Timeline of Historical Events in Clifton, Texas
Date |
Historical Event |
22 Jul 1859 | First post office is established. |
1860 | First school "The Clifton Academy", a small log structure on Clear Branch, is established |
1861 | Oldest church denomination in continuous service organized (First Presbyterian Church) |
Aug 1870 | Old Rock School east of the Bosque River opens for classes. |
1880 | Santa Fe Railway Depot constructed. |
1881 | Gulf, Colorado, and Santa Fe Railroad completed through Clifton. First business moves to "new town". |
Spring 1882 | Mass migration of merchants begins from "old town" on the east side of the Bosque River to "new town" near the railroad depot. |
1885 | First church building is completed (First Baptist Church) |
1889 | P. E. Schow and Brothers (later Clifton Mercantile) opens as a mercantile establishment. |
25 Apr 1891 | Clifton first votes to incorporate (29-6) but the election is contested and ruled invalid. |
1893 | New school, a two-story frame structure, is built across the river at the location of the current Elementary School. |
1895 | First issue of The Clifton Record is published. |
1895 | First bank is established by J. W. Butler and J. T. Addickes on West 3rd Street. |
06 May 1896 | Clifton Lutheran College (later Clifton Junior College and then Clifton College) is organized. |
28 Oct 1897 | First building at Clifton College opens as a high school |
12 Jun 1901 | Clifton again votes to incorporate and again the election is contested |
09 Jun 1902 | Court of Appeals declares the incorporation election of 1901 to be official |
1904 | First National Bank is established (became First Security State Bank in 1911, First National Bank again in 1925, and dissolved when merged with Farmer's State Bank in 1930). |
23 Dec 1905 | Fire in downtown Clifton destroys an entire block and a large part of the business district |
14 Jul 1906 | Clifton State Bank is established (became Farmer's Guaranty State Bank in 1911, Farmer's State Bank in 1925, Clifton Bank in 1973, InterFirst Bank in 1982). |
1915 | Frame school building is razed and a new 3-story brick building is constructed on the same site |
1920 | Jacob Olson wills his collection of historic artifacts to Clifton College with the stipulation that it never leave Bosque County. This collection will eventually become the Bosque Memorial Museum. |
1921 | Clifton National Bank is established but closes three years later. |
1923 | Clifton College Administration Building constructed. |
1924 | Clifton College accreditted as a two-year college. |
24 Oct 1924 | The second City Hall along West 5th Street is dedicated. |
1928 | Mermaid Swimming Pool constructed and opened to the public |
1938 | High school at Clifton College is discontinued. |
Sep 1939 | First hospital at North Avenue E and West 5th Street is established. |
01 Sep 1946 | Citywide mail delivery begins. |
Early 1950's | Last railroad passenger service ends. |
1954 | Clifton College is closed when it merges with Texas Lutheran College at Seguin. |
1954 | Clifton Lutheran Sunset Home is established. |
1957 | Bosque Memorial Museum is organized. |
01 Sep 1964 | Black children admitted for the first time to 1st, 2nd, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grades as the Clifton schools begin integration. |
01 Sep 1965 | Black children admitted for the first time to 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th grades and the Clifton schools become fully integrated. |
July 1966 | First planes are able to land at new airport. |
10 Sep 1972 | New Goodall-Witcher Hospital at South Avenue T and Highway 219 is dedicated. |
1973 | New high school is completed north of town. |
1974 | The third and current City Hall is completed. |
Earlys 1980's | Daily commercial bus service by Central Texas Bus Lines ends. |
1980 | Mermaid Swimming Pool permanently closes. |
07 Sep 1981 | Clifton College Administration Building is rededicated as the Carl E. Olsen Fine Arts Building of the Bosque County Conservatory of Fine Arts. |
Oct 1983 | The Santa Fe Railway Depot closes. |
14 June 1984 | Clifton National Bank, the second bank to have that name, is established |