We The People: This Day in History, November 8

WACO, Texas (KWTX) - On November 8, 1894, the Cotton Palace held a grand opening, according to the Taylor Museum of Waco and McLennan County History.

When Anglo-American settlers arrived in Texas, they brought a strong cotton-growing tradition.

Waco, recognizing cotton’s economic importance, styled itself the “Cotton Capital of the South” and launched the Texas Cotton Palace exposition to celebrate the harvest.

Unfortunately, a devastating fire in 1895 destroyed the exhibition hall, halting festivities for fifteen years.

The Cotton Palace reopened in 1910 with attractions including a racetrack, carnival grounds with a Ferris wheel, and a wooden roller coaster.

The Cotton Palace closed permanently in 1930 due to the decline of the cotton market and the Great Depression.

Its legacy lives on today through Waco’s Historic Festival on the Brazos, formerly known as Waco Cotton Palace.