ROAD TRIP: A BBM Game

[jpwagoneer1964]

Fort Laramie, wy

Mark

[belbbmfan]

Excel, Alberta

[MaineWriter]

Lesley, TX

(how could I resist?)

 In 1902 local resident James P. Montgomery opened a post office at his home and named it after his son. It remained in Montgomery until 1907, when it was moved to the town's general store. It closed in 1915 and mail was rerouted through Lakeview

By 1920 the town had the school, a cotton gin and three stores. A gas station and restaurant had been added by the late 20s. In 1937 the school was consolidated with Lakeview's ISD. The population was a mere 10 from the 30s through the 40s. By the early 1970s it had increased to 70 and it retained its gin and grocery into the 80s. Lesley had about 40 people in 1984 and it was forty-five by 1990.

This is the old school house:




Leslie

[belbbmfan]

Yellowstone, Alberta

Lesley, TX

(how could I resist?)


Leslie

       

good one leslie!

[jpwagoneer1964]

Yondese del Cedro, Mexico

Mark

[memento]

Oatmeal Texas

History in a cylindrical cardboard box:
The name is perhaps a corruption of Othneil who was an early businessman in the area.

A timeline of significant historic events in Oatmeal:
1849: The first settlers were German families
1853: A post office was granted under the name Oatmeal
1854: The first people are buried in what will eventually become the Oatmeal Cemetery (see photographer's note below)
1858: the first schoolhouse was built
1869: a second school was constructed
1871: The cemetery is deeded

[MaineWriter]

Luckenbach, TX

Official signs are stolen, so don't look for any. When you get close, you'll see some for "Uptown Luckenbach," which we may address in the future. For now, we'll talk about the historic and legendary Luckenbach. The one that's beckoning down in the shady grove.

1999 was the town's Sesquicentennial Celebration and in 2000 they had their Second 150th Anniversary Celebration.

The house you'll pass on the way in is the Engle place. The sign showing a population of 3, is actually 2 now, due to a recent death in the Engle family.


History in a Pecan Shell

The Reverend August Engel established the Post Office in 1886. His sister Minnie (or Sophie depending on the source) was appointed Postmistress and in a romantic gesture put the name of her fiancée in the blank space for the requested name. That name was Albert Luckenbach.

Years later when Albert and wife moved to Martinsburg the post office there was renamed Albert, Texas.

The romantic naming of Luckenbach started a tradition of unconventionality that has become something of a lifestyle. We didn't say it was a romantic lifestyle, we said it was a unconventional lifestyle.

The biggest contributor to this lifestyle would be, beyond a doubt, Hondo Crouch. Crouch, champion swimmer, raconteur, and columnist for The Comfort News, liked the shallow water of Grape Creek so much he and a few others bought Luckenbach's 10 or so acres from the Engel family in 1970.

Mr. Crouch used Luckenbach and its tranquility as a tongue-in-cheek comparison to the nearby high-priced spread of LBJ's Stonewall Ranch. Meanwhile, the celebration of life at Luckenbach continued, with country music and with what the Germans have been known to call "liquid bread."

Unless you spent 1976-77 in a coma, then you heard the song that opened the floodgates. Ask someone. It was bitter irony that Mr. Crouch died shortly after the town became famous.


While other parts of Texas have Fire Ant, Chigger and Mosquito Festivals, Luckenbach celebrates Spring's arrival each year by holding a contest to see who witnesses the arrival of the first Mud Dauber Wasp. The choice of this non-aggressive and home-oriented insect reflects Luckenbach's philosophy.

Luckenbach's unpretentiousness is as genuine as the portrait of FDR that remains from when the building's primary function was Post Office/Store.

There's a bronze bust of Hondo Crouch in front of the store. Drop in when you're in the neighborhood.

Leslie

[jpwagoneer1964]

Hoback Junction, Wy

You can stay at this KOA campground in Hoback Junction.

Mark

[Fran]

New Boston, TX

New Boston's Grand Theatre

[MaineWriter]

Nazareth, TX


The town was named by Catholic priest Joseph Reisdorff, who recruited settlers by advertising in midwestern German Catholic newspapers.

He and a core of four farmers moved to the future town in 1902. A post office was opened the following yearthe community built its Catholic church. The town had seventy-one residents by 1904 - the year Nazareth was platted. The community's cemetery was (consecrated in 1906) was the only one for miles.

The population grew to 50 by 1914 and to150 people by 1927.

Dust storms hit the area in the 30s and the population dropped back to fifty. By the time America entered WWII the population was back up to 200.

The population dropped to about 75 in 1955, then rose to 275 ten years later. The town remains primarily a Catholic community.

Leslie