Quanah

Quanah was named after Quanah Parker, known as the last chief of the Comanches. His mother, Cynthia Ann Parker, was captured in 1820 by the Comanches. She became assimilated into the group, marrying a Comanche and having children, of whom Quanah was the first. She was later "rescued" by the white settlers in a location near Copper Breaks south of town, and never allowed contact with her husband or children again, starving herself to death two years later. Quanah went on to lead a large band of Comanches in attacks against hunters and the US Army in an effort to retain tribal lands and save the great buffalo herds, which the whites were mercilessly and wastefully killing off at an alarming rate. He participated in many famous battles throughout the Panhandle, including the Second Battle of Adobe Walls, near modern-day Borger. When finally cornered at Palo Duro Canyon in 1875, Quanah's band was the last group of free Plains Indians to be forced onto a reservation, bringing an end to the Red River War. Quanah subsequently became something of an advocate for westernization, quickly learning English and Spanish and converting to a form of Christianity. He was eventually named chief of all the Comanche people. By 1905 he was parading with Geronimo in the inaugural parade for Theodore Roosevelt, with whom he went on occasional hunting trips. Quanah Parker is now buried at Fort Sills in Oklahoma.

By car, Quanah is most easily accessible by US Route 287, halfway between Childress and Vernon. The second option is by Texas Route 6 which connects the city with Eldorado, Oklahoma to the north, and Copper Breaks State Park to the south.
The nearest commercial airport is in Wichita Falls

A car is the best option. Almost everything lies along the main strip of US 287.

• Hardeman County Museum

  address: 105 Green St
  The lower floor of this old jail, built in 1891, has been transformed into exhibit space, while the second floor preserves original jail cells.

• Quanah Acme and Pacific Depot Museum

  phone: +1 940 663-5272
  address: 100 Mercer St
  A recently refurbished branch of the county museum.

• Quanah Memorial Park CemeteryWith a 160-year history, the cemetery has graves including that of Texas Ranger Captain Bill McDonald and that of Joe Earle, who was killed by Indians even before the founding of the town.

• Quanah Parker MonumentOn the Courthouse Square.

• Quanah RocketThis US Army meteorological rocket was named after the city in honor of Quanah-born Research Meteorologist Kenneth R. Jenkins who served in the Upper Atmosphere Tech Area at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.

• Quanah City Pool

  phone: +1 940 663-8196
  address: 403 Good St
  Cool off at the local municipal swimming pool.

• Quanah Ranch Rodeo

  phone: +1 940 663-2222
  Held on the last weekend of June.

Like many small towns in the area, antiques are the only truly interesting shopping to be had.

• Past & Present

  phone: +1 940 663-6300
  address: 1800 E 11th St

• Rustic Relics

  phone: +1 940 663-2119
  address: 210 W 11th St

Practically everything is located on the main drag, 11th Street, otherwise known as US 287. In addition to a Pizza Hut, Subway, and Sonic, you will find the following local outfits.

• Briscoe Family Restaurant

  phone: +1 940 663-2036
  address: 1500 W 11th St

• Dutch's Restaurant

  phone: +1 940 663-2435
  address: 1501 W 11th St

• Ken's Restaurant

  phone: +1 940 663-2392
  address: 302 West 11th St

• Medicine Mound Depot Restaurant

  phone: +1 940 663-5619
  address: 1802 Highway 287 E

• Red's Drive-In

  phone: +1 940 663-5087
  address: 103 E 11th St

• Seventh & Main Espresso Cafe

  phone: +1 940 663-5341
  address: 610 S Main St

All the hotels are located on 11th Street/US 287.

• Best Western Quanah Inn

  phone: +1 940 663-5407
  address: 1100 11th St

• Casa Royale Inn

  phone: +1 940 663-6341
  address: 1500 W 11th St

• Copper Breaks State Park is just south on Texas Route 6, offering camping, hiking and a couple of lakes.
• Medicine Mound Museum, about 4 miles south on farm road 1167 east of town. Medicine Mound, a Texas ghost town located east of the mounds themselves, saw its last residents in the 1950s but has an interesting museum housed in one of the original buildings.