Belcherville - Texas Ghost Town

BELCHERVILLE

NAME: Belcherville
COUNTY: Montague
ROADS: 2WD
GRID: 1
CLIMATE: Warm winter, hot summer
BEST TIME TO VISIT:Winter, spring, fall

COMMENTS: On SR 82. An interesting reason for existence.
REMAINS: A few hangers-on.

When one thinks of ghost towns, one usually envisions a mining camp associated with the production of some sort of ore or a mill for the refining of ore or some other mining activity. Such is not the case with Belcherville. Land promotion was the agent that brought the town into existence. Two Belchers, John and Alex, were the promoters. Their scheme was to sub-divide a parcel of land one mile square into acreage and sell it to farmers at an average price of $10 per acre. This was in 1886. As part of the plan, the townsite was to be the residential area of the planned development and lots sold from $25 to $150. At one time, the population reached about 2000 residents. A post office was established in 1887 and lasted until 1954 when the town was nearly deserted. In 1893, fires destroyed most of the town and Belcherville never recovered. Most of the buildings destroyed by fire were never rebuilt. According to official census records, the town had only 51 residents in 1950, the last year the town was counted as a municipality. Belcherville is on highway 82 between Ringold and Nocona. SUBMITTED BY: Henry Chenoweth

When one thinks of ghost towns, one usually envisions a mining camp associated with the production of some sort of ore or a mill for the refining of ore or some other mining activity. Such is not the case with Belcherville. Land promotion was the agent that brought the town into existence. Two Belchers, John and Alex, were the promoters. Their scheme was to sub-divide a parcel of land one mile square into acreage and sell it to farmers at an average price of $10 per acre. This was in 1886. As part of the plan, the townsite was to be the residential area of the planned development and lots sold from $25 to $150. At one time, the population reached about 2000 residents. A post office was established in 1887 and lasted until 1954 when the town was nearly deserted. In 1893, fires destroyed most of the town and Belcherville never recovered. Most of the buildings destroyed by fire were never rebuilt. According to official census records, the town had only 51 residents in 1950, the last year the town was counted as a municipality. Belcherville is on highway 82 between Ringold and Nocona. SUBMITTED BY: Henry Chenoweth

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