World’s smallest Target store in Marathon, Texas, has been demolished

The owner demolished the roadside attraction fearing someone would be injured

The Marathon Target, known as the world's smallest Target, has been demolished over safety concerns. (Wikipedia Commons, Wikipedia Commons)

MARATHON, Texas – RIP Target Marathon.

If you’re going to demolish a tiny Texas icon that amused and bemused people around the world, I guess 2020 would be the year to do it.

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It’s referred to as the world’s smallest Target and it stands off US Highway 90 outside Marathon, Texas, in remote Brewster County. In fact, it’s not actually a Target store, but a former railroad structure with the store’s logo painted on it.

While the building itself has been around for many years, it became a “Target” about five years ago when someone painted it. The exact origins of the art installation are still shrouded in mystery.

The nearest real Target stores are a couple of hours away in Odessa and Midland.

The Brewster County Sheriff Ronny Dodson told CBS7 that the structure had become unstable and so the property owner decided to take it down before someone got hurt.

Can someone please check on Prada Marfa?

Prada Marfa is an iconic roadside attraction in Jeff Davis County. (Nan Palmero/Flickr)

The iconic Target in Marathon is no more. I saw this photo come up on my feed and our CBS7 team got to the bottom of...

Posted by Shane Battis on Thursday, December 10, 2020

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About the Author

Julie Moreno has worked in local television news for more than 25 years. She came to KSAT as a news producer in 2000. After producing thousands of newscasts, she transitioned to the digital team in 2015. She writes on a wide variety of topics from breaking news to trending stories and manages KSAT’s daily digital content strategy.

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