Organized 1858 and named in honor of Matthias and Josiah P. Wilbarger, early Texas settlers. Josiah, a surveyor, had become famous as the man who lived 12 years after being scalped by Comanches, 1833, near Austin. He had saved his life by putting a wool sock on his head; he was rescued next day by neighbors. An adobe house built 1878 by Jonathan and C. F. Doan, the first Wilbarger County settlers, marks the Red River crossing of the famous Western Cattle Trail. Vernon (formerly Eagle Flat) became county seat in 1881. The first railroad reached town, 1886. (1968)