Eden, Texas
HISTORY
Welcome to Eden, Texas
The Geodetic Center Of Texas.
Eden, Texas is located at the junction of US Highways 83 and 87 in Concho County and is the closest town to the geodetic center of Texas, which is 18.5 miles west-southwest of town.
Frederick Ede moved to Concho County in 1881 with his family, and in 1882 he designated 40 acres of his land as a townsite. Ede even donated the land for the town's square! In 1883 when the settlement received a post office, the town's people adapted Ede's name and named the town Eden.
Today half of the town's official population number comes from a minimum-security prison.
PHOTOS
Sights Around Eden, Texas
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MAMIYA 6 & KODAK PORTRA 160
Deep In The Heart Of Texas
Eden is about 18.5 miles east-northeast of the geodetic center of Texas. Geodetic measurements use satellites to determine locations, and in 1989 the Texas Society of Professional Surveyors measured the exact distance between all four of Texas' borders to assess the state's geodetic center.
So if you're ever in Eden, a granite marker in the town square highlights Eden's location as being the center of Texas.
But wait - isn't the geographic center of Texas somewhere else? Yes - yes, it is. So there are two places marked as the center of Texas!
When you think of something like the garden of eden, could you ever picture it in the center of Texas?
MAMIYA 6 & KODAK PORTRA 160
Not The Garden Of Eden
Concho County was created from part of Bexar County by the Texas Legislature in 1858. However, the county didn't formally organize until 1879, when the required petition received 75 signatures from voters to meet State requirements. The county seat is in nearby Paint Rock, named for nearby pictographs.
The railroad didn't come to Concho County until 1910, and manufacturing never really took off, leaving the county's economy focused on agriculture. Most people during the great depression were sharecroppers, and today the county is known as the leading sheep-producing county in all of Texas.
