Ancient human remains found near Midland hint at early inhabitants

In the mid-20th century, people found fossilized human remains in Midland County. They were buried in ancient dried lake beds called playas. Researchers gave these remains the nickname Midland Minnie.

Scientists tentatively linked Midland Minnie to the Folsom culture. The Folsom people lived during the late Pleistocene age, a time when the climate here was wetter. The land once supported grasslands and large animals that no longer exist.

Before European settlers arrived, Comanche bands lived in this area. In the 1870s, buffalo hunters decimated the great herds and disrupted their way of life. The last recorded conflict in what is now Midland County occurred in 1879, after which the land opened to Anglo ranchers. Three layers of history shape the identity of Midland County today: Indigenous peoples, ranching, and oil.