Eden gets its name not from a Biblical garden, but from town founder Frederick Ede, a native of England and pioneer ranchman who gave land for the town. The town’s most famous native son, Ira C. Eaker, served in the fledgling U.S. Army aviation program in World War I, helping develop early aircraft leveling instrumentation. During World War II, he commanded the U.S. Eighth Air Force in England and its successful daylight precision bombing of Germany. Eden’s Don Freeman Memorial Museum chronicles Eaker’s life alongside exhibits on early Concho County history. By the 1920s Eden had become a trade center for wool and mohair, attracting buyers nationwide. Area ranchers also raised polo ponies for eastern markets. That ranching heritage rides high during an annual rodeo in June and a world-class bull riding competition each September. Several area exotic game ranches offer world-class hunting, and anglers find top-flight fishing at O.H. Ivie Reservoir.