Castalon (in Big Bend National Park)

 

Hello!  Glad you're here!  I posted some pictures of Castalon yesterday.  When I take vacations, I like learning about the history of a place.  In Big Bend, there is still a convenience store located in Castalon, within the National Park boundaries.  They were closed for lunch when we were there, but we got to look around and read about the impact Castalon had years ago.  I bet you didn't know this!

The view from Castalon

1.  In the early 1900's people came to live and farm the land downstream from the Santa Elena Canyon.

2.  They grew corn, beans, wheat, squash, tomatoes, and melons.

3.  In 1901, Cipriano Hernandez started the first store in the area.  He also lived at the store.

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Settling of the area begins

4.  During the years 1912 to 1920, there was revolution in Mexico causing many Mexican families to move North.

5.  The National Guard was brought in to defend residents against raids, and one of their outposts was set up in Castalon in 1916.  It was called Camp Santa Helena.

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6.  Soldiers lived in tents while their barracks were being built, but they never got a chance to use them.  The barracks were completed in 1920, but by then, the revolution in Mexico was over, and the soldiers were sent elsewhere.

7.  In 1921, La Harmonia Company moved into the barracks and established a frontier trading post.

8.  La Harmonia was also involved in ranching and farming. They tried to grow cotton, but the environment wasn't good for that.

9.  As mentioned above, a concession store still exists at Castalon and has been run by the National Park Service since 1961.

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10. Castalon boasts the oldest standing adobe structure in Big Bend National Park.

11.  The structure is called Alvino House, and it used to be someone's home.

Alvino House in the background

12. In 2019, fire in Mexico jumped the Rio Grande and embers ignited La Harmonia Store and Latrine sustaining extensive damage.

13.  The National Park Service is currently researching what items may be salvaged for rebuilding.

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This is one of the structures that burned.

Want to learn more about Big Bend?  Try the book Enjoying Big Bend National Park or Big Bend: A Homesteader's Story.

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Happy Independence Day!

 

July 4th is a special day for Americans because it is the day we became a nation.

In June of 1776, the founding fathers began planning how they would seek independence. They were tired of paying taxes to a government that gave them no say in any matters.

On July 2, the Second Continental Congress voted in favor of independence from Great Brittain, declaring that the 13 colonies were free, united, and independent.  

The formal, written Declaration of Independence (authored by 5 participants in the Second Continental Congress) explained the reasons for independence. Congress revised it until it was unanimously ratified on July 4th.  

There is a slight technicality about whether Independence was achieved on July 2nd or 4th.  It was declared on the 2nd but not officially signed and approved until the 4th.  John Adams strongly believed it should be celebrated on the 2nd.  But almost everyone else wanted it to be the 4th.

Independence Day has been celebrated in the USA every year since 1776, but it was not declared a federal holiday until 1870 and it wasn't a PAID federal holiday until 1941.

The USA celebrates with parades, parties, flags, hot dogs, backyard barbecues, sparklers, and fireworks.  (And don't forget the 4th of July sales!)  My husband and I keep it low-key, so we will probably grill in the backyard and watch the fireworks on TV.

Let freedom ring!

Sources - Reader's Digest and Wikipedia and Clip Art

On this Day... A T13 post

 On this day, April 28...

1.   Year 1180 - Phillip II of France married his first wife Isabella of Hainault at Bapaume.  He was 14 and she was 10.

2. Year 1192 - Newly elected King of Jerusalem Conrad of Montferrat was assassinated in Tyre.

3.  Year 1635 - Virginia governor John Harvey was accused of treason and removed from office.

4.  Year 1442- King Edward IV was born on this day in Rouen, Normandy.

5.  Year 1721 - Female English Pirate Mary Read who operated throughout the Caribbean died in prison.  She was also pregnant at the time.

6.  Year 1758 - James Monroe was born. He became the 5th President of the United States.

7.  Year 1788 - Maryland becomes the 7th state to ratify the new United States Constitution.

8.  Year 1903 - William Randolph Hearst (newspaper publisher) married Millicent Veronica Willson.  Hearsts' daughter would later become a household name due to her kidnapping and Stockholm Syndrome.

9.  Year 1945 - Benito Mussolini, Italian facist dictator, was shot by communist partisans at the age of 60.

10. Year 1979 - John Candy wed Rosemary Margaret Hobor in Toronto, Canada.

11. Year 1908 - Oskar Schindler was born in Zwittau, Austria-Hungary.  He is the subject of "Schindler's Ark" and "Schindler's List."

12. Year 1990 - Axl Rose of the band Guns N Roses married Erin Everly.  That marriage was annuled the same year.

13. Year 1999 - Arthur Leonard Schawlow died of leukemia at the age of 77. His work with lasers helped his team of physicists win the 1981 Nobel Prize for Physics.

I would like to credit my source for information.  Thank you.

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9/11 Exactly Where I Was

 

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I remember exactly where I was on 9/11/01. My next-door-teacher came to get me from my classroom to show me on the television what was happening. 

At first, I thought it was a Hollywood stunt. Then, I thought it was a joke. He explained it to me, and reality sank in. 

I realized why the skies had been eerily quiet that morning. I lived near a major airport, and I was so accustomed to planes flying over every few minutes, and there was nothing in the sky. I was at the school where I taught at the time. My twins, age five at the time, were at a different school for kindergarten. 

I know exactly where I was, and I remember how I felt. I hope we never forget. I hope we are better prepared for a tragedy such as this, and I hope it never happens on American soil again. 

Labor Day - More Than You Probably Wanted to Know

 

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Labor Day became a Federal holiday in the U. S. under the Presidency of Grover Cleveland.  Cleveland is the only U. S. President to serve two terms that were not consecutive.  He was also the only bachelor ever elected President.  Later, at the age of 49, he married a 21 year old woman, the only President to be married in the White House.

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He sounds like a cad, but who knows.  He was a staunch opponent of Federal bail-outs, refusing to support sending aid to farmers during a drought.  He also vetoed bills to assist Civil War veterans and disability pensions.  He made the railroads give back 81,000 acres of land, and when they went on strike years later, he was unsympathetic.  His second term was filled with pre-Depression-era financial an Treasury issues.  His party abandoned him completely toward the end of is last term.  (source)

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The only thing I can see in a positive light is making Labor Day a holiday to honor the men and women whose labor developed our great nation.  It was a holiday formed to appease workers who had been on strike due to unfair working conditions, though.  Labor Day was celebrated in several states as early as 1887, but Grover Cleveland declared it a national holiday in 1894.  It is observed on the first Monday of September each year basically marking the end of summer.

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It is due to the labor movement that we have Labor Day off (well, many of us, not everyone).  More importantly, though, our ancestors are responsible for the 40-hour work week, sick days, paid holidays, and humane working conditions.  Labor Day was more of a conciliatory mandate. (source)  In today's times, people forget what it was for, instead preferring to take advantage of so-called "Labor Day sales."  The intent was to recognize the American worker.  If you are off, enjoy your day safely with a parade, picnic, family day, or whatever makes you happy.

Photo Wednesday

 Last week was Texas Independence Day (March 2), and I forgot to post these then. We visited these two important landmarks a few weeks ago, just for something to do.  Of course, they were closed due to COVID as well as remodeling, but I'm glad we got to drive around the park.

The San Jacinto Monument

The San Jacinto monument commemorates the Battle of San Jacinto during the Texas Revolution.  It stands 567 feet and is topped by a 220-ton star.  This was the battle led by General Sam Houston in April, 1836, in which Mexico's Santa Ana was captured. The battle is credited with being the beginning of United States' acquisition of about 1/3 of our nation's current land.  Almost one million square miles of land eventually became US territory as a direct result of this battle.

This is the front of the USS Texas,
or as we like to call it, the Battleship Texas.

The Battleship Texas was commissioned on March 12, 1914.  She played a role in the Texas Revolution then went on to serve in the North Sea during WWI.  For WWII, she escorted war convoys across the Atlantic where she earned five battle stars.  The Texas was also the first US Battleship to become a museum.

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Destrehan Plantation

Last weekend, my husband and I took a short trip to Louisiana.  On the way home, I asked him to stop at a plantation.  I have always wanted to visit one.  I love history, and I love taking photos, and there was one on the way home.  I found it to be quite interesting and the landscape was beautiful.

1. Jean Baptiste Honore Destrehan, whose father was a councilor to Louis XIV, became the treasurer of the new French colony which is now known as Louisiana.

2.  The home that bears the Destrehan name now was built from 1787-1790 by Charles Paquet, a master builder and designer who was also a "free man of color."

Back of the home

3.  Robert DeLogny was the original owner of the home, but he only lived two years after it was completed.

4.  The home is located on the banks of the Mississippi River in St. Charles Parish.  The river is separated from the home by a 2 lane road and several levees.

Dining Table

5.  When DeLogny purchased the land for the home, he also received ten enslaved men and women and two children.

6.  His daughter Celeste and her husband, Jean Noel Destrehan, a direct descendent of Jean Baptite Honore Destrehan, purchased the home in 1792.

Mother's bedroom

7.  At this time it was a successful indigo plantation. By 1806, the plantation was producing sugar cane instead of indigo.

8.  Louise Odelle Destrehan married a judge, Pierre Adolphe Rost, and they owned the house until well after the Civil War.

Slave Cabin for two families

9.  Judge Rost was determine to have the largest, most modern sugar can plantation.

10.  By 1866, over 700 freed slaves called Destrehan Plantation home, in former slaver quarters, in temporary housing, and even in the main house.

Bell "tower"

11. In 1910, the Mexican Oil Company, now known as Amoco, built a refinery on the property. In 1958, the defunct refinery was torn down, and the plantation was frequently vandalized due to rumors of treasure left there by Jean LaFitte.

12. In 1969, after years of neglect, the home and about 4 acres were deeded to the River Road Historical Society who set about restoring the property.

You can see the Amoco sign on the property here

13.  Destrehan Plantation is open for tours and also serves as an event venue.

All photos above are copyright of Forgetfulone.

• Fun Facts:  An episode of NCIS New Orleans was filmed on the front lawn of the plantation and in the dining room. Season 2, Episode 4 
  
• Scenes from Interview with a Vampire were filmed in several rooms of the home.
  
• The plantation barn was used to film scenes in the movie Twelve Years a Slave. It was called Epp's Barn in the movie (Complete side note - 12 Years is a fantastic movie!)

  

  Movie Photos reprinted from Destrehan Plantation.

I hope you enjoyed this little history lesson.
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Remembering 9/11

September 11, 2001. I remember it well.

 On the way to school that morning, the silence was deafening. Planes usually flew over our area at very regular intervals, but absolutely nothing was in the sky. It wasn't until later that I found out why. I was working in my classroom preparing for the school day when the teacher next door came to get me to show me what was happening on TV. I didn't understand it. Was it a movie stunt? A joke? What? It took a while for it to really sink in what had happened... terrorists changed the face of America in a matter of minutes.

Remembering 9/11

I remember exactly where I was. My next-door-teacher came to get me from my classroom to show me on the television what was happening. At first, I thought it was a Hollywood stunt. Then, I thought it was a joke. He explained it to me, and reality sank in. I realized why the skies had been eerily quiet that morning. I lived near a major airport, and I was so accustomed to planes flying over every few minutes, and there was nothing in the sky.

I was at the school where I taught. My twins, age five at the time, were at a different school for kindergarten. I know exactly where I was, and I remember how I felt, but I cannot describe it. I hope we never forget. I hope we are better prepared for a tragedy such as this, and I hope it never happens on American soil again.

Thursday Thirteen

On February 24th in history…

1. In 1836, Colonel William B. Travis sent a call for help for Texas troops at the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas . “Remember the Alamo” became a popular cry during the Texas Revolution.

2. In 1803, the landmark Marbury vs. Madison case was decided by the Supreme Court. This established Judicial Review, the ability of the Supreme Court to limit Congressional by declaring legislation to be unconstitutional.

3. In 1955, Alain Prost was born in France. He is a 4 time Formula 1 champion.

4. In 1864, the battle of Dalton, Georgia began in the American Civil War.

5. In 1981, Jean Harris was found guilty in the shooting death of her lover, Dr. Herman Tarnower, author of The Scarsdale Diet.

6. In 1999, an avalanche buried homes killing 13 people in the village of Valzur in the Austrian Alps. On the previous day, an Avalanche had killed 25 people in the nearby village of Galtur.

7. In 1868, President Andrew Johnson was impeached.

8. In 1938, an article in Variety magazine announced the MGM Studios had bought the rights to adapt The Wizard of Oz into a screenplay and that 16 year old Judy Garland would play Dorothy.

9. In 1786, the younger of the Brothers Grimm, Wilhelm Karl Grimm, was born in Hanau, Germany.

10. In 1982, hockey player Wayne Gretzky (The Great One) scored his 77th goal in a single season breaking a record that many thought was unbreakable.

11. In 1840, John Quincy Adams gave his opening argument before the Supreme Court in the Amistad case.

12. In 1968, the Imperial Palace in Hue was recaptured by South Vietnamese troops.

13. And… in 2011, Forgetfulone ate a Skinny Cow chocolate cone! LOL

Dorothy Image Credit

Credit to History.com for information in 1-12. I came up with number 13 on my own!

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Thursday Thirteen #13

I am in the mood to reminisce a little, thinking about my birthplace and my hometown, where I have spent most of my life. I still live within a 45 minute drive of Humble, Texas, and my mom still lives there as do many of my friends. I miss living there, so here is a bit of historical trivia about my hometown.
1. Humble is located 18 miles northeast of Houston, Texas.
2. George Bush Intercontinental Airport is 5 minutes away.

3. Humble is named for Englishman Pleasant S. Humble, a San Jacinto River ferry operator whose family settled there before the (US) Civil War.
4. The “H” is silent (pronounced “umble” not “humble”).
5. Located on the Texas and New Orleans Railroad, later the Houston, East, and West Texas Railway.

6. The station was once known as “the rabbit” because railroad passengers shot rabbits when the train stopped on its way from Houston to Shreveport.
7. The First United Methodist Church of Humble was established in 1886. (Click on the link for an inside look at the historic chapel.) This is where both my sister and I were baptized, confirmed, and married.
8. The first school in Humble was established in 1890 and had 50 students, and I taught for the school district from 1993-2004.
9. Humble became a pioneer oil “boom town” in 1904 when oil was discovered in an area known as Moonshine Hill (figure that one out).
10. In 1905, Humble had the largest producing oilfield in Texas.

11. Ross Sterling (later, a governor of Texas) founded the Humble Oil and Refining Company in 1911.
12. Humble Oil became known as Exxon over two decades ago.
13. In 1912, during a drill, what was supposed to be oil turned out to be a free-flowing artesian well which later provided water to the bath houses and private homes. It is still flowing today and is located across the street and half a block from the Church.


Historical Information about Humble, TX can be found here and here and here.
I hope you enjoyed my brief history lesson!