5 Random and Fun Facts About Kilgore

Do you know why Kilgore is known as the “City of Stars?”  It's tied to the holiday season and it's more proof that Hallmark Christmas movies should really be on year-round.  Check out these fun facts about Kilgore and you'll be a huge hit at East Texas trivia parties.

Our studios are in Tyler, but many of our co-workers live in other cities around East Texas, and frankly, East Texas is the kind of place that's all-encompassing and blends together at times.  If you grew up in Lindale, chances are you had a best friend in Mineola or Tyler, and now that you're grown up you probably drive to your friend's house in Longview to hang out for the day. East Texas is one big city with a few cows and fields scattered throughout.

East Texas has a neighborhood vibe all its own at times, but it's fun to highlight each town's uniqueness too.  Yesterday we gave Athens some love and today it's Kilgore's turn.

5 Random and Fun Facts About Kilgore

1.  Kilgore is known as the "City of Stars," according to TourTexas.com "for all of the lighted stars atop the oil derricks that shine down over the town during the Christmas season."  It's gorgeous, and you don't need a telescope to view them.

2.  Kilgore was settled in 1872 when a rail line was built to connect Longview and Palestine.  Oil was discovered in 1930 and that attracted other settlers and helped put Kilgore on the map, literally.  By the end of the 1930s, there were almost 1,200 oil derricks around the city with most of those in one square block that became known as the World’s Richest Acre. TourTexas.com put it this way, "The town was rich with so much oil that they actually drilled a well right through the terrazzo floor of Kilgore National Bank!"

3.  The holidays in Kilgore are spectacular.  There's the traditional Christmas parade, the tour of homes, the Rangerettes Christmas Show, and the Snowhill Festival that lets you tube down Mount Kilgore that's been drenched in fake snow.  It's magical.

4.  Kilgore is home to the Texas Broadcast Museum that showcases the history of radio stations like ours and fosters imagination and helps launch new careers in the world of broadcasting.  The museum also hosts the Texas Radio Hall of Fame, and many heroes of mine are recognized there.

5.  Kilgore's population is over 10,000 now, but when it was first settled they were lucky to keep 700 people around.  The population dipped to 500 in the 1930s and many businesses had to close before new people arrived and things started picking up.  The oil and gas industry, Kilgore College, and more than five hundred other businesses help keep things steady now.

Kilgore is an East Texas gem and it's a great stop on a road trip!  Especially during the holidays.