Big Lake, City of

The land on which the original townsite of Big Lake was located was owned in 1903 by T. H. Taylor who sold 320 acres to the Orient Land Company, which agreed to build a railroad station and lay out a town to be called Big Lake. The city took its name from a lake created by rain which gathers in a natural land depression about one and one half miles from here. Once filled by spring-fed water, it is now the largest dry lake in Texas. In pioneer days it was the only known fresh water between the Concho River and springs at Fort Stockton and was a campsite for Indians, Mexican traders and cattle drivers. Oldest house in Reagan County, the John Gardner house, is located near its banks. The town was established in 1911. Its first economic activity was a stockpen built by the Kansas City, Mexico & Orient Railroad, a hotel, and a grocery store. It grew up around the line of the railroad, and by 1915 had about fifty families. Big Lake was incorporated on May 28, 1923, and in 1925 became the seat of Reagan County. Land additions were made in 1914 and 1925. Today the city is a center for the oil and gas industry.

Big Lake, City of is a historical marker in Big Lake, Reagan County, dedicated in 1967. It is one of 12 historical markers documented in Reagan County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 16 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 31.2050, -101.4561 near Big Lake. The nearest cataloged historic site is Martin-Castillo Expedition (historical marker), about 0.7 miles away. Others within a short drive include Reagan County Courthouse, Reagan, John H, and First Bank in Big Lake, The.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5383000880. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.