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Ara Masterson
& Jess Archibald Hickman
8-30-14
I am writing this to see if you can provide any information on my
mother and/or any of her relatives; she died in Dallas
in l947. My mother was born Ara Masterson in or near Corn
Hill, Texas. Her mother’s name was Martha Masterson. She married
Jess Archibald Hickman, originally from Pickens MS (don’t recall
the year) in, I think, Sugar Land, Tx, where they both worked for
the same company (don’t know name). They moved to Dallas,
where I was born May 28, l931. I have no siblings. I think my mother
was married once before, because I have seen documents referring
to her as Ara Harrell. I do remember a family friend, perhaps a
relative by marriage, Dr. Travis. C. Harrell, of Corpus
Christi. I remember being in his house, at--I think--2102 2nd
St., in Corpus,
when I was a small child. Dr. Harrell’s wife’s first name, I assume,
was something like Margaret, because I called her “Aunt Mag”. Any
information, of course, will be greatly appreciated. Please email
pjhickman@Hotmail.com.
- Best regards, Peter James Hickman, August 30, 2014
George,
Texas 8-30-14
George Donaho, who had a store and post office in George was my
grandfather. He and Charlie Martin submitted several names for the
town before the name George was selected by the Postal Department,
I think. George Donaho had a wonderful water well and ran lines
to several homes in the community. Some of those homes belonged
to Bethel Mize, Charlie Martin, Mollie Donaho, and a house that
was occupied by Floyd Martin during WW2, as well as his own home
and outbuildings, his and Charlie's store and possibly the cotton
gin. There was also a high faucet outside the store where other
people would bring their water barrels and cans to be filled for
a minuscule amount (5 cents I think). George had electricity at
his home so people brought their sheep to his place to shear them.
He also had a dipping tank for cattle that he shared with people
in the community. He and maybe Charlie Martin contributed the land
behind the church to the community to be used as a cemetery. - August
30, 2014
Sudan,
Lamb County 4-16-14
I have made an almost life-long study of Texas post offices, and
I absolutely love your prose (sometimes delightfully humorous) and
photos of Texas' many small towns. Thank you!!! I did want to take
a moment to share that although the article on Sudan states that
the town's name origin is a mystery, its namesake is apparently
sudan grass which has been grown as a commercial feed crop in the
area. - Cheers. John J. Germann, April 15, 2014
Goforth,
Hays County Ghost Town
4-17-14
I noticed the discussion about an elderly man with a white flowing
beard who was one of the last residents of Goforth, Texas. That
man was Len Miller. He looked exactly like the traditional image
of Santa Claus... more
- David J. Andrews, November 19, 2013
Coolidge,
Texas
10-13-13
I've run across your site in the process of researching for a book
I'm working on based on my mother's life. She was born in 1917 and
grew up in Coolidge... I would also very much appreciate it if anyone
who reads this and remembers can tell me if Coolidge ever had a
movie theater? more
- Gayle Morrow, October 13, 2013
Dryden,
Texas 7-19-13
Subject:
Dryden Post Office
The post office has somewhat of an interesting history
for my family... more - Duane
Miller, College Station, Texas, July 19, 2013
Ford's
Corner 7-8-13
Subject: Bonnie and Clyde
My
dad, Mervis Lowery spent about half a day with a gentleman at this station who
told a very interesting story about the capture/killing of Bonnie and Clyde...
more - Tuawana Lowery,
July 07, 2013
Soldier
and Sailor on the Clearwater Memorial Causeway, Clearwater, Florida
6-30-13
Article states there are nine pairs of Viquesney
Doughboy/Sailor sites around the country, and that the plaque mentioning only
7 is in error. The plaque is correct (for now; I will explain later)... more.
- Les Kopel, June 29, 2013
Maryetta,
Texas 5-28-13
The old gas station you took photos of once belonged to my grandparents. They
ran the gas station and the room at the front was the convenient store...more
- Sherry Rupe, May 26, 2013
Carpenter's
Bluff Bridge
5-28-13
...
Oklahoma was a "dry" state for liquor until late in the 1950s. In the 1950s, my
grandfather sold beer to the Okies who crossed the bridge and traveled to his
farm. more
- Karen McGee, May 26, 2013
Cora,
Texas
3-25-13
My great great grandfather was Francis Marion
Collier (FM Collier) and his son Thomas Anderson was the first white child to
be born in Comanche county... more
- Elizabeth Collier, March 25, 2013
Bucareli,
Texas 3-25-13
I believe that we have a cemetery that the old timers called a "Mexican cemetery"
on our sanctuaries in San Jacinto County that may be related to Bucareli.... more.
- George H. Russell, March 24, 2013
Talpa,
Texas
I
found your web site while searching for info on the Talpa, TX ISD. My grandfather
was Wiley G Clarkson, a very well known architect in Fort Worth from 1912 to 1952.
He designed schools for many ISD’s during those years... more
- Wiley Clarkson, March 16, 2013
Poer,
Texas 3-19-13
I would like to add information
about the community of Poer, Texas that once had a school and a post office and
a store about two miles east of Simms, Texas on highway 67... more
- Frances Poer Fox, March 18, 2013
Coke,
Texas 3-11-13
Subject: The
Coke Store
My
Family moved to the big town of Coke when I was around 7 years of age. My Momma
and Daddy and us three boys grew up with the Coke Store owned most of that time
by Art and Frankie Holt... more
- Dale Cummings, March 10, 2013
San
Diego, Texas 3-11-13
Subject:
San Diego Texas History
During the Mexican revolution, the wealthy landowners,
the Garcias, were forced to escape to the United States and settled in San Diego,
Texas... more
- Zandra Zuniga, March 09, 2013
Subject:
Slide, Texas 3-4-13
I
enjoyed reading about why Slide TX is so named. You refer to a W.R. Standefer
Lubbock county surveyor who had a 2 mile disagreement with the previous survey
and as a result the town moved their homes 2 miles West. What a story. What makes
it better? That surveyor was my Great Grandfather.... more.
- Roxanne Standefer, Ottawa Canada, March 03, 2013
Subject:
Montague County 2-26-13
My
great, great grandfathers brother William Howard is buried near Forestburg. He
came to the county in the 1880's. His nephew Dr. Lilburn Colley founded Colleyville
Texas near Dallas. Another nephew ran a drygoods store and was postmaster in Wall
Texas near San Angelo.The off spring of his son James live around Muleshoe,Texas.
William was born and married in Kentucky. Lived in Lawrence county Missouri and
Grayson County, tx where his first wife Elizabeth is buried. William remarried
a widow from Montague county. This Howard Family started in Virginia then to North
Carolina then to Kentucky, Missouri and Texas. - Mike Johns, February 25, 2013
Fruitvale,
Texas 2-5-13
Subject:
Photo shown in Fruitvale Texas
"...This
picture shows the store empty and painted. It held many pieces of the town's history..."
Great memories. Thanks, Christopher L. Evans, February 05, 2013
Carpenter's
Bluff, Texas
1-22-13
Subject: Carpenter's Bluff Bridge
My mother-in-law
and father-in-law (Clyde and Ruby Ramsey) were married on June 4, 1932 on the
bridge. Clyde had bought their marriage license in Oklahoma not realizing they
would have to marry in Oklahoma for it to be valid... more
- Jimmie and Calvin Ramsey, January 21, 2013
Millsap,
Texas
... Granddad owned the general store during the Great Depression
and helped lots of people with merchandise on credit... more
- Eva Trowbridge, Trenton, FL, December 22, 2012
Kenedy,
Texas
12-18-12
Subject: Mexican
School
In the 1920’s there was a school built for the Mexican or Hispanic
children... more - Maria
Grijalva, December 13, 2012
Subject:
Galveston
County Courthouse
12-1-12
On your web page describing the Galveston County Courthouse on 21st
and Ball you have several errors. First, the architects you have listed are: Raymond
Rap Jr. and Ben Koten and Associates The architects are: Raymond Rapp Jr. & Ben
Kotin and Tibor Beerman. Second ... more
- Lillian E. Beerman, PhD, December 01, 2012
Langtry,
Texas 11-20-12
My parents & grandparents ran the old Mobil station/cafe/truck stop (now called
the "Langtry Depot"), from 1957-71.. more.
- Alan R. Taylor, November 20, 2012
Best
Texas 11-19-12
Subject: Picture
from Best Texas
Attached is a picture is of our office reportedly taken in Best, Texas in 1925.
The company got its start building wooden oil derricks and Best was a small oil
boom town back then. We’re now known as McDermott International, Inc. - Bill
Soester, November 19, 2012
Navidad Baptist
Cemetery 11-17-12
My Great, Great Grandfather Dr. Benjamin Franklin
Rose is buried there. He was born in 1809... more
- Anthony Rose, October 11, 2012
Odell,
Texas 11-7-12
Subject: Odell Post Office
Included is an
updated photo(s) of the Odell, Texas Post Office building that is now closed.
After years of weathering the painted signage for the Post Office building has
faded away to reveal a former purpose for the tiny building.... more
- Billy Gilbert, Denton, Texas, November 07, 2012
Brooklyn,
Texas 10-25-12
Subject: Brooklyn
- ghost town
No
doubt it is a ghost town BUT the 1870 census and an 1880 map from GLO show the
name as Brooklin ... more
. - Pam Manley Stranahan, October 23, 2012
Langtry,
Texas 10-21-12
Subject:
1930 Photo of my mother at the Judge Roy Bean House on her way (by car) to California
...The place was fenced off from the public and the roof had big gaps
in the shingles.. It wasn't kept up at all in 1930... more
- Colin Patterson, October 20, 2012
Herman
Lehmann 10-16-12
Subject: Uncle Herman Lehmann
I want to
take a moment this morning to thank you for the hilarious – and vivid – stories
that you have published about our Uncle Herman. I believe I speak for our whole
family when I say that you really have captured his eccentric nature... more
- Kimberley Holcomb, October 16, 2012
Shafter,
Texas 9-28-12
I’m with Rio Grande Mining Company and we are in the process of re-opening
the Shafter Silver Mine. We are also working on re-opening the old company store
as a coffee shop/museum. - Sandy Bruce, September 27, 2012
Texon,
Texas 9-20-12
Subject: Texon, Texas--in the '50's
I am 64 years old and back
in the '50's I spent time in Texon with my grandparents when I was around 5 or
6 years old! ... more
- Janis Potter, September 20, 2012
Subject:
Cisterns in Mason, Texas
9-5-12
I am doing research on historic above ground cisterns (water towers)
in Mason, Texas. I was recently told that an article was written in the last five
years stating that a greater number of these cisterns have been preserved in Mason
than any other town in Central Texas. I have not been able to find this article
and asking your readers if they can provide me with the name of the magazine and
date of the publication. - Gerron Hite, Architect, ghite734@gmail.com, September
04, 2012
Toyah,
Texas 8-30-12
We visited Toyah on August 2, 2012 and took the following photos. The town
seems to be going through a boom at this time... more
- David Tullos, August 23, 2012
Toyah,
Texas 8-30-12
Subject: More
info about Toyah, Texas
I just found your great pictorial essay about the Texas Ghost Town in Reeves
County, West Texas, and have some interesting information to add to it.... more
- - Vanda M. Powers (Mrs. William S. Powers), August 23, 2012
Nogalus
Prairie, Texas
8-16-12
The Davis side of my family were living on this Prairie from the middle
of the 1800s. My dad and grandfather related the no Gallows story to me... more.
- Jerry Davis, Hot Springs, AR, August 16, 2012
Lakeview,
Texas 8-4-12
The Olympic high hurdler Jack Davis was born in Lakeview...
more - Nancy Cecil, Granbury,
August 03, 2012
Roscoe,
Texas 7-27-12
I
was born in Roscoe in 1947, raised in Sweetwater, Texas. I have been searching
for years to find pictures or a record of a hospital in Roscoe...more.
- Lee Weatherford, July 27, 2012
Ding
Dong, Texas 7-24-12
I was surprised to see the relatively small volume
of information regarding Ding Dong... Thanks for the memories and the history
lesson. more
- Dave Timpe, Cooper ME., July 24, 2012
Cedar
Station, Texas 7-20-12
I just googled Cedar Station Texas and found
your site. My mother used to live in Cedar Station... more
- Carrie, July 17, 2012
Subject:
Fort Lincoln, D'Hanis, Texas 7-2-12
My wife's GGgrandfather Capt. Heinrich Josep [HJ] Richarz, purchased
Ft Lincoln and it became his homestead... more
- John K. Condon, July 02, 2012
Talpa,
Texas 5-11-12
Subject: Talpa Yankees
I was raised in Coleman
and in the 1960's, Talpa had a little league baseball team...more
- Rick White, Boerne, TX, May 11, 2012
Dalby
Springs, Texas 5-10-12
"We lived about 2 miles from Dalby Springs in
the early 50s. There was one water well that you could still get water from, and
a small store / gas station...
more" - Jesse Suttles, April 10, 2012
Lydia,
Texas 5-10-12
"In 1947-48 I lived with my family about five miles
from Lydia. Dad would some time go there to buy a few groceries or maybe some
gas... more" - Jesse Suttles,
May 9, 2012
Sunray,
Texas 5-4-12
Subject: July
29, 1956. Sunray/Shamrock Refinery fire
"I would like to add
to my brother's, Randy Foshee, comments from 2006. I spent time with my Dad, Darce
Foshee, a couple of years ago talking about the fire... more."
- Jamey Foshee, May 03, 2012
Coleman,
Texas 4-29-12
Subject: Coleman,
TX abandoned brickyard
"... My father worked for Martin Brick
Co. for over 40 years. He was the plant manager for 30 years or so. I and my 3
brothers worked our way thru high school and college there, as well as a large
percentage of folks from Coleman back in the day. At one time in the 1980's Martin
Brick Co. employed over 200 workers, making it the largest employer in the county...
more" -
Mike Merryman, April 28, 2012
Texas
Art 4-15-12
Subject:
Old, Texas Cinemas
I am an art teacher in the Dallas, Texas area.
Last year I found your incredible website and used it for researching a project
I designed for my students on old, Texas cinemas. The results of my 8th grade
studio art project was recently featured in the professional art educator magazine,
"School Arts" (April 2012). I write a blog about art (www.artteachtravel.com)
and my post last week mentioned your fabulous website in conjunction with the
information about my art project... more
- Anita Horton, April 13, 2012
World
War II 4-14-12
Subject: PFC Cruz Gamboa FOD Jan 18, 1945
I adopted the grave of PFC Cruz Gamboa at the Ardennes American Cemetery here
in Belgium... more - Philippe
Vanderdonckt, April 14, 2012
Durham,
Texas 4-4-12
Subject: Naming of Durham
I think I know
how Durham,Texas in Bordon County got it's name...more
- Hilda (Holly) Hilpert, April 04, 2012
Subject:
Houston, The Second Hundred
Years 3-23-12
My grandfather, Jesse Martin Robertson, was a brick mason
by trade and he worked with the crew that laid the brick paving for Heights Boulevard.
It was a sad day when the city covered the thoroughfare with a topping of asphalt....more
- Bruce Martin, March 23, 2012
Subject:
Country
Living in the Mid-1900’s - Chalk Mountain 3-23-12
Great story! Good
website, too. Makes me think of all the stories that disappeared because no one
wrote them down. - Nancy Wood, February 26, 2012... more
("It's amazing how one article can prompt others to recall their earlier
years.")
Moran,
Texas 3-6-12
...I tried to call the Moran Historical Museum, but the
number didn't work. When I saw the photo in your article, I had to laugh. No wonder!...
more - Christopher Logan,
Eugene, Oregon, March 06, 2012
Richard
Gaertner 3-5-12
The Moulton storyteller, Richard Gaertner, has passed
away. He celebrated his 104th birthday in this picture on Feb. 4 - another valuable
piece of history is gone. I am happy that I had a small part in telling his story.
- Murray
Montgomery, March 05, 2012
Losoya,
Texas 3-3-12
Subject: Losoya,
& the Battle of the Medina
With today's news, there is a gentleman
claiming to have located the actual site of the Battle of the Medina--well away
from Nuestra Senora Del Carmen and the cemetery (supposedly) originally populated
with the casualties... more
- Kerry McCollough, March 02, 2012
Pyote,
Texas 2-27-12
Subject: BORN IN PYOTE TEXAS
My father, Avery
William Vowell, Sr. was an instructor at the Pyote Air Base (Rattlesnake Field)
when I was added to the family on May 20, 1947... more
- Glenn Vowell, Cairo, Ga., February 27, 2012
Dayton,
Texas 2-27-12
"Rosenwald School has been totally refurbished
thanks to two grants and the construction efforts of Assistant Superintendent
Doug Coleman, for Dayton ISD. ... The people of Dayton have converted the old
school house into a beautiful museum with many items donated back to the school
from the time the school was in operation... - Deborah Coleman, February 08,
2012
Notrees, Texas 2-24-12
Subject: Notrees
Firetruck
I'm enclosing a photo of the old Notrees Volunteer Fire Department
truck that I shot yesterday. Feel free to use it on your Notrees page. I loved
reading the memories of former residents. - Cheers, Bronson Dorsey Austin,
February 04, 2012
Rosebud,
Texas 2-21-12
I was born in Rosebud in 1947, the oldest of eight ...
more -
Mary Enriquez nee Perez, February 17, 2012
Shafter,
Texas 2-21-12
I was born in Shafter Texas in March 1942. My grandfather
Macedonio Carrillo Sr immigrated from Mexico in the 1900s... more
- Yolanda Carrillo Payne, February 14, 2012
Troy,
Texas 1-26-11
I came across the comments regarding the old community
of Troy, TX in Freestone County... My father owns the property where Troy, Pine
Bluff and the cemetery are located... more
Eola,
Texas 1-14-11
You mention that Eola today is almost dead. I ride my
bicycle thru there all the time... more.
- Chad W Freeze, January 13, 2012
McAllen,
Texas 1-13-11
Subject: Addition to "Street
Name Trivia" for McAllen
McAllen is one of the easiest towns to
navigate. The town plat was based on the railroad and the canal... more
- Ella Aubin, January 12, 2012
Frognot,
Texas 1-12-12
Frognot Water Supply Corporation has a website with
History of Frognot, TX. You can find it at www.frognotwsc.com - Lydia M.V.
Brandt, January 12, 2012
Kerrick,
Texas 1-11-12
Thanks for the information on Kerrick Texas. My bucket
list includes visiting Kerrick Texas and Kerrick MN. As a retired military officer
I have spent over 14 years overseas and my goal is to see the United States. I
have both cities on our travel list. - Stephen W. Kerrick, Lansing, KS, January
10, 2012
Ruidosa,
Texas 1-7-12
Subject: Family from Ruidosa, Texas
My father,
Isaac Prieto Hernandez was born in this small village 6-3-1921... more
- Ben Hernandez, Artesia, NM, December 31, 2011
Old
Gulf, Texas 12-21-11
Subject: Another ghost town?
...Since
you have New Gulf, I thought you might like to include Old Gulf, since their histories
tie together. I've put TexasEscapes on my desk top. As always, it's fun & interesting!
Thanks for all you do. - Kathryn Cockroft
Mozelle
12-18-11
Subject: Mozelle School, Sports...
...Mozelle played six-man
football, and we had some decent teams. My all-time favorite football memory was...
more
Judging from the photos
on the website, memories are about all that will be left of the school pretty
soon. Thanks for saving what you can. more
- Mike L. Downey, December 17, 2011
Pearsall,
Texas 12-7-11
Subject: "Birdhouse" picture in Pearsall
Hi,
Sarah, Thanks for the pictures of things in Pearsall that you submitted to TexasEscapes.
However, I think I must tell you that the "birdhouse" is not a birdhouse at all,
although it seems to be very attractive to birds. In reality, it is a siren ...
more - George C. Toalson,
December 05, 2011
Subject:
Bresford, Leforest, and Litwalton 12-6-11
I have some information on these
three towns in Garza County. The information comes from Jim Wheat's Post Masters
and Post Offices of Texas. Leforest recieved its postoffice on March28,1902,and
Arthur E.Tuffing was the only postmaster listed.The name was later changed to
Justiceburg,on June3,1910. Southland, was originally called Bresford, and received
its postoffice on July 14,1905 with Job Davis as postmaster.Later the name was
changed from Bresford to Southland, July 15, 1910. Both coummities still exist
today. However,the Texas Handbook ONline does not give any information on Litwalton.
I looked at the Texas Genweb site for Garza County,and don't recall seeing anything
on the town. However, according to Jim Wheat's site, Litwalton had a postoffice
on May 2, 1903, with Charles W.Justis the first postmaster. Later Mary V.Gates
tookover (Oct. 18, 1906) and then the postoffice was discontinued July 31, 1907,
when the mail went to Tahoka, in Lynn County. Apparently Litwalton did not survive.
- Holly Hilpert, December 05, 2011
Lobo, Texas 11-25-11
Subject: Lobo,
Texas 1915-1917 Photos
My father (Bert E. Bailey) and his family lived
in Lobo, Texas 1915-1917. My grandfather, Lee Bailey ran a small cattle and horse
ranch there... more - Wayne Bailey,
Richardson, Texas, November 25, 2011
Subject:
Lamesa Lobos
11-23-11
I was looking through some of your pictures & noticed those of the
Lamesa lobos... My dad, Joe Locke, played on that team... more
- Patti Bradstreet, November 23, 2011
Subject:
Bright and Early Signs
11-21-11
I recently found and read Mr. Bowman's short article on the Bright
and Early Signs. My Grandfather and Father painted those signs ... If you look
down in the lower right hand corner of the original signs you will find the name
of Dallas Ford, which stood for both Dad and Granddad. I too am A Dallas Ford.
Thanks for the article. more
- November 21, 2011
Trent,
Texas11-19-11
I do have some valuable history about Trent that I would
like to share...
After living in Oklahoma for 40 years I say I am an Okie,
but I am a Texan at heart! ...more -
Sarah Gladden, Stillwater, OK., November 18, 2011
Fredonia,
Texas
Subject: Fredonia General Store
In 1959 when I was 13 years
of age my Dad took me deer hunting in the Fredonia, Tx area and we stopped at
the general store and Dad bought gas and the store had the old manual hand pump
gas pumps. It was the only time I was at the old store but even then it was a
time capsule and has stuck in my mind all of these years. - Owen Whitsitt,
Graham, Texas, October 16, 2011
Subject:
Update on San
Antonio's Historic I&GN/MoPac Depot 10-21-11
I have some interesting
news regarding the former International and Great Northern Depot in San Antonio...
more
- Sam Iacullo, San Antonio, October 12, 2011
Subject:
Pyote, Texas & Pyote
Air Base 10-19-11
I enjoy reading your reports on Texas towns, and
the one on Pyote, in Ward County caught my attention today.
My father was
a civilian mechanic at the Pyote Air Base (Rattlesnake Field) in the years following
WWII... more - David McNeely,
Edmond, Oklahoma, October 18, 2011
Subject:
Dowsing For Graves
& Witching For Water 10-19-11
As a dowser myself, I appreciate the
article on dowsing. I use copper wire, AKA 'Spanish rods.'... more
- C. F. Eckhardt, October 17, 2011
Subject:
Dixieland, Texas
10-16-11
Apparently my great-grandfather, Rufus Patterson Hicks, was living
in Dixieland in 1908 ... more
- Sonya Rama, October 13, 2011
Westminster,
Texas 10-11-11
Subject: A
Plea from Westminster, Texas
I currently own the three buildings in old Downtown Westminster, Texas...
I am trying to preserve the three building's history and the City of Westminster's
also. I am trying to find people that may have old photos of the downtown area
... photos of the inside of the three buildings ... and anything related to the
bank such as old deposits, receipts, bank records, pictures, pens, pins, etc...
Westminster's history is dying a fast death ... more
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE help me preserve the history of this once great town. Thank
You - Collin, collin@bigslicks.com, October 11, 2011
Chapman
Ranch, Texas 10-7-11
I was doing some casual web browsing around Corpus
Christi when I came across Chapman Ranch. One of the first photos I saw on your
site was the old Post Office. My mother’s older sister, Eunice Brown, was the
post master and I remember as a child and teenager going out to visit her many
times in that building... more
- Rodger Olson, Sugar Land, Texas, October 07, 2011
Floresville,
Texas 10-6-11
Subject: Wilson
County Courthouse
"The Wilson County courthouse has been evacuated
after engineers found the building to be unsafe. A report on our local news showed
courthouse employees talking about a sinking upper floor and debris falling on
the lower floor. The outer walls have cracks all the way down to the foundation
and one of the walls is bowing outwards... The building has been fenced off, but
Floresville is still planning to have their annual Peanut Festival on the courthouse
square this weekend." - Terry
Jeanson, October 03, 2011
Mount
Sterling, Texas 10-5-11
Subject: Goodman Bridge Update
A concrete bridge is under construction immediately to one side, the old bridge
is still there and used for traffic. I suspect it will be demolished after the
new bridge is completed. - John Goeser, September 26, 2011
Subject:
Ghost Road Light 10-4-11
"[A]
real life pic of the lights off the ghost road. We have just got a new deer lease
on 1293 @ Ghost Road and this pic was taken by my game camera... more"
- Jim Adams, Jr., www.jacontrolsinc.com, September 06, 2011
Sierra
Blanca, Texas 10-3-11
Subject: Sierra Blanca Truck Stop & UFO
"...My mother still believes she saw a UFO as we were sleeping in the car
the last night we were in the El Paso area... more"
- Cheryl Welch, September 25, 2011
Subject:
Doole, Texas 9-30-11
...The stadium
is, unfortunately, continuing to fall into ruin at an alarming rate. So anyone
interested should plan to see it in the next few years... The site was on my Tom-Tom
GPS and it was well worth finding and visiting... more
- Carla Foft of Midland, TX, September 28, 2011
Subject:
Broome, Texas 9-11-11
There was
a little stop in the road about 10 miles northwest of Water Valley on highway
87 and... more - Regards, H. L. Lovell,
September 09, 2011
Subject:
Rosita, Duvall County, Tx
A
gas station, beer joint was built up on Hwy 44, known as the Rosita Inn. It was
one of the few watering holes between Freer and San Diego...more
- Gloria Beare, September 09, 2011
Subject:
Green Elm Cemetery Story
9-4-11
Dear TE: I loved the story about the ghost of Green Elm Cemetery & the
bridge. I discovered that cemetery about 3 1/2 years ago... more
I absolutely love Texas Escapes & it has enhanced my enjoyment of my many road
trips around Texas. Thank you for creating this wonderful and very interesting
site. - Sincerely, Kay Garsea, September 04, 2011
Dell
City, Texas 8-26-11
Subject: Dell
City Namesake
I now reside in New Mexico but grew up in Texas and still
have a lot of relatives in Texas. One story I remember when I was maybe 7 years
old was that Dell City, Texas was named after my uncle Joyce Ardell (Dell) Donathan
whom I believe worked in the post office there from 1947-1954... more
- REV, August 26, 2011
Subject:
San Isidro TX 8-24-11
...
The founder is not Santiago Peña but in fact Blas Pena Gonzales .... more
- Arturo Silva, August 23, 2011
Subject:
Texas Escapes 8-21-11
I am keeping TE as a treasure
to be brought out and plunged into with wholehearted attention when the house
is quiet and I have the time, or, a stoled tidbit in between LIFE... - JL Weiss
Truitt, August 2, 2011
Subject:
In Cold Blood: Clay County,
Texas 1975 8-6-11
There are/were several mistakes in the article
you posted on the Kieth Brothers. Clyde Burns was arrested ... more
At the time I was Chief Deputy of Clay County.
- Dexter Parnell, August
06, 2011
Subject:
Babylon, Navarro County, Texas - Lost
Cemetery 8-6-11
My family lived in the Purson - Dawson area since before
the turn of the century or pretty close to it. When I read about Babylon it gave
me a real start. There is a cemetery out there, (Younger?), and one time when
my Dad had taken me out there to view family graves... more
- Robbie Scifres, August 06, 2011
Subject:
Nocona, Texas 8-1-11
I
remember my grandmother, Pearl, talking about Cynthia Ann Parker, the wife of
Peta Nocona; and Enid Justin, who started the Nocona boot company. Each Nocona
boot customer had a pattern of his/her foot on file at the Nocona boot company
so that custom made boots could be done without the customer travelling to Nocona.
My dad and grampa had boots made that way for years when I was a kid in Wyoming...
- JL Weiss Truitt, July 31, 2011
Subject:
Big Wells & Valley
Wells, Texas 7-29-11
In 1950, my family moved to Big Wells, Texas,
and my father was pastor of the First Baptist Church at Big Wells. We had three
of the best years of our lives at Big Wells. While there, my father and our family
went to Valley Wells on Thursday evenings to hold prayer services in the old Valley
Wells School.... more
- Charlotte Ann Wyatt Rickenbaker Woodard, July 29, 2011
Iredell,
Texas 7-26-11
Subject: G.M. Gordon Drug Company of Iredell, Texas
While
I was on-line attempting to research an old business in Iredell, I happened upon
your website. I must have sat here for three hours reading about all the little
or forgotten Texas towns... more
- Mike Kaszuba, Lakeside, CA, July 24, 2011
Subject:
Red River Station
7-26-11
The books of T Lindsay Baker have left me intrigued with Texas
ghost towns. I now make frequent week end road trips to try to visit as many
as practicable. Your website has become a valuable tool in this diversion. Suspecting
I'm not the only person with these interests and pursuits, I offer the following
regarding Red River Station, which I visited on a recent "tour" ... more
- Philip Abel, Fort Worth, July
25, 2011
Subject:
Coolidge, Texas 7-26-11
I was born at home in Coolidge in 1934... I was born in the Monger Cotton
Gin Co. house across the dirt street from the blacksmith shop. I would say that
the first few years of my life were spent in that shop... We visited Coolidge
often over many year. Visiting Aunt and Uncles and cousins. I slowly watched the
town shrink in size and business move out... more
- Joe Robbins, January 15, 2011
Subject:
Indian Gap, Texas
7-16-11
Indian gap Texas is where most my family is from. There is a date
as to when the Indian gap school was closed. In the article it said 1950. The
school closed in 1959. I know because ... more.
- Susan Deluca, July 16, 2011
Subject:
Fairy, Texas
7-16-11
I would love to see more pics of Fairy, TX if you have any....I live
in Idaho and my name is Fairy Essex... I was named after Fairy Chisum, a Nazarene
missionary to Africa... more
- Fairy Arta Essex, July 16, 2011
Subject:
Sam Houston Painting
7-14-11
Greetings from Nashville, TN. I am writing in response the Mike
Cox’s July 2004 article about a ‘lost’ Sam Houston painting, the article which
I recently happened upon.
A friend of mine here in middle Tennessee owns
a framed portrait of Sam Houston, being approx 4’ x 3’ including frame (photos
above), which I am told has been in her family as long as anyone living can recall...
more
- Rand Morgan, Nashville, TN, July 13, 2011
Subject:
Nuecestown, Texas 7-9-11
Back
in the '60s & early '70s--and perhaps before that--there existed a tourist attraction
known as 'Old Nuecestown.' It was near the actual site of Nuecestown ... more
- C.
F. Eckhardt, Seguin,
July 08, 2011
The
Streets of Reynosa, A Walk Down Pinata Row 7-3-11
Dear TE, I was about
to embark on a quest to make a pinata, and did a Google image search for some
creative possibilities, somehow wound up in the middle of your entertaining piece
about Pinata Row. I’m kind of a tough customer with a short attention span when
it comes to reading stuff on the InterWebs, but I thoroughly enjoyed your article
and your sense of humor. more
- David Allen, Thousand Oaks, July 03, 2011
Bandera
Hanging Tree Tragedy 7-1-11
[message]
- Irene Van Winkle, Kerrville Texas, July 01, 2011
Iredell
Pioneers 6-30-11
My family was among the original pioneers to Iredell.
I have several pictures of homes and families. I will get these submitted. - Stan
Royal, June 29, 2011
My family lived in Iredell in the late 1800's.
The family name is Royal and my grandfather was Wm Phillip Royal married to Mary
Rebecca Pye. The Pye family also lived in Iredell at the same time. Attached is
a photo of the family home found in belongings of Essie Royal, daughter of Wm
Phillip. We believe the home was "down by the river." My father Mack Hobart Royal
and his brother Chandler Renfro Royal were born in Iredell. - Kay Krausman
nee Royal, Anaheim Ca, June 29, 2011
Most
everyone has interesting tidbits to share 6-30-11
Reading your article
reminded me of a picture I took of my father David O. Rudine in 1954 while he
washed his new Chevy. Look closely and you will see the top half of his BVDs.
I always thought it stood for Blended-fabric Ventilated Draws - but I could be
wrong. He wore them everyday. They buttoned down the front, had a big slit in
the back and were short legged. - Ken Rudine, June 28, 2011
The
Big Tree 6-13-11
I was again reading through your website and happened
on Lamar and noticed that you had "The
Goose Island Oak" as a "Nearby Attraction". I thought that I would provide
a few pictures
of what we always called "The
Big Tree".
I first saw the tree in the early 1960's while on one of
many fishing trips to the coast. While living in Aransas Pass in the 1990's I
took my children there many times and it never failed to impress me no matter
how many times I saw it. Thinking of the history that tree must have seen and
the hurricanes it survived gives you an appreciation of how sturdy and tough those
old Live Oaks are. - David Armstrong, June 09, 2011
Hext,
Texas - AKA Peg Leg Pocket, Wagoner Ville 6-3-11
As a historian/genealogist
in the Menard County area, I have always been interested in the earlier days of
Hext... more - Alicia Brown,
June 03, 2011
Thank
you from San Francisco 6-2-11
"...Thanks for bringing her back
into the room for a moment... I do have to visit the Panhandle some day. My mother
said it was awful -- yet all her life she had an affection for the people and
the culture... she never lost that. And, reading about the place now, I realize
how enormously who she was had to do with where she was from..." more
- Susan Fry, June 1, 2011
Big
Wells, Texas 6-1-11
I grew up in Big Wells in the 50's and 60's. The
pictures are of my grandfather and grandmother and also my dad in the 1922 photo
at 9 years of age. My grandmother told my father that his father gave Big Wells
its name. My grandparents moved from Frio county to Big Wells in 1906 so it was
around that time. Thanks. - Bill Armstrong, May 29, 2011
Subject:
Denison Weeping
Angel 5-26-11
On your wonderful page about the Weeping
Angels. I am sad to inform you that her arm was broken off sometime this late
winter or spring. I drove by and saw it, so sad! - Susan Hawkins, May 25, 2011
Mozelle,
Texas 5-20-11
I love your website ! I have contacted you before about
the history of Independence, Washington County, Texas. Today I purchased a 1945-1946
old yearbook / annual for the Mozelle School in Coleman County, Texas. In
checking your website I was sad to learn the building is being demolished . Thought
you might preserve what it looked like at its time of glory ! - John Gilmartin,
Crockett and Independence Texas
Old Corn Hill (Texas Ghost Town) 5-19-11
As a direct descendant of
John Shaver, I have also photographed the deteriorating Shaver home/hotel (in
the photo provided by James Bridges) through the years. I am always relieved to
find it still standing on each return visit! My Corn Hill families (Shaver, Biles,
Haralson, Buchanan, Robbins and Frasier) all eventually lived in Jarrell and Georgetown.
I have visited the old Corn Hill cemetery at least twice a year my entire life,
and am glad to see that it is still well maintained. I would very much like to
see more stories and photos from those with Corn Hill connections or interest.
- Linda Petty, May 19, 2011
Submerged
Ghost Town: Friendship, Texas 5-18-11
I lived in the Friendship community
until the dam was built and it was swallowed by Granger lake. I knew Mr. Richard
Caden who contributed many of the pictures on the web site. [Here are two more
photos.] One is of the Friendship Baptist Church and the other one is of the Friendship
store, Gilbert's Grocery, the friendly store while it was still in operation.
The Conoco gas pumps are there. Thank you. - Richard Steffek, May 18, 2011
Hamby,
Texas
Along with the Fire Station and Churches shown, there is an old
rock house with pecan trees in the front yard. I lived in that house in 1947-48.
Went to school for a year at the 2 room Hamby School and then on to North Junior
High School in Abilene.
Our water was pumped by a windmill to a two story
cistern at the back of the house. The only inside plumbing was running cistern
water to the kitchen sink. A one hole outhouse lent itself to emergency situations,
etc. In the summer we took our baths in a bath house type of room beneath the
cistern fitted with a shower head. In the winter it was a No. 2 washtub in the
warmth of the kitchen. A butane tank, which is still there, did furnish fuel for
an O'Keef-Merritt(sp) oven and a couple of Dearborn stoves.
My Dad worked
for Guy Paxton and Paxton Poster Service on South Oak St. My Mom was an employee
of T. S. Langford & Sons on Walnut Street.
An interesting aside concerning
Hamby Richardson and one of his great, great, great grand daughters. She was the
first girl that I ever dated. We went to a football banquet at North Junior High
School in 1948. Ah, history ! It never stops....................... .
Keep
up the good work at Texas Escapes. I love it !! - Ellis Bewley, May 14, 2011
Shafter
/ Presidio
Dear TE,
I can solve the murder of Joseph H Diamond's grandfather. Mr Diamond’s grandfather
was murdered in Presidio, TX in 1952, I was living in Presidio then. There is
a book about Arthur Hill, Texas Ranger entitled Law on the Last Frontier
by S.E. Spinks which tells of Ranger Hill’s life. Hill investigated the murder
of Joe Kalmore and the story is one of many in the book. The names of the people
are in the story and they were wax smugglers from Ojinaga, Mex.
By the
way Shafter is coming to life as they are going to reopen the silver mine, hiring
150 people. - John C Darst, April 14, 2011
The
Day that the Rains Came in Stiles, TX
- Mike Mitchell, April 28,
2011
The Unfortunate Chimp/Auto Collision
of Mankins, TX
- Michael A. Mitchell, Wichita Falls, TX, April
28, 2011
Subject:
Correction on Redwater Article
4-26-11
Gentlemen, I teach Texas History at St. Philip's College in San Antonio,
and I require my students to research and report on several small towns as part
of their class requirements. One of my students quoted your statement on Redwater:
"An avid Democrat, Page also served as Redwater’s postmaster for several years
during a Democratic administration in Washington. But when Republican Grover Cleveland
became president, Page was on the verge of losing his postal job." Page's job
was subsequently saved when his wife had quad girls and became a national attraction.
I believe if you check you will find that Grover Cleveland was NOT a Republican,
but instead was the only Democratic president elected from the Civil War until
1912. He did serve non-consecutive terms, and either of his successors, Benjamin
Harrison or William McKinley could have been the Republican president you were
referring to.
Your Texas Escapes site is a wonderful
source of information on a vital and infinitely interesting topic: small Texas
towns. Please keep up the good work, and if I can be of any assistance in any
way, do not hesitate to call on me. - Allen Lee Hamilton, Professor of History
Social Sciences Department St. Philip's College San Antonio, TX, April 26, 2011
Lamkin,
Texas 4-24-11
"...my grandmother once pumped gas for Bonnie and
Clyde... more"
- Ron Clark, April 24, 2011
Sunshine
Hill, Texas 3-29-10
Subject: Sunshine School Building
Sunshine
Hill, TX fell victim to a grassfire on March 22, 2011.
I visited the site
of the Sunshine School building, a few miles NE of Electra, Texas, on March 20th,
and took the attached photos...When I heard that the fire had destroyed the structure,
I was saddened, and went back to the school to see if it was true. It was.
Here
are both before and after pictures, only 2 days from the other... A part of North
Texas history is gone. - Keith Vaughn, Wichita Falls, March 26, 2011 |
Subject:
Notrees, Texas
3-22-11
There was a question about the so-called "Christmas in Notrees" song.
The song is actually "The Tumbleweed Christmas Tree" by Andy Wilkinson from Lubbock.
To solve a mystery, I had received a tape of the song while in the Navy, package
postmarked Lubbock, Texas
with no other name on it. Mr. Wilkinson had actually mailed it to me as a gift
and I "bumped" into him recently when he was in town doing a concert. I accidently
overheard him talking about the song and I told him how I had received the package
years ago and had always wondered who sent it. It was nice to finally get to thank
him for his kindness. At the time I was freshly overseas and terribly homesick.
It shows you what a small world we live in and yet another example of how everybody's
acts of kindness do not go unnoticed. Thanks, Andy. - Kyle Davian, Nolan County,
Texas, March 22, 2011
The
Wolfman of Comstock by Gary Humphreys 3-15-11
This is a true story
told to me by my mother, during the fifties……
Subject:
Tokio, Texas 3-6-11
While
reading about Tokio, I noticed some conflict of information concerning the closing
of the school. I was supposed to begin school at Tokio in September of 1946, but
the school closed at the end of the school year 1945-1946. As a result my mother
almost cried because I had to ride the school bus the longer distance to the Gomez,
Texas, school instead of the two miles to Tokio. (You remember things like your
mother being upset when you are young.) Anyway, that is what I remember. - Thanks,
Dennis Richardson, March 05, 2011
Subject:
Pandale, Texas 3-1-11
Thank
you for Texas Escapes, It is a frequent destination when time permits.
Pandale and the Pecos
River that runs near it is just about my favorite place on earth. My brother
roughnecked in that area in the 70's and would always spend time there camping
when he could. The scenery is beautiful and the river runs cold even in the 100
degree plus summer days.
That area of the Pecos
River once had a large indian population and while walking along the river
bank you will find more worked pieces of flint than is possible to count and in
many of he nearby hills it is quite easy to spot indian caves, however, they are
all on private property and not accessable unless you "know someone".
Up
until the mid 90's, FM 2083 that runs from Ozona,
through Pandale, and then on to Langtry,
crossed the Pecos
via a Low Water Bridge and would become impassable during heavy rains. In the
following pictures you can see remains of the old bridge and the new bridge in
the background.
Now, (the last time I was there in 2005), Pandale does
have an open business, a camping area with a small store at the old crossing location.
I wish I knew more of the area history, I bet it would be colorful and interesting.
- David Armstrong, February 27, 2011
Subject:
Odds, Texas and Odds, Kentucky
2-27-11
Dear TE, My name is Danny K. Blevins. I am an educator and author
in Johnson County, Kentucky. I have looked at your site many times and I found
it very interesting to find a Texas Ghost Town by the name of Odds, Texas. According
to your site, it was named for Odds, Kentucky. You stated that you were unable
to find anything about Odds, Kentucky and that maybe it too had become a ghost
town.
Well, Odds, Kentucky is located in southeastern Johnson County,
Kentucky. The U.S. Post Office of Odds was closed in the 1920's. Today, it is
served by the Van Lear, Kentucky Post Office. Most of the Odds, Kentucky area
was settled by the Richard Wells Family. My mother happens to be a member of this
family and I have always been told that members of our family left Odds and relocated
in Texas. It maybe that one of my family members may have brought the name from
Kentucky? I would be interested in knowing if there were ever any families with
the surname Wells that lived in Odds, Texas. - Danny K. Blevins, President
Emeritus, Van Lear Historical Society, Inc., February 25, 2011
Roosevelt,
Texas 2-27-11 Subject: Growing up in Roosevelt, TX
My father,
David Earl Fellers, lived in Roosevelt, Kimble County, TX as a boy. Born in 1926,
he was the youngest of twelve children of Edward, and Alice Fellers. To make ends
meet, my grandparents had to cut cedar posts. I always loved to hear Daddy tell
stories of the way he and his friends passed the time in Roosevelt. My favorite
is how the boys would take guitar strings and fish for Gar in the Llano River.
They would "shuck" their clothes, and while sitting on tubes, let the big fish
pull them around the river. Before supper time, they would go ashore, and put
their clothes back on. They would head for home, and their parents never realized
what they had been up to. - Mary Fraley, February 25, 2011
Subject:
Battle of Adobe Walls
2-21-11
The Indians did make a comment as they were leaving the scene
of Adobe Walls. I am surprised that it isn't noted (That I could find.)
Maybe
I know because I am part Caddo. but, when I visited the location in 1966 with
my dad, he told me this. Due to the distance from the mounds that the bullet traveled
and found it's high ground mark to the North, that one Chief stated: "Shoot today,
Kill tomorrow."
In 1966 when we visited, the mounds were only about 2
feet high, I have not been back since. The walls were formed in a small square
as best that I could tell. The location on the North side of the Canadian River
was located near a bend in the river that turned in a southerly direction. There
were a few Cottonwood trees near the river and a Texas plaque on a metal post
stating the information about the 1874 battle. - Cal Hunt, February 03, 2011
Subject:
Texas Pete 2-18-11
Based
on information at Forensic Genealogy, the tall gentleman on the Texas Pete postcard
appears to be one James G. Tarver.- Ray Garrison, February 18, 2011
Subject:
Bud Matthews 2-18-11
I
believe Bud Matthews was the husband of Sallie Reynolds Matthews. She wrote 'INTERWOVEN,
A PIONEER CHRONICLE' In the 1930's. They were a cattle family. - Kim Garnett,
Denton, Tx, February 17, 2011
World
War II 2-16-11
Subject: Your Camp
Howze story and pix
"I stumbled onto your pictures and story concerning
the German POW camp at Camp Howze. Thanks for bringing back memories.
I was one of those POW’s at the camp from Mar 45 to Spring of 46. There were 3
compounds for the prisoners, all next to each other. Most of us worked on area
farms, I had the fortune of working at the Camp Howze laundry plant. In the Spring
of 46 we were shipped home, which turned out to be a journey to England where
we had to work for another few years as POW’s for the Brits.
In the mid
50’s, I with my family emigrated to the US. I had opportunity to visit Camp Howze
(or what was left of it) in the early 70’s during a trip to Dallas. At that time
I met with and talked to a farmer who had built his homestead where the camp was
located before. He told me that I was the first and only former POW he knew of
that ever came back. Thanks again for your story and your pictures." - Wolf
Weber, February 15, 2011
Lubbock,
Texas 2-11-11
Subject: Your web site is wonderful!
I found
your web site today. It’s fantastic! My family was in the cotton
ginning business in Central
Texas and the Panhandle. I saw
a lot of back country along the old U.S. Route 84 between Hubbard
(Hill County) Texas and Lubbock, Texas. I still love to stop and look at the old
railroad depots.
I was in Denison
a few weeks ago and found an old railroad station. Railroads and stations are
one of my passions. Denison has an old hotel, too, that must have seen a lot of
life.
Attached is the old College Avenue Co-op Gin. The gin was south of
Lubbock. It WAS College Avenue then because Texas Tech was not a university. They
changed the street name when the Tech became a university. My earliest memories
were when it was steam driven. I remember the old steam engine, the boiler and
the fireman who ran it. Then they tore that down and put in a huge Waukesha engine
that my twin brother and I could crawl down into the cylinders! Then they went
electric.
My first school was Wheelock Elementary in Lubbock. It was made
up from old U.S. Army barracks taken from some base somewhere. Then Wheelock was
rebuilt.
I remember a ginner (a man who ran the gin stands) was killed
when he was pulled into the saws and chewed to death. It was a horrible death.
The saw was boxed up, but my twin brother, Jerry, and I sneaked in and saw it.
It was all bloody. My father, Lloyd C. Goode, was manager. We lived on the gin
property. Later my father installed individual electric motors on each gin stand
so that the ginners did not have to clean the saws while the saws were turning.
Jerry and I say that one day we will take a day or two and re-trace that U.S.
84 route from Waco, TX,
to Lubbock just to see all those little towns again. This was the late 1940’s
and early 1950’s. U.S. 84 must have followed the railroad because tracks ran parallel
to U.S. 84 for most of the way. The towns I remember are Gatesville,
Comanche,
Abilene, Sweetwater,
Slaton, Roscoe
just to name a few. My mother was stopped for speeding in Roscoe
once. I remember a truck stop on U.S. 84 then but is now I-20. It was between
Roscoe and Abilene.
It had huge oil derrick out front hold up the sign. That derrick is still there!
- Regards, Jay Goode, Goode Web Design, www.goodewebdesign.com, December
29, 2010
Gallatin, Texas 2-10-11
My father was born in Reklaw, TX but he grew
up in the Gallatin – Rusk, TX and he grew up with the late great Johnny
Horton. My father’s name was Cleland E. Bailey and he was the son of Isaac
Lawson Bailey and Maude (Parsons) Bailey. I’ve been to Gallatin several times
even though I live in Michigan. What a great place. My favorite place is the Olde
Store restaurant. - Kevin C. Bailey, Kalamazoo, MI, February 09, 2011
Tyrrell
Library, Beaumont, Texas 2-10-11
Subject: My First Visit
I
must have been about ten, and a student at St Anthony's Grammar School. We had
been studing about Libraries and how they worked, and that must have peaked my
interest in books something that had not been apparent before. It must have been
1938 and a saturday so I highed myself by foot the twelve or fifteen block downtown
to the Tyrell Library.
It is an experience that is seared into my memory
even today. I entered the massive doors in front and I distintly remember that
when I stepped inside the floor squeeked, and there was a smell that I can still
smell today, but for the live of me cannot describe. Dust particles hung in the
diffused light clear up to the vaulted ceiling like a gentle London fog.
As
I hestantly walked furthur in to the huge open room out of the fog emirged a large
figure dressed in black and scramed at me "What do you want young man?". It later
turned out that she was not large, only about 5 feet tall, not dressed in black,
it was grey and didn't scream. But my heart was pounding and I was speachless,
something my parents would find hard to believe.
I finally sputtered out
the name of the book I wanted and she took me in tow and found it for me and then
asked me for a library card. It was at that point that I knew the dream was about
to shatter. What Library card, I didn't know anything about cards. That was the
catch, they said it was a free library but you to have a card and you had to buy
it and it probably cost a dollar or more. I guped real hard and confessed that
I didn't have one. At that point she won my heart forever by saying "That's alright
Hugh come with me to the checkout desk fill out this little form and I will type
one up for you." She must have really like me because she spent the next
fifteen minutes explaining how books are our friends and we never turn down their
ears or write on their pages and we always return them a day early so that others
can also enjoy them.
She lauched me on a wonderious journey of the printed
page that has lasted til today. I am now 82 and as long as my eyes hold out I
will continue my treak into the unkown. - Hugh Nini, Sr., February 06, 2011
Goforth, Texas 2-2-11
We lived on a farm near FM 2001 in the 50's.
As a matter a fact, Clay Thompson and his family were friends of ours. I am older
than Clay, and well remember going in to the old store with my older sister, and
later with Clay's siblings and other friends. We were always warned about the
danger of entering that old building, but somehow we managed to survive! I still
have an old calendar pulled from the ruins of that 'dangerous' old building, and
like Clay's mother, my mother threw out other things scavenged.
My father
grew cotton and used the gin in Kyle. Many times on our way through the winding
roads to Kyle passing through Goforth, we would encounter a very old gentleman
with a long white beard and white hair. He would be walking along the side of
the road with a long staff. He would wave, and we would stop to say hello. He
had a merry face and was always so friendly. This kind man would lean into the
car window and ask how we were doing. Mom would sometimes bring him bread or some
other goodies. I do not recall his name as it has been such a long time ago, but
I do remember being told he was Santa. - Barbara Clayton, February 02, 2011
Concho
County Courthouse 1-17-11
My mother, 86, gave me a small photo of
the Concho County, Texas, courthouse, probably taken shortly after it was built.
There is a horse and buggy in front of the courthouse and several one-story buildings
in the background, but no trees around the courthouse. The photographer’s name
on the reverse is J. Y. Lowe, Miles Station, Texas. The photo was sent to her
mother in Georgia before she was married by a friend who went to Texas. - Virginia
Eubanks, January 15, 2011
Sugar Loaf, Texas 1-17-11
I was stationed at Fort Hood from April
1954 to September 9, 1955. I was from Holland, MI, so I made my home away from
home in Killeen. I was the first Explorer Advisor (Boy Scouts) at the First Baptist
Church in 1954.
I talked with an old-timer near the USO which had a nice
bench out front. He told me the history of Killeen without any dates. A community
was formed on the east side of Sugar Loaf Mountain as soon as the Comanches would
allow. Just how big it got, he didn't say, but it was big enough for a graveyard.
When the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway built through the area of
the current city, he stated that the crew chief painted his name on the storage
building. As the railroad was near the South Nolan Creek, the citizens of Sugar
Loaf moved to that location and the railroad named the town as being the name
on the shed. The grave yard was moved when Fort Hood was expanded as the that
location was within the firing range.
How much of his story was true,
I don't know, but he honestly passed on the history to me in hopes it would be
passed on. - Clifford J. Vander Yacht, PFC, US55440178, Hq & Hq Btry, Div Arty,
First Armored Division, January 16, 2011
Katemcy, Texas 1-3-11
Photo of my dad Kenneth Hill in 1925. He is with
his horse “Prince”, his dog “Shep” and his .22 rifle. The picture was taken while
he lived in Katemcy. Not sure how long the family lived there. I know they moved
to Mountaire, New Mexico by the 1930. If you have any other information about
the Hill Family that would be great. - Brian Hill, January 02, 2011
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