The rich history that the railroad has played in the establishment and growth of Wichita Falls is peppered with twists and turns, fate and fortune, and hard work and determination of our city’s founding fathers.

The Fort Worth and Denver City Railway Company brought the first passenger train into Wichita Falls on September 27, 1882. Crowds of townsfolk anxiously awaited the arrival of the small locomotive that pulled in a work train and passenger coach that carried about 250 passengers from Fort Worth area. At last, this prairie village astride ancient Indian and buffalo trails had its steel rails of commerce which transformed it into a bustling city on the Great Plains. Wichita Falls was the end of the line for the Fort Worth and the Denver City Railroad for the next 20 months, and thus made the village prosper like nothing else could.

But it almost didn’t happen. Nine years before, in 1873, the Fort Worth and Denver City Railroad Company was chartered with plans to build a railroad from Fort Worth to the New Mexico Territory-Texas State line where it would connect to the rail line to Denver. The panic of 1873 and the Indian wars of 1874-1875 prevented the plans from going forward. Finally, a Civil War General Greenville M. Dodge who had helped build the Union Pacific, won a contract to build the FW&DC.

Grading began on November 27 at Hodge, five miles north of Forth Worth, and the first rail was laid on February 27, 1882. The railroad was completed to Decatur, Bowie, and on to Henrietta. At that point it was discovered that the railroad survey missed Wichita Falls by seven miles. The citizens stepped in and demanded that the tracks be laid into the fledging prairie city. The father and architect of the city J. H. Barwise donated 80 acres of land and gave up financial consideration for his part of the railroad. With those concessions made, construction moved rapidly and on September 21, 1882 the tracks reached Wichita Falls.