Lamb County's Name Is Older Than Its Towns

Texas drew Lamb County on the map in 1876 and named it for George A. Lamb. Local government did not organize until 1908, when the county could muster 21 qualified voters. More than thirty years passed between getting a name and getting a courthouse.

Those years fit the land. Lamb County's own history describes level High Plains dotted with playas and a few low hills. Blackwater Draw crosses the north. Running Water Creek and the Yellow House River cut through other parts of the county.

Once Olton raised a courthouse, the old map label began turning into a working county. The George A. Lamb name came before Olton's courthouse, Littlefield, the farm towns, and the paved road network.