Written by Mermaid on 20 Oct, 2000
Salado, which means ‘salty’, is an old Tawakoni Indian settlement, although Paleo-Indian tribes were there even earlier. Bustillo y Ceballos probably stopped here, too. Originally called Salado Springs, it was settled in 1851 by Archibald Willingham and became a well-known stage stop on the Chisholm…Read More
Salado, which means ‘salty’, is an old Tawakoni Indian settlement, although Paleo-Indian tribes were there even earlier. Bustillo y Ceballos probably stopped here, too. Originally called Salado Springs, it was settled in 1851 by Archibald Willingham and became a well-known stage stop on the Chisholm Trail. A stone wall was erected around the springs to keep the cattle out, since the springs supplied water for the town. Today it is a large, wide swimming hole behind a dam located downtown. One hundred years ago, the springs gushed so strongly that they produced a five-foot fountain. Between 1851 and 1868, eleven mills were built in Salado around the springs. Close
Written by Jeffrey on 11 Jul, 2001
Since Salado has a rich long history that provides much of the charm of a visit, its history is part of its story. Salado has been a popular stopping place for travelers since the 1800's, originally as a stagecoach stop. Salado grew around Salado (salty)…Read More
Since Salado has a rich long history that provides much of the charm of a visit, its history is part of its story.
Salado has been a popular stopping place for travelers since the 1800's, originally as a stagecoach stop. Salado grew around Salado (salty) creek that attracted early visitors (Salado Creek meanders through town), and by the mid-1800's, the Chisholm Trail and stagecoach lines went through Salado. The Chisholm Trail was a 1,200 mile cattle trail north to Kansas City through Oklahoma, built after the Civil War, and used to move over a million head of cattle in its ten years of use. Cattle drives found a comfortable resting place on Salado Creek.
Salado was established and grew around Sterling Robertson's plantation. Robertson donated land for a college in 1859 to help establish a town, and the town (incorporated in 1867) grew after the founding of Salado College in 1860, and its position on the Chisholm Trail. As the number of Texas colleges grew, Salado College closed and was used as a private school, which later burned, and was abandoned in 1924. Without the college, and as railroads replaced stagecoaches (and bypassed Salado), the town became a small isolated village.
Today, the remains of the college can still be seen, and the site is marked with a bronze statue of Robertson, and historical cornerstone. There are about eighteen historical buildings in Salado, and Salado is enjoying a renewal, as more and more people passing by on I-35 are discovering how pleasant it is to spend time in Salado, its nice slow pace, and many other charms.