REMEMBER WHEN?

50 Years Ago

Feb. 2-5, 1971

It was roundup time in La Grange Saturday morning! The incident started in the Highway Restaurant area on W. Travis St. when someone allegedly opened the gate on a gooseneck trailer behind a pickup, letting out 10 head of cattle and two hogs. One cow remained on the trailer. The hogs were quickly captured, but the cattle headed north. Sheriff’s deputies and La Grange Police officers got involved and finally penned the bovines on N. Horton St. However, a Brahma heifer regained her freedom and took off through town with officers in their cars in hot pursuit. The last they saw of the heifer, she was swimming across the Colorado River, getting ready to head for the woods.

Final figures from the U.S. Census Bureau on the 1970 census showed that Fayette County and the six counties surrounding it had lost 6,608 people in the prior decade. Fayette County led the losers with a decline of 2,734, a loss of 13.4% from 20,384 to 17,650 persons. Lee County recorded a loss of 10%, going from 8,949 to 8,048 residents.

Funeral services were held for: Everard Haynie, 73, La Grange; Mrs. Esther Vavra, 65, of Fayetteville; John F. Kaluza, 57, a native of Ammannsville; Mrs. Julia Kroll Oeding, 81, of La Grange; and Kurt Viewig, 88, of Prairie Valley.

Wharton County Junior College listed 131 students on the honor roll for earning a gradepoint average of at least 3.5. This included Geraldine Krenek of La Grange and Clarence Marusik of Fayetteville.

The community was hosting a dance to benefit Mrs. Patsy Steenken at the La Bahia Hall with the Hi-Notes furnishing the music. Mrs. Steenken, the wife of La Grange High School graduate and ex-Leopard footballer Odie Steenken, had been stricken with kidney failure.

Fayette County Commissioners reduced the bounty payment on predatory animals such as bobcats and wolves from $7.50 to $5.

Superior height again proved a distinct advantage for the host Tigers as A&M Consolidated rode hard over La Grange’s Leopards, 74-35, in a District 10-3A cage encounter at College Station. The Leps had only one consolation; Johnny Dawson canned 20 points in the game. The junior varsity contest was just that all the way, with the Tiger Bees finally prevailing, 44-33. Clarence Svoboda set the pace for La Grange with 11, closely followed by Buddy Grobe with 10.

Fayetteville Bank was hosting an open house to show off its expanded facilities that included conference and hospitality rooms, as well as storage and restroom facilities. Visitors were treated to coffee, soft drinks and kolaches Monday through Saturday as they viewed the 1,000 square feet of space that the bank had added.

Three La Grange students made the distinguished ranking at Texas A&M University. They were: Monte Floyd Hengst, a junior history major; Charles A. Schneider, a senior agronomy major; and Donald L. Tietjen, a junior electrical engineering major.

December sales of United States Savings Bonds in Fayette County came in at $10,354, according to county bond chairman George Hajovsky.

“A Place for Lovers” starring Faye Dunaway was showing at the Midway Drive-In Theatre in Schulenburg.

The Draw Back band was playing country and western dance music on Saturday, Feb. 6 at the Rocking J. If patrons desired, the band would also play rock and roll.

U.S. Navy Petty Officer Joseph Dusek was spending several days with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Joe Dusek of La Grange.

In his monthly report, Sheriff T. J. Flournoy said his law enforcement business was going strong. The sheriff’s office had collected a lot of fines and handled a lot of prisoners in December, plus they made a number of minor arrests but did not send the offenders to jail. The sheriff warned merchants to be very careful about accepting checks because more bad ones were being written again. On Jan. 1, he reported he and his deputies jailed three drunks, three run-away boys and two for DWI offenses. The same day, four others were arrested for disturbing the peace. One person was killed in a traffic accident near Round Top, the first of two traffic deaths in the first month of the year.

The Missionary Society of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in La Grange was founded in the 1930s. Charter members of the organization who attended the annual Christmas party were: Mrs. William F. Hofmann, Mrs. R.M. Schott, Mrs. Guy Tiemann, Mrs. H. A. Frede, Mrs. Max Rosenberg and Mrs. Ella Robson.

City Grocery advertised the following specials: Maxwell House Ground Coffee, 2 lb. can, $1.79; Garden Club Salad Dressing, quart, 39¢; Rosedale Frozen Orange Juice, 6 oz. cans, 5 for $1; Rosedale Peaches, no. 2½ cans, 3 for 89¢; Pure Orange Juice, half gallon, 75¢; and R.C. Cola, 16 oz. bottles, 6-pack, 39¢ (plus deposit).

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