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La Grange Little League Brings Home State Championship

Schulenburg’s tallest building, the 70-foot elevator owned by the Klesel Distributing Company, and a portion of the company’s warehouse complex were destroyed in an early morning fire on Saturday. A large quantity of fertilizer and lime and two loads of beer also went up in the inferno. La Grange firefighters, along with the departments at Hallettsville and Weimar, were called and responded with their pumpers. They were on standby because of the danger posed by several gasoline storage tanks just across the railroad tracks to the north. However, local firefighters said a boxcar on a siding between the warehouse and tanks held back much of the heat in the south winds, and mutual aid services were not required. Mr. Klesel said the fire likely started in an electric switching panel. The Klesel complex was located just east of Hwy. 77, adjacent to the Southern Pacific tracks.

After 90 years, the Svoboda, the oldest Czech newspaper west of the Mississippi, ceased publication. It was founded in La Grange in 1884 by August Haidusek, who continued as its editor until the paper was sold to the late Senator L.J. Sulak and several others in 1927. The Svoboda was published in a building on West Travis St., formerly occupied by La Grange Drug Co. In 1931, after The Svoboda sold to Senator Culp Krueger, the publisher of The El Campo Leader-News, the newspaper moved to El Campo. Thereafter, it was published as part of The Leader-News.

Attorneys for the Lower Colorado River Authority, cross-defendant, in the suit against Bennie H. Schmidt and other landowners over the proposed coal-fired generating plant near Fayetteville filed a motion for a summary judgment in the 155th District Court of Fayette County. The motion asked the court to grant a summary judgment that cross-plaintiffs take nothing by their cross-action. No date was set for a hearing on the motion.

Rain brought a mixed bag of blessings to area farmers and ranchers. The downpours ranged from over eight inches around Holman and Winchester and four to five inches around Plum, Hostyn and Schulenburg, down to between two and three at Fayetteville and Walhalla. Except for the cotton farmers and peanut growers, the moisture could not have come at a better time to revive hay crops and pastures.

Clement C. Cernosek Jr. received a bachelor of business administration degree from the University of Houston.

Greg Trlicek’s coach and father, Clement, said the La Grange All-Stars ace pitcher had an off night. Although he allowed three hits, walked two and struck out only 10 in a game against a Spring Branch team, the Stars won 4-1.

Karstedt Feeds scored a 13-0 victory over the Knights of Columbus to cinch first place in the La Grange Slow Pitch Softball League. Karstedt was three games ahead of the pack with only two games left on its schedule.

Tax and fee collections by the Fayette County tax collector’s office for the year ended June 30 came to an astounding $1,649,533.28, posting a record, according to the 1973 final report by Assessor-Collector Gilbert H. Eck’s office. State, county and school payments, aggregating 98.15% of assessments, amounted to $1,095,451.45. Interest and penalty collections added $1,759,451.45 to the total, less $24,331.41 allowed in discounts on early payment.

The La Grange LEO Club directors decided to lock the door on the former Teenville building at the city park in the southeastern part of La Grange for two reasons. First, the ‘no alcoholic beverages’ rule was not followed and second, there was a lack of parental cooperation. A spokesman said, “It seems many are not happy if they cannot break something or scribble on the walls.”

The congregation of St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Weimar moved back into the church after extensive building repairs were carried out over 11 months.

A funeral service was held for Frank H. Bordovsky, 61, a native of La Grange.

For more great stories, visit Elaine online at www. elainethomaswriter.com/blog/ or call her at (979) 263-5031.