After the fire, the railroad was beginning to consider the community of Aubrey as a stop for the railroad. This would mean that the local citizens would be able to ship their produce and agricultural products to other areas. The railroad was considering the route from Pilot Point to where Green Valley is now, which at the time was a booming settlement and had several businesses that were well established. The railroad officials were considering the route from near the east side of the current Lake Ray Roberts down, then down into the river bottom going southwest toward Green Valley.

The steam engines replenished their water supply in Tioga, but didn’t have enough to make it all of the way to Denton, so they were looking for a water supply between Tioga and Denton. Green Valley didn’t have the source of water that Aubrey had. The natives of Aubrey had built a big water well that was behind the row of businesses in the downtown area.

Water in the big well in Onega was abundant and could supply the huge coal burning engines as they made their way into Aubrey. So when making their decision as to which community to locate their stop, the Native American village of Onega was picked because of their water source. This eliminated the trains from going down into the river bottom for crossing to obtain water from the river. Flooding was frequent and would have made the crossing of the river bottom difficult.

Jim and Arthur Harmon’s father was among the crew that helped cut trees and whittle the trees into crossties that were used in building the original railroad tracks through Onega on its way to Mingo (a small settlement three miles east of Denton).

The making of the crossties was a major economic boost to the area. The oak trees and local labor were available in the area and was welcome after the big fire of the 1860's. The business district continued to prosper and was well on its way when another mysterious fire happened in 1887.

The construction of brick buildings was beginning to be used as the buildings were rebuilt. Most of the bricks were produced in Aubrey. They were not the best of quality, because there was too much sand in the bricks, and these buildings are all gone now.

The photo is of the Aubrey Depot which was located about where the scales are now to the peanut dryer and on back to the north. I am not certain when the depot was built, but since the post office stated in 1881 and the town changed its name to Aubrey that same year, makes me believe it must have been built in the same period.

Although I have numerous old photos, I would like to increase the collection of photos to share. If you know or have knowledge of old important photos, please share them with us, and I will pass this information along to everyone.