Back around 45 years ago I had a project in Austin and was waiting for John Harlan and his boys to finish another road bore (that’s the process of drilling a hole underneath a highway to installed a pipe so … Continue reading Ain’t No Need To Talk Down To Me !
George Lester McDuff was a fiery little fellow. Everyone called him Dink and he always had a story to tell. He had the ability to make me laugh no matter what the occasion. He could make anyone laugh. I first met Dink in 1963, when I was just a kid. He and my dad worked for the same utility construction company. Dink ran the roadboring division. Roadboring is where a hole is drilled under a roadway or railroad track and then pipe is installed. It was dirty work with mud knee deep and oil and grease everywhere. But everyday Dink … Continue reading Dink Wrote Me A Check
Back in the early part of the 1970s we had a project relocating a water line on South 1st Street where a big “S” in Williamson Creek. (as shown in the photo below). Three new bridges were be built. We were on the tail end of that job, cleaning up and pressure testing. The City of Austin had a crew that performed the pressure tests and they came out twice and each time the line failed. The General Contractor that was building the bridges had already started work and it was imperative that we get that line approved or it … Continue reading I Always Wanted To Do The Right Things, But Circumstances Can Get In The Way
My friend John Kemper had property south of the bridge and needed city utility service run across to it. He worked with the city to run large enough lines to serve a larger area as well. Working with engineers from Austin a concept of running an 8″ water line and a 6″ wastewater pressure line was designed to snake underneath the lake and lay on the bottom. It was to have large concrete weights strapped to each line to hold them in place. The pipe was to be a very durable HDPE pipe that was manufactured in Canada. It was … Continue reading Taking Marble Falls Water And Wastewater Service South Of The River
I’ve been told that the FM 973 Bridge at the river was built by the HB Zachry Co and donated to TxDot. They needed a short passage to run trucks for their aggregate operation to build the runways at Bergstrom Air Force Base. Continue reading Contractor Ingenuity
Correcting The Record: I have been told by a noted Travis County Historian that the photo of The Montopolis Courthouse, Travis County has been found not be the case. There was no such Courthouse at Montopolis. My personal story about the area: I have very fond memories of the Montopolis Area of Austin. I really didn’t know much about the history.My construction office and yard was at 2801 Montopolis Dr. for about a decade back in the 70s & 80s. It was the old homestead that included a stone house, garage apartment behind and a metal shop building farther back. … Continue reading Montopolis, Travis County, Texas
Back in the mid 1970s, things weren’t as advanced as they are today, with security devices and Ring Doorbell Cameras. We had a safety guy that doubled as a few other things. A plan runner, chased parts when he could find his way to the designated base pace and then he sold insurance on the side. Bob had a little drinking problem at that point in his life. But visiting bars gave him a chance to run onto good deals that would help in his entrepreneurial spirit. He came in all excited one morning with a great big box of … Continue reading The Girl Guard
(This happened back in December 2019. And trust me it really happened) Laying in bed at 9:30 PM on a Saturday night, in fact it was tonight, my phone rang. It wasn’t a number I recognized so I passed on answering it. It’s not like I need a warranty policy on my car or a burial policy on myself. A couple of minutes later I received a text from that same number. “Who is this?” “Why did you call my girlfriend?” I had to ask, “Hey who is your girlfriend?” I found out her name is Candice. I tried to … Continue reading A Case Of Mistaken Identity
Charlie Hall is what Texas is about, born in Cleo, Kimble County, Texas, the 2nd son of Fred and Florence Hall. He leaves many descendants, friends, and relatives living throughout Texas. His daughter, Brenda Cason shared his accounting of his life….fascinating if you have not read it. March 10, 1988I am John Charles Savignac Hall, born on the “Bear Creek Ranch” at Cleo, Kimble County, Texas on September 7, 1911 – Cleo is no longer a Post Office – nothing left there – at one time there was a school there where my sister Helen and older brother Fred started … Continue reading Charlie Savignac Hall
it was the summer of 1961. I would turn 9 in late August. An engineering firm from Austin, Marvin Turner Engineers sent my dad down as the Chief Inspector for a project to upgrade the water and sewer systems for the City of Woodsboro. There were pipes being laid all over town, the wastewater plant was upgraded and the water tower was being sandblasted and repainted. Our family, well my mother, brother and I went down to spend the summer with him as it was a very active time and required him to be there all the time. While all … Continue reading Woodsboro, Texas
Angora Chronicles 