Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), No. 28, Ed. 1 Monday, September 5, 1977 Page: 1 of 8
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.ft I •'1
I ! 1 i \
Advertiser Monday Edition
Arson confirmed at
Bluebonnet Acres
A licensed arson investiga-
tor has concluded that the
fire which claimed the home
of a Bluebonnet acres family
on August 22 was deliber
ately set.
The ADVERTISER was
on the scene that Monday
morning, as the overworked
volunteer firefighters
worked in vain to extinguish
the early-morning blaze,
which completely destroyed
the wood-framed home of the
Larry Boyd family.
Hal Wallace, Smithville
fire marshal, was called to
A
the scene by Bastrop County
Sheriff I. R. Hoskins.
Wallace explained that he is
the only licensed arson
investigator in the area.
In a recent interview,
Wallace told the ADVERTI-
SER that "It is my
conclusion that there is no
„ *
TEXAS' OLDEST WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Established March 1, 1853
Bastrop, (Texas) Advertiser, Monday, September^7"l977
Number 28
Bastrop man
killed Tuesday
Rockne Bazaar
Over 1,000 visited Rockne for the Sacred Heart Church Homecoming
Bazaar. Mass was held at 10:00 a.m. and homemade sausage, chicken and
trimmings were served for lunch.
Afternoon activities included an auction and live music Sunday evening.
For complete coverage check the Thursday ADVERTISER.
River bridge closed
A 30-year-old Bastrop man
was killed in an industrial
accident in Rockdale on
Tuesday, during construc-
tion on a power plant for
Texas Power and Light
Company at the Alcoa Plant
site.
According to David
Cooney, Brown and Root
public relations spokesman
in Houston, Darrell Wayne
Mathews, an iron workers
helper for Brown and Root
Construction, was crushed to
death as he walked between
a counterweight and the
frame of a crane on which he
had been working.
Rockdale Justice of the
Peace Leonard Allen told the
ADVERTISER that he was
called to the hospital just
moments after the 1:00 p.m.
accident. "They brought the
man in a pickup truck," the
judge reported on Wednes-
day, "because the ambulance
could not find the site of the
accident."
The Rockdale JP related
that he was told by
emergency room doctors at
Richards Memorial Hospital
that there were no signs of
life in that "no brain waves
could be monitored."
The judge pronounced
Mathews dead on arrival at
1:30 p.m. Tuesday, and
called it an accidental death.
Darrel Wayne Mathews
had only recently moved to
Bastrop from a Cinco Street
address in Austin along with
his wife, Cindy and three
small sons, Jason, Jeremiah
and Christopher. The couple
.lived at Bert's Trailer Park
here.
Mathews had been with
the construction firm of
Brown and Root since
January this year.
Funeral services for the
man were held at 10:00 a.m.
Friday at Clements Funeral
Home in Burnet.
for repairs
The old river bridge on
Loop 150, closed off and on
for several days for routine
maintenance and repairs,
will remain closed for
several weeks following a
"hit and run accident" that
severly damaged the struc-
ture of the old bridge.
T. H. Lohman with the
Texas Highway Department
told the ADVERTISER a
pillar on the east side of the
centerspan is "Twisted and
moved out of place, literally
torn."
Speculation has it the
bridge was hit by a piece of
heavy equipment being
moved on a tractor-trailer
rig.
According to Lohman the
crash into the bridge
occurred between 2:00 and
2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug-
ust 31. Lohman also said,
"Whatever did the damage
left yellow paint." "The
yellow paint was found at
the 6 foot level and the
damaging blow left paint at
the 8 foot level."
Estimated cost to repair
the old bridge has been
placed at $30,000, and
Lohman said, "The hardest
part in making these repairs
is coming up with the steel."
"The bridge was constructed
in the 30's and steel for
repairs is no longer made,
meaning the steel will have
to be salvaged from a smiliar
bridge of the same era."
The Highway Department
said the bridge will be closed
for an estimated 2-6 weeks.
lei
With evidence in hand
Bastrop Sheriff I.R. "Nig* Hoskins holds a bag containing several ounces
of marijuana as officers arrest suspect for possession. See "Drug bust
Bastrop County style" Page 2. '
■ Staff Photo by J im Tisdale
Concerned citizens
attend hearing
(Iontent winner
Nuky Himwl < §4sr i rr*k is fh# Imky wimior wl * h««uiiM "<##ld
Iaiii* High "mIhwI ilas# rj||| Merniniicf wo pi* tinted l he Hn|
fry ► My fcMtfh, wl |ewel*r» Hit nug l|n kmihJ pri/« in « r*
• »»»• *h*wlOj| i" ll *11 (WIHul «nd MitliM iliH Wlff *hg»M* Im («|
Wit
More than two-dozen
concerned county residents
were on hand last Tuesday,
August 23, as Department of
Health Resources Hearing
Examiner Roger Tyler pre-
sided over a public hearing
in the Bastrop County
Courthouse. The 10:00 a.m.
meeting, as prescribed by
law. gave city dads and the
county residents an opportu
nity to air t heir views on the
proposed Bastrop County
Sanitary Landfill,
The propped landfill is u>
be located 940 feet West of
Highway yft beiwi-eii liut
irop himI Klgin, on approki
wati'ly •) 1 arret ol land
o|liitd Im llie imiftiy by tin
Mi
mil i
is growing considerably,
with more people congregat-
ing this rural environment,"
suggesting that the propos-
ed landfill is necessary, "not
just for today and tomorrow,
but for the future."
Judge Griesenbeck re
marked that the county
population is nearing30,000.
Project engineers told the
group that the landfill
proposed is to be a solid
waste dump, conforming to
all Federal and Stale
regulations, li. W. Cure! on,
of Cureton Engineers In
Austin staled that nu open
burning would be allowed
slid added IItst h portable
lente Vtuul'l Im' used Im taIel)
V# pugr ti
"I oil III
way that the fire could have
been accidental."
The arson specialist added
that the fire which claimed
the Boyd home "had all the
earmarks of being the work
of an arsonist." Wallace said
that the process of investiga-
tion is standard, and that he
was able to reach this
conclusion through the proc-
ess of elimination. The
Smithville city councilman
sifted through remains for
several days before reaching
his final determination.
Sheriff Hoskins told the
ADVERTISER that "al-
though no one has been
charged, we do have several
suspects in mind." The
county's chief law - enforce-
ment officer added that the
fire had been set in the
South end of the house
between 7:30and 8:00 a.m.
Hoskins told the ADVER-
TISER on Friday that his
deputies were watching the
Bluebonnet area "closely"
these days, and Bluebonnet
Fire Chief Leon Miller stated
that it is this patrol by
county deputies and similar
action by his volunteers that
have reduced the number of
fires in the area. "They are
stopping all unfamiliar vehi-
cles out here," Miller said,
"and it is this combined
effort that has kept down the
number of fires out here." he
concluded.
Both the arson investiga-
tor and the Sheriffs Depart-
ment have indicated that
investigation will not be
concluded until the arsonist
is captured, but Fire Chief
Miller has his own opinions.
Miller told the ADVERTI-
SER that a majority of the
fires in Bluebonnet Acres
have occured when one
particular crew of his
volunteers are on call. "We
have two crews, and these
fires (in the Bluebonnet
addition) have been set, the
same crew was always on
call," Miller stated. "When
the other crew is on call, the
only fires we have are
outside our area."
Miller said that while he
does not suspect any of his
volunteers, "someone must
have a grudge against a crew
member of that whole
particular crew. Someone
wants to see that crew
work," he concluded.
House fire
on 95
doused
The Bastrop Fire Depart-
ment answered a mid-after-
noon fire on Thursday at the
James Kenedy residence.
Only minor damage was
reported though.
Firemen were slowed
down in trying to reach the
site; as one fireman indicat-
ed, the directions to the fire
were not clear. The Kenedy
home is West of Highway 95
about 2 miles North of the
city.
Kenedy told the ADVER-
TISER at the scene that his
son had been burning trash
in a barrel and had managed
to overfill the barrel. Flames
spread easily once sparks
had ignited the already
parched grass and weeds
behind the Kenedy home.
Kenedy told the ADVER
TISER that he tried to
extinguish the blaze, "But I
couldn't handle it (the fire)
by myself," and the local fore
department was called.
Kenedy and his family and
neighbors contained the fire
until the volunteers arrived
at the scene.
Advertiser
To close
tabor Day
Thursday
edition to b#
moiled Thur%
Digging
Poking carefully through the remains of a
Bluebonnet Acres home razed by fire in the
early morning hours of August 22 arson inves-
tigator Hal Wallace searches for clues to help
determine the cause of the blaze.
Staff Photo by Clyde Griffin 1
DISTRICT 25-AA
SCOREBOARD
Bastrop
0
Lockhart 3
Smithville
7
Elgin 34
Weimer
14
E. Bernard 35
Hallettsville 16
1
Schulenberg35
Giddings
21
Lexington 8
Luling
8
Hays 13
LaGrange
6
Bellville 21
Obstacle course
Bastrop volunteer fire fighters had to pass
through this obstacle course to extinguish a blaze
at a home outside the city.
—————————- Staff Photo by Clyde Griffin"
Y.C.C. complete
seven weeks
Two dozen young people
from Dallas, Fort Worth,
Seguin and Smithville re
cently completed 7 weeks of
forestry-related work in the
Bastrop and Buescher State
Parks, as part of the
federally funded Youth
Conservation Corps.
The Y.C.C. is a 4 year old
program designed by the
government lo provide em
ployment for young people
between I he ages of 15 and
18 years of age, in
i'MMptrftlion w'*h <»»* Texas
Parks and Wildlife Depart
(twill
litis suiMim r, 4 t»»it Mil*
s<i*iuiii» wen- recruit**4 U#
live-in counselor, and local
minister Reverend Russell
Nees, who served as
director, and twenty other
Texas teenagers.
Sampson told the AD
VERTISER that the 7-week
enlistment began at Bastrop
State Park, "where the
youthful laborers learned to
build trails and beautify the
coutiiry side."
Affording to (he junior
high principal counselor, the
group spent most of their
lime during (he last two
Weeks, si Buescher Hi ale
Park
TH* ADVKHTIHKH »w
told by Hutwhyr til*!* I'srk
V i/i/lh' m^i
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Pannell, Leland R. Bastrop Advertiser (Bastrop, Tex.), No. 28, Ed. 1 Monday, September 5, 1977, newspaper, September 5, 1977; Bastrop, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth602026/m1/1/?q=%22%22~1: accessed June 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Bastrop Public Library.