Midland, TX: Our “First Home”
Lets talk all things Midland, Texas: the history, how Flying Cow got their roots there, and what we LOVE about it today!
Midland, TX—synonymous with oil. It brings to mind hard hats, boots, money, and dare we say, Flying Cow? Yet, it hasn’t always been that way.
Humble Beginnings
Midland's inception started on different roots than the industry it grew and developed on. Although Midland, TX has always been attached to strong industry and commerce, you might be surprised at the variety of businesses that have blossomed there.
At its start, Midland was a railroad stop named Midway, and it tied the tracks coming west from Fort Worth and the eastern Southern Pacific tracks being built from El Paso. The name was later changed to Midland because it was the “mid” “land” , or mid-way point, between the two cities.
Prior to 1923, Midland’s main identity was as a railroad town that served “the surrounding ranching community [1]. Then… BOOM–oil. The discovery shifted Midlands' stance not only in the Permian Basin, but in history itself.
A Railroad and Ranching Town
Midland’s history as a railroad and ranching town was stomped out by its birth as the seat of oil country. Leaving behind its name of “Midway,” Midland became known as “The Tall City of the Plains as oil companies built high-rise buildings there”[2].
Midland’s downtown can be seen from a great distance as it stands high above all other dwellings over the beautiful West Texas plains–a monument to petroleum and all those that worked hard utilizing it to make their fortunes and building their empires that have been passed down from one generation to another.
Although not everyone in Midland, TX is looking for a piece of the proverbial petroleum pie, most are everyday Americans simply trying to live out their dreams, building communities, businesses and families.
Enter–Flying Cow
For Britney Arceneaux, living to the best of her dream meant raising a beautiful family and building a home with her husband Joshua Arceneaux. After having her fourth baby in Midland,TX, painful cystic acne started taking a toll on her life and how she felt in her own skin.
In an act of desperation, and after trying what seemed like everything, Britney researched natural skincare remedies and tried tallow for the first time in 2015. It wasn’t an overnight fix, but within 6 weeks, after years of pain and struggle, her skin felt great and her acne was better! Soon, her face was glowing.
Clean Skincare
After several years of making her own recipe, this led her to dip into a new industry– clean skincare.
When looking back, the creation of Flying Cow can seem akin to the boom of discovered oil, although it was actually closer to the building of a railroad–with the labored placing of track upon track in order to advance.
The first tracks were placed in the Arceneaux’s kitchen as Britney created her own whipped tallow recipe. At the encouragement of friends, and with $50 investment for supplies, she started selling her tallow balm on Etsy October 3, 2017.
Within 8 months of beginning in her kitchen, she couldn’t keep up with the demand, and her husband Joshua soon joined in to help manage the growth, and to help start dreaming and cast vision for the future of Flying Cow. Flying Cow was officially a “Family Owned and Operated” business- it was all hands on deck.
Farmer's Market and The First Shop
Setting up shop at local farmers markets and doing pickups off her front porch was the next step on the Flying Cow rail-line. With a few years of growth by word of mouth, eventually it led to the building of the first brick and mortar store in early 2019 right here in our beloved city of Midland, Texas. Doors opened November 11, 2019.
Flying Cow had its own foundation built into the soil of the Tall City, and it was just the beginning. Midland, Texas was the track that tied a dream to a reality and paved the way for two more stores in Fredericksburg, TX in 2020 and Lubbock, TX in 2021 as well as a thriving online shop shipping worldwide–and there's no telling how far these tracks will go.
We are so grateful for the support of every family member, friend, team member, and customer that has been a part of this journey that started in this little city we will always call our “first home” for our family and Flying Cow.
A Flourishing West Texas Town
Nowadays, Midland has grown beyond the bounds of the oil Industry. It now boasts a thriving craft food and coffee industry as well as a local scene that allows for community and businesses like Flying Cow to also grow. We have some fellow local businesses that we would love to highlight, as well as some favorite coffee shops and restaurants that we feel everyone should know about!
📷: Prescilla Du Preez
Midland Small Businesses We Love
When thinking about both local and building communities, we can’t leave out the Midland Micro and Farmers Markets.
The Midland Farmers Market meets every Saturday at 404 N. Colorado Street, and according to their website “Vendors are required to make or grow all their products. This means that what you buy at MDFM is local and you are supporting your community!”[3]
There's nothing we love more than supporting local, and that’s also exactly what the Midland Micro Market is about! Located downtown, the Micro Market has created a vibrant retail area full of local entrepreneurs. When you shop there, you know you’re supporting local.
Local Shopping
Locally owned shops we adore and are a MUST if you have a shopping itch: Found Furnishings, The Pink Pug Boutique, Baby Biz, The Crowned Bird, Nines Apparel, and The Shimmy Shack!
Midland Coffee Scene
Another thing a community needs is some great local coffee shops! A couple of our favorites are Far West Coffee and Twelve Gate Coffee Co. Both have some amazing coffee and specialty roast! Don’t forget our friends at Flour Child, making the best small batch biscotti you can dip in that cup of joe. Black Rifle Coffee is also a local favorite that was founded by a former U.S. Army Green Beret that loves supporting local veterans, law enforcement, and first responders.
We started doing Markets with Far West Coffee in 2018, and they opened their first shop in 2020 with a minimalist western theme. It’s the perfect place to both meet up for a chat or to focus in with a laptop or good book, and the perfect cup of coffee of course. Not only are they serving up delicious drinks, but you must try their handcrafted bites! Christopher and Audrey are always trying new things, and they never disappoint.
Twelve Gate Coffee Co is newer–opening its doors in the Summit Center, and offering some delicious specialty roasts. The Summit Center itself is the perfect addition to the community “provid[ing] the people of West Texas a place to gather and enjoy good food, fun, and fellowship” [4].
Healthy Families + Building Community
In addition to creating a prosperous community of families, Midland also offers small businesses like Anthus, The Birth Center, and Simply Wellness which create opportunities for families to thrive, be educated, and nurtured for optimal health and the health and well being of future generations.
📷: Toa Heftiba
Yummy Food and Places to Gather
We also can’t forget Midland’s food game! Some of our favorite restaurants include (but are not limited to) Cancun Grill, Opal’s Table, Pi Social, and Wall Street Bar and Grill. All these are perfect for a downtown outing, perhaps after a stop at one of the shops of the Micro Market?
Speaking of outings, Centennial Park is the perfect place to gather. It’s a wonderful green space that allows fun for the whole family–from an area for the children to play to a park just for dogs. They also offer live entertainment at times as well as a splash pad for kids. It really is the perfect outing.
With all these great places, saying there’s nothing to do in Midland is not really true anymore!
We ❤️ Midland, TX
Midland, TX has come a long way since its days of being a pit stop between two big cities. It is a place where we began this little dream called Flying Cow.
Here, we were and are still surrounded by hundreds of people who support our vision and have helped it become what it is today.
We can’t say thank you enough to everyone who is a part of this Flying Cow story.
We will forever treasure our roots sprouting and going down deep in the West Texas dirt. Midland, TX will forever be our first home.
What is your favorite thing about Midland, TX? Have a favorite small business? We want to know…comment below!
[1] https://www.midlandtxedc.com/community/history/
[2] https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/midland-county
[3] https://midlanddowntownfarmersmarket.com/
[4] https://summitcentermidland.com/