ROAD TRIP: A BBM Game

[MaineWriter]

Otey, TX


Originally the site of Palo Alto, one of the largest antebellum cotton plantations in Texas, it was just one of the holdings of the Mills Brothers (Robert and David G.). Mills bankrupted during Reconstruction, the brothers lost the land to creditors and in 1908 the state bought it and other plantations to build the Ramsey Prison Farm.

In 1911 a post office was granted but the origin of the name is a mystery. In 1914 the population was given as 700 and the Ramsey Farm reported 624 inmates.

The population declined to a mere 150 in 1958 and mail was rerouted through the Rosharon post office in the 1970s.

Otey today is actually surrounded by the sprawling 15,040-acres of what is now called the Ramsey Unit of the TDC and visitors have to pass through prison roadblocks to enter the town. It sits at the end of the FM 655 cul-de-sac.

(NB: XYZ...side trip!)

Leslie

[Meryl]

Quealy, WY

(Leslie, you are our Queen of XYZ) 

[nova20194]

Claresholm, AB

Claresholm is a small community located about midway between Calgary and Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada along Highway 2. The location was originally a watering stop for steam engines on the Canadian Pacific Railway line along the Macleod Trail. The first settlers arrived in 1902, and the village was established in 1903. Claresholm was incorporated as a town in 1905, when Alberta became a province of Canada.

Population: 3,622 (2005)

One of the Famous Five involved in the Persons Case, Louise McKinney, lived in Claresholm.

RCAF Station Claresholm was established near the town in 1941 to train pilots for service in World War II. The station was reopened for a period in the 1950s to train NATO pilots.

Just west of Claresholm is the John Hart Farm, which is the site for two Brokeback Mountain filming locations........Ennis and Alma's "Lonesome Ranch" and Ennis' cabin where Jack came to see him after the divorce.

[Meryl]

And Bob is our King of Alberta Film Locations.   

[MaineWriter]

Medicine Mound, TX

 Like the old saying goes: "If you find Medicine Mound - you had to have been looking for it." It's not that it's difficult to find - since it still appears on the state map - it's just that it is on a long extended spur off of Highway 82. (FM 91 on the east and FM 1167) on the west. The mountains that comprise the mounds are visible from Highway 82. There are actually four elevations that rise 200-250 feet above the landscape. These are natural mounds that were held sacred by the Comanches.

The older Medicine Mound community that had been here prior to 1908 moved 2½ miles north to be alongside the tracks of the Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway as it built through Hardeman County. Medicine Mound was once a vibrant town with a respectable population of 500 served by 22 businesses. A devastating fire in the early 30s (arson) destroyed most of the town. By the end of the Great Depression the population was 210 and the town still had 6 buildings left.

Today there are three - about the same number of historical markers. The Medicine Mound school merged with Quanah's district in the mid-1950s - about the same time the post office closed.

The Mounds of Medicine Mound



L

[nova20194]

And Bob is our King of Alberta Film Locations.   

And I hope to see you there soon.   

[Meryl]

And I hope to see you there soon.   

You bet! 

[Meryl]

Dominguez, Mexico



(XYZ rule applies)

[nova20194]

Longview, AB

Longview is a village in southern Alberta south of Black Diamond.  It is on the Highwood River.
Located in an area that the Indians once used for hunting and gathering, Longview originally was a small community hamlet that was established at the turn of the century to service the many farms and ranches.

After oil was discovered in Turner Valley in 1914 the area boomed and "Little New York" was born. The community eventually shifted a few miles west of it's present location and re-assumed the name Longview. The population swelled to an unbelievable 2500 in the oil days.

In the 1940's, as the petroleum industry declined in Longview and surrounding area, so did a large proportion of the population that depended on the oilpatch for a living. Longview's long standing position in the area allowed it to survive and it pushed for and received local government in the 1960's.

Currently, Longview is home to approximately 310 residents. It not only stands as an important service community but also as a "gateway" to the Kananaskis, one of the most beautiful tourism zones in Alberta.

Longview is a filming location for 1992 movie, "Unforgiven".

Approximately 5 miles south of Longview along Highway 22 is the filming location of the opening scene of Brokeback Mountain.  The tractor trailer is seen driving south on Highway 22.

[MaineWriter]

Walburg, TX

A multi-ethnic community of Germans, Wends, Czechs, Austrians, and Swiss, the town was first known as Concordia.

Storekeeper Henry Doering added a post office to his store in 1886 and submitted the name Walburg after his German hometown. It was accepted by the postal authorities and has been Walburg ever since.

In the 1890s the town had a gin, doctor, blacksmith, pharmacy and a bank. The estimated population was a mere 16 people in 1890, rising to 102 by 1904.In 1925 there were 200 residents, and after an unexplained surge in the late 20s when it doubled, it returned to 200 by 1933. The population has remained stable since the end of WWII.

Leslie