Amazing Things, Crazy Times, My Friends, The Construction Biz, Thoughts and Musings2 Comments

And This Fellow Loaned Me, A Complete Stranger $50,000

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Back in the Winfield days of my construction career, we found ourselves a bit short of making a payroll one week. Winfield went to his former employer, the owner of a large CPA firm in Austin and asked him to make us a loan. Without any hesitation he agreed to spot us $50,000. His only request was that I come down to his office so we could meet. I met Winfield there and we went in. Without additional fanfare Mr. Simpson called his check writer person’s extension and requested a check. We walked out of that office with a check, … Continue reading And This Fellow Loaned Me, A Complete Stranger $50,000

Crazy Times, The Construction Biz, The Early Days, Thoughts and Musings1 Comment

Paul Could Fix Anything

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I had a fellow worked for me for a long time. I guess 12 or 14 years. He could fix anything. He came from a family of mechanics. Let me rephrase that sentence above. The could get about anything running again. He never did it in a conventional way. One day he was out away from anything. Five miles to a phone and a lot further to anyone that could help him, when a tire went flat on his pickup. It was a slow leak he’d been neglecting. He made an air up device with a spark plug that he … Continue reading Paul Could Fix Anything

Crazy Times, Funny Happenings, Kenny LewisLeave a comment

Hunting at the Cinco Loma

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Another very fine story from Kenny Lewis Back in the 90’s we searched various ranches for the best hunts available in South Texas. We had gotten to know Dusty Davis who owned the Cinco Loma Ranch between Batesville and La Pryor. It was not a large ranch (2500 acres), but with high quality deer. This ranch was along Highway 57 on the way to Eagle Pass and surrounded on 3 sides by a large ranch called the West Wind. Larry Martin owned it and was a very successful business man from Houston who had sold his Waste Company for Millions … Continue reading Hunting at the Cinco Loma

Amazing Things, Marble Falls and the Area Around it., The History of TexasLeave a comment

Bat Guano Mining Around The Area and Blowout, Texas

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Bat Guano Mining During The Civil War:https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/dkc09 I have never heard of this place or such a thing happening over by Johnson City or Round Mt. or Willow City. Blowout, TexasMore on primitive bat dooky mining and the hazards associated.http://www.texasescapes.com/MichaelBarr/Blowout.htm Blowout Community, a settlement fifteen miles northwest of Johnson City in northwestern Blanco County, dates back to 1854. That year a party of two dozen homesteaders from Kentucky settled on the east side of Comanche Creek near Comanche Spring, about three miles below the creek’s origin. As more settlers moved into the area the small community of Blowout developed upstream … Continue reading Bat Guano Mining Around The Area and Blowout, Texas

Amazing Things, The Early Days, The History of Texas6 Comments

Evolution of a State by Noah Smithwick

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This is a post I originally made on the Texas History Books – Facebook Group I have always heard it said that this is one of the best, if not the best first hand account of the settling of Texas ever put into book form. I grew up with a 1st edition, 1900 copy of this book in our home. It had belonged to my grandfather, A.T. Lewis. I knew it was a book that had to remain in our family. I grew up in Smithwick Texas, with the old Smithwick Mill on the Colorado River being on part of … Continue reading Evolution of a State by Noah Smithwick

Marble Falls and the Area Around it., Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Dam Across The “Marble” Falls

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There was a discussion today on The Angora Chronicles Facebook Group about Marble Falls being named that, when it is really famous for its pink granite. I explained that Marble Falls got its name due to the natural falls that occurred just a few hundred feet upstream of the US 281 bridge that crosses the Colorado River on south end Marble Falls. I also said that there was a naming mistake calling the rock there marble when it is actually a much harder rock, dolomite. The dolomite found in the Marble Falls area is darker in color, to an almost … Continue reading The Dam Across The “Marble” Falls

Cecil Lewis, Marble Falls and the Area Around it., The Early Days6 Comments

The Pure Stone Company of Marble Falls, Texas

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Vernon Earl “Skinny” Childers, read a report published in 1951 by The University of Texas that stated that the most “exceptionally pure limestone” anywhere could be found in the Marble Falls area. He had a vision that the calcium carbonate product, a powder fine substance made by pulverizing this limestone would be used in a variety of industrial applications. With the superior quality of this limestone deposit, there was a great business opportunity so in 1952 he formed Pure Stone Company and started building a crushing and processing facility in Marble Falls down adjacent to the railroad depot. The limestone … Continue reading The Pure Stone Company of Marble Falls, Texas

Amazing Things, In and Around Austin, The Construction Biz, The History of Texas, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

Texas Crushed Stone Georgetown, Texas

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Most everyone has driven by the huge rock crushing plant between Round Rock and Georgetown. How many know where it was located prior to move there in the late 50s? The area in Austin along Mopac and from Far West Blvd south was the original location for this operation. The area where Doss Elementary & Murchison Jr. High is located was once being blasted away to make limestone road base used all around the city. Being in the construction business building roads and underground utility lines all around central Texas for more than 4 decades we have used a lot … Continue reading Texas Crushed Stone Georgetown, Texas

Amazing Things, In and Around Austin, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

How Different Things Were In Austin Back In 1960

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A while back on another group I’m on, we were commenting about Bruce’s & Barnett’s Pies made me think about the other things that were happening around Austin around that same time. It made me realize how simple our lives were five and half decades ago. The selections of eateries was really limited, but people didn’t eat out very often. Eating out was a special occasion instead of a way of life. My first memory of eating in a real restaurant was when I was 6 or 7. We were traveling home to Jollyville and it was getting late so … Continue reading How Different Things Were In Austin Back In 1960

Amazing Things, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

Mary Ann Muldoon

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Once again Facebook and The Angora Chronicles came through. (June 9, 2016) A couple of days ago, a letter showed up at the Marble Falls Post Office. It was addressed to the Post Master. In the letter was a note and eight photographs that were taken back in the 40s. The author of the note said she had an old friend, from childhood that she lost touch with and hadn’t spoken to in about 25 years. She gave the lady’s family name and her married name, as of 25 years ago. The 85 year old lady wanted help finding this … Continue reading Mary Ann Muldoon