Ibex

Oil drilling in the 1920s transformed Ibex from cattle ranches into a boomtown. In 1919, the Ibex Oil Co. drilled a successful well into the Caddo Lime Formation. Soon other drilling companies arrived and wooden derricks spread for miles. In 1921, Ibex sold their leases to the Landreth Co. Ed Landreth built a gasoline refinery, water-powered by a dam on Hubbard Creek. Lone Star Gas, Humble Oil, and other companies built facilities and dozens of employee homes, while other families slept in tents or open pastures. In the 1920s, the Ibex community had a school, grocery, dry goods, hotels, cafes, and a central phone office. The post office operated from 1923-53 before the population fell. Today, foundations and smokestacks remain from Ibex's industrial past.

Texas · United States