I visited Mark Cuban's Texas ghost town, and 'Mustang' was more barren and mysterious than I ever imagined (2024)

FAQs

Why did this famous billionaire buy a Texas ghost town? ›

Following Price's death, Mark Cuban stepped in to purchase Mustang for an undisclosed sum. In an email replying to NBC News, the billionaire clarified his reasons for buying the town: "Did it to help out a friend. No plans yet!" It's unclear whether that friend was Price or perhaps one of his relatives.

The billionaire Mark Cuban bought the ghost town of Mustang, Texas, in 2021 for about $2 million. Cuban has never been there and said he has "zero plans for it" in an email. I drove to visit Mustang, population zero. I found no buildings but an intriguing history.

Mark Cuban made headlines this week for buying up “an entire town” an hour southeast of Dallas. But it turns out that Mustang, Texas, is scarcely more than a patch of land, best known for an abandoned strip club where a man was killed in 2008.

In keeping with his theme of getting out at the top of the market, Cuban sold a majority of his stake in the Mavericks to a group led by the Adelson family. The deal closed for $3.5 billion, which is not bad for a club that originally cost him less than 10% of that.

Some towns died because the economy which supported them finished or failed. Mines are worked out, timber is cut down, wells go dry, and new routes bypass the community. Still others die from natural or manmade disasters. Floods and droughts, heavy regulation, or total lawlessness ended their share of towns.

Welcome to Ghost Town Texas

Conveniently located in scenic downtown Terlingua, Texas -- just a few exits past the end of the world -- Ghost Town Texas is a special place. This spectacularly primitive Texas landscape and the ruins of the Chisos Mining Company are the setting for exploration, relaxation, and good times.

"Actually I own a Tesla Plaid and a Kia EV," he wrote. "I drive the Kia almost exclusively." Cuban told Business Insider in an email that his Kia EV6 provides a better driving experience than his Model X Plaid.

On January 4, 2000, Cuban purchased a majority stake in the NBA's Dallas Mavericks for $285 million from H. Ross Perot Jr.

Today he owns a minority stake in the NBA's Dallas Mavericks and is cofounder of Cost Plus Drugs, which he launched in January 2022 with the aim of lowering prescription drug prices. Cuban sold 58% of the Dallas Mavericks in December 2023 for an estimated $2 billion (pre-tax).

Introduced in 1964, the Mustang revolutionized the automotive industry by combining performance, style, and affordability. It quickly became an instant classic and a symbol of American muscle cars.

Are there still wild mustangs in Texas? ›

Though there aren't any truly wild mustangs left in Texas, a small number continue to roam public lands in Western states. And since they gave rise to many modern breeds, like quarter horses, their lineage remains in other horses today: a symbol of a vanished, fondly remembered frontier.

With ranching and settlement, the wild horse became a rare site in Texas, succumbing to displacement, domestication, and extermination. The last of the mustangs on Mustang Island disappeared in the late 1800s, as the island became dotted with townsites and cattle were introduced.

Despite selling the majority stake in the team, Cuban still serves as the alternate governor of the Dallas franchise and retains the team's minority share. In 2000 American businessman Mark Cuban purchased a majority stake in the Dallas Mavericks.

Through his VC firm, Mark Cuban Companies, he's invested in over 400 businesses to date—but his 2000 deal for a stake in the Dallas Mavericks has been by far his most lucrative. Cuban owns 85% of the NBA team, which Forbes values at $3.3 billion.

The Mavs will take on the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday night, with the team's new owners, Miriam Adelson and her family, four victories away from capturing a title just months after purchasing the team.

During the Civil War, Confederate States Army cavalry captured the crew of a Union Army ship who were attending service in Rodney Presbyterian Church, resulting in the shelling of the city. After the war, the Mississippi River changed course, the railroad bypassed the area, and nearly all buildings burned down.

Roughly 60 miles south of Dallas, there is a tiny Texas town with a population of 23 nestled along Interstate 45 called Mustang. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban bought that town to help a family friend who had passed away from cancer.

Once home to more than 8,000 people, Thurber, Texas is now a ghost town located in far north Erath County. Thurber became a bustling coal mining town after coal deposits were discovered in the area in 1886 and the land was sold to the Texas and Pacific Coal Company in 1888.

I bought a California ghost town for $1.4 million. Living here gets lonely — but I've found my purpose. When he was 30, Brent Underwood left Austin and moved to an abandoned mining town. While restoring the town, he realized that people approach finding a purpose the wrong way.