Terlingua Historical Marker

This historical marker was dedicated in 1966, recognizing the formal quicksilver mining community of Terlingua which has since become a popular spot for Texans and visitors to explore a community that has turned the label "ghost town" into a unique cultural landmark. Like many southwestern mining towns, Terlingua enjoyed a few decades where as much as forty percent of the nation's quicksilver was produced from its mines before the region's natural resources were depleted. The mines closed in the 1940s and the town sat nearly completely abandoned until the late 1960s, when some residents had the idea to host a now-famous annual chili cookoff. Today thousands of people attend the cookoff from all across the country, while others visit the "revived ghost town" year-round thanks in part to a few businesses that recognized that its proximity to Big Bend National Park created an opportunity for roadside attractions.

Terlingua, Texas was founded in the late nineteenth century as a metal-mining city, quickly finding success thanks to the mineral-rich caves nearby. By 1922, was the silver mining capital of the United States, yielding 40 percent of the country's supply. 2000 silver miners and their families called the town home and used its services, which included a jail, church, theater and ice cream parlor. The town's decline with a mine flood and was cemented during World War II when mineral prices quickly dropped. The company that ran the town's mines, the Chisos Mining Company, went bankrupt in 1942. With the town's main source of income gone, it was soon abandoned.

Terlingua revived itself in the late 1960s and early 1970s as the "Chili Capitol of the World." To this day, every year in November, hundreds gather for the annual Chili Cookoff, enjoying chili from cooks around the state, listening to live music, and dressing as peppers. This and the closeness to the Big Bend National Park has revitalized the town. Some of the historic buildings around the town, including abandoned stores and the Perry Mansion, have been restored into hotels.

Terlingua, Ghost Town Texas. Accessed December 8th, 2022. http://ghosttowntexas.com/terlingua.html.

TERLINGUA, Visit Big Bend. Accessed December 8th, 2022. https://visitbigbend.com/terlingua/.

Kirchner, Bill. Terlingua - Famous Texas Ghost Town, HMDB. November 4th, 2012. Accessed December 8th, 2022. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=60861.