Editing Leakey, Texas (section)

==History==
Archaeological excavations in the Frio Canyon region revealed Paleo-American, Archaic, and Neo-American occupations. Later, several Native American tribes, including [[Lipan Apache people|Lipan Apache]], [[Comanche]], and [[Tonkawa]] inhabited or traversed the area.<ref name="Texas Handbook">{{cite web | url = https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hll27 | title = Leakey, Texas | publisher = [[The Handbook of Texas]] online | access-date = 2009-07-03}}</ref>

Anglo-American settlement of the area began in 1856 when John Leakey, his wife Nancy, and a few others settled near a spring along the banks of the [[Frio River]]. Shingles and lumber were produced from the abundant [[cypress]] and [[Cedrus|cedar]] trees. In its first few years, the community was a lonely outpost that was subject to frequent Indian raids, which continued until 1882. Growth accelerated after the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] as new families arrived.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~txreal/info/history.html | title = Frio Canyon History | publisher = Real County, TXGen Web Project | access-date = 2009-07-06}}</ref> In 1883, A.G. Vogel moved a post office from the community of Floral to Leakey. That same year, the [[Texas State Legislature]] created [[Edwards County, Texas|Edwards County]] and designated Leakey as the county seat less than a year later.<ref name="Small Town Research">{{cite web | url = http://www.accd.edu/pac/faculty/rhines/StudentProjects/2005/Leakey/Page%5B1%5D.html | title = Leakey, TX | work = Small Town Research Project | publisher = [[Palo Alto College]] | access-date = 2009-07-03 | url-status=dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20091018094002/http://www.accd.edu/pac/faculty/rhines/StudentProjects/2005/Leakey/page%5B1%5D.html | archive-date = 2009-10-18 }}</ref> 1883 was also the year that the area's first school was established on land donated by the Leakeys.<ref name="Hill Country">{{cite web | url = http://www.hillcountryrambling.com/thing.php?ID=3314 | title = Leakey School | work = Historical Markers in Leakey | publisher = HillCountryRambling.com | access-date = 2009-07-06 }}{{dead link|date=March 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> A new school building was completed in 1890.<ref name="Small Town Research"/> In 1891, the Edwards County seat was moved from Leakey to [[Rocksprings, Texas|Rocksprings]].<ref name="Small Town Research"/> During the early 1900s, ranching superseded lumber, cotton cultivation, and corn production in importance to the local economy. The raising of Angora goats was a major component of the ranching industry. In 1902, the school in Leakey had a total enrollment of 102 students.<ref name="Small Town Research"/> The town's population was estimated to be 318 in 1904.

Real County was created from parts of Edwards, [[Bandera County, Texas|Bandera]], and [[Kerr County, Texas|Kerr]] Counties in the spring of 1913, with Leakey as the county seat.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hcr04 | title = Real County, Texas | publisher = [[The Handbook of Texas]] online | access-date = 2009-07-03}}</ref> In 1919, Real County Judge Ed Kelly established the [[Leakey Independent School District]].<ref name="Small Town Research"/><ref name="Hill Country"/> By the mid-1920s, the population had declined to around 120.<ref name="Texas Escapes"/> A larger school building was completed in 1930. Soon after, several nearby schools, including West Frio, Cypress Creek, Rio Frio, Exile, Stanford, Dry Frio, and Harper were consolidated with Leakey schools.<ref name="Hill Country"/>

Leakey was formally incorporated on June 11, 1951.<ref name="Texas Handbook"/> The population fluctuated during the latter half of the 20th century. Leakey was home to 450 people in 1960, 393 in 1970, 468 in 1980, and 399 in 1990. By 2000, there were 387 residents living in Leakey, representing a 3.01% decrease in population since the last census was conducted in 1990.

On March 29, 2017, thirteen senior citizens from the First Baptist Church of [[New Braunfels, Texas|New Braunfels]] in [[Comal County, Texas|Comal County]] who had completed a retreat at Alto Frio were killed when Jack D. Young, the 20-year-old driver of a pickup, crashed into the church minivan on [[U.S. Highway 83]] inside [[Uvalde County, Texas|Uvalde County]] near the state park. One person survived the crash in critical condition. The accident was one of the deadliest in memory in the Leakey area.<ref>"Speed a factor in deaths: It's not known if people on bus were using seat belts", ''[[San Antonio Express-News]]'', March 31, 2017, pp. 1, A10.</ref> Young told a witness, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry" and said that he had been on his [[cell phone]] at the time of the accident. Jody Kuchler, a welder from Leakey who saw the accident, said that the driver of the church vehicle moved over to try to avoid Young's incoming pickup but was blocked by the guard rail.<ref>Zeke McCormack, "Death Truck: Witness: Pickup driver said he was on phone", ''San Antonio Express-News'', April 1, 2017, pp. 1, A8.</ref>