Western Railroad Discussion > Kilgore, Tex - then and now

Kilgore is on the MOP (Int'l & Great Northern), now UP runs trains one way eastbound,
with westbounds on the somewhat parallel Cotton Belt through Tyler, roughly 20 to the west of this line through Kilgore.

Kilgore & Tyler were oil boom towns in the 20's/.30's/40's, with abundent jobs during the Great Depression.  Oil and gas
are still extracted in the East Texas oil fields, but there are now numerous bigger producers in other places.

Both towns sported competing junior colleges, with Kilgore Jr.College. having their Rangerettes and Tyler Jr.College's Apache Belles (my wife was a Belle).

Kilgore is still a gritty blue collar town with a neat Oil Museum, while Tyler has become more gentrified and promotes its Rose Garden and Azalea Trail.

 

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I seem to remember Kilgore being mentioned in an old folk song from the 1930s by Jimmie Rodgers, the "singing brakeman"
Bill Pyper
Salem, Oregon
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/17/19 14:38 by wjpyper.

WrongWayMurphy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Kilgore is on the MOP (Int'l & Great Northern),
> now UP runs trains one way eastbound,
> with westbounds on the somewhat parallel Cotton
> Belt through Tyler, roughly 20 to the west of this
> line through Kilgore.
>
> Kilgore & Tyler were oil boom towns in the
> 20's/.30's/40's, with abundent jobs during the
> Great Depression.  Oil and gas
> are still extracted in the East Texas oil fields,
> but there are now numerous bigger producers in
> other places.
>
> Both towns sported competing junior colleges, with
> Kilgore Jr.College. having their Rangerettes and
> Tyler Jr.College's Apache Belles (my wife was a
> Belle).
>
> Kilgore is still a gritty blue collar town with a
> neat Oil Museum, while Tyler has become more
> gentrified and promotes its Rose Garden and Azalea
> Trail.
>
>  
Thanks for posting with the bit of history.

Mark ( Gladewater 1946-1957), now Austin

Think I'll scratch Kilgore, TX off my bucket list.

Kent in CArmel Valley

Also home of the Rangerettes!

BB