A Very Special Panhandle Birthday

The Texas Panhandle will be celebrating a very special birthday this coming weekend. Palo Duro Canyon State Park will turn 75 years-old. Although the 120 mile-long canyon itself is a million years old (it took that long for the Prairie Dog Fork of the Red River to carve it out), the state park is only a relatively young 75 years-old.

In 1933, the Civilian Conservation Corps built roads into the canyon and other amenities. This opened the canyon to the general public, and the next year marked the creation of the state park. The park opened with 15,000 acres, and currently has over 30,000 acres. It is still growing, and added over 2,000 acres just in the last year. It is the second largest state park in Texas (behind Big Bend Ranch State Park) and the second largest canyon in America (behind the Grand Canyon).

The park has over 300,000 visitors each year, and is one of the very few state parks that actually pays for itself. Last year, it took in over $1.2 million in entry fees, camping fees and concession franchise fees. That's $400,000 more than it takes to run the park.

To celebrate its 75 years in existence, the park is planning a special July 4th weekend. On the fourth, there will be a production of the musical "Texas", a concert of patriotic music and a large fireworks show. On the fifth, the jazz-rock musician Boz Scaggs will be performing in the canyon.

Happy 75th birthday Paol Duro Canyon State Park!