Field Guides
Meridian, Texas
(Bosque COUNTY)
Scenic river valleys with Norwegian heritage and outdoor recreation paradise.
Highlights
Bosque is Spanish for “wooded,” and Bosque County lives up to its name. If you like rolling, heavily treed terrain, you will love Bosque County. Lake Meridian State Park is a small gem that showcases the countryside to its best effect. Meridian is the county seat, but Clifton, the “Norwegian Capital of Texas, ” offers the best opportunities for sightseeing and time-wasting.
Bosque County shares Lake Whitney, one of Texas’ prettiest lakes, with Hill County. Bosque County has the western shore, Hill County has the eastern shore, and the county line meanders through the center of the lake.
Texas Ten, however, loves Cranfills Gap for its history, natural beauty, and one of the most spectacular churches in Texas. If you are among the legion of fans of the Paramount hit series Yellowstone and its spinoffs, you have Cranfills Gap to thank for it. Showrunner extraordinaire Taylor Sheridan earned his cowboy chops at the family ranch in the area.
Deer and exotic hunting is available in Bosque County. Fishing for bass and catfish in the small lakes, Lake Whitney, and the Bosque River can be rewarding.
The Bosque County Courthouse
A bit farther west from Clifton is the county seat, Meridian. The elegant Bosque County Courthouse dominates the square. Built in 1886, the courthouse is one of the oldest in Texas that has seen continuous use. Restoration was completed in 2007, and they thankfully restored the clock tower reverting the building to its full, impressive self. The second-floor courtroom for the 220th District Court is one of the prettiest in the state, with mammoth ceilings and rich woodwork.
Things To See And Do
The Old Rock Church (also St. Olaf Kirke) in Cranfills Gap was built in 1886 and restored to spectacular effect in 2010. Texas Ten wavered in its use of adjectives because we do not want to oversell it. St. Olaf’s is not Notre Dame in Paris, Canterbury Cathedral in England, or even San Fernando in San Antonio. Instead, it is a masterpiece of simplicity and the marriage of a building and the land it sets on. The Norwegian immigrants who built the structure were expert craftsmen. Their pride in their community and their humble thanks for the land they had found shine through almost 140 years later. Texas Ten has a lot of Norwegian blood, so maybe we are biased. But there might not be a prettier site in Texas.
Those Norwegians also built a charming downtown in Clifton. There are enchanting stores, a unique hotel, galleries, a great little movie theater, several good restaurants, a new marketplace, and a great classic car and vintage memorabilia museum—more than enough to spend several hours exploring. The Bosque Museum does a good job of documenting the history and artistic impact of the area. If available, live performances of any type are always a treat at the beautiful Bosque Arts Center. At night on special occasions, do a little professional star gazing at the Meyer Observatory.
Meridian, the county seat, has a cool amphitheater where free outdoor movies are shown, and other events are hosted, particularly the National Barbecue Cook-Off.
An afternoon fishing and hiking or an overnight camping trip to Lake Meridian State Park is a must.
East of Meridian and Clifton is Valley Mills, which is mostly in Bosque County but extends into McLennan County. Valley Mills has decent vintage antique shopping. If you are in the market for a fireplace mantel (or any other type of mantel), The Saw Mill offers wonderful custom pieces.
The small outpost of Walnut Springs seems to exist for no reason other than to have a good time. A Saturday night out in this small town will put a smile on your face and make you question your existence when you head back to the 9-5 Monday morning.
Bosque County is also joining the rest of the Hill Country in becoming the new wine country. Red Caboose Winery, Valley Mills Winery, and Big Rock Winery are all great places for an afternoon tasting.
Maybe saving the best for last is beautiful Lake Whitney. The presence of cliffs along parts of the shoreline gives the lake its dramatic appearance. Whitney has over 23,000 acres of surface area, so it’s big enough for all the recreational opportunities, such as skiing, jet skiing, sailing, and fishing. As for the fishing, there are a variety of bass and catfish to take, with the blue catfish being prized.
The Lake is managed by the Corps of Engineers, which operates 11 different park areas on the lake. There is also a state park and various local parks on the Hill county side. Private resort development is all around. The four Corps of Engineers parks on the Bosque County (west) side of the lake are Soldier’s Bluff, Wailing Bend, Steele Creek, and Cedron Creek. Wailing Bend and Cedron Creek have boat ramps and more recreational facilities. Steele Creek has a boat ramp but like Soldier’s Bluff, is geared more towards simple picnics or primitive camping. The closest full-service marinas are at Whitney Ridge on the south side of the lake and Lakeside Village on the north side.
Food, Drinks, and Music (Eat Local!)
Clifton is definitely the place to eat in Bosque County. For high-end evening dining or a great Sunday brunch, go to Olaf’s. The Corner Drug Cafe has charm for miles and breakfast/deli lunch options to match. Just as good is the Breaking Bread Bakery and Deli. For Texas cafe food, Johnny’s Place is always packed. Fans of the smoked meat will enjoy Bunkhouse BBQ. The burger wars are ongoing between Jessi’s Burgers and Burger Shack. As in any Texas town, you have Tex-Mex choices at El Charro Mexican and Los Toritos Mexican Restaurant.
Meridian
In Meridian, for Texas roadhouse fare, there is Ramblin’ Dan’s Bar & Grill or Cactus Grill. Straight-up burgers at B’s Baskets. Tex-Mex at any of these three Zapata’s Tortillas, Ay Jalisco Mexican, or RS 4 Mexican Kitchen. Red Caboose Winery has a tasting room here as well as Clifton.
Special mention to the Horny Toad Bar and Grill, where Texas Ten has a very enjoyable evening with cold beer, hearty food, and great local entertainment. In between Cranfills Gap and Meridian is a small German restaurant Zur Autobahn. Call ahead if you want the German option.
Valley Mills
The leader of the pack in Valley Mills is the unique combo offered by Burger N Wok. The Chinese side of the menu has received rave reviews. Burgers are also available in-store at Back Roads Food and Fuel. You can enjoy Tex-Mex at El Molcajete Restaurante. Wine tastings are available at Valley Mills Winery.
Walnut Springs
Walnut Springs has more than its fair share of food and fun. In a town of less than 800, you can experience a Key West atmosphere and outstanding food at Blackie’s Bait Shop, party with a great band at Rattlesnake Roadhouse, or indulge yourself with mouth-watering barbecue at Weber’s.
Laguna Park
Laguna Park is the Bosque County entrance to Lake Whitney on the south end of the lake. Typical lake establishments abound. Check out some of these restaurants: the West Shore Grill, Burger Shack, Jalapeno’s, the Restaurant at Bosque Resort, and Lobo Street Cantina.
Where To Drop A Dime (Shop Local!)
Clifton is where you want to go. There is a several-block area between 3rd Street and 5th Street on one set of edges and Avenues C and E on the other edges that has a group of delightful shops and galleries:
Market at the Mill (Decor & gifts)
Lady Bugs (Apparel)
Bosque County Emporium (Vintage and antiques)
Mazie Grace (Apparel)
Just Love Leigh (Apparel)
219 Artisan’s Market (Handcrafted goods)
La Thompson Fine Arts Gallery (Fine arts)
Valley Mills has the Saw Mill for mantels and custom woodwork pieces and The Foundry Market and Florals for a variety of home goods. BeBe’s Back Porch and Barn is an excellent multi-vendor vintage store.
In Meridian, CobraTec is a unique knife store, and Main Street Antiques (103 Main St., (254) 435-2227) is an antique, vintage, and interior store.
Special Places to Lay Your Head (Stay Local!)
The Ritz Carlton has yet to break ground in Bosque County but other than that, there is a wide variety of lodging available.
For charming local hotels, The Cell Block in Clifton is an inventive, modern, and well-done use of the former jail. The Screen Door Inn offers a true country bed and breakfast experience with rooms that are more like hotel rooms rather than Aunt Eunice’s old bedroom. Indian Lodge Resort has a picturesque setting on the Brazos River before it feeds into Lake Whitney near Kopperl.
There are many resort-style parks near Lake Whitney. “Resort” covers a multitude of experiences, from high-thread-count experiences to the wonders of rustic simplicity. Texas Ten leaves it to you to review the websites and Facebook pages to find where you and your pocketbook will be comfortable. For more of the same on the east side of the lake, check out the Hill County page.
There are also plenty of stand-alone short-term rentals near the lake
For the Professional Traveller (Campgrounds and RV Parks)
Bosque County is very popular among RVers. Some of the listings you have already seen because they have cabins and RV spots or are in parks. Plenty to choose from:
Harvest Host opportunities
Regular
Special Events
Meridian hosts the National Barbecue Cookoff in October each year and a Chisholm Trail roundup in July.
Clifton presents the Bosque Art Classic in September, the Troubadour Classic, a singer-songwriter competition and Fall Fest in October, and the Clifton Rodeo, Parade, and County Fair each July.
All of those are great events and would be a good time to visit. For something really unique and special, come when Clifton is going all-out Norwegian. You have two opportunities: the Tour De Norway bicycle race each May and the Norwegian Country Christmas Tour the first weekend of December.
Fore! (Golf Courses)
The only course in the county is the 9-holer at Bosque County Golf Club. The course is well-maintained and considered challenging. The surrounding counties have a variety of options.
Getting to Bosque County
Clifton and Meridian are each on SH 6, which runs generally north and south. SH 22 runs parallel to SH 6 but then converges in Meridian. The closest interstate is I-35 about 50 miles to the east. Waco is the touchpoint at the other end of SH 6 also 50 miles distant. More broadly, Meridian is roughly two and a half hours northeast of the geographic center of the state in Brady, Texas.
If you are flying in, the closest regional airport is Waco, served only by American Airlines. For more major carrier options, DFW International (all major carriers other than Southwest) is an hour and a half drive, Dallas Love Field (Southwest and Delta) is an hour and forty-five minutes behind the wheel, and Austin Bergstrom International (all major carriers) is two hours and 15 minutes. Smaller craft can try either the Valley Mills Municipal Airport, the Clifton Municipal Airport, or the McGregor Executive Airport next door in Mclennan County.
History
The territory where Bosque is now situated was inhabited by the peaceful Tonkawa (a Waco name that means “We all stay together”) Natives long before the Europeans came to this land.
The first report of Europeans in the area was in 1721 by explorer Marqués de San Miguel de Aguayo, known for his role in establishing the Spanish Mission System in Central Texas. It is said that while resting along one of the tributaries, Aguayo named the area Bosque, which translates from Spanish to mean forests or woods, which references the elm, cottonwood, river birch, sycamore, ash, pecan, and oak trees that grow in this area.
In 1825, a grant from the Mexican government was given to Sterling C. Robertson, and settlement of this area began soon after. Surveyor George Erath named the county seat of Meridian in the 1830s because the landmark stream and knob in this region fell along the 98th meridian in the center of land donated by Dr. Josephus M. Steiner. The county was officially formed in 1854, and on July 4th of that year, public lots were auctioned off to settlers, many of whom were Norwegian immigrants taking advantage of offers of 320 acres to families who would settle here. In the early days, settlers reported occasional horse thefts by the Tonkawa. Still, by and large, the Tonkawas served as guides for settlers raided and attacked by neighboring Comanches to regain their stolen property.
The first significant vote held by the county had to deal with was that of secession in 1861, and like many counties with large immigrant communities, Union sentiments were strong, leading to the vote failing 233 to 81. Most individuals in this area who served during the Civil War did more to protect the Natives than to fight for any other specific cause, and in 1865, the most significant battle was the Battle of Dove Creek against the Kickapoos. The Civil War halted development in this county and most others but picked up during Reconstruction. The Black population grew, but so did retaliation against the freedmen. At one point, killings in Bosque averaged 2 per week, and the whites blamed the Republicans in this county for these occurrences.
By the 1880s, the population had flourished mainly due to the Great Cattle Drive and the addition of the Santa Fe and Texas Central railroads. This spurred the growth of livestock and crop production and the development of manufacturing plants in this area. This boom lasted until the Great Depression when droughts and soil depletion contributed to economic decline.
Democratic leadership and following were strong in this area from 1876 to 1932. Improvements spearheaded by the Federal Emergency Relief Act and Civilian Conservation Corps brought jobs and promise to this region. The 1940s and 50s saw a downturn in agricultural production, and many abandoned their farms. However, manufacturing, particularly in textiles, lumber, and stone, picked up throughout the 1970s when agriculture began to drop off. The economy recovered, especially with the help of a county-driven initiative in the 70s and 80s called “Operation Comeback.” This revitalization of Bosque County led to an increase in the population by 40% and business by 100%.
Today, Bosque County’s population is 18,235, with a median income of $63,868. Nineteen percent of the residents hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. More than 80% of the population is White, and 18% is Hispanic. Voter turnout through the ‘80s ranged between 58% and 70%, with 97% of the voters present at the ballots being Democrats. Political affiliations and turnout have varied significantly over time and issues, though the majority tend to be Democrats.
Notable residents of Bosque County include Cleng Peerson, the leader of the Norwegian immigrant movement; American folklorist and musician John Lomax; Texas Chief Justice Calvin Maple Cureton; and Penn Jones Jr., an American conspiracy theorist.
Primary Sources:
Texas State Historical Society
OTHER: CLIFTON, CRANFILLS GAP, KOPPERL, SEARSVILLE, VALLEY MILLS, WALNUT SPRINGS