Thurber, Texas - population about 10 - is considered to be Texas' premier ghost town. Here's why: barely 100 years ago, Thurber used to have 9,000 residents. Today, it's merely a pit stop on Interstate 20. Thurber began as a company-owned town. The Texas and Pacific railroad owned the mineral rights to the vast (and only) bituminous coal deposits in Texas, and lured thousands of skilled coal miners from the north and from Europe to get it out. Setting up a small settlement ringed by tree-covered hilltops, Thurber, which was named after one of the majority shareholders in the company, quickly grew as businesses set up shop.

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