by Monica Esquibel
Palo Alto College
In 1990 Dilley was chosen for a site to build a new 1,000-bed state prison. The population in 1990 was 2,632. The prison is the main source for people’s income in Dilley. Many crops are grown such as watermelon, cabbage, carrots, cucumbers in the spring all the vegetables are donated to the food bank in Pearsall. Then the are distributed to the local people in the town. About 250 acres are farmed and the total acreage on the prison grounds is 460 acres. Today Frank Moffet, is the local veterinarian in the quiet town of Dilley. Mr. Moffet takes care of all the animals for the prison. A new hospital was constructed in 1950. In 1965 Dilley had a clinic and a rest home. The population was 2,318 by 1967. By 1987 Dilley had an estimated population of 2,773 and 51 business operations. Oil exploration in the region was encouraged by a horizontal-drilling technology developed in the late 1980s. In 2006 the mayor of Dilley is Russell J. Foster he has been the mayor since 2000. He has made improvements such as restaurants, three hotels and a car dealership. And Dilley ISD has seen many improvements, including a new gym, new computers, bigger library and new textbooks for the students. Dilley now has population 3674, and most of the area is farm land. Dilley is no longer known for the railroad that created the town or the prison but it is now know for the sweet taste of watermelon and peanuts. Dilley has a dry peanut plant and the largest producer of watermelon. In the spring you can enjoy a taste of Dilley, in the spring festal.