Collections
Tales 'n' Trails is anxiously anticipating the completion of the "Native American Hall", designed by Dallas based Museum Arts. It will tell the story of the Wichitas, the Native Americans local to the Spanish Fort area, about 15 miles north of here. Estimated completion sometime in May!
Work is also being done outside the museum, in our Oil and Gas exhibit. New items have been moved in and preservation on Cannon Family Pump House has been started. Anyone interested in helping with these projects, give us a call!
As part of his personal "From Hau to Now" Native American exhibit, museum volunteer storyteller Larry Veale entertained Troop 108 Tiger Cub Scouts with Indian stories Tuesday evening. Larry's exhibit will be on display until the middle of January. Please call the museum if you have a group that would like to see his exhibit and hear a few of his stories.
The Tales
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N' Trails Museum focuses on five categories:
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- Oil and Gas Production - Traveling in and around Montague County will give you an idea of how important the oil and gas industry is here. The North Nocona Oil Field, located about 10 miles north of Nocona, started producing oil in 1922. This 12,295-acre field still produces today. Tales 'n' Trails will feature inside as well as outside exhibits dedicated to this important industry.
Dell Motley's Last Supper
- Leather Goods - Since the beginning of the Texas Frontier, leather products have been a booming industry in Nocona. Cowboys needed boots, saddles, whips and other gear of their trade. H. J. Justin started making boots on the Red River in Spanish Fort in 1879. When the railroad moved to Nocona, so did he, doing business as H.J. Justin and Sons. After his death, his sons moved to Fort Worth and started Justin Boot Company. The Nocona Boot Company was founded by Miss Enid Justin in 1925. Here they produced boots that became a Texas Legend.
Not just boots and saddles but the Nocona Athletics Goods produced baseball gloves, footballs and other leather sports equipment also making Nocona famous. Dell Motley's hand-tooled leather creations are inspirational as far as her talent, dedication, and faith that it took to create these magnificent pieces of art. - Agriculture - Montague County has been noted for its prairie grass in which Buffalo roamed and grazed as well as the stock of early settlers and Natives. Cotton was king until the boll weavil took its toll, then wheat became the major cash crop. Grapes were an important industry in the past that are now making a comeback. Past farms produced watermelon, peanut, and peach crops that have been shipped nation-wide. Outside of cattle the area is known for its past chicken industry and today the county is well known for its horse ranches and game preserves.
- Western Heritage - North Montague County saw millions of Texas Longhorns on their way to Kansas markest on the famous Chisholm Trail. Drovers pushed steers through such towns as Saint Jo, Ringgold, Spanish Fort, and Nocona on to Red River Station, known as the North Star of the Chisholm Trail. Nocona's annual Chisholm Trail Rodeo celebrates its 60th Anniversary in June 2012. Three Montague County ladies are members of the National Cowgirl Hall of fame: Miss Enid Justin (Nocona Boot Company Founder), Donna Howell-Sickles (cowgirl artist from Saint Jo, Texas), and Ruth Roach Salmon (bronc rider and trick roper for Buffalo Bill Wild West Show and 101 Wild West Show).
- Native Americans - The Toavayas Indians made the area around Spanish Fort their home as early as 1757, trading with the French. Here they defended their village, driving away a Spanish effort to run off the French. Later the Kiowa, Wichita, Caddo, Pawnee, and Comanche all utilized the area as hunting grounds. It is believed that as many as 10,000 Native Americans populated that area at one time.