In April 1887, J. T. Berry established a site for a town after he chose a well-watered section along the way of the Fort Worth and Denver City Railroad, which had begun construction across the Texas Panhandle. It was meant to be built as the main trading post for the region. It became that with numerous railways and later became one of the busiest cattle shipping posts in the world.
There is some debate over the origin of Amarillo's name, but it probably derives from yellow wildflowers that were plentiful during the spring and summer or the nearby Amarillo Lake and Amarillo Creek, named in turn for the yellow soil along their banks and shores. In Spanish, amarillo means yellow.
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