Valley Spring, Texas
Unincorporated community in Texas, US
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Valley Spring is an unincorporated community in Llano County, Texas, United States.[1] According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had an estimated population of 50 in 2000.[2] Valley Spring is situated along State Highway 71 in northwestern Llano County, approximately 12 miles northwest of Llano.[3]
History
The area was originally settled by the O.C.J. Phillips family in 1854 and was known as Phillips Ranch in the early years. Phillips son, W.O., established a cotton gin and sawmill on the ranch in 1860. Locals started referring to the community as Whistleville after the mill's summoning work whistle.[3] Less than a mile from Whistleville, Davie Owen opened a competing mill and gin. The community surrounding Owen's mill was known as Bugscuffle. When a post office was established in 1878, it was located at the Bugscuffle establishment, which was renamed Valley Spring[4] after the area's terrain and numerous springs.[2] Four years later, the stage route from Llano to Brady was changed in 1882 and Mr. Owen built a store on the new route at the present-day site of Valley Spring.
The population had reached 100 by the 1930s, but had declined to 50 by the late 1960s. It remained at level through 2000.[2] Valley Spring has a post office with the ZIP code 76885.[5]
Education
Public education in the community of Valley Spring is provided by the Llano Independent School District. Zoned campuses include Llano Elementary School (grades PK-5), Llano Junior High School (grades 6-8), and Llano High School (grades 9-12).
Notable people
- James Fields Smathers (1888-1967), inventor of the electric typewriter