Boomtown

There's something different about Texas. But how do you define it without resorting to cliches about cowboys and oilmen? At Texas Monthly, we think the answer is through stories — stories like the ones we've been telling for almost 50 years. On State of Mind, you'll hear those stories from our talented writers and from a wide array of other Texans. Each of them is a window into the experience of life here. Join us each week for a new story about life in the Lone Star State, from the Texas Monthly team behind “Boomtown,” “One by Willie,” and “Tom Brown's Body.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From our friends at Wyoming Public Media comes a preview episode, ‘Ghost Town(ing)’, from The Modern West podcast, where the team goes looking for the ghosts of an old silver mining community called Teller City to see if they have any lessons for how the nearby town of Walden, Colorado can keep from falling into the same cycles of boom and bust.  Why are we so fascinated by old ghost towns? And what can they teach us? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From the team behind the hit podcast American Skyjacker comes a new series about the true adventure of a legendary criminal and unlikely hero. Between 1987 and 2001, Elden Kidd crossed over 1000 immigrants from Mexico into the United States, utilizing wild, harrowing, and sometimes comical schemes to outwit authorities on both sides of the border. American Coyote is out now. Listen and subscribe to hear the premiere episodes. New episodes publish every Tuesday morning. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2016, a popular high school senior mysteriously disappeared on the night before Thanksgiving. His remains were found two years later. What happened to Tom Brown in the small town of Canadian, Texas that night? It seems everyone in town’s become a suspect, including Tom’s family, friends, the local sheriff, and a high-flying private investigator. Acclaimed writer Skip Hollandsworth digs into the mystery that’s torn this town apart in this eight-part true crime podcast series. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Christian Wallace talks to some familiar faces from the Boomtown series in an attempt to understand what happened on April 20, 2020—when oil prices went negative for the first time in history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Record-breaking oil production in the Permian Basin has brought the boom to the doorstep of the Big Bend for the first time. Is it too late to save this pristine landscape? Upstart: Find out how low your rate is at upstart.com/boomtown. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

No oil and gas baron since John D. Rockefeller has made more of an impact on society than George P. Mitchell. But this son of poor Greek immigrants who died a billionaire wanted to leave a legacy beyond oil and gas. Upstart: Find out how low your rate is at upstart.com/boomtown. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Christian talks with renowned business writer Bethany McLean about how the finances of fracking aren't what they're cracked up to be. Upstart: Find out how low your rate is at upstart.com/boomtown. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The uneasy alliance between ranchers and the oil industry goes all the way back to the early wildcatting days in West Texas. But today, that relationship is more fraught than ever. SimpliSafe: Get free shipping plus a 60-day money-back guarantee at SimpliSafe.com/boomtown. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Permian Basin is the birthplace of Friday Night Lights. But the historic oil boom threatens beloved high school football traditions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

During booms, the Permian Basin sees a rise in prostitution charges. But misperceptions and stereotypes about sex work have led to policies that may actually harm the women involved. SimpliSafe: Get free shipping plus a 60-day money-back guarantee at SimpliSafe.com/boomtown Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We explore a different kind of boom in the Permian Basin. Meet the women working at a lingerie coffee shop, a “breastaurant,” and two area strip clubs. Upstart: Find out how low your rate is at Upstart.com/boomtown. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the Permian Basin, the rewards of roughnecking come with incredible risk. For one Andrews family, that danger became a true nightmare. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A devastating bust transforms the Permian from a promised land into a wasteland. Then, thanks to a quiet, unassuming Texas oilman named George Mitchell, the region comes roaring back. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We go back to 1923, and the Santa Rita No. 1, the well that put West Texas oil on the map. We recount the beginnings of rowdy boomtowns and the swaggering wildcatters whose influence would eventually lead all the way to the White House. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Host Christian Wallace takes us back to his hometown in the Permian Basin, which is nearly unrecognizable to him today. We meet a few of the people whose lives have been upended by the biggest oil boom in U.S. history. Upstart: Find out how low your Upstart rate is at Upstart.com/Boomtown. Native: Get 20% off your first purchase at NativeDeodorant.com, using promo code BOOMTOWN at checkout. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a rugged corner of West Texas, billionaire wildcatters and roughnecks are fueling an oil boom so big it’s reshaping our climate, our economy, and our geopolitics.    Boomtown is a 10-part podcast series, with new episodes publishing every Tuesday starting December 10, 2019. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices