Email: info@HillCountryPortal.com Web: www.HillCountryPortal.com

A Powerful Information Database & Gateway Service for the Texas Hill Country

REFERENCES

BRADY MUNICIPAL GOLF COURSE: 325-597-6010; 200 Brady Country Club Rd., Hwy 87 West, Brady, TX 76825-3774. Public, 9 holes, 2841 yds, par 36. City of Brady owned and managed. A beautiful 9-hole municipal course. Web

HEART OF TEXAS COUNTRY MUSIC MUSEUM: Opened in 2000, more than 75 country music artists are honored here, and displays include stage costumes, musical instruments, personal effects, life-size wax figures and more. Open Fri: 2-4p; Sat: 11a-4p; Sun: Noon-5p. www.hillbillyhits.com

HEART OF TEXAS HISTORICAL MUSEUM: 325-597-0526; 117 North High Street (at intersection with Main Street) in Brady, one block W of the courthouse square. Early ranch and home exhibits, farm implements, pioneer weapons, vintage photos and memorabilia. Housed in restored county jail, circa 1910, still exhibiting cells and prisoner hardware. Recently the Curtis Field Control Tower, which was located at Curtis Field during World War II, was donated to the museum, restored and dedicated to the 10,000 men and women who trained there and to veterans of all branches of military service from McCulloch County. Once called the "best small town museum in Texas" by the Fort Worth Star Telegram, the museum is open each weekend and for private tours by appointment. Open Fri-Sat 1-5p, Sun 1-4p. Web

MCCULLOCH COUNTY COURTHOUSE: Built in 1900 in Romanesque Revival style.

(FORMER) MCCULLOCH COUNTY JAIL: Circa 1910. Houses the Heart of Texas Historical Museum (see below). The three-story structure was constructed in 1910 and served as the county's correctional facility until 1974 when it was deeded to the historical society as a museum.

ROLLIE G. WHITE COMPLEX: Former Jubilee Racetrack with pari-mutual betting, now closed. Currently serves as a horse training facility. 325-597-0168.

SANTA FE CENTER TRAIN DEPOT: At Depot and N. Bridge Streets. This restored depot now serves as a restaurant, art gallery and studio.

NEARBY ATTRACTIONS:

CALF CREEK: 11 mi SW of Brady, the location of a battle fought in 1831. James Bowie, and ten of his closest friends fought a combined force of Caddo and Lipan Indians along the creek. Estimates vary from 150 to 800 Indians.

PARKS: see Parks

BRADY LAKE/RESERVOIR PARK: 325-597-2162; 888-823-8401; City of Brady owned and managed. Lakeside facility with 25 mi of shoreline, includes boat ramps, marina, docks, cabanas, RV hookups, campsites, pavilion, restrooms, showers, volleyball courts, ball fields, sandy beach, store (325-597-1073), fishing, swimming. Web; Web

RICHARDS PARK: Reservations: 325-597-2152; Hwy 87 N. City-owned park on Brady Creek that includes RV hookups, showers, rest rooms, primitive campsites, pavilion, baseball fields, soccer fields, and playground area.

STANBURN PARK

EVENT CALENDAR: See web sites shown above.

July: Annual July Jubilee in Richards Park

WEATHER: Weather Underground

MEDIA COVERAGE:

On-Line Latest News: Topix

Newspaper: BRADY STANDARD HERALD: www.heartotexasnews.com

MAPS: Google; GeoHack

PRINCIPAL BUSINESS: Farming, ranching, tourism, hunting

HISTORY: Handbook of Texas Online: "When the area was settled in the 1870s, the community was named Brady City after Brady Creek, which runs through town. The name was shortened to Brady when the town was incorporated in 1906. In 1787-88 Spanish explorer Jose Mares crossed the creek near the site of present Brady. Henry and Nancy Fulcher, the first settlers on Brady Creek, donated land for the townsite in the mid-1870s. Allison Ogden and his father-in-law, Ben Henton, built a store in 1875. A post office opened in 1876. After residents of McCulloch County chose Brady as county seat on May 15, 1876, the town grew fairly quickly. Brady had about fifty residents in 1877, and a stone courthouse was completed in 1878. Thomas Maples began weekly publication of the Brady Sentinel in 1880; by 1884 Brady had two churches, a district school, three stores, two hotels, and 300 residents.

Stock raising was the primary occupation in the Brady area before 1900. In the 1870s and 1880s local ranchers drove their cattle to markets in Kansas. Most other trade was with Brownwood and Lampasas. The number of farms and fences increased with the influx of immigrants in the late 1880s and 1890s. Poultry, sheep, goats, cotton, and pecans joined cattle as important sources of income for area residents. When the Fort Worth and Rio Grande Railway arrived in 1903, Brady became a principal shipping point for Central Texas. The Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe came to Brady in 1912. By 1914 the town had grown to include four churches, two schools, two banks, several processing plants, manufacturing and supply outlets, and 2,669 residents.

In 1926 Brady residents celebrated the building of forty-two-acre Richards Park by holding a two-day barbecue on the Fourth of July weekend; it was such a success that the celebration was labeled the "July Jubilee" and became an annual event. Curtis Field opened just north of Brady in 1942 as a pilot-training school. Also during World War II a German prisoner-of-war camp was built three miles east of the town; it housed more than 300 Germans, most of them members of Rommel's Afrika Korps.

Brady grew slowly from the 1920s through the 1950s, with population estimates reaching a peak of 6,800 in 1958. In 1959 the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway abandoned the section of track between Brownwood and Brady, thereby reducing Brady's access to outside markets. The population fell to 5,338 by 1961 and subsequently stabilized. Brady Reservoir was completed in 1963 for flood control, municipal and industrial water needs, and recreation. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe abandoned the track between Brady and Eden in 1972, leaving the town with only a branch track to connect it with the main line at Lometa, in Lampasas County.

Brady had 5,925 residents and 142 businesses in 1988. It was principally a farming and ranching community. Its industry included a mohair-combing plant and sand-mining operations. The Francis King Art Gallery and Museum houses works by King, a painter and sculptor, and a collection of restored antique cars. Brady celebrates an annual band festival and goat cook-off every Labor Day. The stone courthouse, built in 1900, was renovated in 1974. In 1989 G. Rollie White Downs, one of the first horse racetracks in Texas after the passage of pari-mutuel laws in 1989, operated briefly in Brady but was unprofitable and closed by 1990. Brady's population in 1990 was 5,946, but dropped to 5,523 in 2000."

Historic Dodge Cattle Trail: During the cattle drive days, Brady was on the "Western" or "Dodge Trail" for the herds headed to Dodge City, Kansas. They crossed the Red River into Oklahoma at Doan's Crossing.

PRIOR NAMES: Brady City

AVAILABLE SERVICES: Gas: yes; Convenience Stores: yes; Restaurants: yes; Lodging: yes; Grocery Stores: yes; Banks: yes; Vehicle Repair: yes; Hospital: no; Med Clinic: no; Post Office: yes; Public Schools: yes; Cemetery: yes

CEMETERIES: REST HAVEN; LIVE OAK

OTHER PROFILES: Wikipedia; ePodunk; City Data; Texas Escapes; Travel Texas

NOTES:

(We welcome submission of updates, additions, corrections and digital photos, without compensation.)

BUSINESS AND ORGANIZATION DIRECTORY

LODGING/MOTELS/ACCOMMODATIONS/GUEST HOUSES/B&B'S

Click: Brady Lodging Listings and Reservation Services

MISCELLANEOUS GOODS AND SERVICES

BRADY IMPLEMENT COMPANY: 325-597-2952; Hwy 87 N, Brady, TX 76825. John Deere products.

CAPITAL FARM CREDIT: 325-597-2167; Brady, TX

CENTRAL TEXAS FARM CREDIT: 325-597-2252; Brady, TX

CURTIS RANCH FIELD AIRPORT (12TE): 713-461-3503; 12 mi Ne of Brady. Private use. Permission required prior to landing.

DAMUTH TAXIDERMY: 325-597-0001; 2300 S. Bridge Street, Brady, TX 76825. www.damuthtaxidermy.com

DeBORD REAL ESTATE: 325-597-4357; 1402 S. Bridge Street, Brady, TX 76825. www.debordrealestate.com; jerry@debordrealestate.com

EVRIDGE'S: 325-597-1065; Brady, TX 76858. On the Square. Furniture center.

F.M. BUCK RICHARDS MEMORIAL LIBRARY

JACOBY FEED & SEED: 325-286-4244; 101 N Main, Melvin, TX 76858; www.jacobyfeed.com

LAS CULEBRAS AIRPORT (XS78): 830-995-3528; 5 mi SSW of Brady. Private use. Permission required prior to landing.

LUBKE'S CARS & TRUCKS: 800-215-8256; 2110 S. Bridge Street, Brady, TX 76825. GMC dealer.

OUTDOOR SUPPLY & DEER PROCESSING: 325-597-0428; 200 S Bridge, Brady, TX 76825; Sporting Goods, Retail

RICKS FINE HOME FURNISHINGS: 800-880-2931; Brady, TX 76825.

RIVER BEND RANCH AIRPORT (94TX): 915-672-4501; 16 mi N of Brady. Private use. Permission required prior to landing.

TEXAS WILDLIFE SUPPLY: 325-597-4600; 2346 S. Bridge Street, Brady, TX 76825. Deer blinds, game feeders, archery pro shop, guns, hunting accessories, Purina feed. www.texaswildlifesupply.com

TRACTOR SUPPLY COMPANY: 325-597-9303; 2309 S Bridge, Brady, TX 76825; www.tractorsupply.com; Farm & Ranch Equipment

PUBLIC SERVICES

BRADY CURTIS FIELD AIRPORT (BBD): 325-597-1461; 3 mi NE of Brady, TX 76825; City owned and operated. Open to public. No tower. Runway: 4605 x 75 ft.; City Web; AirNav; Map

BRADY FIRE AND EMS: 325-597-2311

BRADY ISD: 325-597-2301; 100 W. Main Street, Brady, TX 76825; TEA Recognized campus; 3A district; "Bulldogs"; www.bradyisd.org

BRADY POLICE: 325-597-2121

CENTRAL TEXAS COLLEGE: 512-556-2969; 254-526-7161 In State: 1-800-223-4760 Out of State: 1-800-792-3348; PO Box 1800, Killeen, TX 76540-1800. The CTC Service Area Campus provides college credit and non-credit classes to the citizens of Central Texas in the following counties: Bell, Burnet, Coryell, Hamilton, Lampasas, Llano, Mason, McCulloch, Mills, San Saba and Williamson. These classes are offered on a semester basis. CTC Community Coordinators are located in Brady, Burnet, Gatesville, Hamilton, Lampasas and San Saba. Classroom courses, academic and vocational programs, distance education, dual and concurrent enrollment for high school students. www.ctcd.edu

GAME WARDEN: 325-597-2940

HEART OF TEXAS MEMORIAL HOSPITAL: 325-597-2901; Nine Road, Brady, TX

MCCULLOCH COUNTY AGRILIFE EXTENSION OFFICE: Ofc: 325-597-1295; Fax: 325-597-3023; 114 West Main, Brady, TX 76825. Web: mcculloch-tx.tamu.edu; Email: McCulloch-tx@tamu.edu

MCCULLOCH COUNTY SHERIFF: 325-597-2290

REGIONAL PARKS & WILDLIFE OFFICE: 325-646-0440

SANDY ROAD GUEST HAUS:

An Upscale Western-style Guest House Bed & Breakfast in a Beautiful Ranch Setting in the Gorgeous Texas Hill Country

B&B Reservations & Information: 281-300-7177
9242 RR 1320 (Sandy Road), Johnson City, TX 78636

Web: www.SandyRoadGuestHaus.com
Email: info@SandyRoadGuestHaus.com

Come Relax & Enjoy!

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