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Clifton, Texas
Located in the
Prairies and Lakes
region, the town of Clifton, Texas is in
Bosque
county.
Clifton Texas' Best Kept Secret It was in the year 1721 that members of a Spanish expedition camped on the Brazos River near its confluence with a major tributary, named the tributary Bosque meaning woodsy because of the dense woods around the junction of the two streams.
Years later, in 1839, Captain George B. Erath led a small detachment of Texas Rangers to the headwaters of the Bosque River scouting for Indians signs. The Rangers were so impressed with the beauty of the land that they persuaded their captain to survey the first land grants in the Bosque Valley, between present-day Clifton and Valley Mills.
Then, by the late 1940s and early 1850s, the American frontier line had reached the vacant lands along the Brazos and Bosque Rivers. Aspirations of civilization was being pushed forward, and men such as Cleng Peerson, the Norwegian Father of Immigration to the United States, led families to the region where cities and farms became abundant.
By the winter of 1853-54, the number of settlers had grown to sufficient numbers to warrant a political organization. Bosque County, taking its name from the river, was created from McLennan County on Feb. 4, 1854. Meridian was designated the County Seat and the first county election was held on Aug. 7,1854.
Cities like Clifton...whose residents were innovative and progressive...became important commercial and cultural centers. The railroad played a major role in the early days of Clifton, as did the Norwegian and German influences that characterized the area's personality.
Clifton today is widely known as the Norwegian Capital of Texas. Nearby Norse is where Cleng Peerson is buried. The Bosque Memorial Museum carries much of the Norwegian cultural history, plus there are tours that rekindle the spirit of adventure that early Norwegians felt when they first fell in love with Bosque County. In 1982, the King of Norway visited Clifton and Cleng Peerson's gravesite, and was moved by the richness of heritage that pervades the region.
There is much to see and experience in beautiful Bosque County, which, according to people who are lucky enough to move there, is Texas' best kept secret.
Credits:
Old Postcards courtesy www.txgenweb.org/postcards
Courthouse Photos courtesy www.barnfield.net
State Park and Historic Site Photos courtesy State of Texas.
Misc. City Photos courtesy local tourism offices.
Misc. Photos courtesy All Across Texas.
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