Deep in the heart of Texas, surrounded by miles and miles of green grass, red earth, mesquite and juniper trees, windmills, pump supplies, and peanut driers, the tidy town of Hamlin (pop. 2,248; “Home of the Pied Pipers”) is full of charming folks and streets lined by locust trees. There’s not much here, but on the north side of town the blue-roofed Hatahoe Restaurant (325/576-2464), despite its ominous chainlike appearance, serves copious, cheap, and quite good meals. Standing next to the only stoplight in town, this is the place to meet the area’s characters over breakfast.
Seven miles west of Hamlin on Hwy-92 stood Swedona (swee-DOAN-ya), a farming community founded by Swedish immigrants in 1877 that held fast to the ways of the Old Country for over 50 years. All that remains today is a tranquil cemetery.
