The Texas and Pacific Railway arrived on March 12, 1881, beginning Sweetwater's long history as a railroad town.

By 1912 the Santa Fe Railway was serving Sweetwater via its new Coleman Cutoff[7] and completing a connection with the T&P nearby at "Tecific" junction.

The Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) were trained under the direction of famed aviator Jacqueline Cochran at Sweetwater's Avenger Field.

[13] Sweetwater also has a Pioneer Museum, with display rooms depicting the lives of early settlers.

The Municipal Auditorium, where Elvis Presley performed twice in 1955, continues to feature live acts.

[16] Sports include access to a large public swimming pool and an 18-hole golf course (opened 1958).

[19] Parts of the south side of Sweetwater were devastated by an estimated EF3 tornado that swept through town early in the morning of April 19, 1986.

[20] Sweetwater is the center of the leading wind power generation region of the Western Hemisphere.

[22] Special events include the world's largest rattlesnake round-up, held annually since 1958 by the Sweetwater Jaycees on the second weekend in March.

[23] It is held along with a gun and coin show hosted by the Sweetwater Rifle and Pistol Club, which was founded in the 1940s.

Nolan County alone would currently rank as the eighth-largest "nation" in terms of wind energy generation - with more than 1,500 MW installed.

[26] Climate type occurs primarily on the periphery of the true deserts in low-latitude semiarid steppe regions.

[31] Also in 2007, TSTC constructed a demonstration 2 MW 60 Hz DeWind D8.2 prototype wind turbine for student training.