The Two RV Gypsies: Full-Time RVers
entered Eastland, Texas
September 12, 2022

Eastland is a city and county seat in Eastland County, Texas, located 96 miles west-southwest of Fort Worth and 55 miles east of Abilene. The city is accessed by Interstate 20 between exits.

Note: Unlike many cities and towns that the two RV Gypsies have visited, there was plenty of FREE parking in Eastland, Texas. It is an older town. The grocery store was not tabled as a grocery nor food store, so Lee Duquette drove by it a few times before realizing what it was. Lots of stores were permanently closed on this date.

History: During the 1920s, Eastland, like nearby Cisco, Ranger, and Desdemona, was a petroleum boomtown.

The recession of 1921 exacerbated racial tensions between Anglos and Mexicans. Naturally, unemployment increased in town and Whites attempted to oust Mexicans who were hired during the WWI boom. Masked men ravaged shacks used by Mexicans as living quarters. Whites threatened Mexicans' lives, and fearful, they fled to nearby Fort Worth to seek help from the Mexican Consulate, since local authorities took the side of the Anglo locals.

In 1928, the current courthouse was erected, the prior cornerstone was opened, and "Old Rip" was allegedly found alive. The animal, a kind of lizard, received national publicity. It died in 1929 of pneumonia, and was placed in a glass-front casket on view in the present courthouse. Now, Eastland is known for the legend of "Old Rip", a horned toad that allegedly lived many years sealed in the cornerstone of the previous Eastland courthouse built in 1897.

(see the link at the bottom of this page for the Two RV Gypsies photos of Old Rip)

Below: Karen Duquette is "The Angelic Hip Chick" in Eastland, Texas

Then the two RV Gypsies entered the Eastland post office because they were told that the decor was a "must-see" because of a famous quilt. But the quilt was behind glass and hard to photograph because of a glare on the window from the indoor lighting.

Below: The "Buffalo Hunt" Mural depicts Indian braves, hunting and killing buffalo on a typically rugged terrain. The Department of Fine Arts, of the U.S. Treasury Department, commissioned Suzanne Scheuer. of San Francisco, California, to design and paint the mural. The artist painted the scene on heavy canvas and brought it to Texas. It was then installed under the artist's direction on December 7, 1938. The earth tone colors have stayed clear and vivid through many years of daily use of the post office building.

Below: A giant U.S. Postage 8-cent Stamp photo on the wall in the post office.

Continue on to Old Rip, The Eastland Civic Center and The Eastland Circle Star Park

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