Watermelons and peaches put Parker County on the map

After cotton farming fell off, Parker County farmers moved toward fruit. The county got national attention when twelve watermelons grown here took the world prize for weight at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. That comes from the Handbook of Texas.

Peaches also became a big crop. The rolling Cross Timbers land and sandy soils were a good fit for fruit growing. Today, Parker County peach farms still run near Weatherford each summer. That keeps alive a farming tradition more than a century old.