau As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the mea ...

and

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

, which are changed three times per year. Two baseball fields in Post are named for former resident

Norm Cash Norman Dalton Cash (November 10, 1933 – October 11, 1986) was an American Major League Baseball first baseman who spent almost his entire career with the Detroit Tigers. A power hitter, his 377 career home runs were the fourth most by an Americ ...

Geography

Post is located on the rolling plains at the foot of the

at (33.191789, –101.380432). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , of which, is land and is water.

Climate

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 ...

, Post has a

semiarid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...

. According to other climatic maps, it falls in a

subtropical climate The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical and climate zones immediately to the north and south of the tropics. Geographically part of the temperate zones of both hemispheres, they cover the middle latitudes from to approximately 3 ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

: ''Cfa''). Beyond the 100° meridian, it is the city most to the west in the

USA The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

with such categorization. The city feels influence from both sides, being in the

subtropics The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical and climate zones immediately to the north and south of the tropics. Geographically part of the temperate zones of both hemispheres, they cover the middle latitudes from to approximately ...

at the transition from a humid to dry environment.

Major roads and highways

U.S. Highway 84 * US 380

U.S. Highway 380 * Texas 207

State Highway 207 * Texas FM 669

Farm to Market Road 669 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 ...

Farm to Market Road 651

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 4,790 people, 1,188 households, and 787 families residing in the city. There were 1,422 housing units. The racial makeup of the city was 72.2%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 6.1%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.6% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.0%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 12.3% from some other races and 8.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 63.6% of the population.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 3,708 people, 1,243 households, and 873 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was 989 people/sq mi (382/km). The 1,419 housing units averaged 378/sq mi (146.1/km). The racial makeup of the city was 51.54% White, 5.47% African American, 0.24% Native American, 0.11% Asian, 18.69% from other races, and 2.91% from two or more races. About 42.64% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 1,243 households, 34.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.5% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.7% were not families. About 26.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.17. In the city, the age distribution was as 27.5% under 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who were 65 or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 114.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 115.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $25,034, and for a family was $29,135. Males had a median income of $26,318 versus $17,266 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $11,113. About 23.0% of families and 27.8% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 34.2% of those under age 18 and 25.9% of those age 65 or over. Post is served by two weekly newspapers, nearby (Lamesa) stations KJJT (FM) and KPET (AM), and the various Lubbock radio and TV stations. KPOS(AM) was licensed to Post, but was slated (license returned to FCC) for cancellation in 1998 when the sister FM was upgraded to cover Slaton and the Lubbock area. KSSL (FM) is licensed to Post, but operates primarily from offices and studios in Slaton.

Education

The City of Post is served by the Post Independent School District and home to the Post High School Antelopes.

Gallery

File:Post, TX, welcome sign IMG 4620.JPG, City welcome sign File:Downtown Post, TX IMG 4623.JPG, Downtown historic district File:Hotel Garza, Post, TX IMG 4613.JPG, Hotel Garza Bed and Breakfast File:Garza Theatre, Post, TX IMG 4628.JPG, Garza Theatre hosts community events File:C.W. Post statue, Post, TX IMG 4636.JPG, C.W. Post statue in front of the Garza County Courthouse File:Post, TX, City Hall IMG 4608.JPG, City Hall File:Post, TX, Public Library IMG_4609.JPG, Post Public Library File:Tower Theater in Post, TX IMG_4607.JPG, Tower Theater is adjacent to the library File:Algerita Arts Center, Post, TX IMG_4621.JPG, Algerita Arts Center is housed in a former hotel in the Post Historic District. File:J. Cruse Christmas Gallery, Post, TX IMG_4630.JPG, J. Cruse Christmas Gallery downtown; behind the gallery is the OS Museum, developed by Giles McCrary. File:Post, TX, Stampede Rodeo stadium IMG_1722.JPG, Post Stampede Rodeo stadium File:First United Methodist Church, Post, TX IMG_4637.JPG, First

United Methodist The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelical ...

Church at 216 West Tenth Street File:First Baptist Church, Post, TX IMG_4645.JPG, First

Church at 402 West Main Street observed its

centennial A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century. Notable events Notable centennial events at a national or world-level include: * Centennial Exhibition, 1876, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ...

in 2008. File:Holly's Drive-In, Post, TX IMG_4606.JPG, Holly's Drive-In on U.S. Highway 84 in south Post File:Picker at Postex Cotton Mills, Post, Texas.jpg, Picker at Postex Cotton Mills, Post, Texas (postcard, 1913–1918)

References

External links

*
Photos of the Llano Estacado
{{Authority control Cities in Garza County, Texas Cities in Texas County seats in Texas Populated places established in 1907