Texas Bucket List

Texas Bucket List

The Texas Bucket List – San Felipe de Austin

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San Felipe – Texas history is something we hold near and dear to our hearts. Sacred sites like the Alamo, San Jacinto, Gonzales and Washington on The Brazos all played major roles in Texas gaining its independence from Mexico, but none of it would have happened without San Felipe de Austin. “A lot of what triggers the Texas Revolution is involved in this story here,” said Jordan Anderson.

Jordan grew up in Austin, which has been the capital of Texas since 1839, but today he works at the San Felipe de Austin State Historic site, which happened to be the first capital of Austin’s Colony from 1823 to 1836. “I thoroughly enjoy being here because it’s a story that’s not as well known,” said Jordan.

Now before Texas was Texas, it was a part of Mexico, and in order to populate this part of the country, Stephen Fuller Austin was commissioned to colonize it. “Mexico is looking to populate Texas and rebuild the economy, so they do have some stipulations,” said Jordan. “They’re looking for people who are going to be industrious and they’re looking for people who are going to bring their families. Texas in general lost about half its population in the 20 years from 1800 to 1820. They’re looking for families, people who are willing to convert to the Catholic Church, because they are a Catholic nation. There’s this whole story out there that people had to learn how to read and write and speak Spanish. That’s absolutely not the case. They didn’t care what language you spoke in, as long as if you’re communicating with them, it was in Spanish. Stephen F. Austin did most of the communication for you as a colonist, so that was taken care of. And of course, you’re going to be a good Mexican citizen.”

With 1.5 million acres to hash out in Austin’s Colony, he had to set up a center of operations, so San Felipe was established. “San Felipe is the administrative center of Stephen F. Austin’s colony,” said Jordan. “So, any of the colonists or prospective colonists who want to receive land in Mexican Texas, they’ve got to come here and receive approval from Austin himself, or one of his secretaries. And then they start the process of working with the surveyors to issue them lands on behalf of the Mexican government.”

An acre of land cost around $1.25 in the United States back then but in Mexican Texas, it was much more affordable. “You, the colonists, just have to pay the surveyor, the paper, the seal to make it official, and the land commissioner’s time,” said Jordan. “So you’re paying about 47 cents an acre. It’s a really screamingly good deal here.”

Of course, the land was divided up according to what your trade was. “There are two different types of land allotments that you could receive,” said Jordan. “First is going to be a league. So, that’s 4,428 acres, and that’s if you’re going to be a livestock raiser. The other is a labor, 177 acres, and that’s if you’re a farmer. So, the question was pretty much up to you, what of these two things do you want to do? The fee’s dirt cheap, as I mentioned earlier. Most people said they’re going to raise livestock. Some people said, ‘Actually, I plan on doing both. Can I get both allotments of land?’ It’s one of those that never hurts to ask. Worse you can be told is no, because they were told yes.”

Over time, Austin settled over 1,200 families and San Felipe became one of the biggest towns in Texas. “In the run-up to the Texas Revolution, San Felipe grows to become the second largest town in Texas behind San Antonio de Béxar,” said Jordan. “It’s the political hub of Anglo Texas. So, whenever the Anglo colonists have an issue with the Mexican government, they’re gathering here to talk about those issues and sending petitions to the Mexican government. But most of the business that is here has to do with the land business associated with Stephen F. Austin’s empresario grants.”

As Texans started to gain their fierce independent spirit, several attempts to separate from Mexico fell flat here. “San Felipe is where we passed on declaring independence from Mexico,” said Jordan. “We were declaring support for the Mexican Constitution of 1824. We wanted Santa Anna and his friends out, which in 1832 and ’33, we were in support of Santa Anna at the time. So, we liked him for a period of time. There’s even a ball we know of that was thrown in honor of him being elected president here in San Felipe.”

In 1836 everything changed. Texas battled with Mexico and while the Alamo is under siege, San Felipe receives a letter declaring Victory or Death from William Barret Travis and promptly starts printing it. “There’s a printing press in San Felipe, which is printing up all the government documents for them,” said Jordan. “And then later when the government moves and declares independence at Washington-on-the-Brazos, that printing press here is still printing all those documents. So, the Travis letter calling for help from the Alamo, that comes here to San Felipe. It’s then forwarded to Washington-on-the-Brazos.”

At the historical site, there are artifacts that take you back to these historic days of Texas’ past.“This represents the print shop run by Godwin Cotten, who came here with this style press, the Ramage press,” said Jordan. “And he ran the first newspaper, the Texas Gazette, in San Felipe. We actually use everything in this shop. Mark and a number of other volunteers have created some of these form documents, letter by letter. And first, they have to create a mirror image.”

It was from here that the citizens of Texas spread the word about the siege that was already underway. A few days later, Texas declared its independence and the declaration was sent here to once again spread the word. “They declare independence at Washington-on-the-Brazos,” said Jordan. “They send the copy of it down to San Felipe to print overnight, and the printers worked overnight and prints 1,000 copies.”

That same month, San Felipe burned to the ground in the Runaway Scrape as General Sam Houston pushed his forces back to San Jacinto. “It’s a strategic choice, which oftentimes is not a popular choice,” said Jordan.

According to Texas lore, Austin’s nephew, Moses Austin Bryan, refused to start the fire. “So, there’s stories of Moses Austin Bryan having split feelings about what they’re doing to their town, their friends’ businesses, their own homes,” said Jordan. “Moses Austin Bryan actually asked to be excused from service saying, ‘I refuse to burn the town that my uncle first laid off in the wilds of Texas.’”

On April 21st, 1836 Sam Houston defeated Santa Anna at the Battle of San Jacinto and Texas became a country. Stephen F. Austin would pass away in December of that same year from pneumonia. “When Stephen F. Austin dies, Sam Houston even writes in his letters, ‘The Father of Texas has died,’ because Stephen F. Austin spends a lot of his effort trying to guide Texas and the people living here in a positive direction,” said Jordan.

While San Felipe de Austin wasn’t a pivotal point in Texas’ Battle of Independence, it was crucial to the story of Texas, making it well worth a stop on The Texas Bucket List. “To fully understand the story of the Texas Revolution, this place is important and its stories, that aren’t as well-known at the moment, give you the full picture,” said Jordan.

The Texas Bucket List – The George Ranch in Richmond

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Richmond – In a town known as the Space City, you’d expect to find nothing but modern conveniences and the big city way of life. But just a few miles from the hustle and bustle of Houston, you’ll find the George Ranch in Richmond. Here, life is like it was when Texas was a Republic. “Texans feel it’s important for them to know of their heritage, and we are excited to be able to show them that history in a different setting,” said Adrienne Barker.

Adrienne is the Executive Director of the Historic George Ranch Association and she’s in charge of running this 20,000-acre ranch that’s only 30 miles from Downtown Houston. However, many Texans haven’t heard of it. “We’ve kind of flown under the radar for 200 years,” said Adrienne. “We are older than the King Ranch. We were founded 200 years ago in 1824, and we like to say we were here before Texas, because this was part of Mexico when the ranch was founded.”

Just seeing fields of green not far from the concrete jungle is a refreshing way to spend the day, but then, there’s the history. “We teach 100 years of Texas history starting at about 1830 and running through 1930,” said Adrienne. “We like to bring that history to life for the kids who read about it in their classrooms, then they can come here and actually see people who teach the history live in a setting that’s appropriate to that time.”

Considering this was a cattle ranch for so long, you’ll still find steers soaking up the Texas sun and avoiding the cowboys any way they can. It’s part of the demonstration to show what life was like, and how it still is, for those who work the ranch. “They actually work the cattle, the kids get to see the cattle and the cowboys and the horses up close, and they get to really get into that golden age of the cattle drive period that is taught in their Texas history courses,” said Adrienne.

Turns out the cattle are really just trying to avoid bath time even though they seem to enjoy it as much as the onlookers do. “There’s a little bit of splashing when a cow goes into the dipping vat, and that’s always fun,” said Adrienne. “We tell them to step back and they look at us rather skeptically, and then the first cow jumps in and they move back, and it always brings a smile and a cheer. Just a lot of fun to get to see that up close.”

The George Ranch was established by Henry and Nancy Jones who were some of the first settlers under Stephen F. Austin’s first colonial contract in Mexican Texas. “Henry and Nancy Jones came here a little over 200 years ago, and they were the first English-speaking settlers in the area,” said Adrienne. “Obviously, there were indigenous folks here, and they established the ranch as one of Austin’s first 300 families.”

The association has preserved the memory of that very early way of life here at the ranch. “This is the second cabin of Henry and Nancy Jones,” said Adrienne. “It’s a replica of the original that was here on the ranch. And they lived here with their 11 children. This is actually a pretty upscale cabin, and it’s one of our most popular sites with all of the students and the people who visit because it’s so different from how they live now.”

Seeing what life was like back in the 1830’s is one thing, but here kids can actually experience it. “We put them to work doing some chores and they get to do a lot of hands-on things so that they can really see what it was like to live back then,” said Adrienne. “Our interpreter here, J.R. Thomas is very good at getting the kids involved and getting them to do lots of different things for him, helping with his work.”

From there the Jones’ moved to this prairie home in the 1860s. “This was actually the third home of Henry Jones, and he built it very near the end of his life,” said Adrienne. “Oddly, he never really liked this house. He really wanted his cabin. He was most comfortable there, but he built this house and then wasn’t really that happy here.”

The third home on the property is a Victorian complex built in the 1890’s by the third generation of Jones’ family. “We have now moved into the 1890s, the Victorian age, so you’ll see a much higher level of wealth shown, many more items on display,” said Adrienne. “That was the Victorian way.”

And the final home on the ranch was built by the 4th generation of Jones’ Mary Elizabeth, who was also known as Mamie. “This house is set in the 1930s,” said Adrienne. “It was the home of AP and Mamie George. Mamie was the final generation of the family story, and this was the house they built together for their married life.”

With no living heirs, it was the George’s who established the Foundation that continues to this day providing Texans with a glimpse back in time while giving back to the community. “We wonder if they knew what they were creating,” said Adrienne. “It’s a pretty amazing legacy. You always think that yes, they had in mind charitable good and supporting the community, but they really think it would ever become this big, and we just have to be the best stewards we can of that legacy. Just seeing this land and heritage kept in place, it’s really, really nice to know that there are some pockets like this that will remain and we’ll continue to tell our Texas history, and for people to enjoy the outdoors and agriculture and cattle and cowboys, all those things that are very Texas.”

The Texas Bucket List – Return To The Alamo

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San Antonio – The Alamo. A hallowed place to Texans who can still hear the battle cries coming from the walls of this sacred site in Texas. This place is only part of the reason 1836 resonates in the hearts of those who love our state. But the outcome of the Texas revolution didn’t just play a role in our state’s history, it played a role in our country’s history and the folks who take care of this Texas treasure are able to tell that story better than ever. “Obviously it’s a big responsibility, but we’ve got a great team here at the Alamo, so everybody shares that responsibility together,” said Kate Rogers.

Kate is the Executive Director of the Alamo Trust and leads the reigns of the Alamo’s  multi million-dollar renovation plan. “The last time that the Alamo Complex received a major investment of this kind was in 1936 for the hundredth anniversary, and that’s when a lot of the structures that we all remember growing up, so like Alamo Hall, which was an event space for the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, the current gift shop, which started off as a museum under the Daughters of the Republic leadership,” said Kate. “Those buildings were all added during that time as were the gardens themselves. So this is only the second time in its 300 year history that the Alamo has gone through a major transformation like this.”

While it’s not quite finished yet, the new exhibits and buildings on hand have grown significantly since our last visit. “A $550 million transformation largely funded by the state of Texas,” said Kate. “We received 400 million during the last legislative session. So this new structure, a lot of people don’t realize it’s here. The new Mission Gate and Lunette, the 18-pounder exhibit, the Palisade, the new San Antonio de Valero Park. A lot of people don’t know those are open, and that’s only the beginning.”

Ernesto Rodriguez is the senior curator at the Alamo and he’s been here for over 25 years. He couldn’t wait to show off their newest addition, the Ralston Family Collections Center. “There’s a lot of things that have happened since the last time we spoke,” said Ernesto. “This place is moving and shaking. It’s a dream come true because right now what’s happening is everyone has come together for a common goal, and that’s to be able to tell the story of the Alamo all 300 years in the best way possible.”

While the Alamo itself is the sight that most come to see, there’s a ton of artifacts from the battle and beyond that are important for telling this tale of Texas history. “It allowed us to increase the number of artifacts that are on display by five times,” said Kate. “A lot of our visitors don’t realize that we have a collection this big. And over the last year, our amazing curatorial team has been adding literally hundreds of artifacts to the collection that will help us tell the full story.”

Some of the exhibits showcase the history of the Alamo prior to the battle, featuring works of art and other cultural displays. “So one of the things that we have in our collection is we just acquired this and it’s a painting of Benjamin Rush Milam,” said Ernesto. “And so this is an original painting done in life. He’s wearing his 1812 uniform. And what’s really impressive about this painting is that it lets us tell the story of one of the Alamo’s precursors. Before we got the Alamo, there was a battle in San Antonio called The Battle of Béxar. He’s one of those men that is a hero to Texas history because he leads this charge fighting for Texas independence. Defender paintings are really hard to come by, and even Benjamin Rush Milam’s painting was hard to come by, but we’re really proud to have it. It’s one of those paintings that’s been used in so many books and now the Alamo has it in its collection so that it’ll be protected forever.”

One of the biggest additions to the Alamo is a collection of artifacts donated by Texas history buff and musician Phil Collins. It includes a massive diorama of the Alamo, and Collin’s himself narrates the story about the attack on the Alamo. “The Phil Collins Diorama is definitely a visitor favorite,” said Kate. “So this diorama was part of the Phil Collins collection that he gifted to the state of Texas back in 2014. At the time he gave it to the state, it was valued at 20 million.”

Collins’ collection also includes fragments from the active days of the Alamo. “One of the pieces that really attracts a lot of attention is this cavalry helmet, about 1820s to about 1840s,” said Ernesto. “And so what’s really special is that it still has this horse hair mane. It has the pom-pom on the side and it’s leather. So for it to last this long is really rare with all of its objects that go with it, the chin scales. And so it’s a really interesting piece because it survived so long.”

One of Santa Anna’s swords, several cannonballs, and firearms owned by Alamo defenders are a few things you’ll find here, but the ring owned by William Barrett Travis is a truly notable treasure. “One of the objects in our collection that’s also very, very small is Travis’s ring,” said Ernesto. “Now Travis, right before the end, he takes the ring off and he puts a little string around it and he hangs it on the neck of Angelina Dickinson, the daughter of Almeron and Susanna Dickinson. And he says, ‘Can you make sure my son gets this?’ Unfortunately, Charles will never get it. Angelina will grow up, she’ll give it to her husband, he’ll fight a civil war and it’ll be passed down. And then it comes to us in 1955. Now why 1955? Fess Parkers TV show. It draws a lot of attention for the Alamo and a lot of items start coming in, as does the John Wayne movie in 1960, as does the sesquicentennial in 1986. And so objects start coming in. Right now with our giant project of telling the story of the Alamo’s 300 year history through a new museum, it’s gained that attention as well so people are giving us items that belong to the people of Texas and telling the story.”

The new Mission Gate is now part of the Alamo grounds and showcases what the entrance to the fort might have looked like. There’s also a new augmented reality experience in the long barracks showing how the Alamo has evolved and changed over the years. The cenotaph is undergoing a massive restoration and will not be moved from its current location. And in 2027, the new visitors center and museum are scheduled to open, but the main attraction continues to be the site itself and the story it tells of the Texians who took on Santa Anna and his men nearly 200 years ago. “Most Texans have come here and they’ve checked the box and said, ‘I’ve been there, done that, seen that,’” said Kate. “I would challenge you. So we have people come all the time, every day and say, ‘Oh my gosh, I had no idea all of this was happening.’ So many layers upon layers of history that happened here. And we should all be so proud of it because it’s really the root of our identity as Texans and our great pride as Texans.”

The Texas Bucket List – Fort Lancaster in Sheffield

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Sheffield – Traveling west in Texas, it doesn’t take long for things to start getting desolate. Just 240 miles from the Alamo City, you’ll find Fort Lancaster. Here, the wind whips between the plateaus while every little thing fights for survival. That includes the westward travelers who established this fort situated between the Texas Hill Country and the Chihuahuan Desert back in 1855. “There’s so many stories to tell of Fort Lancaster,” said David Martinez. “I think that’s one of the best parts about it.”

David is the Educator Interpreter for Fort Lancaster. Originally from the Rio Grande Valley, David is adjusting to life out on the frontier. “In a way, it was sort of a fulfilling of some of my childhood dreams, living out west,” said David. “Living in Texas, the American Cowboys, perhaps one of the most idolized figures. And out here, that’s as close as I can get right now.”

David has a master’s degree in history and his passion for this place is as expansive as the landscape. “Fort Lancaster is a very essential component of Texas history,” said David. “I liken it to sort of an intersection of many avenues of history. This was a federal army installation at one point. The Camel Corps passed through here at one point. It was a former Confederate army installation maintained by Confederate Texans. The Buffalo Soldiers were here, and it’s the only site within the state of Texas that’s a fort and simultaneously a battleground.”

Expansion to the west came fast and furious for Texas prior to the Civil War, and that’s how Fort Lancaster got its start. “Fort Lancaster was established in 1855 to protect the San Antonio-San Diego Trail and mail coaches ran by through here,” explained David. “And it was also a military garrison to protect against the Native Americans in the region. There’s a lot of evidence of native habitation out here in Pecos River Valley. When the US Army was surveying Fort Lancaster in 1849, they noted that there was evidence of Native Americans out here, and especially along the Live Oak Creek, which is the water source of Fort Lancaster. So because of that, Fort Lancaster was established right here because of the freshwater source.”

Around 1858, two companies of the First Infantry Regiment Garrison with over 160 men were stationed here. “There are two sets of barracks here on site,” said David. “There were the company K Barracks, and the company H Barracks. And it’s a mixture of limestone brick and adobe. So that reflects in its condition today. And something that aided in its longevity is the fact that it was made out of limestone and not Adobe. Had it been made out of Adobe, like most of this building, it would’ve all been weathered away.”

The fort was functioning just fine until a little skirmish between the north and the south took place in our country leaving US forces scrambling. “So in 1861, Texas joins the Confederacy and Fort Lancaster receives their orders to evacuate,” said David. “So March 20th is the official last day that US troops are here at Fort Lancaster, and they actually marched on foot to the coast of Texas to Indianola, hoping to make their escape. After 1861, Fort Lancaster never really achieves that same status of being a fully operational fort.”

After the end of the Civil War, the fort would return to the hands of the Union, who were trying to reunify the country after several highly divisive years. “Fort Lancaster had been abandoned in 1862 by Confederate Texans, and as an effort to reestablish the US government’s presence in the southwest in Texas, the Buffalo Soldiers were part of that mission to sort of bring the US government back to West Texas,” said David. “They had the odds stacked against them. However, it speaks to their tenacity, to the fact that they did so well in their mission and they succeeded, especially with the Battle of Fort Lancaster and defending their post and surviving such inconvenient odds for them.”

The only known attack on Fort Lancaster took place during the Buffalo Soldiers’ time here, and they were greatly outnumbered. “It was two years after the Civil War ended in 1867 and a garrison of about 40 Buffalo soldiers held their ground against a force of about 900 Kickapoo Indians,” said David. “As you can imagine, it was quite the spectacle for the Buffalo soldiers and often in that time period, enlisted men, it was very typical for soldiers to enlist and throughout their entire enlistment period, never see any forms of combat or engagement. It varied, of course, from post to post, but that battle really must’ve been something else for the gentlemen who were here during that time.”

The corral that came under attack that day still stands. “The primary reason that the Kickapoo Indians attacked Fort Lancaster was actually for the horses that the Buffalo soldiers, the Cavalrymen had brought with them,” said David. “You can imagine there’s gunfire coming from the company H Barracks. There’s gunfire coming here from the corral, and as the Buffalo soldiers were trying to maintain and get control of the situation, the horses stampeded out that way, and the Kickapoo Indians gave chase. And that was perhaps a saving grace here at Fort Lancaster.”

In a world much different from the one we have today, just simply traveling west was a harrowing experience for families and for soldiers. “Fort Lancaster is also, in a way, hallowed ground because we have a cemetery here on post,” said David. “We don’t know the identities of all of these graves, but it’s evidence that traveling out west and living on the western frontier was no walk in the park. Child mortality was high. People often got sick of pneumonia and perished. And here at Fort Lancaster, we try our best to preserve this site and not just keep the memory of the soldiers who worked here alive, but also to maintain the memory of the people who are buried here at Fort Lancaster.”

Taking some time to explore Fort Lancaster and trying to comprehend what life was like for those who defended it and those who traveled through it make this historical stop that’s well worth a stop on The Texas Bucket List. “The forts were a pretty important component of not just the United States history, but Texas as well, as Americans traveled and settled out west,” said David. “And Fort Lancaster being a battleground, it shouldn’t be forgotten. Fort Lancaster sort of is a remnant of this interesting period of American history, makes it very much worth the visit.”

The Texas Bucket List – Menger Bar in San Antonio

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San Antonio – When it comes to places to stay in San Antonio, we’ve check into the Menger Hotel many times on The Texas Bucket List.  This historic hotel is the perfect place rest your head by the Riverwalk thanks to its proximity to one of our state’s most hallowed sites, The Alamo.  Built in 1859, the Menger Hotel itself is a hot spot for history buffs.  But there’s also a bar inside the hotel that also brings those seeking to hear a story about the Spanish American War and a particular president. “It’s hard not to be in awe of this place and the history behind it,” said Angela Pena, who has been pouring libations and presenting the lore about this little bar since 2008. “This has definitely been a place where generations of families have come and enjoyed the space, and to hear some of their stories has been really, really cool.”

This public house was put together in 1887 and is a replica of the House of Lord’s Pub in England. “This bar came in, like I said, 1887, where Mrs. Menger had only paid $15,300 for the actual 50 room hotel,” said Pena. “All of this woodwork cost $63,000 when it came in 1887. So I think we looked it up and it’s the equivalent of $2.2 million up to date.”

That didn’t stop Carrie Nations, a radical member of the temperance movement, from taking a chunk out of the wood.  “She, in particular, would go around bars with a hatchet and give a whole spill how we were all going to go to hell in handbasket,” said Pena. “And I’m the stealer of men’s souls apparently, so. Yeah.”

Originally the bar was in another part of the hotel, but it was carefully moved, piece by piece, to its new location in 1958 and set up exactly the same as it was. Countless people have come to this bar counter to order a cold beverage, but there’s one customer in particular that folks love to hear about. “Well, it’s definitely the Teddy Roosevelt influence,” said Pena. “I think sometimes people are so surprised to see that he was here.”

Hence the reason there’s giant moose in the room. “He’s a good listener,” said Pena. “If he ever starts talking back, call for help.”

The 26th President of the United States assumed the presidency at the young age of 42 and prior to that, he had a lifetime’s worth of experiences.  Some of those moments in time were spent right here in this bar, recruiting fellas to come fight with him in a little group known as the Rough Riders. “Fort Sam Houston supplied the equipment that they took to the Spanish American War with them,” said Pena. “So that was this purpose here, and it was another stop to get a few more boys to sign on the dotted line. So, it was business.”

A picture behind the bar showcases a younger Roosevelt in his uniform, gathering his cavalry unit for the war effort. “This was actually here in San Antonio during the training,” said Pena. “Down on Roosevelt Street, there’s a Roosevelt Park, that’s actually where the training was set up. So this was there in 1898 before they left for Florida.”

Now one of the most popular things to see at the Menger Bar are a couple of holes in the wall. But these aren’t just any holes, they’re bullet holes.  “This bullet hole story is supposed to be pretty much a marksman competition,” said Pena. “When Teddy was here, he wanted to see who was a good shot. One of it’s supposed to be Teddy’s and the other is supposed to be the recruits. They were trying to get closest to the mirror without shattering it, and the one on the left is definitely that.”

When people come to the Menger Bar to raise a glass to Teddy and the things he did as president, there’s one drink of choice. “Definitely the old-fashioned,” said Pena. “I’m glad that trend’s come back around because it’s easy to push something you enjoy.”

While Pena’s favorite part about her gig at the bar is her secondary role as historian, she also gets a lot of questions about the supernatural history of Menger Hotel. “Sometimes I’d rather focus on the history than the ghost,” said Pena. “So sometimes people ask ‘Oh, have you seen a ghost?’ It’s like, ‘No, no.’ But there’s 32 of them, of course. They’re here. I tell people, ‘If you believe in them, they’re definitely around. So take lots of pictures, maybe you’ll catch something.’”

People have seen some unexplainable things in the bar, especially in the loft. “I can say over all these years, I’ve had people bring me their photos and there’s definitely things that I’ve seen in those photos that you can’t really dispute,” said Pena. “Maybe you can, but they’re there. They’re here. I just come in, and you leave me alone, and I’ll leave you alone and we’re all good.”

Altogether, there’s something for everyone at the Menger Bar, whether you’re looking for a stiff drink, a supernatural encounter or a history lesson. “This is just a moment in time that everybody should take in,” said Pena. “To see a bar like this in its entirety post-prohibition is not usual. So stepping in, sometimes I think people are surprised at how beautiful the small space that this is.”

 

 

The Texas Bucket List – Babe Didrikson Zaharias Museum in Beaumont

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Beaumont – Driving through Beaumont, you usually experience one of two emotions. Happiness if you’re driving into the great state of Texas, or sadness if you’re heading out of the Lone Star State. Either way, there’s a building on the side of Interstate 10 that might catch your eye, because it always gets me to take a glance. It’s sort of like the NFL Hall of Fame but much smaller, and with a very unique name on the side of it. The Babe Didrikson Zaharias Museum & Visitor Center.

Babe Didrikson Zaharias was born in Port Arthur in 1911 and grew up in Beaumont. She was an Olympic athlete and a prolific golf champion, winning numerous titles across several competitions.

Babe’s parents were immigrants from Norway, and she lived in a community that was mostly immigrants. The tight-knit community would come together to play many sports such as baseball, and it was on the diamond that she got the nickname “Babe.”

From track and field to basketball, softball, baseball, tennis, and even hockey, there wasn’t a sport Babe didn’t play. Her athletic prowess was so powerful that she joined the Golden Cyclones basketball team in Dallas in 1929. But there was one sport achievement Babe had her sights set on, the Olympics.

When Babe found out the Olympics were going to be held in Los Angeles in 1932, she was determined to find a way to compete. Before she could qualify she had to train, so she would jump hedges in her neighborhood to practice, hence the reason you see the hedges around the museum. When she competed for a chance to represent her country at the Olympics, she had to face off against an entire team.

She beat out a 22-woman track and field team to qualify for 5 different Olympic events, but back then women were only allowed to compete in three. So she simply set two world records and took home three medals, all at the age of 21.

Her athletic career didn’t end there though, and not by a longshot. Over her golf career Babe won 82 tournaments, just as many as Tiger Woods. She also continued to break records, and was the first American woman to win the British Amateur Open.

After co-founding the LPGA, Babe had to face the toughest challenge of her life, cancer. She was diagnosed with cancer twice and underwent surgery to remove part of her colon. This procedure kept her out of competition for all of three months before she was back on the golf course, going on to win the U.S. Women’s Open.

Two years after Babe’s surgery, cancer would unfortunately take her life, but it didn’t take the resilient competitor’s legacy. She passed away in 1956, but fans still frequently come by the museum to visit and honor the life of one of the best athletes in history. Babe’s memorial can be found a few miles from the museum, in the hometown that made her who she is, inspiring other women and girls of all ages to give life everything you got.

 

The Texas Bucket List – Santa Rosa Palomino Club in Vernon

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Vernon – In the middle of May, Vernon, Texas anxiously awaits the start of the Santa Rosa Roundup. It kicks off with a parade that pretty much pulls in the whole town. Like a scene from a Norman Rockwell painting, you’ll see your typical small town Texas floats, kids on horseback, and of course one or two tractors. But the biggest draw to the parade is the hometown riding club, the Santa Rosa Palomino Club. “The club was organized in October of 1949, so we’re celebrating this year as the 75th anniversary of the club,” said Jeff Bearden.

Jeff is the President of the Santa Rosa Palamino Club. Jeff grew up here, his dad was also a member of the Club.  After attending Texas A&M and being a part of Parsons Mounted Cavalry, Jeff came right back to Vernon, and he’s been a part of this group of riders for most of their historic trail. “I started riding as a substitute as a senior in high school and then rode as a substitute rider until I moved back home and was voted into the club,” said Bearden. “So I’ve been a member for 42 years and a rider for 52 years, and our drill captain’s been riding about 54 years. We travel together and try to keep each other out of trouble on trips. Sometimes lead the singing after the rodeo and everything.”

It’s all fun and games after the rodeo because keeping the tradition and essence of this tried-and-true crew is something the current members take seriously. “We all enjoy riding horses,” said Bearden. “You’ve got to enjoy it to work this hard, to have a good time.”

The reason these 20 riders of all ages are committed to keeping this tradition alive are the 238 men who rode before them. Making sure the Santa Rosa Riding Club continues to ride means keeping this Texas tradition alive as well. “This is a part of Western heritage that is kind of disappearing,” said Bearden. “Just like a lot of things in rural Texas, it’s harder to have enough people to do what you want to do. We have 20 good riders that show up, and then we’ll invite people to substitute for someone that can’t make a trip, and that’s the way we recruit new members, and they try us out. When it started, naturally, it was a lot of farmers and ranchers and businessmen, but as our drill script says, it’s all walks of life. We’ve had doctors, lawyers. I worked at the state hospital as a mental health program director for a number of years before retiring. We’ve got teachers. We’ve had an undertaker. We’ve had a few members that their professions defied description, but everybody puts all of that aside and gets on the horses and just try to perform.”

The horses play a big role in the riding club because they all must be palomino horses of course and they might be more scrutinized than the actual riders. “We search high and low for good horses that match a certain color description and confirmation to match the club,” said Bearden. “We have a horse committee that approves horses that are brought into the club. Sometimes it takes time to break some of them in. Of course, the opposite is true, too. The horses actually learn the drill, and sometimes we have to fight to get them from anticipating the maneuvers. The horses are probably better behaved, sometimes, than the riders are, but we have a good time wherever we go, but try not to get in any trouble. Never had anybody arrested, that I know of.”

The Santa Rosa Riding Club has performed all over Texas including the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, they’ve ridden in two inaugural parades for Texas governors, they’ve even been a part of the Tournament of Roses Parade and are the official “Ambassadors on Horseback” for the State of Texas. “They won’t see this kind of a riding group outside of somebody like maybe the Royal Canadian Mounted Police,” said Bearden. “We’ve been compared to them. There are some other pretty fine drill teams around, but they won’t see one that has this amount of color, this amount of uniformity, the speed, and the flash that we bring to it.”

With riders of all ages, it’s a commitment to keep to their schedule. There’s practice, there’s parades, and then there’s quite a bit of travel. All while looking good in their iconic riding outfits. “It’s been pretty much the same look, as far as the uniform, since about the mid-1950s,” said Bearden. “They’re hot in the summer. They’re cold in the winter. One of the coldest I’ve ever been in my life was a rodeo parade in Cody, Wyoming on July 3rd, and we had to ride from the rodeo grounds to town wearing those satin shirts, and on the way down there, it started sleeting on us. It got cold, but it’s just a part of the show.”

That’s why riding in their hometown of Vernon means so much to them. It’s where it started all those years ago and it’s where it will continue for as long as the cowboy way of life continues to ride on here in Texas. “The community’s really been good about supporting us, so we want to do a good job for them and represent them well,” said Bearden. “We’re proud to represent Vernon. We’ve got a legacy we have to carry on, and we’re bringing on some younger members and trying to help them know the history of the men that started this, the men that carried it on, and make it something that lasts for a long time.”

 

 

 

 

The Texas Bucket List – Cherokeean Herald in Rusk

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Rusk – Cherokee County feels like a relatively rural place behind the pine curtain of East Texas. The biggest towns in this territory include Henderson and Rusk, and surprisingly over 50 thousand Texans call the county home. While stopping at All Star Bar-B-Q to talk baseball and local politics is a popular pastime in these parts, it’s not the official news source for this area. Instead, there’s a weekly paper that’s been a part of the community for 175 years. “We’re proud of the paper and we’re proud of what it’s done for all these years,” said John Hawkins.

John owns the Cherokeean Herald, which is the state of Texas’ oldest weekly paper. “It’s unbelievable how many people just really rely on that,” said John.

With his wife Penny by his side, the couple has poured their heart and soul into this periodical, and both have dealt with the stress that comes with running this place for a substantial period of their lives. “We’ve been associated with it for 40 years,” said John. “We had never jumped in the fire. The previous owners have passed away and I can see why.”

Originally a 4th generation Houstonian, John moved here in the early 80’s after getting tired of the big city and finding out the hard way that moving to Mexico wasn’t the best idea at the time. “I’d been living in Mexico to get away from everything and I came back here with my tail between my legs because I went broke in Mexico, had to borrow enough money to pay for gas to drive back here from Acapulco and just started driving around looking for a job, and this was the first place they hired me,” said John. “Never expected to stay here this long. I mean, this was a job when I first came, $6 an hour, but I needed a job.”

John quit once to try to advance his career. “Occasionally you have to leave East Texas and make a living,” said John. “I did. Ended up working for some television stations and came back to work here.”

Then he quit again. “The third time I quit, my boss said, ‘John, you’ll always have a job with me,’” said John. “I said, ‘Boss, it’s been three times. There’s not going to be four.’ And then I end up owning it. Go figure that one out.”

John was getting the scoop on retirement when he got some breaking news, and never did he expect his name to be in the masthead. “They called me up and said, ‘we’re going to sell the newspaper or close it by the end of the year,’” said John. “I’m thinking, okay, holidays. That gives them two weeks to find a buyer. And they said, ‘Unless you want to buy it.’ I said, ‘No, that’s going the wrong direction. We’re supposed to be retiring.’”

John eventually decided that he couldn’t pass up the opportunity and didn’t want to see the paper end up in the wrong hands. “When we bought the paper, people were congratulating us and sending us notes,” said John. “And Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn did. Ted Cruz, Lance Gooden, Cody Harris. What’s the old thing? Keep your friends close. Your enemies closer.”

While the commendations from members of Congress and other politicians are prominent in his office, his affinity for trains is even more impressive. But John’s true passion is the paper. “This is a part of Texas history, and I am very defensive of that part of it,” said John. “As a native Texan, we couldn’t let that history die.”

When you live in a smaller town, the importance of having local reporters is amplified. “You know, a community newspaper is really important I think, because we get to tell the stories about people that are going on here and we have a story in this week’s paper about a young man who’s going to the World Disc Golf Championship that lives here,” said John. “One of the best things about a community newspaper is it shines a light on the politicians so they don’t get away with as much.”

While covering stories about local heroes and political affairs are obviously important, another purpose that the Cherokeean Herald serves is preserving the day-to-day memories that are made in Cherokee County. “Every year we do either a graduation magazine or a Lone Star magazine,” said John. “The graduation magazine, we have six schools we cover, and we have all the pictures of all the kids, and parents love it, grandparents love it, friends love it. 20 years from now, they can go back and laugh at how their hair looked.”

Finding stories isn’t tough, but finding advertisers can be tricky. “Our biggest struggle right now, of course is advertising,” said John. “It’s tough in these times right now where we’re having depressed economies per se. A lot of people are saying, ‘Well, I don’t need to advertise. I’ve got Facebook.’ And I could name the number of stores that have gone out of business because not enough people liked them on Facebook. So that’s a struggle. But the community and certain people and certain banks, and like I said, car dealers have really supported us and kept us afloat. We have one car dealership buys a half page every week. Has for years. God bless their soul.”

Fortunately, the Cherokeean Harold does have a solid reading audience, and some even stop by the office just to pick up their hard copy. That, and to get caught up on more local gossip. “We have regular friends that come by here and they pick up a paper every Wednesday,” said John. “They could easily have a subscription and have it mailed to them, but no, they come by here and talk and visit sometimes. We love it though.”

Whether in person or through the paper, having a personal connection with the people of Cherokee County is what the Cherokeean is all about. “We’re not making any money,” said John. “I hate to say it really is doing it for the community, doing it for Cherokee County and doing it for the state of Texas. And something we’re proud to be a part of. Very proud. It’d be nice to make a profit. That would be cool. Wouldn’t have to eat rice all the time.”

Despite his humor about hunger, John enjoys his job of being the man who brings the news to the people of his community. “Horace Greeley, the great newspaper man, he’s the one that coined the phrase, ‘Go west, young man, go west,’” said John. “But he also said, ‘You live, you die, and everything in between is filler.’ Well, personally, I’ve decided I want my life to have good filler in it. You want to have fun in life. I think it’s all about that.”

So the next time you’re in Cherokee County, pick up the local paper to see the latest news in this neck of the woods of East Texas. “We’re just very proud to be a part of Texas history and we’re proud to be able to keep this heritage alive,” said John.

 

The Texas Bucket List – National Ranching Heritage Center in Lubbock

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Lubbock – It doesn’t matter where you find yourself in Texas, you’ll always come across cattle grazing in a field. Ranching and raising livestock have been part of the state’s identity since before we were even a state. In fact, it was the Spanish that first raised cattle down in the Rio Grande Valley sometime around the 16th and 17th centuries. Today it’s a 15-billion-dollar business. With so much history and lore about this little business of beef raising, it’s no wonder that you’ll find the National Ranching Heritage Center smackdab in the South Plains in Lubbock. “We really strive to tell the real story, and it has its own magic of its own,” said Jim Bret Campbell.

Jim is the executive director of the center and he’s been in association management his entire career. “The biggest challenge is always struggling with weather,” said Jim. “And the markets as well as just all the challenges associated with ranching.”

Born in Hereford and a Texas Tech grad, Jim Bret loves telling this tale of Texas since it’s been a part of him his whole life. “Well, it really is the story of us,” said Jim. “Lubbock and the South Plains and really Texas and the West. It was a fascinating period in history. And we wouldn’t exist as a community, as a place here on the South Plains, if those folks hadn’t come before us. We are still an agriculturally supported town and region. A state, a nation that, if we can’t produce food, we’re going to go offshore for that or depend on somebody else. And so for us to be able to produce beef and all of the food and fiber that we do, it’s really critical for us as consumers, but also for people to understand the culture and where they came from. So we think it’s really critical that we tell that story.”

This massive complex has all sorts of incredible exhibits including the costumes from 1883, a show that’s a part of the massively popular Yellowstone series. But what really brings people here is the real story of Texas ranching told through the buildings that were a part of it. “It’s about all I can do to maintain many of these structures,” said Jim. “We have 55 historic ranching structures now and many of which are approaching 200 years old. In fact, I always say I could keep two guys painting all year round because as soon as they finish, they’d have to start over again.”

Started in 1966, the center was the idea of Dr. Grover Murray, the former president of Texas Tech, to preserve a part of the past. “We were really going through a phase,” said Jim. “This was in the mid-1960s. And we were losing so much of the architecture and the history that had originally been developed by the early pioneers that came in to this part of the world. And so there became this really kind of swell of support within the ranching community.”

The ranching industry in Texas as a whole really had to come together to make this project work. “They actually had to establish a committee that began to select which structures would actually be able to be donated,” said Jim. “Because the word started getting around and offers for ranch buildings, houses, pens, barns, came from all over the state. The ranches that donated the structures also donated the funds to actually move and restore it here at the National Ranching Heritage Center, so it really has been a passion project for the ranching industry.”

Moving some of these massive structures was a monstrous task. “This is Los Escobates that originally was on the XIT Ranch,” said Jim. “There were seven main division headquarters of the XIT, and this was one of those. But they all had very similar architecture and served the same function. It would have been built in the late 1880s, and we actually used up until the 1930s.”

As one of the first structures moved to the center, getting it up in one piece was quite the challenge. “It was one of the original structures that was here as part of the National Ranching Heritage Center,” said Jim. “You can see, it’s obviously several hundred tons of rock that really had fallen down. It really was a pile of rubble. Out there when it’s original location. So this one, they kind of had to guess, and so they brought all this quarried limestone back from Deaf Smith County and reassembled it here at the National Ranching Heritage Center.”

This old building even has signs of cowboy life embedded in the walls all these years later. “So apparently somebody had some guns at one time and it probably bore out of entertainment, the cowboys would shoot up the smokestacks on occasion,” said Jim. “But yeah.”

One of the more popular barns has a very famous façade. “This is probably one of the most photographed and videoed ranching structures anywhere in the country,” said Jim. “So this is the original Four Sixes El Barn. It actually housed the ranch horses for many years. It was built in 1908. And it was here, or on the ranch until 1980 when Mrs. Marion, who was the owner of the ranch, donated it to us.”

If you’re especially fond of the exaggerated tales of Texas’ past, you may want to skim over this next part. “Her great-grandfather, Samuel Burt Burnett, was the progenitor of the Four Sixes ranch,” said Jim. “We actually don’t know where the Four Sixes came from. He bought 100 head of cattle when he was 19 years old that already carried the Four Sixes brand. Of course, the legend is that he won them in a poker game with four sixes, but it’s not true. We always hate to tell people that.”

“The Four Sixes really only had one heir per generation,” said Jim. “So it was Samuel Burt Burnett, and then his son Tom, his daughter Ann, and then her daughter Ann. And then obviously when she passed away in 2020, her wish was that the ranch would be sold. Even though she has one daughter. And it was sold to Taylor Sheridan and a group of investors. And obviously Taylor does Yellowstone and 1883 and 1923, many of which have been filmed at the ranch, even before they purchasedit.”

These structures have seen all sorts of people live out their lives in the fields and farms of our state and each one has a unique story. But for Jim Bret, the Pitchfork Ranch Cookhouse has a special place in his heart because he actually got to be part of its story. “So yeah, in an earlier career, I was a writer for the American Quarter Horse Journal, and so I would go out to the Pitchfork ranch, which was just located in Guthrie, Texas, east of here,” said Jim. “And actually, it was doing stories there on the ranch, and I’d get to eat in the Pitchfork cookhouse on a regular basis. These cookhouses were originally built because you’re isolated, you can’t run into Alsups to grab something, or Dairy Queen to grab something to eat. And so, just to keep a workforce, they had to feed their cowboys, in a lot of cases three times a day. But it was also kind of the central gathering place, and that’s where you had community and that’s where family reunions happened and birthdays and Christmas celebrations. And so there’s a lot of history in these old cookhouses. This one was actually built in 1900, and it was in continuous use until 2010, when it was moved here to the Ranching Heritage Center.”

Everything was done deliberately back in those days, from the way you ate to the way you sat. “The ranch manager, who was Bob Moorehouse at the time, he had his seat, and then you went by seniority until the least senior, youngest cowboy was on the far end of the table,” said Jim. “There was a very prescribed way for the way you ate and what order you got to eat. And then you cleaned your own plate and you put it in the sink so that the cook could do the dishes afterwards, and then you went to get to work. Because I was a guest, I got to sit by Bob. But I probably displaced somebody, so I’ll probably hear about it one of these days. Typical chuck wagon cookhouse. But there was always desserts and lots of beef.”

Seeing what life on the range was like during a time when settlers only had themselves to depend on really puts our incredibly easy lives in perspective. It also spurs your appreciation of the path that was paved by the people who made Texas what it is today. “My friend Red Stegall puts it, I think, best is that the struggles of cow country really built its own set of values,” said Jim. “And there was no place for a shirker or a liar at the campfire. So it built integrity, hard work, determination, and grit. That I think are really important today, and I think those are values that we see families searching for all the time. And so if we can help show, this is how our ancestors did it. And those are values that we can take forward too. I think that that’s a really great story for us to share.”

The Texas Bucket List – Ysleta Mission in El Paso

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El Paso – El Paso, the furthest west you can go in the Lone Star State, has history that can be traced way back to the Native American days. This area was first colonized by the Spaniards, and some of their oldest establishments can be found in the Sun City on the mission trial. That includes the Ysleta Mission, boasting over 300 years of history.  “This building has only been here since 1851, but the community, the Tigua community, has been here since 1680,” said Ed Shugert, a former newspaper journalist and El Paso native. Since 2018, he’s volunteered at the Ysleta Mission to help tell the story that starts all those years ago. “As far as I know, it’s the first permanently established community in what is present day Texas,” said Shugart.

In the thick of America’s colonization by Europeans, Spain had a heavy presence in the Southwest where Native Americans were once prominent.  “There were competing European interests all over North America,” said Shugert. “And each of them had their own exploration efforts, settlement efforts. And all of them dealt rather harshly with the Native American populations. They didn’t consider the native populations to be equals in any way. The Spanish, in some ways, were trying to be more accommodating, but early on they weren’t,” said Shugart.

Ysleta and all the missions on the El Paso Mission Trail were settled after the Pueblo Revolt.  Lead by a religious leader named Po’pay, it was most successful uprising of indigenous Pueblo people. “They killed hundreds of Spanish soldiers, civilians, and most of the priests,” said Shugert. “And so the survivors of that initial attack came south to here,” said Shugart.

The revolt kept Spain out of New Mexico for over a decade. “Pope had made certain promises about how their Gods would reward them for doing this, and things didn’t get easier for them,” said Shugert. “And he wasn’t a kind of leader that would help the Pueblo stay united. And so eventually they saw that this isn’t working out so great either,” said Shugart.

Over time, the two cultures came together. “I’m not familiar in detail with how the cooperation began and continued so that they could live together peacefully, but that did happen,” said Shugert. “Certainly, there’s a different perspective between Europeans who live in this area and come from a European tradition and the Native Americans who live here. So there’s still disagreement about some of that history,” said Shugart.

As they say, the past is in the past.  Today the Ysleta people use the mission to tell their collective story. “Nearly all of them are Christian or Catholic. They also have held onto their culture, of course, and a number of the traditions that they have there,” said Shugert. “They’re very much holding on to that part of their history and culture that make them distinct from others.”

The Spaniards took a bit of a different approach after the revolt, and that’s helped maintain the mission for all these years. “They believed these people are God’s children as well, just like they were,” said Shugert. “And so they wanted to bring the good news as they saw it to a new group of people, because that’s what Christians are told in the Bible by Matthew is to go out and spread this message and let people know about Jesus Christ. That’s been the enduring relationship in this particular community, hasn’t been other places. Some places that Native Americans have rejected it because of the very imperfect way that other faith groups have tried to instill Christianity instead of trying to show the love and acceptance of people where they are and let them come to their own conclusions,” said Shugart.

Today there’s even a Native American Saint, Saint Kateri Tekakwitha. “She was Mohawk, so of course she was in the Eastern part of the United States,” said Shugert. “The church community here is made up of Native Americans, and so they take pride in the fact that there’s a Native American who was named a saint. That really wasn’t done until recently. It was in the 2000s.”

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha has a presence at the Ysleta Mission along with other Native American touches.  Originally built in 1851, the church sits on the original site of the mission which was actually in Mexico, and the current structure looks like a traditional Catholic Spanish church. Surprisingly, it wasn’t a battle or a treaty that changed things, it was an act of God.

“All three of the churches that you’ll see on the mission trail here were originally built on the southern bank of the Rio Grande,” said Shugert. “But the flood of 1829 was severe enough it actually changed the course of the river, and it left these three churches on the Northern side, which at the time didn’t mean much, but of course today it means the difference between being in the United States or being in Mexico.”

Between the history, the people, and the overall implications this place had on our state and country, the Ysleta Mission in El Paso is a storied stop for anyone with an interest in American, Texan, or Native American history.

“I think it’s important for everyone who comes to this area to know that this was the beginning of permanent European and Native American settlement in this area,” said Shugert. “What a jewel we have in these missions.”