Category Archives: Places

The Stringbean; The Historic Magnolia Cemetery; Researching for a Historical Marker

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After listening to the Bayoulands podcast, I was triggered by just one word: Stringbean. Probably because I’ve been thinking of my late friend Jerry, and he was the one who introduced this Port Arthur/Pleasure Island train history to me. We will get into this supposed death trap of a vehicle in a minute, but I want to add that the safety standards in 1914 were not up-to-date with modern technology. I guess you can look at things like ski lifts in the 70s and 80s, which would be the same thing, I guess. Many people rode the ski lifts to the top of the mountain—even with children on their laps—unharnessed. “Oh, the horror!” In the end, people do what they can, by necessity, and you can’t judge them by the era you live in. But I do judge people on what they put on their toast. (I’m old and don’t care.) You have to see the whole history, not your 2023 observations. But it’s wild all the same.

Looking at the photo, and knowing the history of the trolley, which charged five cents for a ride across the waterway, it seems there were a lot of people who didn’t pay five cents and walked across the small walkway beside the tracks. I’m sure some safety person would be triggered at this photo for a totally different reason than I am, but back in the 1910s, people did what they could. I’m just amazed that they could produce ice in August 1906 in Beaumont. To me, that’s Egyptian-grade history. We don’t have pyramids in Beaumont, but we do have a fire hydrant. Thanks, Disney!

The Historic Magnolia Cemetery Tour is a name we’ve been throwing out there for the past two years, but this year, we can actually promote it as a cemetery tour in a historic cemetery. Why? As of this week, the cemetery has been legally acknowledged by the Texas Historical Commission (THC) as a historic cemetery. Up the road a bit, Evergreen Cemetery has had this designation since 2001, and I know that someone is currently in the process of trying to get Pear Orchard Cemetery designated, too. How does a cemetery become a historic cemetery in the eyes of the Texas Historical Commission?  To be honest, hard work and research by some determined people who get it done is usually the recipe. Legitimate research is a must, because hearsay doesn’t cut it.

Historic cemetery designations are generally a lot easier to achieve than designations for places, people, or historic events, which have their own rules and timeframes to go by. This type of research is solely for the passionate, and I don’t suggest that anyone do it unless they are ready to help. I’ve had someone email me about researching an old family name in SETX, wondering where the cemetery was. That part is easy, but they didn’t stop there—they wanted me to research their old families’ histories in the Netherlands. No. I don’t spend my time and money researching West-end Wanda’s kinfolk. No, I can’t blame this on Wanda (unless it was her cousin from Missouri emailing me), but the sentiment is there. I’ll help out, but you’re going to do the work.

Usually, in the summer months, I can’t do as much research as I would like because of work, so my goal for digitizing all the Susie Spindletop Weekly Letters will have to be extended to the winter months, along with my desire to delve into Toodlum’s Port Arthur News articles. Martha “Toodlum” Ferguson was someone I never met, but I found her articles helpful, especially when researching the Interurban. I also find her honest when bringing up Port Arthur’s history. I will add that scanning through a copy of the Port Arthur News, the Beaumont Enterprise, orthe Journal is much easier nowadays than when I started. Expensive, but easier. I spent two and a half years at the Tyrrell Historical Library on a microfiche machine, keeping them in quarters. It was like being in a casino, but with no alcohol, and hitting the jackpot a few times. (The Tyrrell was a Baptist Church before it was a library, so they may have frowned upon drinks.)

Until next time, tot de volgende keer!

Thoughts and Ramblings: Texas Point, William D. Quick, John McGaffey’s Gold, Legends, and Fireworks

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Last week, when someone mentioned that they had visited Texas Point, where the coastal gun positions were during the Spanish–American War and World War II, I wanted to use a photo of mine dating back to when I last went to the area. I thought the search would be easy—boy, was I wrong. On my Flickr page, which contains more than 8,000 photos, I found many of Sabine Pass, but not of this spot. Then, I checked my photographic database, which is probably three times bigger than the Flickr page, and I still couldn’t find one. So, I ended up searching the blog’s Facebook page, and I finally found what I needed. I also found many more interesting photos that I had forgotten about. Some of these were from the William D. Quick archive. There is one photo of what looks like a saloon with people near the front playing cards; other people are standing outside on the walkway, probably posing for the picture, with nine barrels dumped on the dirty street. Who are these people? What are they doing? Why? These are a few of the questions that came to my mind.

I would assume that the photograph was taken in the 1890s. According to Blanche Morgan’s recollection of early Port Arthur, you could have seen the same scene around 1905. I will also throw in the Catfish Hotel in Sabine from the 1860s. No one went thirsty in those days. Although no one in the photo resembles Dutch Margaret, I doubt that someone was assaulted with a parasol. I’ll leave a link at the bottom of the page for this story. I think Sabine Pass was the Wild West before the Wild West existed. I guess I’d have to talk to Sam Houston about this because he’s one of the folks who founded the city.

One mystery that has intrigued many is the legend of John McGaffey’s gold. According to historian W. T. Block, it’s folklore. However, in the past, many people have searched for the gold booty of the Spanish, which Josiah Carton stated was buried by pirates on a beach in the area. My first thought was the following: If he knew where it was, why didn’t he dig it up? Legends are fun until people start desecrating cemeteries looking for precious metals. “In 1936, one hunt resulted in considerable vandalism to an above-ground brick burial vault in McGaffey Cemetery, so desecrated that bones were left scattered about on the ground.” I’ll leave a link to W. T. Block’s article at the bottom of this blog.

Bragg Road

There are many legends in our area; some are more factual, while others are more speculative. The Bragg Road/Saratoga lights? Maybe. Sarah Jane Road? I’ll leave a photo that shows that Sarah Jane Bridge did not exist in 1938. By the way, there were no trees to hang oneself from on that nonexistent road. If you are interested in reading my 15 minutes of fame, which came with no monetary value, you can check out the links to the “Legend of Sarah Jane” and our antics on Bragg Road. These two are my most popular articles by far. People like spookiness. If you know of any spooky stories here in SETX, then get in touch with me at rediscoveringsetx@gmail.com.

I hope everyone had a happy holiday and an amazing time at your local fireworks show. I know Nederland’s display went off without any incidents. There was no word from Beaumont, but I’m sure that the Beaumont Camera Club was there to document the display’s awesomeness. I’m only bringing this up because in Port Arthur there was a “situation”. No one got hurt, but there may have been a snafu in terms of firework etiquette. It does suck when you are launching fireworks during a drought. Nothing major happened except a grass fire, which was put out with the help of the fire departments of Port Arthur and Bridge City. But that photo by Ricardo Chavez was awesome! Photo Credit: Ricardo Chavez. Story by KBMT 12 News Now.

I know the Port Arthur fireworks display well. I was lucky to have the keys (with permission) to set up on what I call a hill, though it’s actually a wave brake. To translate from engineerspeak, a wave brake is a barrier placed on a property to save its structures from being destroyed during a hurricane. Not to spoil the ending of this episode, but it didn’t work during Hurricane Ike, and it took 10 years for them to rebuild. During that time, I took my first photos of the fireworks show, locked in a property away from the public. Yes, I lost a lot of blood because you don’t use DEET or anything else around lenses. I was new, okay, and I preferred having my blood sucked out of me than ruining a shot with slimy hands. I took some nice pictures. However, in the end, I figured that hanging out in Beaumont to photograph the fireworks was much less blood consuming.

Well, I have many links this time, but some of them are worth a click. This week, Facebook stole all the good parts of Twitter and put them into Threads. I am on it, and the reason I will be putting my blog there is that Instagram doesn’t do links. Also, the only reason I’m on Instagram is that I hate Facebook, which owns Instagram. I digress. Don’t follow me on Instagram unless you are okay with bog witches, World War II, Tankery, and cats. You have been warned.

Until next week.

Flickr photo page: https://www.flickr.com/people/25032584@N05/

Blanche’s Journey:   https://www.rediscoveringsetx.com/2014/04/16/blanches-journey-an-early-look-at-life-in-port-arthur/

W.T. Block Kate Dorman and Dutch Margaret:  http://www.wtblock.com/wtblockjr/catherin.htm

John McGaffey’s Gold by W.T. Block:  https://www.ned.lib.tx.us/john1.htm

Legend of Sarah Jane:  https://www.rediscoveringsetx.com/2012/10/23/legend-of-sarah-jane-road/

Legend of Bragg Road:  https://www.rediscoveringsetx.com/2012/10/30/legend-of-bragg-road-saratoga-light/

 12 News Now Port Arthur Fireworks Display:   https://www.12newsnow.com/article/news/local/port-arthur-fireworks-display-ignites-fire/502-86392137-c3fa-4928-a605-6db67babad9d

Flickr Fireworks Port Arthur (2014):   https://flic.kr/s/aHsjZky5Pj

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/paulprosperie/

Threads:  https://www.threads.net/@paulprosperie

Thoughts and Ramblings: Thanks, Susie; An Old Building off Highway 90; T. J. Chambers’s House; The Intracoastal Waterway; Photographing the Moon and Being Spotlighted by the Coasties

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My shout-out to Susie for stepping in last week. Her Weekly Letter reigned from 1926 to 1938, and I intend to have her take my place every three months to explain what was going on during the times of her writings because her take on what was happening more than 100 years ago will make you think. It will also show you how nothing changes. The fact that my disappearance from the blog last week coincided with the UEFA Nations League Finals is just a coincidence because England or Wales weren’t playing. But I will give kudos to Croatia for hanging tough in the final with Spain, though they eventually lost, as well as for losing to everyone else except when they play England. Again, I digress.

Susie mentioned that they had broken ground on her new home on McFaddin Avenue. The house was constructed using some of the bricks from the old 1893 Jefferson County Courthouse, which was demolished around the same time to pave the way for the current 13-story structure that was finished in 1931. The fireplace bricks were from her grandfather’s Woodlawn Plantation, which he acquired in 1861 and his heirs sold in 1885. This land originally belonged to John McCroskey—actually, it belonged to Stephen F. Austin (SFA), but we may get into that at a later date because due to a marriage of a descendant to a nephew of the Bryan family, which is related to SFA, Florence is technically related to the latter (trust me, it’s an “I’m My Own Grandpa” scenario). Anyway, McCroskey’s log cabin, built in 1824, still stands today. It is the second oldest log cabin in Texas, and Susie talked about this regularly in her weekly letters. She even visited it occasionally because most of her family still resided in Brazoria County.

I need to get back to Brazoria County to do more research on the Stratton family. The help that the Brazoria County Historical Commission has given me has been fantastic.

Two weeks ago, we solved the mystery of where the Florence switch was located. Another mystery that has haunted a few of us is a building located on Highway 90 between Devers and Nome. If you’re driving west from Beaumont, it is just past the rice dryers along the highway. When you see them, look to the left for a building covered in vines. Historian Bill Quick once said that this was where they made munitions during World War I, but he has now passed, and I have found no one else who knows this story. At the time, this piece of information was not known because of the war, but the structure itself stands out, and I want to know more about it. I’ve asked a few people from Liberty County, but they knew nothing about it. Sometimes in these cases, time needs to simmer before we get an answer. So, I will keep watch.

One thing that requires no simmering is the Chambers House. It’s widely known that my favorite museum is the Chambers House Museum in Beaumont. However, back in 2012, I discovered another Chambers House by accident. I was working in Anahuac when I took a wrong turn and came upon T. J. Chambers’s house. The window enchanted me because it was different from other structures. I’ll leave a link to this house’s history and another one about T. J. Chambers’s story and fate.

This week, I was driving down Woodworth Boulevard in Port Arthur when I saw a scene that I’d witnessed many times before but had forgotten about. As I drove closer to Lakeshore Drive, I could see the little flags from a barge passing just over the levee. This is a regular sight if you live near the Intracoastal Waterway, but when you see a tanker passing by, it’s still awesome. Heck, in 2006, I even saw an aircraft carrier there, the Oriskany. A past director of the Museum of the Gulf Coast once told me the sight is one of the many perks of that job, and I believed him!

I wouldn’t say that this extraordinary maritime beauty is limited to the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. That little ditch that Arthur Stilwell expanded from the pass when the people in Sabine Pass did some real estate-related price gouging is also lovely. Having worked in this area for many years, my favorite memory is that of a shrimp boat exiting a fog bank, but that was before I had a phone with a camera. I may or may not have been working on the land that the Coasties inhabit, but the scenery was beautiful, especially when looking at the Sabine lighthouse.

When I began my photography journey, I spent many hours practicing taking different types of photos. Shout-out to a few folks at the Beaumont Camera Club for teaching me the art of fireworks photography, but photographing the moon was different. I spent two years taking pictures of the full moon, whatever the weather. It is a good thing that I learned how to photograph fireworks because taking pictures of lunar eclipses is somewhat similar, and boy did we have a few of those between 2014 and 2019 (photo links at the bottom of the page).

These were interesting adventures, and a few were more memorable than others. At the time, I wanted to photograph the moon over the Cheniere LNG Terminal. I planned to park at the Keith Lake Cut Bridge, set up my tripod, and take a few photos before the mosquitoes sucked all the blood out of me. Before I could jump out of my truck and hurriedly set up the tripod, I was spotlighted by a Coast Guard boat. Unbeknownst to me, a car carrier ship had passed through at the same time that I drove up. In this area, car carriers mean military. I guess I was lucky not to arrive a few seconds earlier, or I might have had to explain why I was setting up a tripod in complete darkness while a car carrier was passing. Glad they weren’t trigger happy! I did get the photo though.

Until next week, Semper Paratus!

McCroskey-Stringfellow House:

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=173103

General Thomas Jefferson Chambers’ House:

http://www.anahuactexasindependence.com/house.htm

Rediscovering Anahuac / Wallisville:

Rediscovering Anahuac / Wallisville

USS Oriskany:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Oriskany

Museum of the Gulf Coast:

https://www.museumofthegulfcoast.org/

Mark Wiess, Not Brownies, Told Stilwell Where to Build (August 2014): https://www.sfasu.edu/heritagecenter/9328.asp

Eclipse Photos 2019:  https://flic.kr/s/aHskQS3gxh

Lunar Eclipse Photos 2014:   https://flic.kr/s/aHsk4pnSod

Semper Paratus:

Thoughts and Ramblings: Susie Spindletop Edition

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It’s been a busy week here, Under the Oakes on Ye Olde Block Farm. So I’ll be back next week with more nonsense and shenanigans. In the meantime, Susie is here to guide you through some SETX life in 1929.

                              Susie Spindletop’s Weekly Letter Snipetts 1929

Dear Della:

   Rumor is telling it around that some doctors are going to build a clinic right alongside of Stratton’s flat in Magazine street. Della, if this is true I DO hope they won’t throw all amputated legs, arms, tonsils, adenoids and appendixes out of the back window into the front yard of the flat. You know I’m in debt for that flat. However, that mortgage I have plastered all over the place may keep this human debris out. Guess I had better ask Miss Pearl Brock—she is the yes-and-no man for the building company.

   So with a clinic next door, it looks like I will inherit the burden lifted from Mrs. Sol Elisha’s shoulders when the baseball park was moved. Mrs. Elisha had a tub full of baseballs which had fallen into her yard after inflicting damage to the roof of her home. Well, Della, I’ll promise you not to carry the burden that far. I’m not going to save things in my yard until I get a tubful.

                                                          May 19, 1929

                 *                                                      *                                           *

DELLA, the passing of the old homes of Beaumont brings many heartaches. But there are heart throbs along with the aches, for as in the case of the old Keith home on Willow street, recently sold, it awakened sweet memories… carries the mind and heart back to yesteryear.

   Mrs. Bucklin once kept a boarding house in the Keith home and I recall the days when Seawillow and Will Keith, Marjorie and “brother” boarded with Mrs. Bucklin. It was from there that Marjorie Bucklin Solinsky finished school.

   Eleanor Ives (now Eleanor Wiggins) was born in one of the big old rooms.

   No one thought then that the place where hospitality reigned supreme, where infants with their cooing songs were romping on the floor, where youth was spending its evenings in innocent merrymaking would one day give way to the pounding of the machinist’s hammer as he worked over automobiles, something almost unknown at that time.

                                                           July 7, 1929

   *                                                     *                                               *

DELLA, my boy friend, I mean one of them, left the Shawnee high and dry on the flood waters of the Neches river when he heard that about the only spirits he would find on the West Indies cruise would be those that might slip out of Davy Jones’ locker for a peep at what was going on on the surface. But there were a lot of fine fellows aboard who only thought of flowers, good wishes from their friends and the pleasures of a cruise among tropical islands.

  That reminds me that the dearest folks on earth are the thoughtful ones, the ones who think about the happiness of people who might otherwise be overlooked—maybe jump overboard in despair. Acting upon this impulse Sadie Wiess sent Jim Edwards a bouquet to take to his state room. Said she knew nobody else would send one.

SINCE the flood I am strong for short skirts and natural stockings. Really natural shoes would come in handy.

   Truth is, the Neches river and all of its little rivers up the country have been cutting up like a seashore party. Motor boats and airplanes have been about the only means of transportation in some sections but Beaumont is high and dry with the exception of a little water around the hem on a skirt.

  The Enterprise delivered papers by airplane and I expect you got my last letter that way. Carried yeast up the country too, saying that the people wanted to make some bread.

                                                June 9, 1929

*                                                    *                                                     *

SOMEHOW, my dear, we can’t get ahead. For geographic prominence we started out with Spindle Top which seemed to carry an impression that we had a mountain that looked like a spindle top until somebody discovered that there was a Spindle Top gulley because some boy lost his top there.

  Then Captain Plummer caught a whale down on the beach and somebody came along and wrote “Down to the Sea in Ships,” showing more whales somewhere else than the average person has advice when you have a bad cold. Then we produced our Big Hill which at least sounded big, but it hardly got on the map before Sour Lake came along and produced a crater.

  Just why they didn’t ask my advice about it I don’t know, but it promises to be constantly widening until it gets up where I can afford to give it a little attention.

                                              October 20, 1929

   *                                               *                                                      *

 MARY AUTRY HIGGINS came along with the epitaph she found somewhere:

Here lyeth the body of WILLIAM STRATTON

buried May 18, 1734

Age 97

Who had by his first wife 28 children

By his second, 17

Own father to 45,

Grandfather to 86,

Great-grandfather to 97,

great great- grandfather to 23…in all 251

A gravestone in Yorkshire, England

                               June 16, 1929

*                                         *                                             *

LAST Sunday the printer made an error in the last paragraph of my letter. I was worried until a member of my family pulled this: “Why worry? Nobody ever reads to the last paragraph of your letter anyhow.”

  Yours for more and longer miles between relatives, SUSIE

                                     October 13, 1929

                       *                                      *                                              *

Must leave you now. The ground is broke for my new home and so am I

                                             September 29, 1929

                                  Florence Stratton, aka Susie Spindletop

Born in Brazoria County in 1881, Florence moved to Beaumont in 1903. She was a newspaper reporter for both the Beaumont Journal and the Beaumont Enterprise. She is credited with starting both the Milk and Ice Fund (1915) and the Empty Stocking Fund (1920), charities of the Beaumont Journal. Florence authored The Story of Beaumont, published in 1923, which was the most successful of her five books. In 1929 Florence built her home at 1929 McFaddin Avenue, using plans from a New England cottage and brick from the 1892 Jefferson County courthouse. She also wrote a weekly column for the Beaumont Enterprise under the pen name Susie Spindletop from 1926 until her death in January of 1938.

A Brief History of Florence Stratton Part 1:    

https://www.rediscoveringsetx.com/2017/03/21/a-brief-history-of-florence-stratton-part1/

A Brief History of Florence Stratton Part 2:

https://www.rediscoveringsetx.com/2017/03/28/a-brief-history-of-florence-stratton-part2/

Thoughts and Ramblings: ChatGPT Lies; Susie Spindletop Wasn’t Anthony Lucas’s Wife; Hooks Cemetery; the Mayumi Child

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After receiving many “I’m sorry” and “I apologize” from the ChatGPT bot/Terminator wannabe in reply to my questions, I think this technology is probably only ready to replace politicians. It is vague and just gives out nonsense. To be fair, I asked it to do a bio of myself and a few friends or to provide information about some Southeast Texans. I get it, most of us are not famous, and the internet is where it gets its content, but I did put in a few names of authors and academics that it should have recognized but didn’t. It kept apologizing and telling me it hadn’t been updated since September 2021. Even our technology has been neutered. So, the moral of this story is that I do not need to quit my day job and that AI chatbots lie! No, ChatGPT, Susie Spindletop wasn’t the wife of Anthony Lucas! I’m beginning to hate technology more and more. To all those in college: some professors would love to bring back oral tests because of this new technology. I can only imagine the terror that writing in cursive would bring to their students.

Last week, I forgot to mention that I visited Hooks Cemetery on my journey to Hardin County. I wanted to pay my respects to Bessie and Bruce Reid. Bessie coauthored When the Storm God Rides, a textbook on Native American tribes, with Florence Stratton. She also wrote Legend of Kisselpoo, which was published in the Port Arthur News in July 1923. It was a historical fiction article based on her research on Texas’s Indian tribes and their lore. Bessie was also an avid birder and naturalist.

I’ve written about the Kishi family of Orange County and their role in SETX history. They were not the only ones to farm in this area. Yoshio Mayumi, a prominent banker and landowner in Japan, purchased 1,700 acres near Taylor’s Bayou, where he began to grow rice and raise cattle. Like Kichimatsu from Orange County, Yoshio was not initially trusted by the locals. Still, in time, they got to know him and respect him.

Yoshio Mayumi

Yoshio eventually brought over his brother Yasuo to help manage the farm. In 1915, their father died, and Yoshio returned to Japan. Yasuo took over the farm and did well for a while, but mismanagement, dwindling crops, and a rice market crash after World War I made its future bleak. Finally, in 1924, Yasuo sold the farm to the Burrells and left for Japan. Unlike the Kishis, none of the Mayumi clan stayed behind—none of the living, that is.

If you walk among the rows of section X at Magnolia Cemetery in Beaumont, you may come upon a small cement slab with a headstone that reads Mayumi. In December 1917, Toshiko, Yasuo’s wife, bore her and Yasuo’s first child; unfortunately, the baby was born premature and lived only for one day. In a Beaumont Enterprise article, Gwendolyn Wingate wrote the following:

Yasuo Mayumi

“One evening in early December Mayumi rode horseback up to the Bailey Wingate home. For days it had been raining a cold drizzle, and the roads were under water.  Apologizing for what he said was an intrusion, Mayumi explained that his first child, a son, had been born, but after only one day of life, the baby was dead.  Mayumi needed help.

Wingate’s sturdy widowed mother, Artemise, who had borne nine children and had seen three buried, bundled up against the cold and rode back to the Mayumi place with the men. She found Mayumi’s wife with the dead child in her arms rocking back and forth in mute grief. She tried to comfort the woman who spoke no English and helped prepare the baby for burial.”

The Mayumi child was buried at Magnolia Cemetery, and Toshiko moved back to Japan, while Yasuo stayed behind. I’ll leave a link to the full article at the bottom of this blog.

Speaking of Magnolia Cemetery, October will soon be here, which means that the Historic Magnolia Cemetery Tour will take place again on Museum Madness weekend. The dates are Thursday, October 19, from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., and Saturday, October 21, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. We’ll have more information soon!

Until next week!

Southeast Texas Rice Beckoned Japanese:

https://hirasaki.net/Family_Stories/Mayumi/Mayumi.htm

History of the Kishi Colony:

http://hirasaki.net/Family_Stories/Kishi_Colony/Kishi.htm

History of the Mayumi Colony:

http://hirasaki.net/Family_Stories/Mayumi/Mayumi_History.htm

Thoughts and Ramblings: Historic Homes Tour Is a Wrap; Archie Wallace; Griffing Park; the Company Store; Howard’s Grocery; The Oilers Blew it; Some Guy with Nice Hair Didn’t

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Edmund and Lorena Toebelman House

The 49th Annual Galveston Historic Homes Tour has wrapped up. Unfortunately, due to the inclement weather, we had to end it at three in the afternoon instead of at six, the usual time. I know there were a few disappointed souls out there, but when the streets flood, it may not be a good idea to let wet booties or bare feet walk through a house. Overall, the tour went well, but it did have its moments. As I wrote last week, I volunteered at the Edmund and Lorena Toebelman House. The morning was nice and cool, and we had a steady stream of people. I was a porch docent by choice. We didn’t have any issues other than the fact that the group had to wait a few minutes after I spoke because of the house’s layout. We didn’t want a traffic jam from the staircase to the living room. Everyone was fine with that, and the wait was worth it, in my opinion. It’s a beautiful house, and the woodwork is amazing.

Kudos to my fellow volunteers who, unlike me, usually volunteer on Mother’s Day. I have done so a couple of times, but the outside chairperson told me this was his 20th year. Generally, on Mother’s Day, it’s hard to get people to volunteer, and that’s why I did it and probably will do it next year. A little insight into the 50th anniversary: the Galveston Historical Foundation is planning something special, so follow them for updates as we get close. As far as I am concerned, despite the tiring drive, it is worth it. If you’re interested in volunteering, I’ll leave a link at the bottom of this blog post.

Unfortunately, I’ve lost another friend and fellow Jefferson County history lover. Archie Wallace was a client of mine, but we would end up reminiscing about Port Arthur, the interurban, those rich people in Griffing Park, our mutual friend Roy Temple, and Port Arthur Mayor Bernis Sadler’s annexing quests. When asked how the city would pick up the offshore rig’s garbage, Bernis said, “Just leave it on the curb; we’ll pick it up.”

Archie was one of the few people I asked about their life during World War II. He was a child then, and the main thing he remembered was the sugar rationing; also, he had no idea where Pearl Harbor was. I’m sure those rich folks in Griffing Park had encyclopedias, but I digress. In his younger years, he worked on the streets in Griffing Park, so he knew the answer to my question. Back in 2015, I found a photo in the Beaumont Enterprise, taken where it is now, 32nd Street and Twin City Highway. It was a then-and-now photo. The first was taken in 1929, while the second was from 1959. It was nothing special, but it did show that looking south in 1929, you saw nothing, and the road curved to the right instead of making a 90-degree angle like it does today. In 1959, you could see the newly constructed auditorium and gymnasium in the background. Again, there were no trees, and the road curved to the right. If you stand at the stoplight on 32nd today, you don’t see the school, but if you glance to your right, you notice a street leading into Griffing Park that was blocked off by a barrier long ago. Since 32nd Street runs west to east, and Twin City Highway runs north to south, you really couldn’t have a fifth road there. Hell, most drivers in Port Arthur can’t figure out a four-way stop.

I will state that the roads in Griffing Park are different for a reason. Another client/history lover who has since passed told me they are the way they are because this area was a nursery and you can’t turn a wagon at a 90-degree angle. Mrs. Thibadeaux was full of information, and I loved our conversations. I haven’t been to Rose Hill Manor in a while, but the dolls on the second floor were hers. She was also a friend of my neighbor Roy Temple and his wife.

Archie also mentioned trips to the company store on Saturdays. Whether it was Texaco or Gulf, most people did this. I know my grandfather did. Unlike nowadays, it seems that Saturday morning was the day back  then—now I’m in HEB five days a week. I remember my father going to Howard’s Grocery every Saturday morning. Howard Hatfield made sure there was more stuff to buy in the 1970s than in the ‘30s, and we appreciated this. JPOTS (Just Part of the Store) was much better than Howard E. Butt’s flaming bird! I remember how excited we got in the ‘70s about the National Football League stickers on the loaves of bread. Unfortunately, it was usually a Seattle Seahawks or a Kansas City Chiefs sticker that no one cared about, but we still stuck it on our school books. The Houston Oiler sticker was nonexistent as far as I know—I never saw them. I guess the NFL dropped the ball on that one, but I was only a fan of Earl Campbell and could not care less about a disgruntled team that would eventually end up in Tennessee. Shout-out to Bum, though. He knocked on the door; then, the following year, he banged on it. He then broke his foot trying to kick the door in because the iron curtain took no crap from any team.

Now that I’ve ticked off all the Houston Oiler fans, I will add that I knew about Washington Huskies quarterback Warren Moon because he was QB with the Edmonton Eskimos in the Canadian Football League before he came to Houston when Hugh Campbell, the Eskimos coach, took the head coaching job for the Oilers and lasted one year. Warren stayed a bit longer, but they never really played forward in the end. I won’t even mention those Buffalo Bills people who had the audacity to come from behind and make it to a Superbowl, where they lost to some Port Arthur native coaching the Dallas Cowboys. I remember he had nice hair and a few rings. Shout-out to Don Beebe for never giving up. Sorry, Leon.

Until next week!

Galveston Historical Foundation:

Home
GHF Volunteer Opportunities

Bum Phillips Kick that SOB in/Higlights Houston Oilers Pep Rally 1980 :

“The Comeback” (Oilers vs. Bills 1992 AFC Wild Card) :

https://youtu.be/u1lgLXsO2Ag

49th Annual Galveston Historic Homes Tour

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Today is the day, and I will post information all day on our experiences on the tour.

#ICYMI Here is what to expect on this tour and the dos and don’t’s. Hope to see you along the way!

When taking a historic homes tour, you should have a plan.

1.         Each ticket is valid for one visit to every house on both weekends. If you can go both weekends, taking the tour with family and friends is a great experience. However, if you only have one weekend or even only one day, then it is better to take the tour with no more than three people. Long lines can be an obstacle. One year I took the opening-day tour solo, and there was a point when I passed in front of 14 people because they only had enough room for one more person in the group.

2.         Some of the houses are in the same neighborhood, so have a plan to park centrally. You will be able to walk to multiple places without wasting time looking for a parking spot for the various destinations.

3.         NO HEELS! I should have put this up top. This is the one thing I’ve never understood. Why would someone wear heels on a home tour that involves walking upstairs and on lovely restored floors? If you do wear heels, you’ll end up walking through some stranger’s house shoeless. There was an instance when a homeowner had their beautiful restored floor damaged by someone who chose not to wear comfortable shoes. The money raised by the tour paid for the floor to be restored once more.

4.         Booties! Speaking of shoes, it is always inevitable to have one house on the tour that doesn’t want you, prancing around in heels or people walking on their newly restored floors. I get it, restoration is expensive! But then why have your home on the tour? Anyway, I digress. This will undoubtedly slow down the number of people taking the tour. So, there may be some waiting time.

5.         It may be better to visit popular homes, such as the cover house, at the opening, during lunchtime, or close to the last tour (six in the afternoon). I’ve found that these times have fewer lines.

6.         Volunteers. Most of the people checking your ticket, selling you the excellent wares that the Galveston Historical Foundation (GHF) has to offer, and who are stationed throughout the property are all volunteers. This means they are not getting paid. The white shirt-black pants army is there to keep the tour rolling and help you visit these beautiful homes. I say this because when you find yourself in a line, know that most of these people are doing the best they can to give you a great experience. Concerning the historical knowledge of these places, I am looking forward to seeing what the GHF will offer its volunteers. One year, I volunteered to be a docent on the front porch and all I got was a 3 x 5 index card of information. I will admit that it has finally gotten better!

7.         Visit the Old City Cemetery! The wildflowers are lovely and a great photo opportunity for photographers.

8.         Make sure to look for the cemetery tours hosted by Kathleen Maca. They sell out fast! The reason is that she is a great storyteller and has written several books on Broadway’s prominent cemetery.

See you on the tour!

2023 Galveston Historic Homes Tour:  

https://www.visitgalveston.com/blog/galveston-historic-homes-tour-locations/?fbclid=IwAR1kchD2PH3VW1Ixn9i_xwE1OTA59eWBjkydkMkieMghj7QLxmC2BKk1ha4

Thoughts and Ramblings: Watching Darkness Fall; Brothers in Arms; 49th Annual Galveston Historic Homes Tour

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761st

Lately, I’ve been spending time and money on my Audible account. I’ve downloaded audiobook after audiobook—mostly World War II biographies but with a few lighter reads on plagues, pestilences, and musicians. I’m still recovering from the bio of Dave Mustaine (Megadeth’s front man) on life on heroin, hating Metallica, and edging on the Northern Irish into a riot. It’s a good read, but I’m still detoxing from the amount of heavy drug use it contained. And I won’t even get into Nikki Sixx’s book The Dirt!

I finished two books this week, and I highly recommend both. The first is called Watching Darkness Fall by David McKean. It describes the situation in Europe leading up to WWII and the four American diplomats who witnessed it firsthand. I’ll admit that this book brings out my hatred for Joe Kennedy almost as much as my views on MacArthur and Roosevelt. Maybe I’ll get into that one day, but I want to discuss the next read.

The second book was Brothers in Arms by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (yes, that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) and Anthony Walton. The subtitle reads The Epic Story of the 761st Tank Battalion, WWII’s Forgotten Heroes. The 761st was the first Black mechanized battalion in the army and the first of its kind to see action in WWII. The book follows the struggles, tribulations, and racial discrimination of these soldiers from their training in Louisiana and Texas to being hand-picked by General George S. Patton to fight in his Third Army. And fight they did. They went up against elite Panzer divisions and endured a casualty rate of 40 percent. In the end, they broke the Siegfreid Line, advanced through many German cities, and liberated the concentration camp in Gunskirchen, Austria. In the movie Patton, you will see a tank division advancing across the Rhine River. That was the 761st, but for some reason, some idiot decided to use white actors instead of giving an accurate account of these fighting men. I’ll leave a link to a documentary that provides a complete picture of the 761st below.

The 49th Annual Galveston Historic Homes Tour begins next week, and I want to give a few details about what to expect for the first two weekends of this May event. There are ten houses/properties on the tour (the 1920 City National Bank building is not a house, but it was on previous tours; I hope to see it fully restored). No word on the booty call. Last year there were five houses where you needed to wear booties, and that took a lot of time. Not knowing more about the properties where I will not be volunteering could be a problem, so stay tuned. My house is small and has only one story, so it should be fine.

When taking a historic homes tour, you should have a plan because the ticket is only good for the first two weekends in May. The ticket costs $45. Since 2012, my plan has been to take the tour on the first Saturday and then volunteer on the first Sunday with the Candy Lady. I will post my views during Saturday’s tour and hopefully guide you in visiting the different properties. With that said, I will now offer my guidance to my friend Wanda because she is not the sharpest tool in the shed.

  1. Each ticket is valid for one visit to every house on both weekends. If you can go both weekends, taking the tour with family and friends is a great experience. However, if you only have one weekend or even only one day, then it is better to take the tour with no more than three people. Long lines can be an obstacle. One year I took the opening-day tour solo, and there was a point when I passed in front of 14 people because they only had enough room for one more person in the group.
  2. Some of the houses are in the same neighborhood, so have a plan to park centrally. You will be able to walk to multiple places without wasting time looking for a parking spot for the various destinations.
  3. NO HEELS! I should have put this up top. This is the one thing I’ve never understood. Why would someone wear heels on a home tour that involves walking upstairs and on lovely restored floors? If you do wear heels, you’ll end up walking through some stranger’s house shoeless. There was an instance when a homeowner had their beautiful restored floor damaged by someone who chose not to wear comfortable shoes. The money raised by the tour paid for the floor to be restored once more.
  4. Booties! Speaking of shoes, it is always inevitable to have one house on the tour that doesn’t want you, Wanda, prancing around in heels or people walking on their newly restored floors. I get it, restoration is expensive! But then why have your home on the tour? Anyway, I digress. This will undoubtedly slow down the number of people taking the tour. So, there may be some waiting time.
  5. It may be better to visit popular homes, such as the cover house, at the opening, during lunchtime, or close to the last tour (six in the afternoon). I’ve found that these times have fewer lines.
  6. Volunteers. Most of the people checking your ticket, selling you the excellent wares that the Galveston Historical Foundation (GHF) has to offer, and who are stationed throughout the property are all volunteers. This means they are not getting paid. The white shirt-black pants army is there to keep the tour rolling and help you visit these beautiful homes. I say this because when you find yourself in a line, know that most of these people are doing the best they can to give you a great experience. Concerning the historical knowledge of these places, I am looking forward to seeing what the GHF will offer its volunteers. One year, I volunteered to be a docent on the front porch and all I got was a 3 x 5 index card of information. I will admit that it has finally gotten better!
  7. Visit the Old City Cemetery! The wildflowers are lovely and a great photo opportunity for photographers.
  8. Make sure to look for the cemetery tours hosted by Kathleen Maca. They sell out fast! The reason is that she is a great storyteller and has written several books on Broadway’s prominent cemetery.

Until next week, I believe shiplap will be in our future, and if you complain about seeing shiplap, then you shouldn’t have paid $45 for a historic homes tour—but I digress.

Come Out Fighting: The 761st  https://youtu.be/yDI7zOONVn4

https://www.army.mil/article/1792/the_761st_tank_battalion_fighting_the_enemy_beating_stereotypes

Watching Darkness Fall:

Brothers in Arms:  

Galveston Historic Homes Tour:  

Galveston Historic Homes Tour

Kathleen Maca:  http://kathleenmaca.com/index.php/book-signings/

Thoughts and Ramblings: A Milestone; the American Plague; Tall Ships Festival; Yukari Says Hi

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I hit a milestone of sorts. This week is the first anniversary of “Thoughts and Ramblings” and my return from a two-year hiatus. I am genuinely amazed at this milestone—not because of the content (we all know some of it was a bit thin on occasion), but because I made it through a whole year without missing a week. This is how the blog was supposed to be when it began. However, back then, it was hard to stick to this routine because I wanted to do thorough research on each subject, and there is not a snowball’s chance in hell that can happen in a week. The houses and events that I covered fit into this type of schedule, but they also took time away from research. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed most of the events, but there is a reason I’m on the historical commission and not in a historical society: I am not social! But covering those things was fun.

Vuylsteke House

In the blog’s early years, I wanted to promote our area’s historic homes and museums. I felt that there was not much promotion out there for the smaller venues, and people in our area would rather travel 500 miles to look at a giant ball of string than walk across the street to one of our local museums. And let’s be honest, who has heard of the Vuylsteke House? I grew up in Port Arthur and never heard of it because nobody promoted it. Luckily, Sydalise Fredeman saved the Pompeiian Villa, which I eventually toured in second grade. It was another forty years until I visited it again. During that visit, the docent mentioned that I should also tour the Vuylsteke House. There was not a lot of promotion back then. Some kind of information should’ve been out there, but it wasn’t in 2012. In 2023, there is a lot more promotion of these houses and museums, and I’m happy that people are getting the word out. It’s not perfect, but they are learning.

Although not weekly, I did post some finished and ongoing stories throughout the years. I enjoyed every bit of the hours and money spent learning and uncovering the history and lore of our SETX. A few topics that triggered me at the time (and still do) are the interurban train, the Sabine Lighthouse, the Rowleys, the Chambers House Museum, Florence Stratton (of course), Hugo DeBretagne, Marine Scout Bomber Squadron 931 (VMSB-931), Magnolia Cemetery, Jeanette Catherina Stengele, Miss Jack McDonough, Wong Shu, and two people for whom I have the utmost respect: Kichimatsu Kishi (the Kishi colony) and William D. Quick, a researcher whom I never met. All their stories can be found on my blog: www.rediscoveringsetx.com.

On April 11, 2022, I posted my first “Thoughts and Ramblings.” It was basically a memorial to Florence, Bill Quick, and Jerry Burnett. Jerry was my insurance agent/go-to interurban train person. We would spend hours talking about trains and Port Arthur’s history. He died in October of 2021, and I still miss him.

From that post onward, the blog changed to a much easier format that talks about what I’m researching and what was happening at the time. This allowed me to post some weekly interesting stories and give updates on ongoing projects. I could also ramble on and mention some of my beloved nonsense, including Tankery, anime, and the Mari Lwyd. Do not be mistaken, they were strategically placed six to eight months in advance because 秋山 優花里 Akiyama Yukari, 紺野木綿季 Yuuki Konno, and the Mari Lwyd are dear to me. I will admit that Yukari is one of my spirit animals. I have four. The other three are Oscar the Grouch, Margaret Hamilton, and Bunny Rabbit from the Captain Kangaroo show. As a kid growing up without a Leave It to Beaver family, my inspiration came from the first three, but Yukari triggered my triggerness. “Panzer Vor!”

I finished the book about the history of yellow fever that was recommended to me by two friends. With all these GPR surveys lately, I thought I should get up to date on this disease. It is an excellent read if you are into this type of history. Still, if you have a weak stomach, you might want to skip this read because it describes exactly what happened to all the victims and the brave doctors, scientists, and volunteers who dealt with this epidemic. The only happy ending is that they found what spread the disease, and thanks to their sacrifice, you aren’t dying of yellow fever in 2023. This was a different epidemic compared to the Spanish flu or COVID-19. The book is The American Plague by Molly Caldwell Crosby. Again, this is a must-read if you are into this type of history. Also, for those who have read it, we know—the band Toto was wrong. We don’t miss the rains down in Africa because that’s how it all started!

Well, the Tall Ships Galveston Festival took place this weekend, and I was there on Saturday. I may have an evening edition on that today. It depends on whether I have one of those Mama Teresa’s Flying Pizza slumbers while I wait for the ferry. Shout-out to Mama Teresa. That is my go-to place while waiting to board the ferry. Hurricane Ike destroyed the restaurant at Crystal Beach, but Mama Teresa’s pizza is still flying in Galveston!

Speaking of Galveston, we are three weeks away from the 49th Annual Historic Homes Tour, and I will be putting out a list of what not to do on the tour. It’s for Wanda only because she seems to always get this wrong. No high heels—there will be booties—and remember the long lines in the sun! Everyone else knows this, but she always seems to forget.

Until next week, さようなら Sayōnara. Yukari says hi!

Vuylsteke House:

Vuylsteke House

Pompeiian Villa:

Pompeiian Villa

秋山 優花里 Akiyama Yukari:

Tankery explained:

American Plague:  

Mama Teresa’s Flying Pizza:

https://www.galveston.com/cuisine/find-a-restaurant/mamateresa/

“Thoughts and Ramblings: Florence, Willie, and William; Queen of the Elks; Elks Love Nest; JPOTS; World War I Monument.”

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Last week, I mentioned that Florence and Willie Cooper were best friends. Their story goes possibly back to childhood. Florence’s father, Asa E. Stratton, served as a Texas legislator from January 1883 to May 1884. I have no idea why it wasn’t a full term because I haven’t researched this, but it’s another subject that I’d like to pursue. Willie’s father, Sam Bronson Cooper, also served as a Texas legislator at the time (1880–1884). Let’s add William Hobby from Moscow, Texas, into the mix, and we have a threesome of influential SETX individuals from both local and Texas history.

Willie Cooper

It is important to note that all three had ties to Beaumont in the 1900s; slowly, all three would end up here. Florence would take a teaching job in 1903; William Hobby would acquire the Beaumont Enterprise in 1907, and Willie would be elected Queen of the Elks in November 1901, beating Miss Eddie Ogden by 2,216 to 643 votes. However, there may have been shenanigans in the vote count, or at least that’s how the Beaumont Enterprise article tells the story. I don’t really know when the Cooper family first came to Beaumont, but they were a positive force for the city.

Speaking of a positive force and the Elks, I discovered an exciting raffle in the pages of the Beaumont Enterprise of 1926. It was a fantastic giveaway of a newly built home with all the amenities. It even came with a brand-new Chevrolet Coach worth $645. All this could be yours for a one-dollar raffle ticket, and oh, by the way, you needed to be newlyweds because the property was promoted as the “Elks Love Nest.” I remind you of this because it was 1926, and there was no shacking up in the Oaks Addition.

The response was amazing, and many purchased tickets. The Elks even kept the raffle going after the deadline to ensure that some folks who were sailors would be here for the draw. It’s kind of hilarious that they kept putting off the draw because they kept selling more tickets. I don’t know where the money went eventually, but the Elks were masters of promotion. The Elks are still a thing, and if you know one, I wonder if they keep track of their history. P. F. Armstrong ended up winning the love nest in December of 1926, and the house is still there. However, I don’t know the whereabouts of the Chevrolet Coach.

photo credit: Portal of Texas

As I drove to HEB yesterday in an impending rain storm, I could only wish that Howard’s Food Store in Port Arthur was still open. Not because of Just Part of the Store (JPOTS) and their great prepared food, but because Howard Hatfield had a covered parking lot that was a treasure. I have no idea what you Beaumonteers had (probably Piggly Wiggly), but we all went to Howard’s back in the day. And, of course, we would also grab a greasy burger at Judice’s on Seventh Street. I will say that Monceaux’s was the best; Judice’s came in second because I don’t remember them having greasy onion rings. Otherwise, it would have been a tie! Yes, my blood pressure is high, but I do take statins!

I’ve talked before about the World War I monument in Triangle Park, in front of the old Beaumont Enterprise building. There is a movement that wants to relocate it to Magnolia Cemetery. Currently, they are talking to the city authorities and finding the right people to speak to because let’s face it, this monument was forgotten long ago. At the last Magnolia Cemetery tour, we asked those who came out if they knew of the monument, and probably 95 percent didn’t. So, I ask you now: Have you ever heard of it? This is why it needs to be moved somewhere other than an easement on Main Street right across the giant fire hydrant where it stands today. I do not hate Disney’s giant fire hydrant; I want this monument to be in a better place.

Until next week, Tschüss!