Books about Borden County, one of the loneliest counties in Texas.  It's a place where the nearest gas station, grocery store or cafe is 30 miles away in Post, Lamesa or Snyder. A place where even the courthouse closes early on days when football games are out of town.

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Fountain Goodlet Oxsheer—like "Slaughter" or "Goodnight"—was an unusual and appealing name for one of Texas' most dynamic cattle ranchers. Once the baron of an intricate network of ranches that stretched from Oklahoma and the Texas Staked Plains down to northern Mexico, Oxsheer prospered, endured, and sought to run his empire and live by his own code of ethics. He was one of the owners of the Jumbo Ranch in Borden County Texas with the Beals before setting off to build his ranching empire . . . Read more

"A notorious Oklahoma outlaw, William Tuttle Cook was captured by Borden County Texas Sheriff Thomas D. Love on January 11, 1895, near Fort Sumner, New Mexico. Cook had taken refuge in West Texas and was spotted by a rancher, who notified Sgt. W. J. L. Sullivan at Amarillo, and the hunt was on . . ." Read more Look inside

Clinton Dermott "Casey" Vincent was born in Gail Texas November 29, 1914.

The distinctive high mesa straddling West Texas and Eastern New Mexico creates a vista that is equal parts sprawling lore and big blue sky. From Lubbock, the area's informal capital, to the farthest reaches of the staked plains known as the Llano Estacado, the land and its inhabitants trace a tradition of tenacity through numberless cycles of dust storms and drought. In 1887, a bison hunter

"The next day, August 4, the hunters left for Muchaque Peak and Bull Creek in Borden County, where they had a cache of supplies. The surveyors  . . ." Read more Look inside

 by Helen J. Bradberry

The book begins before my birth in 1942, during World War II on my Dad's farm in Borden County Texas. We moved many times during the first eighteen years of my life. My family and I went through many hardships during those years. Found inside: "We move back home to Borden County to Dad's 160 acres farm. Uncle Otto had built three rooms on the two room house. We now had a five room house with no electricity and no running water. Water had to be carried into the house from the windmill ... " Read more

Found inside: "I greatly admired the man who owned the Dean Ranch only a few miles from Borden County, out where the plains dropped off into the rugged country of the Texas Caprock region. He ran cattle, of course, but his raw land was thick with oil and . . . Read more Look inside

The thirty-three Depression-era interviews presented here were culled from the WPA-Federal Writers' Project. They faithfully show how old-time Texas cowhands lived and how they felt about their glamour-less existence. "This time, we took a little different route, and, in about four weeks, we landed the herd in Borden County. That was certainly the most God-forsaken country I ever saw when we got there. No neighbors for miles and miles. You'd hardly see a stranger a month. That was how unsettled Borden County was then " ... Read more Look inside

For many years, J. Lei and her husband, Trent, lived an idyllic life on a Texas ranch in Borden County, one that had been in their family for five generations. But then Trent was diagnosed with stage four cirrhosis and died unexpectedly. In The Heart Remembers, Lei offers a personal account of how she processed and dealt with the death of her beloved spouse. This memoir follows her journey from the beginning-through the uncertain steps of the initial diagnosis to the inevitable . . . Read more Look inside

Within the pages of this book these genuine legends who rode through a golden moment in American history live on. Found inside: "Lonnie Griffith, cowboying on his stepfathers' ranch in Borden County in the 1910s, Griffith witnessed just such an omen of a gully-washer. He recalled: One day we was riding down through some pretty good-sized trees. Dad was right ahead of me 'cause the trail was kind of narrow . . . Read more

by Sue Jane Sullivan and Teddy Jones

Farm and ranch women are the heart of an important American institution, agriculture. Their strength is a critical resource for their families and communities. Found inside: "To Borden County. Teaching your children has been the great joy of my life." "In my mundane but basically peaceful world in Borden County, every now and then I walk on the track at the football field. The other day, while pacing myself in lane 7, it occurred to me that perhaps I had ... Read more Look inside

The panhandle plains were Texas's last frontier, barren lands populated by hostile Comanche and outlaws attempting to outrun civilization. It was Texas Ranger and frontier scout Jim Jackson who first saw potential in the region. They were the point riders who took the challenge of opening Kent, Garza, Crosby, Lynn, Borden, Dawson, Mitchell, Fisher, Scurry, Stonewall, and Nolan Counties to permanent settlement . . . Read more Look inside

Examines these two different fighters, and the pilots who flew them over China, with an action-packed text, rare photographs and digital artwork. Found inside: "Born in the small town of Gail, Texas, on November 29, 1914, Clinton D. Vincent was the youngest of 11 children in his family. known throughout his life the nickname "Casey," Vincent . . . " Read more Look inside

the story of Gail Borden, inventor of milk products and Texas hero. Borden County was named after Gail Borden and the county seat, Gail uses his first name.

Found inside: 'Her family were cattle people in Borden County , north of Big Spring . “I was a cowgirl and rodeoed some , ”she says . When he decided to buy the Alpine ranch , she readily agreed . “ We have a real operation , ”he declares . “You won't see ... " Read more

Resources:

West Texas History & Memories (Face Book Group)

Early Life in Texas County by County

Books about Texas People and Places

Famous People from Texas County by County