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2007 - 79th Annual Tom-Tom Winners

105 Huck Street - Yoakum, Tx 77995
361-293-2309

Yoakum in Brief
Yoakum is located partially in De Witt and Lavaca Counties. When the railroad was building northward through South Central Texas, B.F. Yoakum, the superintendent, was looking for a location to establish an maintenance facility and divide the route into northward and eastward branches. The May family, one of the many Irish families in the area who received land grants from the Mexican government, offered land for a townsite if the railroad would build their facilities here. The town was named for the man who made that decision.

Yoakum immediately became a center of business and commerce. With the advent of refrigerated cars, it became more efficient to ship carcasses rather than live cattle. The abundance of hides and leather tanning facility formed the foundation for a leather manufacturing industry that caused Yoakum to be known as the "Leather Capital of the World." There are currently nine leather manufacturing firms with nationwide product distribution that headquarters in Yoakum.

Another contributor to the Yoakum economy was the tomato industry. Community leaders discovered a tomato variety that would prosper locally and fill a void in the seasonal production. Since the railroad already had an ice manufacturing plant for shipping, this seemed to be a great cash crop for local farmers. For almost 30 years (lathe '20's through late '50's) Yoakum shipped untold n umbers of refrigerated cars filled with tomatoes. This era is still commemorated with the Tom-Tom Celebration on the first weekend in June.

Because Yoakum has always been a center of business and commerce, it became known as the "hub City of South Texas." Located equal distance from Corpus Christi, San Antonio, Austin and Houston, it still benefits from the strategic location selected by the railroad.

Read more on Yoakum's History.

Associated Links
More on Yoakum, Texas
City Of Yoakum
Yoakum Travel Guide
Bob Phillips ~Texas Country Reporter

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