FCHA Newsletter

Vol. 17, No. 1, January & February 2012 
On the page below you will find the current newsletter, but first you will see the calendar of FCHA meetings and sponsored events for the current year. We also invite you to visit the local newspaper's excellent community calendar at

http://mt-vernon.com/calendars.html. 

CURRENT NEWSLETTER

CALENDAR OF FCHA 2012 MEETINGS

January 2, 7 P.M.
Annual Membership Meeting with Potluck Dinner, at Mount Vernon Music Hall, 402 Leftwich Street
Hosts: John Hicks, B.F. Hicks. John Tutor, Jan Bland, Rex & Carolyn Tillery
Program: Matt White, "Birds of Texas"

The January meeting is, as every year, our annual membership meeting, and we hope you will renew your membership at this time, if you have not already done so. Hope to see you there!

For this meeting and for others that include a potluck dinner, please bring your favorite dish. Bread, drinks and paper goods will be provided by hosts.

March 5, 7 P.M.
General Meeting with Potluck Dinner, at the Franklin County Cultural Arts Center
Hosts: Cynthia Loftis & John Bradberry, Martha Hare, Jean Ann Marshall, Darwin and Connie McGill Program: Charlotte Chaney of the Frame-Up, Conservation of Historical Art

May 7, 7 P.M.
General Meeting with Sandwich Supper Provided by FCHA, at the First National Bank Century Room
Hosts: Larry & Nancy Coleman, Frankie Cooper & Ken Greer, Jerry and Elease Hubbell, Bob & Donna McFarland
Program: Tombstone Tales at City Cemetery

July 2, 7 P.M.
General Meeting with Potluck Dinner, at the Patterson 1849 Historic Home, 11766 FM 115, Scroggins Hosts: Jim and Barbara Alford, Norm & Carol Horn, Rex & Barbara Norris, Lillie & Nathan Reves Program: Tour and History of the Patterson Home

September 3, Labor Day, 7 P.M.
General Meeting with Potluck Dinner, at the Masonic Lodge, North Access Road, I30 East
Hosts: B.F. Hicks, Richard & Kay Howell, Gary & Beverly Strange, John Tutor
Program: Jo Campbell, owner of Jo Campbell Antiques in Mt. Pleasant, “Historical Objects”

November 5, 7 P.M.
General Meeting with Potluck Dinner, at the Tall Tree Country Club Meeting Room
Hosts: Chuck & Nicki Armstrong, Bill & Nancy Miller, Jerald & Mary Lou Mowery
Program: Louise Walsh, “Memoirs of an early 201h Century Romance"

THANK YOU TO THE PROGRAM COMMITTEE
Cynthia Loftis, Program Chair

A sincere thank you goes to Mary Lou Mowery and Lillie Reves, who served on the 2012 Program Committee, and to B. F. Hicks. Their hard work has resulted in an exciting line-up of programs for the new year. Thanks to all who volunteered to give programs, host programs, or help with locations.

A MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL IN JANUARY SAVES OUR ORGANIZATION TIME AND MONEY

January is membership renewal time for FCHA. Fun and exciting events are being planned for the coming year. We appreciate your past support and membership and hope you will renew this month. Renewal letters and reminders drain necessary funds and volunteer time, and a timely renewal gives us a sound financial start and helps us to plan better. Also included in this mailing is the outline for next year's planned meetings. We look forward to sharing a great year with you!

From the Director’s Corner
Elaine McFeely

"Baby it's COLD outside!" And it is looking a lot like Christmas around here! November started off with a whirlwind for me, as I spent a week out of state with family. And then I came back just in time to get through Thanksgiving and dive into Christmas! On the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, John Tutor came out of his "Scrooge" shell for the day and pulled decorations out of the attic at the Parchman House. Then while I spiffed up some old wreaths with new ribbon, John wrapped the hand rails at the Depot with beautiful garland. Then Donna McFarland came by and added festive bows to the mix and did some decorating inside the Depot. Jean Ann Marshall and I found a little Christmas tree hidden in all those decorations and decided it should go up at the museum to get everyone in the spirit of the season. In a few short hours, with some amazing help, the FCHA had our halls decked for the Christmas season!

Later that evening, a hoard of youth and parents converged on the Depot to create a Tour of Trees. We had trees representing The Sacred Heart Catholic Church youth, First United Methodist Church youth, Sulphur River Cowboy Church youth, Cub Scout Pack 271 and the Mt. Vernon High School InterAct Club. It was so fun to hear all the giggles that went into those decorations. And the kids certainly had fun!

To display all those wonderful trees, we had the Depot open on Friday evening and the following Saturday, and on Thanksgiving in conjunction with tree lighting festivities on the Square. Then we opened again on Saturday, December 3, surrounding Christmas parade activities. During these times, we sold tickets to vote on a favorite tree. We sold over 1,000 tickets!

And the winner was the Sacred Heart Catholic Church youth group! They were awarded a $75 prize for their youth fund. Second place and a $50 prize went to First United Methodist Church of Mt. Vernon. And third place and a $25 prize were awarded to Cub Scout Pack 271. The kids and parents did a wonderful job on the trees. Thank you all for your participation and your votes. This was a great way to get our community's youth involved in our mission. And all of them said that they were looking forward to next year!

The rest of December has been fairly quiet. But quiet is good. Quiet gives us an opportunity to reflect on the year and be thankful for our blessings. It also gives us a time to think about how we want to share our blessings and talents in the coming year. With that being said, there is still time to get in your tax-deductible donations!

The Franklin County Historical Association operates FIVE separate facilities. And they all have utility bills that have to be paid. We love opening our facilities to share Franklin County and its history with everyone, but it does get expensive. Keep that in mind as you see announcements for upcoming fund raisers. We certainly couldn't continue to do all that we do without the love, support and patronage of our membership!

VOLUNTEER DOCENT SPOTLIGHT

A big THANK YOU!

To John Tutor, Jean Ann Marshall and Donna McFarland for helping me get all the Christmas decorations out and adorning the facilities.

To all of our wonderful Docents who have taken extra shifts when we were short and those that have faithfully manned the museum at their appointed time!

To Ken Greer for having handled our docent calendar all this time.

To Donna McFarland for helping out during Decoration Day and Take Down Days for the Tour of Trees and all the other little things you do to help get young people interested and involved.

VOLUNTEERS AND DOCENTS NEEDED

We will be scheduling Docent informational and training sessions soon. Be on the lookout. We have lost several of our regular docents due to illness, moves or general life circumstances as of late. We need new bodies to fill those slots! As of now, the museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 A.M. to 2 P.M. If we aren't able to fill our vacancies, we can't be open. Please call me at the office if you would be interested in helping out. Remember, you don't have to commit to every week or even every month. We need backup folks that could cover every once in a while too!

WHAT'S COMING IN THE NEW YEAR?
Elaine McFeely

Electronic newsletters! If you would like to receive your newsletter via email, make sure we have your address. Send me a note with newsletter in the subject to fchadirector@mt-vernon.com. John Hicks has provided a wealth of information on the web at www.fcha-online.com. You can also get timely updates on all of our happenings via FACEBOOK at www.facebook.com/pages/franklin-county-historical-association/140878152658878. And a THANK you to Elaine Thomas for putting together our newsletters!

We have a fantastic membership and I am so thankful to all of you! But wouldn't it be great if we had an even bigger flock of history appreciators in our group? I am going to issue a challenge to you guys. I'm sure every one of us knows someone at work, at school, at church or at an organizational meeting that is not a member of FCHA. Tell them about us! Tell them about all the neat stuff we do. Tell them how they can be a part of preserving our history and sharing it with the world!

FROM THE FCHA PRESIDENT
B.F. Hicks

OK Amigos: A few weeks ago I walked the 1,600 foot boardwalk (and then had to walk back!) at Jarvis Christian College; it's in a wetland parallel at times to a good creek and there was the site of a mill. AND here in Mt. Vernon - just beyond Holbrook - east side of road; just north of Majors Street where the little creek can be seen - back about 150 yards - all the deeds in the 1880s through 1920s reference a gristmill - right here in Mt. Vernon.

As I understand it, ours would look like one you can see illustrated at www.volente.org/amgc/index.html - it’s located in Violente, Texas. Will Godwin (owner of our local 1911 waterworks - sfasuic@yahoo.com) built the Jarvis boardwalk; hope some of you can visit it for an idea of what we can do at the West End. In the meantime, a mill wheel needs to go in east of Holbrook - back behind the Hamrick 1928 Motor Courts - they have a park back there anyway! Dreams can become reality as Ken Greer has shown us.

MEMORIALS & HONORS FOR NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER 2011

In Memory of Shirley Hare, Given by Steve & Patsy Wright
In Memory of Shirley Hare, Given by Glen & Elesha Martin
In Memory of Betty Whitlock, Given by Jean Ann Marshall & Rena Asimakis
In Memory of Wayne Foster, Given by Jean Ann Marshall & Rena Asimakis
In Memory of Anita Boyd, Given by Bob & Donna McFarland

In Honor of Donna McFarland's Community Service, Given by Ray Loyd Johnson
In Honor of Bob McFarland's December Birthday, Given by Donna McFarland
In Honor of Mimi McKnight's November Birthday, Given by B.F. Hicks
In Honor of Bob McFarland's December Birthday, Given by B.F. Hicks
In Honor of Dr. Nancy Bolduc's December Birthday, Given by B.F. Hicks
In Honor of Cynthia Loftis' December Birthday, Given by B.F. Hicks
In Honor of Nicki Armstrong's December Birthday, Given by B.F. Hicks
In Honor of Pat Evans' December Birthday, Given by B.F. Hicks

INTRODUCTION TO THE GERALDINE HILL STYLES MATERIALS

This relates to family memorabilia collected by Geraldine Hill Styles, daughter of Guy Payne Hill and Sallie Green Hill, all buried in the Mount Vernon City Cemetery.

Over 30 years ago, Geraldine Hill Styles advised that she was sorting through family memorabilia and thought it best to send materials relating to her family and Franklin County history back to Mt. Vernon. She was past 60 at the time; having attained that age, it seems appropriate I should try to assure that her effort is available for research.

Geraldine ultimately made six scrapbooks and gifted them to me. I visited her several times in Houston and I attended her funeral at Christ Church Cathedral followed by the interment in the Mt. Vernon City Cemetery.

Over the summer holidays (summer 2011) my nephew Caleb Hicks had the scrapbooks scanned at Latson Printing in Sulphur Springs. Latson’s has a large scanner with the capacity to produce digital images which are easily copied and shared on computer disks.
Geraldine was an only child and had no children. We corresponded regularly for years and she was a great historian and genealogist. She could recount the connections of families who left Mt. Vernon before the 20th Century and she corresponded with a wide range of cousins and friends. Our families were linked by generations of friendship dating from the founding of Mt. Vernon and the laying out of the present town square.

In fact, long before the historical association was formally organized, one of Geraldine’s cousins had given me the original plat drawn off in 1849 when Mt. Vernon moved up from the Fanning Springs to the public square as we know it. I have the document framed between panes of glass hanging in a windowless dark room where light only follows from intentionally turning on a fixture.

It was concern for preservation of the fragile scrapbooks that has prevented me making them available for the public. And, for now, the scrapbooks remain with me. They are a wealth of general history for our community.

The large scale scrapbook pages can easily be read on a computer screen. I have given a set of the disks to the Franklin County Historical Association library. Our Executive Director Elaine McFeely can also sell you a copy of any or all of these disks for a very reasonable fee. Call her at 903-537-4760.

And, in support of our sister organizations, we have provided copies of the same disks to the Franklin County Genealogical Society. Their very active group of volunteers can assist in research through that organization’s records.

There are five scrapbooks. Each is copied on a separate disk. The scrapbooks are entitled:

(1) Guy Payne Hill; Geraldine’s father; Mt. Vernon native son. The present Parson’s Parade Building was the site of the Guy P. Hill Hardware store on our town square.

(2) Sarah Holbrook Green (Mrs. Guy Payne Hill). Are these names directly related to the streets of Mt. Vernon giving you a sense of the history contained in the scrapbook.

(3) Early Franklin County and Mt. Vernon, Texas. A real wealth of local history; newspaper clippings, many dating from the 1800’s.

(4) and (5) Volume I and II of Descendants of Early Settlers of Mt. Vernon, Texas.

(6) And there is a 6th disk. Letters, transcriptions and annotations for the letters mailed by John Payne Hill, Geraldine’s grandfather, to her grandmother, Mary Holbrook Hill, in Mt. Vernon, during the American Civil War.

A copy of the letters is available on disk in our library and also at the genealogical society offices. When your child or grandchild needs to do local research, we have the materials to give true meaning to our history. We meet the state standards: Real places telling real stories.

To our shared history,
B.F. Hicks, President, Franklin County Historical Association, 2011

NEW BOOK PUBLISHED

Texas Sesquicentennial Wagon Train
By Dominick J. Cirincione and J’Nell L. Pate
Images of America Series
Price: $21.99
128 pages in soft cover
available at local and online retailers, or through Arcadia Publishing at www.arcadiapublishing.com or 888-313-2665

In October several events in the Fort Worth Stockyards commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Texas Sesquicentennial Wagon Train that traveled around the state in honor of Texas' 150th birthday. The train's induction into the Texas Trail of Fame was followed with the dedication of an exhibit of wagon train artifacts at the North Fort Worth Historical Society Museum in the Livestock Exchange Building. Then there was a book signing for a new book by authors Dominick J. Cirincione and J’Nell L. Pate together with a reunion of wagon train participants and friends. The activities occurred in conjunction with the annual Red Steagall Cowboy Poetry Gathering and his usual arrival in the stockyards by wagon train on Thursday, October 20.

The 1986 Sesquicentennial train ended in the stockyards on July 3 after leaving Sulphur Springs on January 2, 1986. Many thousands of Texans, young and old, saw the wagon train during its clockwise, 3,000-mile circular route around the state. It came within 100 miles of each community so all Texans might experience it and camped in 150 communities over the six month period. A total of 10,000 riders from 27 states traveled at least a part of the way during the six months. Over 200,000 school children throughout the state visited the wagon train and saw the school room where 27 lucky students studied during the trip. The Texas Press Association called the Texas Sesquicentennial Wagon Train journey the number one event of 1986, and the Associated Press placed it in their top ten news stories that year. For more information see Texas Wagon Train 1986 on Facebook.

The new book by Cirincione and Pate is entitled Texas Sesquicentennial Wagon Train. The book boasts more than 200 vintage images, giving readers a unique opportunity to reconnect to the history that shaped their community. Coauthor Dominick J. Cirincione caught up with the train on weekends and became an acknowledged participant. He took the bulk of the photographs that appear in this book.

J'Nell L. Pate grew up in Fort Worth and attended public schools and graduated from Texas Christian University. She is retired from Tarrant County College in Fort Worth where she taught both U.S. and Texas history and government.

Now retired from Bell Helicopter in Fort Worth, a graduate of both Tarrant County College and Texas Christian University, Cirincione was taking a photography class at Tarrant County College that he became involved with the sesquicentennial celebration. Over the course of six months in 1986, he flew to destinations around the state to record what became a class project and was subsequently archived in the Texas Northeast Tarrant College Heritage Room, University of Texas at Austin Archives, and the Texas History Portal website. He considers the photo project to be a contribution to Texas history, and the Arcadia Publishing title is a way of sharing the event with the general public and future generations.

NOTES FROM THE PRESIDENT WITH GRATITUDE FOR DONORS:
B.F. Hicks

Dominick Cirincione of Keller, Texas is a long time friend of the Franklin County Historical Association. For several years he has been the primary benefactor of our library. I had to report to our membership of his latest donation. Nick became interested in our group when he changed on publicity for the renovation of the Thruston House. He attended events here and adopted our library a decade ago when we first solicited donations to build up a Texas collection. He watches estate sales and used book stores and picks up works related to Texas history. He also provides us a wealth of archaeological publications relating to Texas history in that field. His latest ship includes a beautiful photographic study of the Johnson presidency. He has provided a new edition of the guide to Texas historical roadside markers. A history of the Texas Rangers. Books on Texas food and music. And a range of general Texas histories and biographies of Texans. Elease Hubbell stays on top of our library collection. Check out the library and all of the great books donated by our friend Nick Cirincione and many other friends of Franklin County history. You’ll be impressed.

MUSEUM NEWS

The museum is still an active place. In the month of November, we had almost 70 registered visitors. We had 16 in the first week of December alone. People come from both coasts and even a foreign country or two to see our little museum. We have hosted guests from California, Washington, North Carolina, Georgia and South Dakota, as well as Germany and Denmark.

And folks, they are enjoying themselves! The comments include:
"Thanks! What a treasure!"
"Great place! We really enjoyed the upstairs exhibits!"
"Excellent presentation!"
"Amazing collection! The cash registers are beautiful!"
And my personal favorite: "Your bird eggs ROCK!"

Lillie reports: "A couple of weeks back, I toured three folks, an older couple with a grandson from Ft. Worth on a Monday (they called my office). The man had played ball with Don at SMU - they had made the trip especially to see that exhibit. The man wanted to share it with his grandson and will be coming back with other friends."

THANKS TO OUR RECENT DONORS!

The following gave book donations for our Texanna Library:
Dominick Cirincione - Texas Cowboy, Lone Star Menagerie, Adventures with Texas Wildlife, Texas Trivia, and Texas Bound
Jaime Doak Bennett - The Complete Guide to Attracting and Housing Purple Martins, and Exotic Birds from A to Z

The following donated to our general operations:
Ken & Betty Loveless
Dorothy Torbert
Charles & Dorothy Winfield
Gary & Karla Haynes
Kirk Bane
Larry Peterson

Montie and Vivian Monzingo made a donation earmarked for duck boxes.

Jean Ann Marshall and Rena Asimakis made a donation for participation gifts for the Tour of Trees.

ST. CLAIR CHRISTMAS CASH AWARDED
Lillie Bush-Reves, 2011

Three local charities have received an infusion of Christmas cash. Jimmy St. Clair of Houston arranged for $1,800, or $600 for each charity, to be awarded to assist efforts to meet the needs of local families during the holidays. The checks were presented in an informal ceremony Monday, December 19, to representatives of the Franklin County Ministerial Alliance, Community Food Bank of Franklin County and Franklin County Child Protective Services Board.

In 2009, Mr. St. Clair entrusted the Franklin County Historical Association to establish the Harris and Irene St. Clair Endowment in honor of his parents. The Christmas cash checks were awarded as a special designated gift through that endowment. The endowment is administered by the historical association with representatives from the community joining in allocation of funds each Spring. Nancy Miller, a member of the FCHA Board of Directors, serves as chairman of the endowment committee; and the organization's treasurer, Mary Lou Russell, serves on that committee.

Over the past two years approximately $10,000 has been awarded from the endowment. The endowment is made for the support of charitable causes and endeavors in Mount Vernon and Franklin County. The terms of the endowment specifically direct funding of the following causes:
(1) children's causes, including but not limited to support through school programs;
(2) humanitarian adult needs, including but not limited to support through the local Ministerial Alliance and senior citizens meal center programs;
(3) cultural support for quality of life, including specifically an emphasis for support of music and the enhancement of music and musical education throughout Franklin County; and
(4) the enhancement of the general quality of life throughout Franklin County.

TOUR OF TREES WINNERS ANNOUNCED
Lillie Bush-Reves, 2011

The Sacred Heart Catholic Church entry took first place in the inaugural Tour of Trees competition for 2011. The top winners were announced last week by the sponsoring Franklin County Historical Association. "The entries showed creativity and imagination," noted Elaine McFeely, FCHA Executive Director. The winning tree was decorated with candy canes, strings of popcorn and handmade paper ornaments assembled by members of the church's youth group. The youth group received $75 cash as the first place winner. Winners were decided by popular vote the weekend following Thanksgiving and Dec. 3 during the Christmas Festival.

Second place and a $50 cash prize in the contest went to the First United Methodist Church youth. Third place, a $25 cash prize and a bucket of popcorn went to members of Mount Vernon Cub Scout Pack 271. "This is our first effort with the Tour of Trees and we are especially pleased with the response of the public in viewing them," stated Donna McFarland, Education and Outreach Chairman for the FCHA.

LEADERS OF TOMORROW HISTORICAL TOUR

Led by J.D. Baumgardner and Donna McFarland, the junior class Leaders of Tomorrow group got an historical look at Mount Vernon as they toured the FCHA facilities in November during their Volunteer Day session. FCHA members Nancy Miller and Connie McGill participated in serving as docents during the tour. Thanks also to the support of President B.F. Hicks, John Tutor, Elaine McFeely and Jean Ann Marshall in helping make this a special day for this group of kids. The group toured the Firestation Museum, Old Train Depot, and Parchman House headquarters, and saw a quilting demonstration given by member Connie McGill as they toured the Thruston House. A delicious lunch was served at the Lowry Pavilion by Chamber Manager, Carolyn Teague; and the kids were amazed at how many historical facilities we have in Mount Vernon. They left having a greater appreciation of the preservation and volunteer efforts from the Historical Association. To round off the day, they also toured the Library, Genealogical Society headquarters and Cultural Arts facilities and were amazed by how many volunteers help run all of these organizations every day. Hopefully, some of these "leaders of tomorrow" will get involved as volunteers in the future. Many thanks to all who participated!

KEEPERS FROM PREVIOUS NEWSLETTERS

HISTORY BUFFS:  DO NOT MISS THIS

Images on this website by photographers of the Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information are some of the only color photographs taken of the effects of the Depression on America's rural and small town populations. The photographs are the property of the Library of Congress and were included in a 2006 exhibit Bound for Glory: America in Color.  It is a stunning collection of images from 1936-1943.   Log on to:
http://extras.denverpost.com/archive/captured.html

MELTING MOMENTS SHORTBREAD COOKIES

This is a recipe from B. F. Hicks, which is included in our Association's "Sweet Heritage" cookbook, available at the Fire Station Museum:
1 C unsifted flour
1/2 C cornstarch
1/2 C confectioner's sugar
3/4 C butter
1 tsp vanilla

In a medium bowl, stir together flour, corn-starch and confectioner's sugar. In a large bowl with mixer at medium speed, beat butter until smooth and creamy. Add flour mixture and vanilla. Beat until well blended. If necessary, refrigerate one hour, or until easy to handle. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place about 1 1/2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet; flatten with lightly floured fork. Bake in 300-degree oven 20 to 25 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned. Remove and cool completely on wire racks. Store in tightly-covered container. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

CLICK HERE

"Everything has a beginning and most are very small. Texas began in its far eastern region, now called East Texas and like a tiny acorn it has grown symbolically into the great oak tree called Texas. It began nowhere else but there." So begins the dialogue on a unique website dealing with the early history of Texas. Books, maps, diaries, and other documents relating to early east Texas history are itemized, explained, and available for purchase. Dr. Gordon Pettey created and designed this website for anyone who has a passion for Texas history. Go to:
http://www.texashistoricalpress.com

TEXAS STATE PARKS HOSTING SUMMER GEOCACHE CHALLENGE EVENT

Tapping what has become a global network of ongoing geocache events, Texas State Parks is hosting a statewide Texas Geocache Challenge on Saturday, June 4, with 89 state park locations (dividing the state into eight regions) scheduled to participate as host sites. 

Each park in the Texas Geocache Challenge will have a special hidden “cache” that will test participants’ individual scavenger-hunting skills in the outdoors to find each one. In advance of the statewide competition, participants should download a Texas Geocache Passport for each of the eight regions, as well as the coordinates of each of the caches located within a specific park, from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Web site: http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/geocaching/.  Geocaching(pronounced GEE-oh-cash-ing) has recently become an enormously popular outdoor-enthusiast sport throughout the world for both children and adults. It combines treasure hunting with outdoor recreation and hiking, as well as technology (a handheld global positioning system, or “GPS,” device is needed).  Weatherproof boxes are hidden in specific locations (caches) marked with GPS coordinates, and individuals navigate to hidden locations using the provided coordinates to find each box and its contents.
 
“Geocaching is a healthy way to get out on the trails of state parks," said Chris Holmes, outdoor education coordinator for Texas State Parks. "We think it should appeal to families and provide a really fun thing to do in a state park. The fun thing with the kids is that they literally get to find treasure, so we know they will be excited when they find the cache. This is really using technology to be outside, and we’ve seen today’s tech-savvy children grasp the idea and hit the trail running."  In the Texas Geocache Challenge, the hidden cache box at each park will contain collectible wildlife-themed trading cards, park information, a logbook for cachers to record their visit and a paper hole punch unique to the park. Once a person finds the cache, he or she uses the hole punch to mark his Geocache Passport and verify the visit.

When competitors have successfully located and documented all caches in a particular region, they can mail the completed passport to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in Austin. The first 25 people to send in completed passports will receive a commemorative “geo-coin,” a metal medallion with the date and Geocache Challenge logo. Other participants who finish and submit their completed Geocache Passports, but were not a part of the first 25, will receive Texas Geocache Challenge stickers, a certificate of completion, and be entered to win additional geo-coins in a lottery drawing.

Some of the participating state parks in the Texas Geocache Challenge include popular destinations such as Big Bend Ranch, Huntsville, Bastrop, Caddo Lake, Palo Duro Canyon, Mustang Island, Brazos Bend, Enchanted Rock, Lost Maples, Estero Llano Grande and Dinosaur Valley State Parks.
 
"In years past, only a relative few owned a handheld GPS, but now they are commonplace with people being able to use iPhone apps and even car GPS units to find these caches," said TPWD’S Robert Owen.

"We really want people to get outside, and geocaching offers one more reason to do so and visit our many great state parks, as a family or as individuals," Holmes said. "Try geocaching and you might get hooked and end up searching for more of the thousands of other geocaches stashed across Texas that you never knew existed!"

For more information, and a complete list of the parks and regions in the Texas Geocache Challenge, visit our website at: http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/geocaching/. Or, to learn more about geocaching, visit http://www.geocaching.com/.
 
Link to TPWD YouTube Channel:  
http://www.youtube.com/user/TexasParksWildlife#p/c/A8B851332AD862D7/0/K6G5gVTyGpQ
http://www.youtube.com/user/TexasParksWildlife#p/c/A8B851332AD862D7/1/FKCkNciB7dk

IT MUST BE SPRING - THE PEAR TREE'S IN BLOOM
By Donna Dyer McFarland

Spring is my favorite time of year. My father inherited his house in Hagansport (across the road from where my husband Bob and I live) from my great-aunt Emadel Dyer Hunt. Many readers who grew up in Mt Vernon schools may remember her as their art teacher. The property where Bob and I live also belonged to Aunt Dell, as we fondly called her. In the middle of my parent's yard is a 60 year old pear tree. Many of the larger limbs have died and each year I think it will be the last time we will ever see blooms on this legacy family tree. But alas, this year it's full of blooms once again and I know that we have made it past winter to another Spring in Northeast Texas.

As a child, on visits “up home'' from Houston in the Fall, we would pick pears from sagging branches loaded with these hard fruits. My step-grandfather, Travis Morgan, made a homemade pear-picker which we referred to as GranHappy's Patented Pear Picker. It was a one pound coffee can with a slot cut in the side tied onto an enormously long pole with electrical tape.
The bucket could be lifted to the top of the tree (where the best pears always seamed to be growing) and if twisted just right; the sharp edges of the slot in the can would cut the stems and knock the pears into the bucket. The long pole was lowered and tons of pears gathered for future pear preserves served with my grandmother's biscuits and butter at the breakfast table. We still use GranHappy's Patented Pear Picker to this day.

So as I see this old pear tree full of white blooms once again, I am reminded of those childhood days of pickin' pears at Aunt Dell's and I know that Springtime is upon us. It brings a smile to my face.

A RECIPE: PEAR TREE MINCE PIE

1/2 cup seedless raisins
1 cup chopped tart apples
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup slivered blanched almonds
1/4 cup orange marmalade
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons enriched flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pastry for 2-crust 9-inch pie
3 fresh pears, pared and sliced (2 1/2 to 3 cups)
1 tablespoon butter or margarine

Directions: Simmer raisins in water to cover, about 5 minutes; drain. Combine raisins, apples, broken sugar, nuts, marmalade, lemon juice, flour, spices, and salt.

Line 9-inch pie plate with pastry; top with half the pear slices. Cover with mincemeat mixture; top with remaining pears. Dot with butter.

Add top crust, crimping edges. With cookie cutter or knife, make cut out in center of top crust to let out steam. Bake in hot oven (400 degrees) 45 minutes or until done.