Given to city 1929 in memory of pioneer William Penn Ruddick, farmer and dairyman, and Mrs. Ruddick. History was made here even before Ruddick arrived, however. In 1840 Colonel John Henry Moore and 90 Indian fighters wiped out a Comanche village on the Colorado nearby. The creek that runs through the park was named for Chief Lone Wolf of the Kiowa Indians, who camped along the creek banks. In 1880 Co. B of the Frontier Battalion, under Captain Sam McMurry, was ordered here to combat Indian attacks. With the coming of the Texas & Pacific Railroad in 1881, immigrants began to flood the area. W.P. Ruddick (1851-1914) and his wife Sarah (Hutchens) moved from Oregon and set up housekeeping in a half-dugout until lumber could be shipped from Fort Worth. Ruddick, a Quaker, was one of the first in Mitchell County to raise cotton. He also planted an orchard and operated a dairy, for which he transported the first registered Jersey and Hereford cattle into the county. He ranched and drilled water wells for his neighbors as well as himself. Soon after the donation of the original 20-acre park by Ruddick's heirs, an amphitheater and stage were built here. The park now contains 138 acres.

Galveston businessman Henry J. Runge (1859-1922), European-educated son of a German immigrant, bought the land and laid out the town of Arcadia in 1890. At that time he donated this site for use as a park. Later the Galveston County Commissioners Court named the park in his honor. First community-wide use of Runge Park was in 1938 for a dairy show that is still held yearly. Enlarged by the purchase of 10 acres in 1957, the grounds provide facilities for many recreational activities as well as the annual Galveston County Fair and Rodeo.

Early Texas town. Near site where Old Ox-Cart Road from San Antonio to Indianola crossed the Ojo de Agua (Spanish name meaning "eye of water" or spring) Creek. Here pioneer travelers found essentials of water, wood, and grass. Numerous Indian artifacts found nearby indicate that Karankawas, Tonkawas, Apaches, and Comanches camped or hunted in vicinity. First Anglo-American settlement here, in early 1850s, was named Sulphur Springs; in the late 1850s and 1860s the place was called Mineral Spring. In 1886 a group of Cuero merchants known as H. Runge and Company bought a large tract of land on which they platted the townsite of Runge. The San Antonio & Aransas Pass Railroad, called the "SAP", extended its line from Kenedy toward Houston and built a depot, a switch, and stockpens at Runge. The first post office was established here September 20, 1887. By 1890 Runge had grown to be the largest town in Karnes County. The public schools were organized in 1891 and Runge citizens engaged in many typical pioneer social and civic activities, including weekly band concerts held in the town square. The economy of the region has been sustained by farming, ranching, dairying, and petroleum production.

An important element in the development of San Marcos, the Sink Springs are a part of a system of springs in the area which feed the San Marcos River. The flow of the springs is forced by artesian pressure through the San Marcos fault. Since the late 19th century the Sink Springs, located on land once owned by Republic of Texas pioneers Thomas Jefferson Chambers and Edward Burleson, have provided water for a variety of purposes, including residential use, the irrigation of commercial farms, and the operation of a woolen mill and a dairy.

Mississippi native Daniel Webster "D.W." Gilbert (1854-1930) was one of three brothers who became Texas doctors. At age 20, he joined his brother, Franklin Monroe Gilbert, in Grapevine and began to study medicine under him. In 1879, he enrolled at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, graduating in 1881 with a medical degree.

Returning to Texas, D.W. wed Marietta Boardman in 1882. In 1886, then a widower with one son, D.W. married Fannie Trigg Roberts, a widow who also had one son. They later lived near this site in a large house he had built on a hill. The couple had nine other children; four of the boys became doctors.

From a small office he built on a corner of this land, Dr. Gilbert served his patients in the surrounding communities. He later purchased additional land and raised livestock, farmed, planted a peach orchard and operated the Gilbert Dairy, utilizing progressive farming methods. Later, he moved his office to Sowers, where he also operated a drugstore, mixing medicines and training others to become pharmacists.

When the town of Irving was laid out in 1903, Dr. Gilbert moved his office to a space near the local bank, which he helped organize. He later moved his office to the second story of the bank building. Dr. Gilbert continued to practice medicine in Irving until his death in 1930. Fannie Gilbert lived on the farmstead until she passed away in 1942. The home remained near this site until the 1950s, when it was demolished.

Dr. Gilbert was one of the most influential early citizens in and around Irving. He is remembered for his compassion, generosity and tireless commitment to helping others.

In 1891, a 20-acre "Little Lake" was built south of the Thurber townsite to supply water to the community. It soon proved inadequate, however, and five years later a 150-acre "Big Lake" was constructed here about a mile southeast of town. Texas and Pacific Coal Company president R.D. Hunter organized a hunting and fishing club at the Big Lake for company executives and staff. Water from the lake irrigated company-owned farmland in the valley below, and provided water for the nearby Thurber Dairy. The dairy's twin silos were still visible decades later.

Located on the Hidalgo-Willacy County Line, Stockholm was a Swedish community promoted by the Wallin, Johnson & Matson Land Co. of Minnesota. The Swedes, who settled here between 1912 and 1914, were attracted by the area's abundance of inexpensive, fertile farmland. They formed a farm club to share information and problems, and raised cotton, grain, and corn. Some were dairy farmers. Stockholm, also known as Turner Tract, had churches, a school, grocery store, and cotton gin. Near this site is the Stockholm Cemetery, one of the few physical reminders of the ghost town.

Missouri native George L. Leigh (d.1901) moved to Kerr County in 1878 for health reasons. He opened a mercantile establishment in Center Point (3.5 mi.S) with James Sellers and later served one term as county tax assessor. In 1883 he purchased a 640-acre tract here. With the help of his brother Edward, he enlarged the site to include over three thousand acres. Here Leigh ran a dairy and raised racing horses. From 1936 to 1943 the land was used as a guest ranch. Named for the ancestral home in England, the Stoneleigh Ranch remained in the Leigh family until 1960.

Built in 1874, two years after town was established. A fireplace in each room, a stairway of carved walnut. Builder J.C. Turner, Sr., was first East Texan to import jersey cattle. Skilled horseman, thoroughbred owner. Old well and dairy house nearby.

By 1855, settlers primarily from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee, as well as some of Spanish origin, were making their homes in this area and calling themselves Lucas Community because of their proximity to Lucas Creek. In 1858 a Church of Christ was organized, followed by a Methodist Church in 1859. Lucas Schoolhouse, located on this site, became a county polling place in 1860. A Roman Catholic congregation established St. Augustine Church in 1870. St. Augustine and Liberty schools were established before 1888. Friendship Baptist Church was organized that year. Lucas Community was home to a farming and ranching population.

They grew and raised their own produce, grains, dairy and meats. Cotton was the chief crop. In 1890, Sydney S. Smith applied for a U.S. Post Office in Lucas. The name Lucas already was in use elsewhere. According to local legend, French settler Joseph Peynagrosse chose the name Verdi for a river in his homeland. By the early 20th century, Verdi boasted schools, churches, a store, a Post Office, a blacksmith shop and cotton gins serving a large rural population.

The Lucas school had 101 students in 1904. In 1913 it was called the Verdi school and had 113 students and five teachers. The Verdi Post Office closed in 1916. The first high school senior class graduated in 1933. In 1954 the school was annexed to Pleasanton and the community declined. It was revived in 1979, when Verdi Community Center was established and became another focal point for the community. The story of the Verdi community is a vital part of Atascosa County's heritage and Texas history.