W.K. Gordon Center for Industrial History of Texas
Thurber was famous for two things: coal mining and brick making. The Texas & Pacific Coal Company - controlled every facet of the town.
Homer G. Harris was a young coal miner from Thurber. When the US entered the Great War, he was drafted - and trained at Camp Bowie in Fort Worth. His unit sailed to Europe aboard the Tuscania, which was torpedoed and sunk by a German U-boat. More than 200 soldiers and crew were lost. Harris survived and made it to France, but he was killed in the fighting around Chateau-Thierry on June 2, 1918. He was the first man from Thurber to die in the Great War. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that a funeral procession almost two miles long accompanied his body to the Thurber Cemetery.
Today, the W. K. Gordon Center for Industrial History of Texas offers visitors the chance to learn about Thurber’s fascinating history.
W.K. Gordon Center for Industrial History of Texas
Admission
Adults: $5; Seniors/Military:$4; Children (5-12): $2.50
Hours
Tuesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Sunday, 1-4 p.m.