A RETROSPECTIVE OF EARLY HICO
This exhibit is a pictorial history of Hico from the late 19th century through the early 20th century.  The lenses of early, local photographers, primarily Frank Wiseman, recorded Hico in its formative stages – from its original location on Honey Creek, through the town’s move to the railroad in 1880 and the “new” landmark buildings that have now graced the town for more than 100 years.

This retrospective records times of hardship as well as times of prosperity.  They record a community of proud and hard working people – a community striving to prosper and grow as attested by the early business and civic club known as the Hico Commercial Club.  And, importantly, the photographs document the creativity and genius in building a town with architectural characteristics as unique in the 21st century as it was in the late 19th Century. 

Pecan Street, as these images show, has been the spine of Hico throughout its history.  These two corner buildings, now Blue Star Trading and Ranch Outfitters and Blue Star Home, were both built in approximately 1895.  They have observed the happenings on Pecan Street and the long abandoned railroad (across Railroad street to the south) from this key vantage point.  These two buildings have housed a wide variety of businesses including a grocery, furniture, mercantile, auto service, restaurant and hatchery.  If only these walls could speak to us of their history.  But, we have the next best thing – photographs that tell a story of a community of people who settled on the Bosque River and built a town and legacy for those who followed.  These images are their story.