The 1917 Ranger oil strike transformed Eastland County

In 1917, drillers hit oil at a site near Ranger in southern Eastland County. Production climbed fast. By 1919, the Ranger field was producing about 22 million barrels a year. The county's population rose from roughly 23,400 (the 1910 census count) to more than 58,000 by 1920. Towns filled with workers, merchants, and speculators almost overnight.

The boom faded through the 1920s as production dropped and prices fell. The county population shrank sharply after that. But oil and gas production has continued in the area ever since. The Ranger boom is a documented chapter in Texas oil history and shaped the roads, buildings, and economy of the county that visitors still see today.