Settlement:

    The first settlers began to arrive near the present day town of Cisco in the late 1870's. The original settlement was named Red Gap. When in 1881 the  Houston and Texas Central Railway crossed the Texas and Pacific, the settlement picked up and relocated to this valuable intersection.

     In 1884 the settlement  was officially recognized as a town and its name was changed to Cisco. The town was named in honor of  John A. Cisco, a New York financier largely responsible for the building of the Houston and Texas Central.

     During the oil boom of 1919-1920 Cisco reached a peak population of 15,000. Cisco was a magnet for the wealthy and upper class as exhibited by the still standing two story Victorian homes that grace the hills west of downtown.

Santa Clause Bank Robbery:

     December 23 1927 was the bloodiest and one of the most remembered days in Cisco's colorful history. 

     No one thought much when a man dressed in a Santa Clause suit was seen walking down the street for it was the season. No one paid any attention when he went into the First national Bank of Cisco. No one thought it strange as he approached the teller but all that changed when Santa produced a gun and informed the employees and customers that it was a stick up. No one had noticed the other three men in the bank either until like good little elves following Santa's lead they produced guns to to help convince all inside they were not kidding.

     In the ensuing madness a female customer and her four year old daughter escaped through a side door and set off to warn the police and citizens of Cisco of the in progress bank robbery. The police and town folks alike responded. The local hardware store was soon busy arming all who came through its doors.

Discover in 1917 of the Ranger Oil field and the subsequent oil boom brought Cisco  population to around 15,000 by 1920. Cisco was a magnet for the wealthy and upper class as exhibited by the still standing two story Victorian homes that grace the hills west of downtown and many others that dot outlying area.

      Oil booms mean money and jobs.  Boom towns always attract oil field workers, executives and the plethora of support industries.  Wherever there is money and large numbers of people there are sure to be entrepreneurs.

      One such entrepreneur was Conrad Hilton. Local legend has it that Conrad Hilton came to Cisco hoping to start a new Bank. Upon arriving he went to check into the only Hotel in town the Mobley. He was told that rooms were rented in 8 hour shifts and with multiple renters per room. Mr. Hilton replied that this was not acceptable and wanted his own room and for 24hrs at a time. The conversation was overheard by a man who was sitting in the lobby reading a paper. The man turned to Mr. Conrad and told him there was indeed such a room but it was his and if he wanted it he could buy it but it came with all the keys to all the rooms in the Hotel. For this was Mr. Mobley and this was his Hotel. The deal was done and Conrad Hilton did not become a successful banker but as they say the rest is history.

     I guess you will have to visit the Mobley Museum to see if this is how it really happened.

     A gun fight broke out with towns people and police firing at the four robbers and the robbers returning their fire. A running gun battle ensued as the robbers tried to make a hasty escape. A scene reminiscent of the Dalton Gang in Coffeyville, Kansas excepting that the four Santa Clause robbers escaped alive. The haul $12,500 in cash and $150,000 worth of securities. One would die within days from gunshots received in the robbery. Two would be sentenced to the electric chair (one was eventually electrocuted) and the remaining robber was sentenced to life in imprisonment( paroled in 1956). In the wake of the robbery the Cisco populace would fare far worse than the robbers.  Three peace officers would die  and seven citizens were left to recuperate from wounds received in the  gun battle.

     One would think this was the end of the story but the black hand of fate was not through with Cisco Texas. Marshall Ratliffe aka Santa Clause was transferred back to Eastland county to stand before a sanity hearing to decide if he was sane enough to be executed.  While awaiting the hearing Ratliffe attempted an escape and mortally wounded a beloved deputy sheriff. A large mob removed Ratliffe from the jail and stung him up from a telegraph pole guy wire.  The first rope broke but the second one did not.

   This was after all the Roaring '20's. The era when bank robbers became national icons. Surprisingly these robbers enjoyed no such fame but several books and pamphlets have been written on the subject.

First National Bank. The Santa Clause Bank Robbery,  1958

A.C. Greene, The Santa Clause Bank Robbery,  1972

reprinted in 1999 UNT press

Duane k. Hale, The Santa Clause Bank Robbery,  2000

For a more detailed account

 The Williamson Dam was completed in 1920,  formatting  Lake Cisco.  At its base what was billed as the largest concrete swimming pool in the world was constructed. in addition to the pool the complex boasted a two story building which housed a skating rink upstairs. A zoo, an amusement park with rides, a miniature golf course and a park filled out this amusement complex.  For decades it thousands of tourists to Cisco. It has been stated that on many Fourth of July weekends upwards of 50.000 people were in attendance. The hollow dam was open to the public but has sense been closed to tourists.  The pool closed in the 1970s and the two story building that housed the skating rink burned a few years later. The property is now in a state of disrepair, but one is still taken aback by the immensity of the pool. Lets hope that one day soon someone decides to tackle the enormous task of restoring it to some semblance of its once great splendor.

 An interesting side note:
During the 1920s the high school football team, the Loboes, were called the Big Dam Loboes. Think they could get away with that today....emmmmm....Probably not!