Walnut Bend, Texas

Walnut Bend is an unincorporated community in Cooke County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 59 in 2000. It is located within the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.

History
The area in what is known as Walnut Bend today was said to have been settled in the mid-1800s. The community most likely existed permanently in the early 1900s. The 1930 county highway map showed scattered homes in the community. The last half of the 20th century showed recreational development just north of Walnut Bend to bring tourists to Lake Texoma. One of these was the Horseshoe Bend Recreational Area. Its population was recorded as 100 in 1990 then went down to 59 in 2000.

A wildfire in Walnut Bend and nearby Callisburg burned the communities on December 29, 2005. There were at least 10 to 30 buildings destroyed, plus more outbuildings. At least 5000 acre of land were scorched. One person was killed in the area due to the fires.

Geography
Walnut Bend is located on Farm to Market Road 371, 12 mi northeast of Gainesville in northern Cooke County. It is near the Walnut Bend of the Red River and the Oklahoma state line.

Education
The Walnut Bend School was situated on the edge of the local oilfield in the 1930s. The Walnut Bend ISD was established in the 1940s and lost most of its area to Lake Texoma. Today, Walnut Bend is served by the Walnut Bend Independent School District. High school students in the area attend Callisburg High School in the Callisburg Independent School District.