Map - Muleshoe, Texas (Muleshoe)

Muleshoe is a city in Bailey County, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1913, when the Pecos and Northern Texas Railway built an 88 mi line from Farwell, Texas, to Lubbock through northern Bailey County. In 1926, Muleshoe was incorporated. Its population was 5,158 at the 2010 census. The county seat of Bailey County, it is home to the National Mule Memorial.

The Muleshoe Heritage Center, located off the combined U.S. Routes 70 and 84, is a popular museum that commemorates the importance of ranching to West Texas. The complex has several unique buildings originally from Bailey County that display the living conditions of the area from the late 19th to the mid-20th centuries.

The Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge is located some 20 mi to the south on State Highway 214. Founded in 1935, the refuge is the oldest of its kind in Texas. It is a 5000 acre wintering area for migratory waterfowl flying from Canada to Mexico. It contains the largest number of sandhill cranes in North America.

The name Muleshoe can be traced in the region to Henry Black, when he registered a brand on November 12, 1860. In 1877, Black purchased three houses on 40000 acre in Stephens County, naming it Muleshoe Ranch. Later, he built a large ranch house and a log schoolhouse, and established a small cemetery for family members. Muleshoe Ranch was supposedly named after the owner found a mule shoe in the soil.

On April 23, 1906, the Gulf, Santa Fe and Northwestern Railway Company and the Pecos and Northern Texas Railway Company merged (eventual successor BNSF Railway) and were chartered to construct a railway between Lubbock and Farwell on the New Mexico border. From 1901 to 1915, communities along the future railway contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to its construction. Muleshoe was founded in 1913 when the Pecos and Northern Texas Railway laid rails across northern Bailey County; residents borrowed the name from the nearby Muleshoe Ranch.

Soon after the railroad passed through Muleshoe, the town expanded rapidly. In 1917, Muleshoe became the county seat after the county was organized, but it was not incorporated until 1926. Muleshoe continued to grow quickly, and by 1930, 800 residents were in the town. Three decades later, Muleshoe had tripled in population to 3,871. In 1970, Muleshoe reached its pinnacle at over 5,000 residents, 200 businesses, two hospitals, two banks, a library, a newspaper, and a radio station. During the 1970s and 1980s the population stagnated, and by the 1990s Muleshoe's population had begun to decrease. The population went from 5,048 in 1988 to 4,530 in 2000. The once lively and vibrant Main Street is now quiet, with many abandoned buildings. Many of the businesses that once called Main Street home are now on American Boulevard (US Highway 84/70).

During the early 1960s, Texas residents were eager to build a memorial to the mule for its strength and sparse eating habits, traits that endeared it to the pioneers. In war, the mule carried cannon; in peace, it hauled freight. Its small hooves allowed it to scale rocky areas. The Mule Memorial was first displayed on July 4, 1965, near the intersection of US 70/84. Muleshoe is the home of the world's largest mule shoe, at the Muleshoe Heritage Center.