REMEMBER WHEN?

50 Years Ago from the files of The Fayette County Record

June 2-6, 1972

The La Grange High School seniors of 1972 voted unanimously to turn over all profits from their class activities to the Debbie Kolek fund. Their donation of more than $7,000 was added to the many contributions made to assist the young La Grange girl who was awaiting a kidney transplant.

Texas crude oil production topped one billion barrels in 1971 for the seventh consecutive year as reserves fell toward the 13 billion barrel mark, according to a study by the Texas Mid-Continent Oil & Gas Assoc. Fayette County oil wells had produced 5,702,251 barrels since recorded production began in 1943. In 1971, the county produced 636 barrels a day for an annual total of 232,270 barrels.

Fayette County Sheriff T.J. Flournoy reported, “Our jail keeps on getting fuller all the time and if we don’t have some court pretty soon, I don’t know what we are going to do. Guess we will have to move some of them to another jail for safe-keeping. We may have a jail break any time because most of the prisoners are ‘bad eggs.’”

Three veteran La Grange Post Office employees retiring on July 1 were: foreman of mails Herbert Hensel and regular clerks Coleman Draper and Hollis D. Bremer.

Funeral services were held for: C.A.J. Meyer, 86, of Ellinger; Louis I. Strbacka, 72, of La Grange; and Mrs. Helena Henriette Boening, 85, of La Grange.

In the first of a best-of-three regional series on Tuesday night, the La Grange Leopards dropped a heart-rending 2-1 decision to the Jasper Bulldogs at Fair Park. The Dogs got an unearned run in the first inning that put them ahead for the rest of the game. The Lep team was heading to deep East Texas on Friday with its back against the wall.

The La Grange Schroeder Drug Demons gave the NCAA District 6 champion University of Texas Longhorns a dandy scrap in the first game of a pair of seveninning tilts on Monday night at Austin’s Nelson Field. However, the roof caved in on the Demons in the second go-round. La Grange dropped the first contest to the Horns, 2-1, and lost the second by a 14-3 score. Although righthander Earl Galipp of Schulenburg, who was imported by the Demons for the series, gave up eight base knocks, he kept them well scattered except for a couple of occasions. Ken Paper’s homer gave the Longhorns their first counter in the second frame and a walk, passed ball, ground-out and David Chalk’s single account for the game-winner in the fourth. Danny Muzny got La Grange’s sole bingle, a leadoff single in the first, but the Demons closed to 2-1 in the top of the fifth on a walk, wild pitch and weird pickoff play attempt which finally let Rick Blume score from third.

Eddie Zouzalik won his fourth term as county commissioner of Precinct 3 by a scant 47 votes in Saturday’s Democratic runoff primary. Mr. Zouzalik, who was first elected to the commissioners’ court post in 1960, defeated his runoff opponent, Flatonia area farmer-rancher Edward T. Mica, by polling 774 votes to 727 for the challenger. A total of 4,500 Fayette Countians who went to the polls favored all the state candidates who were successful in their nomination bids. Locals gave 2,330 votes to Barefoot Sanders and 2,114 to Ralph Yarborough for U.S. Senator. They chose Dolph Briscoe over Mrs. Frances Farenthold for governor and elected Bill Hobby as lieutenant governor.

A 16-year-old Bellaire youth whose goal was to visit every state on his 10-speed bicycle spent the weekend with Mr. and Mrs. John Czichos after completing a 125-mile jaunt from Victoria to La Grange. The youth said he averaged 25 miles an hour on his bike.

Construction bids for the proposed new state KJT home office building were being evaluated by the fraternal organization’s board of directors.

More than 1,800 4-H boys and girls from throughout the state were heading to Texas A&M University for the annual State 4-H Roundup. The seven delegates from Fayette County representing a variety of contests were: Kathy Hajovsky, Holman, home improvement; Elaine Pietsch and Roxanne Giese, Warda, civil defense; Betty Lehmann and Carolyn Lehmann, Warda, cooperative demonstration; Betty Moerbe, La Grange, foods and nutrition; and Diana Schulz, Winchester, girls’ public speaking. County home demonstration agent Mrs. Nettie Freudenberg was accompanying the contestants to the Roundup.

Shakespeare in a barn? That was to be part of the experiences of some University of Texas students who were enrolled for a fiveweek summer program of study and performance at the UT System Winedale Inn Properties near Round Top.

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