Alert

The Goodnight Ranch historical house will be undergoing restoration on its roof and chimneys from October 15th, 2024 through the first part of 2025. During this time, there will be no house tours. In lieu of house tours, optional programming will be available beginning November 5 during the 11am, 1pm, and 3pm tour times. Guests can visit the Learning Center for interpretive videos and information, the Visitor Center for our expanded gift shop, and walk the grounds for no charge.

Charles Goodnight was an innovator, entrepreneur, and true cowboy. Mary Ann Goodnight was an equal partner in their business ventures and marriage, serving as educator, doctor, and mother to much of the Panhandle. These two dynamic people shaped the imagination of generations. Molly was a cattlewoman in her own right, educated much of the Panhandle, and spurred the conservation movement to save the Southern Bison Herd. Charles served as a Texas Ranger scout, invented the chuckwagon, formed cattle drives, and with business partner John Adair, established the JA Ranch, the first cattle ranch in the Texas Panhandle in 1877 in the Palo Duro Canyon area. In 1887, Goodnight established the Goodnight-Thayer Cattle Company in present Armstrong County and built a spacious Folk-Victorian-style two-story ranch house. The Goodnight home is restored on its original site and features a 268-square-foot second floor sleeping porch with spectacular views of the countryside and the nearby bison herd that are actual descendants of the herd preserved and raised by Charles and Mary Ann Goodnight.

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Location

2000 US Hwy 287
Goodnight, TX 79226 

806-944-5591 for general information
806-670-5627 for school tours, adult group tours and large group reservations
Contact us
See map

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Hours

Tuesday to Saturday  
10 a.m.–5 p.m.

Tours of the Goodnight House
11 a.m., 1 p.m., and 3 p.m. 

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Tickets

Adult $5
Senior/Veteran/Teacher/First Responder $3
Child (6-17) $2
Child (5 and under) Free
Family (2 adults & 1 child) $8, each additional child $1

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Programs

Public Tours  
Living History Programs  
Special Events  
School Programs 

Windmill on the grounds

Plan Your Visit

Peer into pioneer prairie life during a tour of the Charles and Mary Ann Goodnight historic home.

Statue of Mary Ann Goodnight

Goodnight Ranch History

Charles Foxwing Goodnight was born March 5, 1836, on the family farm in Macoupin County, Illinois.

Dining room of the main ranch house

Support the Friends of Goodnight Ranch

Friends of Goodnight Ranch is a "Fiscally Sponsored Project" of the Friends of the Texas Historical Commission (a 501(C)(3) nonprofit charitable organization). Your gift will directly support this organization.

Events at Goodnight Ranch

Image of the JA brand in an iron gate

Red River War Series: The JA - First Ranch of the Panhandle

Saturday 11 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Cowboys and cattle drives - the very images of the Old West! The JA Ranch has a storied past and we hope you will join us to learn more about this very first ranch in the Texas Panhandle.

Image of snow falling on a farmhouse

Home for the Holidays at the Goodnight Ranch

Saturday 11 a.m. - 12 p.m.

The holidays bring to mind warm memories of home and family. We’d love to share some cherished moments of holiday meals enjoyed around the Goodnight dining table! Join us for a wonderful program by Goodnight Ranch educator, Madeleine Van Leunen.

Goodnight Ranch in the Blog

Historic Road Trip: Amarillo and Canyon

Amarillo’s heritage contains a surprisingly eclectic mix of cultural influences, from Native American leaders to legendary ranchers to the Americana of Route 66.

The city’s population surged in the late 1800s, when windmill-powered agricultural wells reached the deep water table, the railroad arrived, and thousands of nearby cattle were corralled and shipped to meatpacking centers in the north.

By the 1930s, cross-country automobile travel shifted into high gear thanks to new highways like the famous Route 66. The city’s distinctive blend of fiery, friendly folks endeared many travelers to its independent pioneer spirit.

Exploring the Quanah Parker Trail

Dozens of arrows, 22 feet tall, pierce the landscape of the Panhandle Plains. They commemorate Quanah Parker, last chief of the Comanche (Nʉmʉnʉʉ), and the territory called Comanchería where his people lived. Parker was the son of a Quahada Comanche man and a white woman, a heritage that made a lasting impact on his life.