You’ll find Click, Texas as a ghost town in Llano County, southeast of Llano and southwest of Kingsland on County Road 308. Pioneer Malachi Click founded this frontier settlement in 1863 after arriving from Arkansas. While the community gained a post office in 1880, it never exceeded 20 residents. The settlement declined after World War II, but you can still see the weathered church building, schoolhouse, and old homestead foundations that tell its frontier story.
Key Takeaways
- Click, Texas was founded by Malachi Click in 1863 and officially recognized in 1880 with a post office establishment.
- The settlement never exceeded 20 residents and relied heavily on nearby towns for essential services.
- Click’s decline began in the 1940s due to economic downturn, soil depletion, and highway bypass isolation.
- The post office closure during World War II marked a significant turning point in Click’s transformation into a ghost town.
- Historical remnants include the original church building, schoolhouse, and old homestead foundations, now weathered by time.
The Birth of a Frontier Settlement
While many Texas frontier settlements emerged from ambitious town planning or economic ventures, Click, Texas began as a modest family settlement founded by pioneer Malachi Click.
You’ll find that settler motivations centered around establishing a foothold in the rugged Texas Hill Country, where Click’s family formed the core of the community’s population.
The settlers found themselves clicking with neighbors as they developed rapport and built strong community bonds in their remote location.
In 1880, the settlement gained official recognition when the government established a post office, with Benjamin F. Lowe serving as the first postmaster.
The community dynamics revolved primarily around kinship ties, with Click’s descendants maintaining deep roots in the area.
Located southeast of Llano and southwest of Kingsland on County Road 308, this frontier outpost exemplified the spirit of Texas settlers who carved out lives in remote territories during the state’s expansion era.
Like The Grove’s story of decline, the population dwindled due to agricultural consolidation in the mid-1900s.
Early Pioneer Life and Family Legacy
Life on the Texas frontier demanded extraordinary resilience from the Click family, who faced constant dangers after their arrival from Arkansas in 1863.
The family’s pioneer challenges became tragically clear when Thomas B. Click fell victim to Native American raids along the Medina River in 1866. Despite these perils, the Click family’s determination shaped the region’s development, with Malachi Click establishing the community that would bear his name.
Despite losing Thomas Click to frontier violence in 1866, the family persevered, with Malachi Click founding a lasting community legacy.
M.C. Click and D.A. Weaver made the grim discovery of Thomas’s body and found a blood-stained knife near the scene. You’ll find evidence of their family resilience in how they adapted to frontier living near Hondo Canyon, where they built homes, hosted travelers, and maintained vigilance against raids.
Their legacy lives on through descendants buried in Llano City Cemetery and the stories they left behind of Confederate service, frontier hardships, and the transformation of wilderness into settled land. Like many Texas pioneer towns of the era, Click eventually became a ghost town as populations shifted and development patterns changed.
Community Growth and Development
Although Click’s geographic position between Llano and Kingsland offered potential advantages, the community’s growth remained particularly modest throughout its existence.
The community dynamics centered around a small group of settlers, never exceeding 20 residents, with Malachi Click’s family forming the core of this rural enclave. Like German immigrants who settled Indianola in the 1840s, these early pioneers sought to establish a permanent presence in the area. Much like post office establishment in Cannonville during 1857, these early settlers hoped for growth.
You’ll find that economic sustainability proved challenging for Click’s inhabitants. Despite having a post office established in 1880, the settlement didn’t develop significant commercial enterprises or industrial activities.
The town’s infrastructure remained basic, lacking schools, churches, or businesses, forcing residents to rely on nearby towns for essential services. The community’s limited size ultimately affected its viability, leading to the post office’s closure during World War II – a telling sign of Click’s declining population and diminishing role in Llano County’s development.
The Decline of Click’s Golden Era
The economic heartbeat of Click began to falter in the 1940s, marking the end of its modest prosperity.
You’d have witnessed a town caught in the grip of an economic downturn as soil depletion and fierce agricultural competition crippled local farming operations. Similar to the town of Lone Star in 1903, the bypass of major highways left Click isolated, cutting off essential trade routes that could’ve sustained its growth.
Like many of Texas’s 511 ghost towns, Click struggled to maintain its identity as a viable community.
As jobs disappeared with the closure of cotton gins and general stores, population migration became inevitable.
You’d have seen younger residents moving to urban areas seeking better opportunities, while those who stayed faced deteriorating infrastructure and declining services.
The town’s struggles intensified with agricultural challenges, including water shortages and rising maintenance costs, ultimately transforming Click from a vibrant community into another Texas ghost town.
Exploring Click’s Historical Remnants
Standing quietly along Barnett Branch near Sandy Creek, Click’s historical remnants paint a picture of what was once a thriving rural settlement. Similar to mining settlements across the American West, Click’s decline reflects the broader pattern of town abandonment.
As you explore the ghost town today, you’ll find scattered evidence of its past, though historical preservation efforts remain minimal. The cultural significance of Click’s heritage lives on through its architectural remains and natural surroundings. Much like the town of Thurber, Click became a ghost town in the 1930s.
- Original church building and schoolhouse still stand, though weathered by time
- Old homestead foundations dot the landscape, revealing former residential areas
- Natural layout of streets and property boundaries visible along Barnett Branch
- Historic postal records and census data tell the story of Click’s population shifts
- Family artifacts and photographs preserved in Llano County archives document daily life
Frequently Asked Questions
Are There Any Documented Paranormal Activities or Ghost Stories From Click?
You won’t find documented ghost sightings or haunted locations in Click. Unlike other Texas ghost towns that boast paranormal activity, there aren’t any verified supernatural reports from this remote settlement.
What Natural Disasters or Extreme Weather Events Has Click Experienced?
You’ll find limited documented records, but the area experienced regional flooding events and drought impacts common to Central Texas, with nearby coastal hurricanes affecting the broader region during the late 1800s.
Did Click Have Any Notable Involvement in Prohibition-Era Bootlegging?
You won’t find evidence linking Click to bootlegging or prohibition activities – historical records show no speakeasies, arrests, or smuggling routes in this tiny community of just 20 residents during that era.
What Were the Primary Crops and Livestock Raised by Click’s Farmers?
You’ll find farmers practiced crop rotation with corn, cotton, and small grains, while maintaining livestock diversity through cattle, sheep, goats, and poultry suited to Central Texas’ terrain.
Are There Any Surviving Photographs of Click During Its Peak Years?
You won’t find confirmed photographs from Click’s peak years. Despite its historical significance, photographic evidence is extremely limited, with most surviving images focusing on modern ruins rather than the town’s heyday.
References
- https://www.allacrosstexas.com/texas-ghost-town.php?city=Click
- https://kids.kiddle.co/Click
- https://www.txgenwebcounties.com/bandera/click.html
- https://texashighways.com/travel-news/four-texas-ghost-towns/
- https://www.aol.com/articles/discover-texass-forgotten-history-one-210010645.html
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qC5hZNi0TUs
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ghost_towns_in_Texas
- https://www.texasescapes.com/TexasHillCountryTowns/Click-Texas.htm
- https://www.texasescapes.com/TOWNS/Texas_ghost_towns.htm
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Click
