At more than 25 million square miles of land area, the Texas Panhandle region looms larger than the state of West Virginia. And, oh, what adventures it contains.
Where in the 806, a new series by Panhandle PBS and Brick & Elm, will take you on a journey, one day trip at a time. For Panhandle PBS, Where in the 806 will be an ongoing digital series of videos showing the experiences you can have when roving an area full of historical and cultural artifacts, natural vistas and quirky attractions.
Every issue of Brick & Elm will feature highlights from the PBS series as part of a Where in the 806 guide for planning your own excursions, complete with places to dine, shop or lodge for a night, where possible.
Small museums and historical landmarks dot the area, chronicling life over hundreds of years. You’ll learn about chiefs and conquistadors, astronauts and artists, and booms and busts. We’ll take you where you can use an old-time printing press, ride a real stretch of Old Route 66, and hear about an extraordinary storm that inspired a famous folk song.
The Texas Panhandle is a place noted for movement, by trail and rail, highways and skyways. Some sites will transport you to another time—where bison hunters and Comanches clashed at Adobe Walls, or where Native Americans and settlers viewed the Staked Plains before roads and power lines crisscrossed the landscape.
Historians commemorate local forts, military bases, and prisoner-of-war camps. Residents have preserved buildings of historical or architectural significance. So fasten your seatbelts for a ride very much about both the journey and the destination with Where in the 806.
Built in 1915 and lengthened through 1924, the Canadian River Bridge in Hemphill County spans 3,255 feet, making it the longest metal truss bridge in Texas at the time. It was restored and reopened in 2000 as the Canadian River Wagon Bridge, a scenic hiking and biking trail over the Canadian River Valley and wetlands habitat.
According to most authorities Adrian, Texas, is the official midpoint of Route 66. It’s there that you’ll find the Midpoint Cafe & Gift Shop. The cafe is quite famous for its pies.
Industrial arts teacher Harry Wheeler built Tex Randall in 1959 to advertise Wheeler’s Western Store on U.S. Highway 60. After six years of fundraising efforts, the 47-foot landmark was restored in 2016.
Open seasonally, the Devil’s Rope & Route 66 Museum at McLean pays tribute to the history and significance of barbed wire, as well as the advent of Route 66.
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