An early dawn start from Santa Rosa got us back on the road east and south towards Bonham TX. Topography has changed to open prairie dotted with wind turbines, cattle and other livestock:Saturday driving easy compared to the congestion of the previous week We quickly crossed the border into Texas and began dropping south towards our final destination.
Bonham is a small town about an hour north of Dallas located in an area of many small lakes, open rolling fields and vistas that go on for ever. After picking up supplies in town we headed out to my home for the next while, a little cabin is located about 10 mins outside of town on 40 acres of farm land.
One of Texas’s oldest cities, Bonham dates to 1837, when the first settlers arrived: steadily growing until its incorporation in 1848. The name Bonham is in honour of a James Butler Bonham one of the defenders of the Alamo. Bonhams story is an interesting one. In a nutshell he was in the wrong place at the wrong time: a messenger sent to the Alamo to tell the defenders that help was on the way. He died at age 29 during the final battle, apparently manning a canon in the Alamo Chapel.
The connection of the railways to the city caused it to boom as it made its way into the 20th century. The historic downtown area is looking a little tired: an old abandoned Woolworth building holding court over a number of shuttered store fronts and dilapidated houses.
As the outskirts of Dallas creep closer and more people begin using Bonham as a bedroom community, hopefully a result will be the upgrading of the old downtown.
Bonham City Hall And one of the older craftsman homes.
Photos above are of (from left to right) the Scarborough Home built in 1897 for A. B. Scarborough, president of First National Bank. The Wise Funeral Home business moved into the home in 1935. A vintage black hearse.
From left to right – a Bonham restaurant, the best donut shop in town.
There is an active artists community in Bonham: the metal art, glass blowing and some pottery were evident at the monthly trade show in town this weekend. I visited an amazing metal shop, which also has a nursery and a thriving firewood business in the back. The owner very kindly let me take photos and filled me in on the history of the enterprise. The last photo got me laughing – it is 89.95 USD if anyone back home wants it for their front door ????
