imogenesimmons

This is a little view of our new town.

from SMU Libraries Digital Collections

• Pixel Wrangler said:

  My curiousity was aroused when I read the inscription. So... ;)

  CHRISTINE, TEXAS. "Christine is on Farm Road 140 ten miles south of Jourdanton in south central Atascosa County. It was founded in October 1909 as one of two towns promoted by developer C. F. Simmons and named after his daughters, Christine and Imogene. The community of Imogene never went beyond the planning stages, but by 1910 Christine had a post office, two hotels, a cafe, and a department store. Simmons also built the Artesian Belt Railroad to Christine from McDonna. A three-teacher school and Methodist and Baptist churches were added in 1911. By 1913 the school had 141 students. "Water problems plagued the town, but in 1916 a reservoir and water tower temporarily solved the problem. Lettuce, honey, and cattle became the main cash crops. Three cattle breeders and retail outlets for feed, lumber, and groceries served an estimated population of 600 in 1914. Christine became a stock-shipping point. The population of the town declined to 259 by 1925, however. In 1931 the number of residents had increased to 524, where it remained for a decade; during this time the number of recorded business varied from nine to fifteen. In 1936 the Christine school had seven teachers and 175 students. "Christine's population declined to slightly less than 300 during the 1940s and remained under 300 until 1982. The town had nine businesses in 1945 but only two in the late 1960s. The high school closed in 1948, and the school district was officially annexed to Jourdanton in 1954. During the 1950s a new water well was dug in Christine. In the early 1980s the Atascosa Mining Company and the San Miguel Power Plant were located there. In 1988 the population was 381, and one retail business was listed. The population was 436 in 2000 with seven businesses listed."

  – Handbook of Texas Online, Linda Peterson, "Christine, TX," accessed July 18, 2017, www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hlc31.

• Pixel Wrangler said:

  And then there's this ... (emphasis added)

  “In 1906 Dr. Simmons purchased several ranches in Atascosa and McMullen County which totaled 95,000 acres from Daniel and heirs of Anton Oppenheimer and founded two town sites – New Artesia and New Pleasanton (Atascosa County Deed Record Vol. 28, pg 115, and Vol. 29, page 158-168), (Atascosa History Committee, “The New Handbook of Texas,” Vol. 5. 1051).
  
  "Early in 1910 a meeting was held for the purpose of electing temporary officers. ...
  
  "When these founding fathers went to Austin to have New Artesia incorporated they were informed that there was already a town named New Artesia in West Texas. In Christine, the men of the town could not decide on a name and therefore, gave the task of re-naming it to the women of New Artesia (Interview with Mrs. Bettie Seiffert, October 1, 2005). After much deliberation, they finally decided to name their town after the first girl born in their community, Christine Andrews. She was the daughter of James and Rieta Andrews. James was the Marshall of the town. 'It was said Dr. Simmons named Christine after his daughter; it was not. He didn’t even have a daughter named Christine' (Interview with Mrs. Bettie Seiffert, October 1, 2005)."

  – From "Histories of Small Towns in South Texas"