Founded by Houston & Great Northern Railroad investors as the line was built through a grant of Cyrus Lovelady, the town developed near the communities of Nevil's Prairie, Pennington, and Weldon. Its post office opened on Nov. 8, 1872. It soon had livery stables, stores, a blacksmith shop, and hotels, prospering as a market and shipping point. By 1876 a day school and Sunday school were held in a log house. From 1881 to 1888, Baptists and Lovelady Lodge No. 539, A.F. & A.M., shared a two-story structure. Churches of other faiths were built later. Incorporated in 1927, the town is now a center for ranching and pulpwood production.