1935 Pictorial Map of the Texas Panhandle

This is a c. 1935 pictorial map of the Texas Panhandle by an unknown artist. Depicting from the Oklahoma border south to Bailey, Lamb, Hale, Floyd, Motley, and Cottle counties, counties throughout the panhandle are illustrated and labeled. Icons mark areas where wheat, cotton, and sorghum are grown, cattle are raised, and oil and gas are extracted. Vignettes illustrate ranchers and other frontier settlers, Native Americans, and sites across the Panhandle. Forty-four of these sites are numerically identified and correspond with an index situated in the text boxes to the left and right of the map. Among these are tourist attractions, historic sites, and ranches. Since this piece was created for tourists visiting the Panhandle, red lines trace the region's highways and cities and towns, including Amarillo, are labeled. A pictorial scene surrounds the map and illustrates a stereotypical understanding of life in the Texas Panhandle: a prairie dog, jackrabbit, and coyote appear alongside cacti, a longhorn skull, a windmill, and a flowering yucca plant. Clouds tower above it all, creating a feeling of the vastness of this part of the United States. The whole is surrounding by a border made up of cattle brands.

Publication History and Census

This map was created by an unknown artist and published by the Chambers of Commerce of several communities in the area. We note a single example cataloged in OCLC which is part of the collection at the University of Texas at Arlington. We note one other cataloged example in private hands.