Cooper Review (Cooper, Tex.), Vol. 139, No. 49, Ed. 1 Thursday, December 2, 2010 Page: 2 of 6
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Cooper Review - Page 2
Thursday, December 2,2010
Community
Bob Bowman's East Texas
_By Bob Bowman_
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On The River
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With ET
A great old map
Most historians love old
maps. They squint at them
for hours, often finding places
they never knew existed.
A few months ago, Walter
Williams dropped by my
office in Lufkin, clutching a
map from East Texas in 1882.
It was like an early Christmas
gift.
East Texas, naturally, was a
lot different in 1882 than it is
today-126 years later.
Some towns, like Lufkin,
didn’t exist, although it was
founded later that year when
the Houston, East and West
Texas Railroad came to
Angelina County.
The railroad, which began in
Houston, had only made it
to Moscow in Polk County
by 1882. In 1886, it would
arrive in Shreveport, opening
up the East Texas forests to
lumbering, new economic
growth and dozens of new
towns.
While there were a lot of
railroads in Texas in the
1880s, the principal forested
area around Nacogdoches,
Center,San Augustine, Jasper
and Hemphill did not have a
major line until 1882.
In 1882, East Texas had a bevy
of small towns that have since
vanished or moved elsewhere-
-places like Salem in Newton
County, Cheeseland in
Angelina Count, Ogburn in
Smith County, Cuthand in
Red River County, Pinetown
and Larissa in Cherokee
County, and Marianna in Polk
County.
Ironically, while East Texas
has only one town named
Zavalla (in Angelina County)
today, it had two in 1882. One
stood in Cherokee County and
another was in Jasper County.
Both have disappeared.
All of the Zavallas took
their name from Lorenzo de
Zavalla, a leader in the Texas
revolution in the 1830s.
Like Lufkin, Kountze, Hardin
County’s present county
seat, wasn’t on the map. The
county seat at that time was
known as Hardin.
Since rivers were still
navigable in 1882, the map
showed many towns standing
on river bluffs—places like
Niblet’s Bluff on the Sabine
River, Sullivan’s Bluff on the
Neches, Commerce (not the
town northeast of Dallas) on
the Trinity, and Pulaski, also
on the Sabine River.
There were also a considerable
number of oddly-named
towns in 1882.
Sea, which was far removed
from any big body of water,
was in Houston County.
Willow Hole was in Madison
County, Cotton Plant was in
Delta County, Corn Hill stood
in Fannin County, and Guy’s
Store was in Leon County.
Texas and Louisiana shared
at least one town name—
Longstreet. The one in
Texas stood in Montgomery
County and a second
Longstreet (a place where
my family lived during
World War II)stood near
Logansport, Louisiana—
Today, while we have three
Bostons in East Texas (all of
them are in Bowie County),
there was only one in 1883.
Today’s Bostons are Old
Boston, New Boston
and just plain Boston.
(Bob Bowman of Lufkin
is the author of almost 50
books about East Texas.
He can be reached at bob-
bowman, com)
In Years Gone By
From the files of The Cooper Review
Ten Years Ago
The annual Christmas
Parade “Memories of
Christmas Past” sponsored
by the Delta County
Chamber of Commerce
will be held this Saturday,
December 2nd at 10:30
a.m. Line up will be at
Automatic Gas located
on West Dallas Avenue.
The Delta County
Emergency District Board
has elected to extend the
contract for emergency
medical service presently
provided by the Hopkins
County Memorial Hospital.
Mrs. Hooten’s sixth
grade math classes
recently raised worked
extra math problems
to raise money for the
internationally recognized
St. Jude Children’s
Research Hospital.
Denicia Hohenberger and
Judy Falls were recently
guests of the United
States Naval Academy
I Annapolis, Maryland.
Ms Hohenberger and
Ms Falls were invited to
participate in the Educator
Orientation Visit program
which allows school
personnel the opportunity
to understand the unique
education opportunities
of the Naval Academy.
Twenty Years Ago
The first snow of the
season fell last Wednesday
afternoon and in about four
hours had covered the area
with approximately three
inches of wet stuff. By
Thursday morning almost
all evidence of the snow
was gone as temperatures
began to rise to near 70
Owners - Jim and Sally Butler
JimB@Cooperreview.com
Publisher/Editor - Roger Palmer
Roger@Cooperreview. com
Office Manager/Staff Writer - Kimberly Palmer
Kim@Cooperreview. com
THE COOPER REVIEW (UPS 131940) is printed weekly, except the
fourth week in December. Second Class Postage is paid at Cooper, Texas
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MEMBER
2009
TU
TEXAS PRESS
ASSOCIATION
during the weekend.
Saturday morning,
December 13 citizens of
this area should make plans
to come to town and witness
one of the better Christmas
parades to be presented in
many years. Co-sponsors
of the parade, the Saturday
Morning Service Club and
the Delta County Chamber
of Commerce have made
numerous contacts and
arrangements and have put
together a wide assortment
of bands, floats, horse
groups and individuals.
Thirty Years Ago
Continued fair weather
allows cotton harvest to
make excellent progress.
Activity is slowing
rapidly in the county as
farmers finish stripping.
Receiving recognition as
Student of the Month for
November is Miss Elaine
Leslie, daughter of Mr.
and Mrs. Gene Leslie
1151 SW Fifth.
A plaque for Excellence
was awarded to Cooper
High School yearbook
staff for the 1970 edition
Tom Coker remembers
Well, the article about sideboards on
pickups generated more interest than I
ever thought possible. There were several
responses so I decided to share one
more with you. Tom Coker sent a nice
email that not only told of sideboards
but covered much history of our area.
He gave permission to retell the story.
“Dad had a ‘50 or ’51 black Dodge
pickup and right after buying it went
to Jake Weir’s shop in Tira where Abe
White was blacksmith. Abe made the
metal frame for the sideboards and Dad
bought the oak lumber from a nearby
sawmill. Dad and I drilled the holes and
mounted the slats on the frame. I still have
the kerosene pump that stood in front of
Jake’s shop. I gave Miles Hargraves five
dollars for it, rescued it from his pasture,
and refurbished it in the early Seventies.
The truck hauled lots of cattle to and from
the Sulphur Springs sale barn as well as
horses when we helped our neighbors
work cattle. Dad used the pickup to haul
my sister and me through the mud out
to the paved road where we caught the
school bus to North Hopkins. If it was
really muddy we would ride out on a Ford
tractor. We lived four miles west of Aiguier
Cemetery on a big hill overlooking South
Sulphur River bottom. The road by our
house led down to the bridge that crossed
the river. All of the roads are closed now
and belong to the government. Many of
them are under the water of Cooper Lake.
In the late Fifties we had record rainfall
and South Sulphur flooded, levees washed
out, and there was water as far as you
could see. From our house on top of that
hill it looked like a lake was already there.
I can also remember Dad using the truck to
haul hay, firewood, and ears of corn to the
feed mill for grinding, and for going to the
grocery store. One morning I rode in the old
Dodge with Dad and Lowell Lawson to a
cornfield in the river bottom. The field was
a prime target for the local crow population
and they were devastating the corn. Lowell
got in the back of the pickup as Dad drove
and Lowell would dip a coffee can in a
washtub filled with poison shelled corn
and sling it out into the field. It must have
helped since later we used the old pickup
to harvest and haul lots of corn to town to
get it ground into cattle feed. The old truck
with sideboards was a real workhorse.
I doubt if any of the new models would
survive what that one went through.”
Thanks for sharing that with us Tom and
to you and everyone, Happy Holidays.
While on ancient history, here’s a little
more. Our clanhadthe annual Thanksgiving
gathering this year at the Delta Country
Club. Papa brought some of my old
school records he found while cleaning
out a storeroom. Everyone had a laugh
while looking over them. In first grade
at Delmar in 1951 and 1952 my teacher
was Lillie Hatch, principal, W.H. Smith,
and superintendent, J.G. Brunson. The
ten acres we bought south of Charleston
was once owned by the Smith family.
In the second grade my teacher was Pauline
Dodd and the superintendent position
was manned by Alvin Welch. Along with
my report card was a Bi-Annual Health
Report for Lamar County Schools. Since
my mother was working on her teaching
certificate at East Texas State Teachers
College she had somehow paid extra to
get me entered in the first grade at an early
age, entering the first grade at age four.
In the second grade my weight was forty
five pounds and my height was forty six
inches. All the categories were checked
“satisfactory” except for being a “mouth
breather.” What is that and do they check
for it in schools today? Maybe I just had
a stopped up nose the day the nurse came.
After I finished the third grade at Delmar
Mama got her teaching certificate and was
hired by Superintendent George Ross Price
as third and fourth grade teacher for the
‘54-‘55 year at East Delta. (He also hired
me for my first teaching job in Alvord,
Texas in ’67-’68.) Yeah, Mama was my
fourth grade teacher and watched me extra
close so others wouldn’t think I could
“get away” with something. That caused
a few confrontations. All my grades were
A’s except for solid B’s in deportment.
On my fourth grade report card it showed
the school year starting on July 19, 1954.
Now folks fuss about starting in August.
There was a reason though for the early
start. After we went for six weeks school
was turned out for six weeks so kids could
help pick cotton. Brother in law, Junior
Larkin, said he went to Enloe and they
didn’t start early, just started school in late
August but turned out at noon each day.
The fifth grade report card was not in with
the others but Mrs. Imogene Polk was my
sixth grade teacher and we still started
school in mid July. The seventh grade
report is also missing but Joe Daniels
was my eight grade teacher and coach.
I must have been more scared of them
because there were all A’s in deportment.
How many of you got out of school
for six weeks in the fall to pick cotton?
Venus is now our “morning star” and
is shining its brightest of the year.
December 12-13 Jupiter is close to the
Moon. December 13 we will have the
Geminid meteor shower. The meteors
appear to be coming from Gemini the
Twins’ part of the sky. Best viewing will
be after midnight when the Moon has set.
Here are some diary entries by a not so
bright cook: Today I made angel food cake.
The recipe said beat twelve eggs separately.
The neighbors were nice enough to loan me
some extra bowls. Tom wanted fruit salad
for supper. The recipe said serve without
dressing so I didn’t dress. What a surprise
when Tom brought a friend for supper.
Today I cooked rice. The recipe said
wash thoroughly before steaming the
rice. It seemed silly but I took a bath
anyway. A new cookie recipe said put
all the ingredients in a bowl and beat it.
Something must be wrong because when
I returned everything was the same.
etra327@live.com
That Wonderful Year 1965
According to the Thursday,
December 2, 1965 issue
of the Cooper Review:
A new and outstanding
attraction to the Christmas
Parade I Cooper Friday
afternoon at 4 o’clock will
be Owens Spring Creek
Farm Belgian Horses.
Within the past ten days,
Cooper High School cagers
have been showing fans
what can be expected fo the
teams in 1965-66 season.
The Salvation Army held
the ’’Kick-off Coffee”
for the finance drive
now in progress, in the
Cooper Hotel Tuesday
morning, November 23.
The Woman’s Auxiliary to
the Lamar-Delta Medical
Society Wednesday
began a new series of
radio programs over
Paris KPLT dealing with
various phases of health.
They will be broadcasted
each Wednesday from
6:45 to 6:55 p.m. for
a period of 26 weeks.
The Delta County Historical
Survey Committee will
sponsor a historical tour of
places of interest in south
and east Delta County
under the direction of
G.D. Albright, County
chairman. Albright will
give historical highlights
of each place visited.
Dick Stringfellow, 1962
graduate of Cooper
High School, has been
selcted to captain the
1965-66 Texas A&M
University basketball team.
The National Society for
the prevention of blindness
reports “the cause of 50%
of blindness is NEGLECT.”
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Palmer, Roger. Cooper Review (Cooper, Tex.), Vol. 139, No. 49, Ed. 1 Thursday, December 2, 2010, newspaper, December 2, 2010; Cooper, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth805189/m1/2/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Delta County Public Library.