Texas Bucket List

Texas Bucket List

Simmons Bank

The Texas Bucket List – The Fulton Mansion in Rockport-Fulton

by

ROCKPORT-FULTON, Texas – The gentle waves of Aransas Bay can be a relaxing way to pass the day, and are a far cry from the howling winds of Hurricane Candy, Fern, or Erin that these waters have seen over the years.

But one structure on this shore has with stood the test of time since 1877.

“We are in Rockport, Texas at the home of George and Harriet Fulton, the Fulton Mansion.”

Marsha Hendrix with the Texas Historical Commission is the site manager to the mansion that was meticulously built with many modern convinces.

George and Harriet Fulton built this mansion over three years after inheriting the land from Harriet’s father Henry Smith, the first American governor of Texas, while it was still a territory of Mexico.  The Fulton’s called their new home Oakhurst due to the extraordinary amount of oaks on the peninsula.

Fulton was in his late 60’s when they moved into the mansion.

“This was his retirement home, and a lot of folks come to Rockport Fulton area now days to build their dream home and retire,” Marsha said. “And I like to say he started that trend way back in the 19th century.”

But that didn’t stop him from doing business.

“His job with the cattle company was to get additional investors involved,” Marsha informed us. “And so a great way to get people who had money to invest in your company is to invite them to your beautiful home that shows that you’ve been successful. Have a wonderful dinner for them, which Harriet always supplied because she loved to entertain. And then after dinner the gentlemen could come in here and talk business.”

The mansion had additions you normally wouldn’t find in a typical home in the 1870’s, like central heat!

“All of the fireplaces are covered in slate which is a really dull stone, but they’re all faux painted,” Marsha said. “But what’s really amazing about the fireplaces is that they’re all fake. They never burned anything in them. They’re really just a heat register for the central heating system. Down in the basement was a very large furnace, and there were air shafts built throughout the house at each fire place so that they warm air could rise up from the furnace.”

Indoor plumbing and hot and cold water were also installed in the home.

“This was probably the best modern convenience that they put into their home,” Marsha said. “They had another bathroom just like this on the third floor. And with a half bath on the first floor, they had a flush toilet for every floor. They used the heat from the cook stove to heat water in a copper boiler that was connected to the cook stove, and on this side of the house every sink had hot and cold running water. The other side of the house, all the bedrooms have sinks in the bedroom, but they just have cold running water. That’s still really nice.””

Even the construction was top of the line, hence the reason it still stands today.

“The walls are built with five inch pine boards that are laid flat and stacked solid,” Marsha said. “So when we talk about a solid wood structure, it is literal.”

The solidness of the house has come in handy as it has withstood high hurricane winds multiple times.

“The house has been hit by quite a few hurricanes, and even while they were building the house there where some hurricanes that came to the Texas coast, caused a lot of damage, and George wanted to use a unique building method,” Marsha said. “Being an engineer he knew about this building method, and he used it in his home. And that’s very unusual even for the time period.”

Exploring these rooms is a great way to connect to the history of the Coastal Bend.  A chance to see what life was like for a cattle baron on the coast.

“It’s again that connection to our Texas history that’s so valuable,” Marsha said. “And we can all appreciate where we come from and the things that people have done before us to make Texas what it is. It is a wonderful example of Texas history come to life.”

The Texas Bucket List – Sam Houston Birthday March in Huntsville

by

HUNTSVILLE, Texas – If you’ve ever traversed Interstate 45 between Houston and Dallas, chances are you’ve seen Sam Houston standing tall in Huntsville. But if you dig a little deeper here, you find a hot bed of history dedicated to one of the founding fathers of Texas.

Popular stops include his towering statue, the museum full of Houston history and his gravesite on the edge of the Oakwood cemetery.

Proud Texans constantly come to pay their respects here but every year on Sam’s birthday, which happens to be Texas Independence Day, a small group of Sam Houston State students come together to march.

Through the streets of Huntsville, they head north. Passing by murals of the man the hour, these students take the time and effort to reflect on the contributions Sam made not only to our state but also our country.

As they ascend the last hill towards the final destination of Sam, they find a group of Texans ready to celebrate with them.

“We come before you to celebrate the courage and the accomplishments of our ancestors who have made this great state and country what it is,” one of the presenters said as he addressed the crowd.

No matter the age, race, or background there’s one thing this broad band of Texas has in common.  Their love of the lone star state.

“Texans understand the importance of that. Not a lot of people are going to brag like oh yeah I woke up in California. No one cares,” another speaker said to the audience. “We all woke up Texans today, and that’s a beautiful thing.”

James Patton with the Walker County Historical Commission is a 6th generation Texan and he’s seen many of these marches to Sam’s Grave, a Sam Houston State Tradition that harkens back all the way 1889.

“It’s a tradition that they started, and it’s important that it continues,” James said. “And hopefully it’ll grow through the years, and more students will participate and realize the importance of Houston to his state.”

One of the newer traditions of this Texas holiday is a mystery.  For the last few years, nobody knows how long for sure, someone places a trey full of Sam favorite snacks at his resting place.  Oysters, sugar cookies, and coffee are offered as homage to Houston.

John Murray comes regularly to this celebration because he has a special connection to Sam.

“You know, everybody grows up and wants to please their parents, and that’s tough,” John said. “That’s really hard to do, but try pleasing your great great grandparents.”

With another decedent of Sam by John’s side, his own granddaughter Lila, the pair place a wreath in honor of the long time descendant.

What better way could you end a celebration of our state without welcoming a few outsiders in? If you’re not from Texas but have always wanted to be called a Texan, well now you can be baptized and become one.

“It began as sort of a joke, and it’s grown,” James said. “Initially we baptized them with Texas holly water, which is Brazos River water scented with bluebonnets sanctified at the Alamo. Well, we can’t get that any more so we use water from Sam Houston Spring.”

So stop by the great Sam Houston’s grave to honor a visionary that knew what Texas could be and still inspires people from long lines of lone star state lineages to some of the newest natives.

“I feel like today I’m a prouder Texan than I was yesterday, or than I was earlier today,” said Sam Houston State University student Maleia. “I feel like I’m more proud to be a part of Texas and of course to be a part of Sam Houston than I was before. So I feel like it would be a really, really good opportunity for all Texans to experience.”

 

The Texas Bucket List – Paint Rock

by

PAINT ROCK, Texas – Pulling into Paint Rock, you get a sense of the bustling town it used to be.

With only 273 residents, the Concho County Seat is one of least populated county seats Texas and while the beautiful historic court house remains, not much else has.

But these old buildings are the earliest signs of an early civilization here, for that you have to travel a few miles north, cross the right cattle guard, and visit the ranch of Fred and Kay Campbell.

Kay is sort of the curator of Paint Rock, her Grandfather D.E. Simms came upon this site while doing his research and took it up himself to be the care taker

“The people who came here to camp after the Indians where people who hated the Indians,” Kay said. “So you see where the Indians have written their stories and you’re not going to preserve them for posterity because you hate them. They’re your enemy! So you shoot at them and you write your name on them and you try to ruin them. So when my grandpa came and saw the pictographs where being ruined he said I cannot go back to Missouri. I’ve got to stay here and guard the pictographs.”

Nearly half of mile of this bluff, just a few hundred yards from the Concho river, is covered with over 1,500 pictographs.

“It’s believed that there could have been as many as 300 different cultures that would have camped here nomadically over the 12 thousand years that they were using this for one of their major camp grounds in this area,” Kay said.

Each incredible drawing has it’s own story.

“They thought that the bird was capable of taking their prayers up to their sun god, and so this is a good example of the birds. And you’ll see lots of examples of the birds as we go along,” Kay said.

With Kay’s family history, she’s heard the stories and theories of what these symbols mean her entire life.

“While the boys had to go work on the ranch, well I got to come and listen to people talk about pictographs, and I have just been a pictograph fan ever since,” Kay said.

After our walk along the cliff face, we came upon some flowing water that painted us into a corner when it came to pictographs.

“There are no more pictures past this, and the reason is the spring,” Kay said. “See that’s where the women prepared the meal and took care of the children and everything while the men where down here doing the important things like singing, dancing, and painting. The women where down here doing dumb things like taking care of the kids and cooking.”

Kay’s passion for this place is infectious. Her stories keep you silent as she shares with you the most delightful details, because for Kay, this is her connection to the Lone Star State.

“Somebody told me a long time ago, ‘love isn’t love until you give it away,’” Kay said. “And you know if you’re sitting on something wonderful and won’t let anybody see it, it loses its magic.”

The Texas Bucket List – Old Rip in Eastland

by

EASTLAND, Texas – The center of Eastland Texas, which happens to be the center of Eastland County, happened to be the center of the entire country nearly 100 years ago.

It seems the story of a lizard, commonly referred to as a toad, stole the Lone Star State spotlight back in 1928 when the cornerstone of the old Eastland courthouse was removed.  Rumor had it that when the courthouse was built in 1897, people remembered a horned toad being put in the void and sealed so curious onlookers would come out in droves.  At least, that’s what Cecil Funderbergh, a lifelong resident of Eastland, told us.

“A crowd of about 3,000 people gathered together for the opening of the cornerstone because there were rumors that the horned toad could live for a hundred years, you know, could hibernate for 100 years and everybody wanted to see if it was true,” Fundergergh said. “So after 31 years they opened the cornerstone and an oil man by the name of Eugene Day reached into the cornerstone and pulled out a flat, dusty horned toad, handed it to the Methodist preacher who then handed it to the county judge, Judge Pritchard. He held it up by the hind leg for everybody to see and all of a sudden the other hind leg started twitching. Then he took a deep breath and he puffed up like the horned toad will sometimes puff up pretty good, and the crowd just went crazy, you know.”

The lethargic lizard was nicknamed Old Rip in honor of another sleepy story Rip Van Wrinkle, and wouldn’t you know, Old Rip became an overnight sensation.

“They say that he got more press coverage than anyone other than Charles Lindberg, when Lindberg few the Atlantic, you know,” said Funderbergh. “Old Rip was the big story around the nation.”

He even got a face-to-face meeting with President Calvin Coolidge.

“Calvin Coolidge, his nickname was ‘Silent Cal.’ You know, he didn’t talk very much, and they say that Old Rip stared him down,” Funderbergh said. “So you know, he made the president speak first.”

It’s even been said the story of ol’ Michigan J. Frog got its start thanks to Old Rip.

“You know, Eastland’s name was in the paper all over the country and it’s just a source of pride,” said Funderbergh.

Unfortunately Old Rip’s time in outside world was short-lived and Old Rip took an eternal nap 11 months after being freed from his Texas tomb.  But today you can see ole’ Rip sitting prominently in the window of the Eastland County Courthouse. County Judge Rex Fields got us a personal visit with the frozen stiff toad.

“Well, Old Rip is a landmark for Eastland, Eastland County,” said Judge Fields. “This is a claim to fame here, that we could have a reptile that could live in a cornerstone of the courthouse for 31 years. It’s pretty amazing.”

Of course there are those who don’t jump right in when it comes to the lore of this lizard.  But considering they busted Old Rip out during the winter, those who firmly believe say that’s all the proof you need right there.

“Would be next to impossible for someone to get a horned toad, a live horned toad, in February and say hey, this is the one that was in the cornerstone,” Funderbergh said. “So, I think the evidence points to it being a true story. Of course, around here we swear to it.”

So what used to be a common critter in Eastland county is now an oddity, an oddity that swells the pride in the people in this part of our state.  And you too can see the lizard with lineage and pay your respects to Old Rip.

“It’s part of our history, you know,” said Funderbergh. “I think everybody needs to know about horned toads since they’re nearly extinct. They need to know about them.”

The Texas Bucket List – Eisenhower Birthplace in Denison

by

DENISON, Texas –Seventy-five miles north of Dallas, you’ll find a jewel at the crossing of a great river. Denison, Texas is just a few miles from the Oklahoma border and was founded in 1872, the same year that the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad depot made its debut in town.

In 1888, work on the railroad brought a young man by the name of David Jacob Eisenhower to town and the 25 year-old moved his wife Ida down from Kansas the following year to a beautiful home that happened to be right next to the train tracks.

But the home’s proximity to the former railroad line that used to run past this place isn’t the only significant feature – we’re at the Eisenhower Birthplace State Historic Site. John Akers is the site manager to the house that welcomed Ike to the world.

“I think it was built on a double lot. It was meant to be a very fancy house before the railroad got put through right in front of it, and the guy who built it I think said ‘See ya, that was enough,’ and had a variety of homeowners after that,” said Akers. “The house was built in about 1877, but the family lived here from 1889 to early 1892. If the president wasn’t born in it, we might not have this house today.”

While Dwight didn’t grow up in this house, his connection to it was establish by a neighbor who helped deliver the president when he was a newborn, and thought his name sounded familiar as she watched newsreels of the General during World War 2.

“She was thinking about, what was that family that lived across the street? The Eisenhowers? So she actually starts writing General Eisenhower and eventually connects him to this house, and she also becomes the one who starts the movement to purchase the house for the town, and they successfully opened it as a museum in 1946 and they invited General Eisenhower to visit, and she was the hostess,” Akers said. “So, when he came in the front door we just went in, he met the woman who held him as a baby.”

After the war ended, Eisenhower was able to take trip down memory lane, even though he really didn’t have any memory of this place.

“When he came here on April 20th in 1946 for an event we call ‘Big Texas Breakfast,’ that was his first time seeing the house,” said Akers. “I think he was touched by the effort of Texas to preserve the house he was born in.”

After guiding Allied forces to victory, Eisenhower was hailed a hero of World War 2 and both political parties wanted to see Ike take the next step into the political ring.

“We won the war, so he’s very popular from that, and became a natural for the presidency. People saw him as a person of great character, and you know, a lot of people say they miss him, they miss having someone like him as president today,” Akers said.

In 1952 Dwight was the elected president and during the Republican’s two terms, NASA was founded, the interstate highway system was formed, America got out of the Korean War and the former general even downsized our nation’s military.

“Because he was a general, he had that credibility to make these changes, so I think he really did change the course of our country based upon his background,” said Akers. “No one questioned him when he said, made decisions about the military and about military spending because he had the credibility and people had great faith in him.”

Dwight would return to the home in 1952 and once more in 1965.  Even though the former president called Abilene, Kansas home, he always kept a connection to the Lone Star State and the people of Texas kept a connection to him.

“The best part of my job is meeting all of these people and hearing their stories. We get a lot of people now that were, he’s the first president they remembered or they remembered that it was the first experience with television, and he was on television, and they talk about seeing him come through their town – so they’re on dad’s shoulders in some town – so in fact, we still have lots of people that come by and remember him or they have the ‘I like Ike’ buttons, the campaign buttons,” Akers said. “So you get a lot of people that they bring their kids and grandchildren and they want to share these stories with them. They do that here as well.”

So dive into Denison to pay tribute to one of the most influential presidents of the 20th century and heroes of the greatest generation that ever lived.

“Denison has embraced having Dwight Eisenhower from here. You’ll see the Eisenhower name everywhere. There’s a lot of pride in Eisenhower, in the Eisenhower birthplace. So they’ve embraced him, he’s a big part of Denison’s identity,” said Akers.

The Texas Bucket List – Hotel Paisano in Marfa

by

MARFA, Texas – Along the city streets of Marfa, every sunset seems to tell a story. Surrounded with so much history, it’s hard to pick a specific place to put yourself back in time – that is, until you come across an old hotel with nearly 100 years of history with a connection to Hollywood lore.

Vicki Barge is the General Manager of Hotel Paisano, a hotel built in 1930 that’s near a dear to her heart.

“I just have this personal interest and love in historic hotels,” said Barge.

Hotel Paisano started rising out up out of the Trans-Pecos terrain in October of 1929, the same month as the stock market crash of the Great Depression.  By June of 1930, the inn billed as the most elegant hotel between El Paso and San Antonio opened its doors to guests and cattle ranchers who came to town to cut deals on livestock.

Of course, the dim lights in the desert have been attracting tourists to this town and to this hotel from all over the world but when a few of the brightest stars of the big screen descended upon Marfa to make movie magic, El Paisano was the place to poke around.

“There were actually four hotels in town at the time, and every hotel room was taken by cast and crew, which was, you know, great to the town,” Barge said. “The main characters, the main stars were here in our hotel. Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, James Dean. But, we do know where they stayed during the time they were here as well as Dennis Hopper and Chill Wills. We know the area where they stayed.”

It was the summer of 1955 when some of the biggest stars of yesteryear walked these halls while filming the movie classic, Giant.  At the time, Rock Hudson and Elizabeth Taylor were the biggest billed stars and the rooms they stayed in are open to guests. First, we took a look at the Rock Hudson suite, a corner unit slightly bigger than some of the other rooms because of his star status. He roomed across the hall from Elizabeth Taylor, sparking rumors about the pair in the local gossip mill.

While these two rooms are popular, there is one other that brings the rebel out of everyone who seeks it – James Dean’s room.

“It’s seldom empty. People ask for it, and if they can only stay in it one day and then have to move out, then they’re happy. Folks want to stay in the James Dean room,” said Barge. “It’s amazing to me the number of teenage girls today who still swoon over James Dean. So, he’s everlasting popularity there.

This room has been kept as original as possible.

“We’ve not retiled that bathroom. It’s a little dingy with age, but we just, we hesitate to touch it too much,” Barge said. “We want to try and keep that since it’s the last of the original rooms from those stars that stayed here.”

Today all that really remains is the memories and a case filled with fading photographs of the time when Giant came to town.

Marfa continues to attract celebrities from all over the world – heck, you never know who you might run into in this west Texas town. But for some reason, it’s hard to top the time Rock, Elizabeth, and James came here.  And when you add their mystique to the marvel and memoirs of this old west Texas hotel, well it becomes well worth a stop on The Texas Bucket List.

“Because of its charm. Because it is just an extremely beautiful building and because of the history, because Giant was filmed here. Every Texan needs to see that, the place where those folks were, the place where that was filmed. And everybody needs to see this part of their state,” said Barge.

The Texas Bucket List – Henne Hardware

by

We stop at a historic hardware store in New Braunfels. Henne Hardware has hung around since 1857 serving the area’s need for tools, trinkets, and other odds and ends. It’s more than just your local hardware store – Henne’s has preserved a piece of the past with its 19th century charm and good old fashioned customer service. For goods and services you’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere else, Henne’s Hardware is well worth a stop on The Texas Bucket List.

The Texas Bucket List – Buckhorn Saloon

by

Family owned and operated and with original fixtures to boot, the Buckhorn Saloon in San Antonio is a well-known stop to whet your whistle.  This hall full of horns has one heck of a history and you can still get a boatload of brew while bellying up to the bar. If you’re looking to slake your thirst at an authentic saloon, the Buckhorn is well worth the stop on The Texas Bucket List!

The Texas Bucket List – Chichen Itza

by

We send salutations to our neighbors in the south by visiting one of the seven wonders of the world. Chichen Itza, located in the Yucatan state of Mexico, is the remnants of an ancient Mayan city featuring ruins and architectural wonders that capture the culture and history of the people of the past. We explore the freshwater sinkholes, the shrines, and the city that once stood as a hub of Mayan civilization. For a cultural experience and a chance to glimpse a significant part of Mayan heritage, this trip is well worth the stop on The Texas Bucket List.

The Texas Bucket List – Brazos Valley Veterans Memorial in College Station

by

We live in the land of the free and the home of the brave all because of the courage and fearlessness of the men and women who have served and defended our country for generations. The Brazos Valley Veterans Memorial in College Station stands as a tribute to these servicemen and women, from the Civil War to Vietnam to 9/11. Make this part of your stop  on The Texas Bucket List to thank and remember those who have fought for our freedom.