Buckley Burton Paddock (1844-1922) was born in Ohio and lived in Wisconsin until he was fifteen. At the start of the Civil War, he enlisted in company K of the First Mississippi Cavalry, Army of Tennessee. He rose to the rank of commander and led a select espionage unit. After the war, Paddock practiced law and moved to Fort Worth, Texas, in the fall of 1872. He was an active businessman and civil leader, and best known as the editor of the Fort Worth Democrat (1873-1881). He served as president of the Fort Worth and Rio Grande Railway Company (1885-1889), as founder and executive secretary of the Fort Worth Board of Trade (1901-1909) and Fort Worth mayor (1892-1900).
Paddock used all his positions to help promote Fort Worth, as it was still a small establishment when he first arrived. As president of the Railway Company, he helped to establish its reputation as a center for trade, distribution, and travel. By the time of his death, Paddock had become a major figure in local and state politics, and even had a measure of national recognition.
Source:
Duncan, Patricia L. “Paddock, Buckley Burton.” Handbook of Texas Online. Accessed
June 8, 2010.
The Buckley Burton Paddock Papers, 1865-1925, contain letters, letterpress books, minutes, journal, ledgers, record books, memorandum books, account books, receipts, scrapbooks, and newspaper clippings. The papers relate to the financing and the building of the Fort Worth and Rio Grande Railroad, the Texas Spring Palace in Fort Worth, civic development of Fort Worth, the board of Trade of Fort Worth, and the publication of books on Fort Worth, Northwest Texas, and Texas.
This collection is open for research use.
Paddock (Buckley Burton) Papers, 1865-1925, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin.