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Shortly after the Doans settled in the north part of the county, a
trading post was located at Condon Springs, which is now the site of
Hillcrest Country Club, and a community was established there as Eagle
Flat, in recognition of the many eagles nesting in the area.
Though there may be others, two
prominent theories abound as to how Vernon got its
name, though history has not substantiated one over the other. The
first is that the town was first called Eagle Flats, due to the local
eagle nesting population. The name was
rejected by postal authorities due to other offices with "Eagle" in
the name. So, the town named itself after George Washington's Mount
Vernon. The
second theory is that the town was named after Vernon Brown, a
whisky drummer, the first to call on the new town site, and who promised
free samples of his wares if the then-new town was named after him.
It likely that the first theory is correct, however nobody really knows
for sure. What we do know is that the name was changed by U.S.
Postal authorities to Vernon after several other names were given
consideration.
The original town-site was laid out on a
half-section of land in 1880.
The first school in Vernon
was a one room, sod covered dugout. L. N. Perkins was the teacher
in 1880. Mrs. A. T. Boger taught the first public school in a
dug-out east of Vernon, a term that last four months. Her salary was
$12.50 a month. Subsequent teachers were: Prof. Nye, Judge J. R.
Tolbert, Miss Hattie Farrell (identified as Mrs. J. L. Swartwood), and
Prof. E. L. Witty. A succession of superintendents of schools:
Judge Tolbert, Joe Eagle, Prof. Johnson, T. S. Cox, and W. T. Potter.
Founded 1882 in a dugout, Vernon drugstore was to be noted as the
oldest drugstore in the county. The present building was erected
1901. In 1958, store filled its 1,000,000th prescription
The first actual building in the county was build in 1884 and housed
the office of Dr. H. H. Rhoads, Vernon county's health officer for 40
years. Dr. Rhoads co-owned the building.
The first newspaper in the county, the "Vernon Hornet," had its shop
in the store building.
The city was incorporated in an
election on April 3, 1889.
The first meeting of the City Council
after incorporation was later that month. A
special election was called to elect officers for the town. The
first officers were:
| James R. Tolbert |
mayor |
| S. W. Mabry |
alderman |
| Joe Schmidt |
alderman |
| W. E. Johnston |
alderman |
| John R. Wood |
alderman |
| George Langley |
alderman |
| John L. Hammond |
city marshal |
| John Brown |
city secretary |
| H. C. Thompson |
city attorney |
One of the early ordinances decreed it "unlawful to ride or drive
faster than a slow lope through the streets of said city."
Speeders... even then.
Occupation taxes of $2.50 were levied against those who had a trade
or profession. Among others, those made to pay were land agents,
lawyers, physicians and dentists.
In April, 1916, the City Commission form was adopted. The
following officers were elected:
| L. P. Bonner, mayor |
| M. G. Neathery, commissioner |
| J. P. King, commissioner |
| Harper Reed, commissioner |
| E. L. Witty, commissioner |
Mayors of the City of Vernon 1889-1931:
| James R. Tolbert |
1889-1890 |
| R. S. Kelly, (resigned) |
1890-1892 |
| M.E. Smith |
1892-1894 |
| George Anderson, (resigned)
|
1894-1897 |
| J. S. Massie |
1897-1898 |
| J. A. Lucky |
1898-1902 |
| S. P. Huff, (resigned Dec. 13) |
1902 |
| Bismark Houssels, acting mayor |
|
| R. W. Hall |
1903-1908 |
| L. P. Bonner |
1908-1912 |
| I. S. Sewall |
1912-1916 |
| L. P. Bonner |
1916-1918 |
| Harry Mason |
1918-1926 |
| H. D. Hockersmith |
1926-1931 |
Vernon City secretaries 1890-1931:
| John Brown |
1890 |
| A. C. McKinney |
1891 |
| A. M. Hiatt |
1892-1896 |
| J. Y. Scott |
1896-1898 |
| C. F. Lanter |
1898-1899 |
| L. C. Eakle |
1899-1906 |
| R. B. Sherrill |
1906-1910 |
| S. H. Hall |
1910-1914 |
| T. P. Lisman, Jr. |
1914-1916 |
| S. h. Hall |
1916-1931 |
Today Vernon remains the
administrative, manufacturing, and educational center of the county. Industries
are
agricultural supplies and processing, seed propagation, textiles, meat
packing, cottonseed, and alfalfa milling.
Population
11,660 (2000) 12,001 (1990)
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