Umbarger got its start in the mid 1890s when rancher S. G. Umbarger leased land here from the railroad (the Houston and Great Northern). He liked it so much he bought it two years later and opened several business to cater to freshly arrived settlers. The Panhandle and Santa Fe Railway established a switch near Umbarger’s ranch in 1898. Umbarger (the man) sold out and moved away to Canyon, Texas, but since that was a mere 10 miles away, his name remained solidly in place. In 1902 a small group of German Catholics transmigrated from Fayette County, adding much-needed growth. A general store/ post office opened and a school district was established in 1904. Between 1902 and 1910 Father Joseph Reisdorff, a Catholic missionary, worked hard to attract other German Catholic settlers. The population was bolstered somewhat by Swiss immigrants who settled here from 1911 through the 1920s but the town remained under-populated. From 18 residents in 1920, and only 80 by 1930, it reached 150 on the eve of WWII.
Posted on: Sun, 10 Nov 2013 23:40:35 +0000
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