Plainview Community
(Home Demonstration Club Collection)

The beginning of Plainview Community was in the "Eighties". Some of the early settlers were C. E. Bishop, J. T. Bratcher, Henry Riek, W. Y. Barnett, J. B. Baxter, Mr. Irby, P. Collier and E. E. Dean. These men saw the necessity for a school.

A one-room school building was erected which was first known as Bernard School # 2. Miss Egan was the first teacher and her salary was $25.00 per month, $5.00 of which she paid to the Riek family for board.

After the schoolhouse was built, a Baptist Sunday School was organized. A church followed and S. G. Christal of Decatur was the first pastor. A discussion came up as to what name to give this church and community. Rev. Christal suggested the name Plainview mentioning how the settlement could be seen from a long distance.

As new people continued to move into this community, the need of a church building arose. C. R. Moreman and wife of Denton, parents of Mrs. W. Y. Barnett, donated land for said church a short distance from the school building. A church building was erected in the early nineties and has been known ever since as Plainview Baptist Church. A plot of ground adjoining the church property was purchased from W. L. Walker in 1898 to be used as a cemetery. This Mr. Walker was the first person to be buried in the cemetery. His death occurred a few months after the purchase.

Two criminals moved into the community from Indian Territory about 1896. They were known as Bill Stanton and Bill Coin. They seemed to be hard-working farmers thereby gaining their neighbors' confidence. A short time after their arrival people began missing things from their homes along with feed and harness. This went on for a year or two before the culprits were discovered.

In order to capture the men who had escaped, the wife of Stanton, a beautiful woman, was held a prisoner at Henry Riek's home in hopes of capturing Stanton. He and his partner made several bold attempts to get the woman. All the men of the community took turns guarding the Riek home and searching the country for these desperados. Finally after several weeks, they grew bolder, with the result of Coin's being killed and Stanton wounded. In later years, Stanton wrote a letter from Indian Territory to a neighbor in Plainview community, saying that he lost a leg from the shot that he received in the fight.

Plainview has grown to be one of Denton County's prosperous Communities. Walter Bishop, son of C. E. Bishop; George Riek, son of Henry Riek; Joe Barnett and Mrs. J. H. Miller, children of W. Y. Barnett are survivors living today in the same community as their pioneer fathers. Mrs. Ava B. Miller Krum, Texas.