Local History

Roberts County grew out of open-range cattle ranching in the 1870s and 1880s

Roberts County was carved from large ranching operations after the Army pushed out Comanche and Kiowa bands in 1874-75. Its county seat Miami still hosts a National Cow Calling Contest that has run every year since 1949.

Roberts County History & Culture

The area that became Roberts County was home to Plains Apaches and later Comanches. That changed after the Red River War of 1874-75. Those tribes were removed to reservations.

Ranchers moved in fast. Henry Whiteside Cresswell set up a major ranch in 1877. The Southern Kansas Railway arrived in 1887. The rail line made the area a shipping point for large outfits like the Turkey Track and Cross Bar ranches. The county was officially organized in January 1889. Miami became the county seat.

Miami is the only incorporated town in Roberts County. The Handbook of Texas once called it 'the last real cowtown in the Panhandle.' Cattle are still central to the county's life and economy.

Since 1949, Miami has held its National Cow Calling Contest. It is a local tradition tied to the county's ranching roots. The county's 1913 courthouse still stands in Miami.

Source to confirm: Handbook of Texas Online — Roberts County

More Roberts County notes

Property Tax

One office handles both appraisal and tax bills in Roberts County

Roberts County has a single office that serves as both the appraisal district and the tax assessor-collector, so you deal with one place for property values and tax payments.

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Agricultural Valuation

Most rural land in Roberts County is taxed on what it can produce, not what it would sell for

Land used for cattle grazing or crops can qualify for a lower tax value based on what the land produces. But if that use stops, back taxes called a rollback tax can come due.

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Groundwater

Water wells here draw from the Ogallala Aquifer, which is managed and slowly declining

Most water in Roberts County comes from the Ogallala Aquifer, the largest in the U.S., but pumping exceeds recharge rates, and new wells above a certain size require a permit from the High Plains Underground Water Conservation District.

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Wildfire Hazard

Wildfire is a real risk in Roberts County, especially in dry and windy weather

The flat, dry grasslands of the Panhandle burn fast when winds pick up, and Roberts County has seen large grass fires that move quickly across open land and roads.

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