Cisco, Cisco, Cisco, part 5 – Cisco, Texas

: 1965 USGS Aerial Photo of Cisco, TX

I’m trying to build the N scale replica of the town of Cisco, Utah circa 1970. Accordingly, it’s my routine to search “Cisco” on the web, but it goes wrong most of the times bothered by “San Francisco” or “Cisco Systems”. Sometimes, “Cisco, Texas” gets in my way. Thus, I was wondering how many “Cisco”s are there in the United States. My recent research during these Stay Home days revealed some of them. Let me introduce these places named Cisco as a sideshow for my Town of Cisco posts.


Cisco, Eastland, Texas: the Union Passenger Station at Cisco, Texas was located at the crossing of the Houston & Texas Central Railway with the Texas & Pacific Railway between Fort Worth and El Paso; seven miles to Delmar to the west and ten miles to Eastland to the east on T&P according to 1883 Official Railway Guide.

The crossing of the HT&C with the T&P at Eastland County in 1881 attracted the nearby Red Gap inhabitants to move their community to the crossing[1]. When the townsite was platted the same year, it was named for John Jay Cisco: yes, the same person appeared in the history of Cisco, CA. John was a financier of the H&TC at that time. The Cisco Post Office was also granted the same year[2]. Former Red Gap postmaster William Thomas Caldwell(1833 – 1912) was the original postmaster.


The city was once called the "Gate City of the West"[3]. The two-storied red brick Mobley Hotel built in 1916, as you can see in the Googlemaps street view below, is the epicenter of the Hilton Hotels & Resorts founded in 1919: it’s the first property Conrad Nicholson Hilton (1887 – 1979) purchased and managed[3]. The city boasted a population of 7422 in 1920.

The former H&TC line, eventually Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railway line at Cisco was abandoned in 1967[1]. Missouri Pacific through passenger service #1 and 2, the Texas Eagle between St. Louis and El Paso, serving Cisco was discontinued in March 1967[4]. In 2010, the population was 3899.


Today, the former T&P line, later MP and today's Union Pacific Railroad line remains active at Cisco. The Union depot is long gone: the preserved UP caboose #25223 is the only clue to the depot site.

[1] Interlocking Tower 160 – Cisco, Texas web page;
[2] 1984 National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination Form, Cisco Historic District;
[3] Wiggins, Noel, (2010) Cisco, TX, The Handbook of Texas Online, Texas State Historical Association;
[4] Harris, Chuck, (1998) Aboard Missouri Pacific’s last Passenger Train in Texas, Arkansas Railroad History home page;
* 1962 photo of the Union Station;
* photo of the Union Station maybe taken in the 50s;

: Google maps Cisco, TX
　
　
筆者がNスケールで復元しようとしているユタ州Ciscoについて調べようとインターネット検索すると、余計なページばかりよく引っ掛かる。一番邪魔なのは「San Francisco」、次に邪魔なのは「Cisco Systems」に関連するページである。テキサス州にある「Cisco」という町に関連するページも結構邪魔だ。一方、お目当てのユタ州Ciscoの町に関連するページなどほとんどない。一体何件の「Cisco」がアメリカにあるのか。古い時刻表を調べてみると、ユタ州Cisco以外に八カ所ものCisco駅があったらしい。どんなところだろう。


Cisco, Texas: 四カ所目のCisco駅は、Houston & Texas Central RailwayがTexas & Pacific Railwayと交差する地点に開設された駅である。1881年に、Houston & Texas Central Railwayが交差周辺の土地を区割りし売り出す際、自社のスポンサーであった、あのニューヨークの銀行家John Jay Ciscoの名をとり「Cisco」と命名したという。最盛期には「Gate City of the West」と称され、7500名弱の人口を誇っていた。

Missouri-Kansas-Texasの支線は1967年に廃止、Missouri Pacificが運行していた旅客列車Texas Eagleも同年廃止され、駅舎も取り壊された。現在の人口は3750名ほど。

ストリートビューに見えている、かつての駅前広場に面して建つレンガ積二階建ての建物はMobley Hotelという。あのコンラッド・ヒルトンが初めて営んだ、後の世界的ホテル・チェーンの礎となったホテルである。建物は現在博物館になっている。