Yesteryear - Jester Traditional Cache

Time moves on leaving behind reminds of what was before. Dotted across the plains are towns that have come and gone. Although the resident may have moved on, their memories still remain. Listen quietly to the wind and you may still hear their voices.

Jester, Oklahoma, northwest Greer County, was a ranching and farm town from the beginning to the end. The site is now abandoned and sits alone on the back roads just south of the Willow breaks.

The town was named after one of the early ranchers of the area. He donated the land of which the town was built.

The area was settled when this part of the state was part of Texas. Many ranchers, drawn by reports of good grazing along the tributaries of The Elm Fork of the Red River, moved into Greer County Texas. Their small ranches grew and in turn attracted more settlers. One of these men was David C. Jester who built a two-room, frame ranch house in about 1890 on his land in northwestern Greer County. He had three hundred cattle on five sections of land.

The old town was located on a tributary to Deer Creek. There once was a cotton gin and several commercial stores. The fact that the town was bypassed by the both the railroads and the modern highway system helped speed the community’s demise. Only one of the old store with the house in back still stands.

Congratulation to 2Moore on the FTF.

Another Quality Clan Hide