Fort Worth History

Fort Worth began as a US army outpost on the Trinity River in 1849 and was named for General William Jenkins Worth, hero of the US-Mexican War.

In the 1860s the town became a shipping point for buffalo meat hunters on the great plains, a role which would be repeated a decade later with the cattle industry.

The city has had several nicknames but none have endured like "Cowtown," a moniker adopted in the 1870s when Fort Worth became a stop on the Chisholm Trail. Over this route beef cattle were driven from South Texas to railheads in Kansas. Fort Worth was an important stop, first as a supply station for the cowboys and their herds and later, when the railroad reached Fort Worth, the Fort Worth Stockyards became a major cattle terminus itself.

With the founding of the Fort Worth Stockyards in 1887, the town began to assume its Wild West reputation as saloons and brothels proliferated. The most infamous area of town, dubbed "Hell's Half Acre," served for a time as headquarters for Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch.

By 1904, over one million head of cattle had passed through the Stockyards, making Fort Worth the largest beef market in the Southwest.

During the 20th century, the city has expanded and diversified. Like Dallas, Fort Worth has played a major role in aviation with several training facilities and airfields being constructed during WW I and several aerospace factories opening.

Fort Worth has also played a role in the oil industry. By 1920 it was home to 27 oil refineries.

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