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White Deer Land Museum

116 S. Cuyler

Pampa, TX 79065

The third family in Pampa

The third family to live in Pampa was the family of Charles T. and Sophia McCarty who were married April 11, 1897 at Gainesville, Texas. In May they made a three-weeks journey in a covered wagon to come from Vernon to Pampa.

At the time of their arrival Pampa was the headquarters for cattle companies and had no stores or houses. The McCarty's first home was one room over a dugout at 123 East Atchison. On some days Sophia could see droves of antelope going past their home.

Charles, who was a pumper for the Santa Fe Railroad, had the first bathtub in Pampa. The tin tub with a wooden rim around it was placed in the pump house. On Saturday nights cowboys and ranch hands lined up for the distance of a block in front of the pump house. Charles charged ten cents for a bath or fifteen cents if he furnished soap and towels.

In 1899 Charlie Earl, a young cowboy who worked for the Matador Cattle Company, got his arm mangled in a windmill. He rode his horse into Pampa and had his wounds bandaged by Sophia McCarty and Emma Lane, the only two women in town. This was the only treatment possible as all of the men were away at work. The cowboy recovered and later worked for the Matadors in South America.

When the town of Pampa was platted in 1902, the McCartys bought the second five-acre block south of the railroad. (Later this was Block 57 of the Cuyler Addition to the original town of Pampa Charles was the first justice of the peace in Pampa.

Also in 1902 Charles installed the first telephone in Pampa.  He ordered a telephone from a mail order house in Chicago and received two telephones. He installed the telephones himself, placing one in the pump house and the other in the McCarty home.

Charles and Sophia McCarty had three children. Fred, born in 1898, was the second baby born at Pampa. He married Julia Barnard of Groom and they had two daughters. Fred was severely burned in an oilfield explosion near Skellytown and died shortly afterward.

Claude went to Gainesville where Charles and Sophia returned in their later years.

Amanda "Bobbie" married W.A. "Blondie" Gregg and they had two children, Evelyn Ann and Fred.