How A Texas Industrial Camp Went From Boom Town To Ghost Town

The Texas panhandle is riddled with ghost towns. All are a testament to the hopes and dreams of their inhabitants, who only wanted to carve out a piece of Earth for themselves and their families. The hunt for a better way of life in these towns, produced nothing more than legends and memories.

Like the story of an industrial camp that became a bustling town, before simply disappearing and becoming a ghost town.

Sher-Han originally started out as an industrial camp near the Oklahoma border in the Texas panhandle. The community originally was made up of three separate camps from three separate companies.

Due to the lack of paved roads at the time, housing was provided for workers and their families. Supposedly, at one point there was over 300 people who called Sher-Han home. There was a baptist church, recreational areas, and even a 9-hole golf course. The community had a grocery store, and their basic needs were pretty much covered.

Things were going well for the community, until the 1960s. It was then that things took a turn for Sher-Han, and the exodus began.

Supposedly, part of it was paved roads. We've seen this with other ghost towns in the area. Instead of living next to where you work, you commute thanks to roads that are easier to travel.

Another issue was the fact that you had so many families living next to what could potentially be a very deadly situation. According to legend, the companies responsible for the community decided they didn't like the liability of having so many families living next to something that could be potentially explosive.

Families were urged to pack up and move out. Some took their houses with them. Others simply hit the road and moved on.

When you go to find Sher-Han on Google maps, you come up with nothing. I tried several different ways of searching for the town, and nothing came up.

All that remains, supposedly, of Sher-Han is old foundations, some sidewalks, and memories.