REMEMBER WHEN?

Jan. 5, 1973

Rainfall for 1972 was gauged at 34.17 inches in La Grange. In the Hostyn area, Mrs. Emil Kana Sr. measured 43.8 inches of precipitation with the coldest day of 17 degrees recorded on Jan. 5 and the hottest on July 30 with 105 degrees. Elo Schertz, who resided seven miles east of Fayetteville, reported 57.16 inches of rain in 1972. He noted that May was the wettest month with 12.47 inches of moisture tallied at his place.

Dan R. Beck of Flatonia was sworn in as Fayette County’s new county attorney and Atlin Gabler of Schulenburg took the oath of office as the new Precinct 3 constable. John Wilson, our newly elected state representative for District 30, was to be sworn in the following week when the legislature convened in Austin.

During late December, a 96-year-old West Point woman, Mrs. Lueberta Grant, died when cooking grease caught fire in her home.

Also in December, the Schulenburg Shorthorns put a rousing finish to a rousing season by scoring in the final seconds for a 1410 victory over Clarendon in the Class A finals, thus becoming the first Fayette County football team in history to win a state championship.

Fayette County Treasurer Lloyd Dippel reported that 331 wolf and 52 bobcat scalps were turned in during 1972 to earn a $4 bounty payment for each predatory animal, totaling $1,915. By coincidence, the number of wolves killed was exactly the same as for 1971. The bobcat total, however, slightly increased with a count of 49 for 1971. On the first business day of 1973, Mr. Dipple reported a record was set when he handled 20 wolf and four bobcat scalps. Most of the wolves had been killed in the Flatonia, Muldoon and Cistern areas.

The tracks had been cleared and service restored on the M-KT railroad near Bastrop after 19 cars carrying hundreds of tons of wheat jumped the track on Sunday morning. The ill-fated cars were part of a 47-car freight train that derailed and ruptured about 10:45 a.m. as the southbound train rounded a curve about a mile north of town. The engineer reported he was traveling at a speed of 25 to 30 miles an hour when he saw a section of track flop over sideways. Fuel tanks on two of the four diesel units pulling the train ruptured, but the accident posed no threat to residents in the immediate area. Telephone lines that were severed by the overturning cars affected service to Bastrop for some time on Sunday afternoon. The wheat was bound from Kansas City to Houston for export, but Katy officials declined to say whether it was headed for the Soviet Union.

Bob Johnson’s La Grange Leopard cagers annexed a pair of victories over the Smithville Tigers. The varsity quintet won handily, 62-51, despite a 27-26 deficit at halftime. However, a 21-point third quarter in which the Bengals pointed only 8 times put the Leps ahead to stay. Sophomore Robert Poole paced the Leps with 18 points for the night while Billy Miller chimed in with 11, and Jim Quinn and Stephen Kovar each added 10.

Edgar J.Albrecht of La Grange retired after 47 years of employment with the Coca-Cola Bottling Company. H.M. Presun hired Mr. Albrecht on April 1, 1926, to help around the bottling plant in downtown La Grange. Several years later, Mr. Albrecht began operating the bottling equipment in the production department. Then he became a route salesman in the La Grange and Schulenburg areas. Mr. Albrecht continued in that role after Henry W. Mayer purchased the plant that F.G. Blake and Gene F. Blake acquired later.

Funerals were held for Alvin H. Harms, 79, of Rutersville and Mrs. Retha Maner, 53, of Smithville.

Patsy Rowe and the Stardust Cowboys were playing for a dance at the Warrenton Pavilion on Friday, Jan. 5. At Baca’s Pavilion in Fayetteville, The Velvets were providing the dance music on Sat., Jan. 6 where admission was $1.50 per person. At Swiss Alp on Sat., Jan. 6, The Barons were playing and Gil Baca was entertaining at the Harmonie Hall in Shelby the same night. Two free dances also were planned. On Sat., Jan. 6, the City Polka Boys were playing for a wedding dance honoring Larry Bartosh and Carolyn Horndt, while at the Round Up Club in La Grange, the Blue Vest Polka Boys were providing the music for an anniversary dance honoring Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Zingelmann.

Mr. and Mrs. Otto E. Markwardt of Round Top celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary on Sun., Dec. 3, at the American Legion Hall with a dinner and reception. On display at the registration table, which was covered in a silk tablecloth edged with a silk fringe, were photos of the couple’s wedding in 1922, and their silver and golden wedding celebrations. The hall was decorated with pink streamers and vases of all kinds of flowers.

All aliens in the United States were required by law to report their addresses to the attorney general before the end of January, according to Albert G. Vaughan, district director of the Immigration and Naturalization Service in Austin. The necessary forms were available at any post office.

Austin recorded an inflation rate for food-at-home of 3.1% in 1972 versus the national rate of 3.3%. The biggest cost increases were for meat, poultry and fish.

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

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