STILES, Texas (KMID/KPEJ) – The next stop for our ghost town is going to be Stiles, Texas. Right along Highway 137, north of Big Lake in Reagan County, Stiles was on the Butterfield Overland Mail route in the mid-1800s before being settled by sheep and goat ranchers in the 1890s.
The town was named after Gordon Stiles who donated land for the townsite. Shortly after William G. Stiles applied for a post office in 1894.
The only building that is still standing somewhat today is the old court. We head inside to see what remains of the stiles’ once-used building, and all you see is wood and rusted metal laid out on the floors.
Because Stiles was the only town in the county, it was chosen county seat of Reagan County when the county was organized in 1903.
After passing through the old town, we go up the highway to check out Stiles Cemetery… As you can see, the headstones of those who have passed away in the area date back to people born in the early 1900s.
At its peak, Stiles had nearly 200 residents, but after the discovery of oil at the Santa Rita oil well near Big Lake in 1923, Stiles began to decline.
From what we found, records show that the population was at four in the year 200,0 as the once popular town at the time is now a shell of its old self.
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