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Pat Brantley (Ross)

Pat Brantley (Ross)

Okay, I almost got it.  This is my lazy Australian shepherd in front of Christmas tree.  She is a sweetie.

Beau Wann, Jr.

Why yes, yes I yam! ! !  OL beauwann kanobie, renaissance man extrodinaire esq...Hey pat beautiful pup and tree...that's what I'm talkin about....

Hey Jan, when coming from brenham, headin for Chappell Hill, go through the light at Chappell Hill, on green preferrably. Oncet (east texas for once) you are through the light, you will go down into valley number 1...then you go up to the next peak, then down into valley number 2...get rready...oncet at the top, the hwy will curve to the left, ever so gently,  then you will head down into the 3rd valley, at the bottom of the valley on the left is a RUSTIC FURNITURE PLACE,  and a left turn lane...you will start on your final approach, get in it and turn left onto the muddy brickless road, MARSHALL LN.  In the distance on the left, bout a quarter of a mile, you will see a yellow farm house on a hill. go down a ways, or a short piece, and there will be a black arn (east texas for iron) gate. Ifin it is open, come on up!  Watch for wildlife, elephants, giraffes, zebras etc.  and VOILA, you are there!  Rat now the road is muddy muddy muddy...

Howsomever...ifin youall are coming from Houston, oncet you have gone through Hempstead, you will descend into the brazos valley. you will cross three bridges, and then the fourth bridge is the Brazos River...oncet across, you will start your ascent up into the Washington County heights, and on your rat, will be the Chappell Hill Sausage Factory...the hwy will curve ever so slightly to the left, and then you will start your descent on final approach...down at the bottom of the first valley, my valley, you will see a left turn lane...DONT GET IN IT...instead get over on the shoulder, and rapidly approaching will be a green street (using the term "street" very loosely) sign with the woids MARSHALL LN, OR RD,....ifin youse are not going tooo fast, turn rat, and you will see off in the distance a yellow farmhouse a settin on a hill...that be us...then bounce or squish or both, down the muddy brick-less road and go a short piece and come to the arn (east texas for iron) gate and ifin it is open, I am home, come on up...bring your rubber boots, and some woikin clothes, cause I will put you to woik...

If you still cant find us, just call 713-560-0673, and I will come rescue you.   If you were a really good friend, and this is what I'd do, if coming from Houston, stop at the chappell hill sausage factory, and get some sausage...if coming from brenham, rat before you get to the stoplight at chappell hill, on the right is the Chappell Hill Bakery and BBQ place, just across from the Velero filling station and all round general store.

instide the Bakery is are am a plethora of genuine wonderful goodies...pies pies and more pies...cinnamon rolls and kolaches and ice c ream, etc...I buy the day old kolaches and cinnamon rolls, because you get more for you money...and because I am cheap...But heck, day old heats up just fine in the microwave and tastes just as good.  

ok, lessee ifin this will post...I've gotta adjust my aluminum hat and rabbit ears....bleep scronche bloop@#$%^&*()(*&^%$#@!#$%^&*()   (the aforementioned is the secret formula)....

Beau Wann, Jr.

Well I'll swan, IT WOIKED....

Beau Wann, Jr.

Helloe myne fyne waltripynes...as you can see, we, THE CHAPPELL HILL INTELLIGENT METEROLOGICAL AND CORNPONE SOCIETY, hereinafter known as  CHIMACS,  have decidedly, oncet (east texas for once) and for all, slid, kickin and screamin,  into the 20th centruy!  I was gonna wait to reveal our latest high tech gadget at Fudds, but I was overtook with emoticons and just downright drunk with giddiness and aquiver with excitement! ! !    So the cat's out of the bag, and "thar she blows" (in the wind so to speak), our newest, latest and greatest acquisition,  Chappell Hills very own COMPUTERIZED WEATHER BALL ! ! ! ! !

We, at the CHIMACS, was searchin around for something to help round out our weather foretellin capabilities, when we got a call from Earl.  You remember Earl dontcha, of EARL'S FEED & GRAIN fame? Up in Houndsduck, Kaintuck?  Sure you do, Anyhow, ol Earl heard from his aint Addy, you know aint Addy, the one that walks stooped over from her bad back from totin all them feed bags and hay bales whilst she was employed thar at Earl's!   Anyways Aint Addy heard from an unnamed source, (I'll bet it was that ol boy that worked at the feed lot, him and aint Addy useta have something going on, and it whurnt horseshoes, what was his name...hmmm BILLY RAY,  yeah, now I remember, Billy Ray Blabbovaczk), anyway the source will of course remain unanymous, or other wise unnamed, so just forget you heard who it was! 

Anyways, SOMEBODY got wind that the weather channel was going with an upgrade to their weather forecastin capabilities, and some how that wind broke way yonder  in Houndsduck, Kaintuck, to ol Earl.  and to make a short story even longer, ol earl called me, cause he knew how much we wanted upgrade our system, he called to let me know that ther just might be something available on the open market.  I asked just how open was it, and ol Earl said he would forego any finders fee, as long as I would give him a headsup on whether any weather was a headin his way!  I readily agreed, and sooner rather than later, VOILA, our newest hightech equip arrived via UPS (Uncle Pats delivery Service).

As you can see, it is apearched atop our aweather atower.  I've gone to school to learn how to install it and how to operate it.   I was first in the class!  I know how much yall are surprised by that, but sometimes miracles do happen. 

I will give you our first weather perdiction...first I have to ask it a question..."will the sun ever shine up here in chappell hill"? ...hold on now, I hear some computin goin on, the wheels are a turnin, here it comes...

"IT IS DECIDEDLY SO".....hells bells, dont that just clutch you?  Well I for one am generally and genuinely dazzeled and awash with amazment of our knew found technology.

Gonna have to go lay down now, so yall be patient, here it comes, here comes the sun....

Your frien and Number one weather forcaster, meterologist extrodinaire, and all round renaissance man...
ol beauwann kanobie...

Teddie Jordan

Cephus, another stroke of puredee genus!

Next you'll have to introduce a grounddog day, and see if ol' Cooper sees his shadow, to predict how many more days of winter!

Jackie Crowe (Finch)

Fuddrucker gathering is next Tuesday, February 10 - 6:00 p.m.

Jackie Crowe (Finch)

Linda so sorry to hear about Kim, Sheryl Knight's daughter.  My prayers for Sheryl and her family.  To lose your child, just something a parent or grandparent should never have to go through.  But as we know God has his plans ----

Hugs,

J

Jackie Crowe (Finch)

Beau, Teddie, Pat and all, enjoyed catching up with the message forum.  

I had bad side effects from new M. D. Anderson meds and then to top that off got the flu.  I'm just now feeling like a human being again!!!   I plan to be at Fudd's and Barbara, too, so really looking forward to seeing everyone.  Miss ya'll.

Hugs,

J

Susan Howard (Bowman)

Whenever I start to feel "blue" I just tune into the Forum.  Beau, you keep me laughing all the time, although your back trouble is not a laughing matter.  Keep care of yourself!  Jackie, I am so glad you are better and will be at Fudd's on Tuesday. Don't know what we would do without you to keep us all going!  Allen, it was so nice to hear from you!  Steve, Pat, Chuck, Jan, Wayne - everyone who contributes to the Forum - a big thank you from me.

It's a beautiful day here in the Texas Hill Country!  Sure beats shoveling snow where I used to live!  The sun feels so good - helps to heal what's ailing you for sure!  Looking forward to seeing everyone in the spring at our next minireunion!

Pat Brantley (Ross)

We had a beautiful blue healer for several hours today.  She looked about a year old.  She was running down the street (the most dog friendly street in new braunfels).  My neighbor was walking her dog so the new girl followed.  I opened the car door to get a better look at her.  She jumped in and sat on my lap.  We drove the neighborhood looking for someone out looking for her.  One man a few blocks over told us we had a show quality dog worth a great deal of money.  We headed to the vet to see if she was chipped.  Vet closes at 3 on Saturday so we came home and put her in our yard with our two and put out signs.  One of our neighbors posted the information on Facebook )we have a Facebook page.  Who knew?). Dogs were getting along great so we went into San antonio to run an errand.  The lady called and ron told her she could come by our house and get her dog from the yard.  Blue healers are smart.  Dog figured out how to open the gate and all three escaped.  Neighbors grabbed our two because the dogs go where neighbors feed them.  Lady was running down the street and caught her dog.  We still haven't talked to her.  I hope we didn't give away a $1,500 dog to the wrong person.  I think that dog will come back to us.  Now I know to lock the gates, not just close them.

Wayne Lake

My Texas Cowboy Roots:

In 1870, my 20 year old Great Grandfather on my Mom’s side, Fredrich Cornelius, was sent to America from Kassel Germany. First port-of-call was New Orleans, LA whereby he sailed to Indianola, TX on a Stanley Morgan Steamer and upon arrival, did not speak a word of English. The Prussian wars had been going on for years, young men on both sides used as fodder for another European old man’s war, his parents had already lost one son so he was shipped alone to Texas, the land of plenty. He found some decent folks around Indianola, learned enough English, worked on a schooner called ‘Bully of the Woods’ plying the waters of Matagorda Bay back and forth to Palacios but this was not his fate as he longed for cattle and land. He made at least two trips up the trail to Abilene, KS driving long horn herds between 1872-74 (chronicled in Trail Riders of Texas), bought land from infamous Shanghai Pierce (got shorted by that crook) and others, rode with the famous Charles Siringo and was mentioned a couple of times in his book Fifteen Years on the Hurricane Deck of a Spanish Pony, bought Siringo’s brand in 1876, raised 14 children from two marriages, was the Methodist Sunday School Superintendent in Midfield TX for 20+ years, one time he took a wagon to San Antonio to pick up a bell for the church, out lived the first two wives and finally married a third time to his care giver at 75 years old. He did very well acquiring his goal of land and cattle providing each child with a ¼ section of land (160 acres), a house and a herd of cattle upon marriage.        

My Grandfather, Mr. Tom Cornielus, born in 1889, 6’6” was also a cow man, made no additions to his land (died with the same land, cattle herds and house given to him). Mr.Tom married one of the most virtuous women I ever knew in 1912, Ester Davis, left the day after they married on a 1 week cattle drive (he was the cook) and when I was growing up I spent summers with them on the ranch near Midfield. Locally, they were referred to as Mr. and Mrs. Tom. He had two herds, one pure bred Brahma (he called them Brimmer’s) and one cross bred herd. Brahma cattle are notorious for their lousy temper’s, Mr. Tom was notorious also but for other reasons. Following are a couple of memories from my boyhood days on the ranch:

One hot July morning when I was about 8-9 years old, Mr. Tom took me out looking for a Brimmer heifer he knew was about to calve riding around the pasture in his green, 1949 5-window GMC pickup. Brahma’s are also notorious for not claiming their first calves, which would starve or be killed/eaten by wolves if not found, fed and protected so off we went. We found the calf hidden in some brush but the momma cow was not in sight so Mr. Tom loaded me in the bed of the truck up against the cab holding the calf, raised and chained the tail gate and headed around to the cab. Before he could close the door, momma cow came from behind a mesquite tree bellowing to high heaven with snot flowing out her nostrils, smoke coming out her ears and shooting fire out her eyeballs. She got both front feet over the tail gate and was hookin’ at me when Mr. Tom gunned the truck and left her sprawled on the ground. I calmly peed my pants.  I can still close my eyes see and hear that cow, a memory I will never forget.

The next summer, when I was again on the ranch, Mr. Tom’s oldest and most favorite,  rank and amorous  bull called ‘States Jacobs’ went missing. After asking neighbors, he found out the bull was three pastures over at Mr. Nygards place visiting some young female friends. Mr. Tom called his old fellow cow man, Dan Shuman and the three of us saddled up to go get Casanova. I think the men were both about our age now but real cowboys and of course they had me as a side kick for logistic support. When we found the bull, they tried to herd him home but the old bull was not interested in going home as he had found lots of new girlfriends. All he did was paw the dirt making a dust storm all by his self, lowering his horns shaking his head while I watched from a distance sitting in the saddle, peeing myself again. After a while Mr. Shuman told me to ride back and leave all the gates open, off I took in a full lope, returning a few minutes  later reporting all of the ‘wire gap’ gates open including the holding pens at the home place.          

He commenced to take out a 12’ bull whip which he carried for special occasions like this one and started crackin’ ol’ States Jacobs right across the nose about three or four times. When the old bull took out after him, he pivoted his horse, took off in a dead run with States Jacobs within few feet of the horse’s tail and hollered at me over his shoulder: close the gates behind me! As expected, that bull followed him all the way home but I don’t remember how he got away from him after arriva as I was still closing gates behind them.      

You can’t make this stuff up……….

I had some other cowboy memories like being bucked off horses, ‘pulling calves’ using a come-a-long, pick-up bumper and fence post, being photographed while sitting on one of Mr. Tom’s pet bulls which he made to lay on it’s side, and herding cattle from one pasture to another, one time several miles along country roads but none as exciting as the two above.

From Pelican Cove, Aransas Pass where I have been entertained for the past several days with dolphins and some times as many as 50 great white pelicans, nearly as many brown and up to one hundred cormorants sometimes all diving/feeding at my bulkhead within 15 feet of my dining room windows. I feel like I bought a house and ended up with Sea World for a back yard.

The fishin’ cowboy,

wtl             

John Philip Adams

WHAT A GREAT STORY! So many of us do not know our family's histories, you got to be a part of some of it. Herding cattle is a great way to learn how to deal with people. The fact that your family was a psrt of the history of the cattle drives and growth of the iconin face of Texas. 
BTW, have you seen a urologist about your bladder problems?

thanks for a truly interesting piece of Texas history.

At one time Indianola was as an active a port for immigration as Galveston. So many German families went from Indianola then to Central Texas. 

Llynn Roff

I can only echo John’s statement:  GREAT  STORY.  Thank you. 

I too have been tracing my sir name family back.  I haven’t been able to cross the ocean yet.  I got back to Joseph Tompkins Roff born 1788 in New Jersey.  He served in the War of 1812.  He had 11 children. Some served on each side of the Civil War.   They all migrated to the west and southwest.  Most notably they and their offspring  founded the town of Roff Oklahoma.

There were many colorful  stories along the way, which I won’t bore you with.  I would encourage all my class mates to look into their history also.  It is much easier now that we have the Internet.  You can do this without joining any groups or paying  any monies.

Pat Brantley (Ross)

Researching family is great.  I started just trying to find my grandmother's grave in Houston.  It has expanded, but not as far as my research on ron's side.  He is related to Winston Churchill and prince William and Harry!  What a lark.  I have his family in the early 1600s now.  He had family settling Virginia.  My mother's family was Seminole, so I have records listed with "the five civilized tribes" (don't know why they are called that), but can't get very far.  My daddy's family was Methodist preachers.  I read one sermon from a distant great something.  It was beautiful.  He was a confederate officer.  I can't wrap my mind around that.  No one in my family owned slaves, but they were all from the south.  Many of them are listed in confederate records.  Two were Union officers.  One relative is buried at Arlington (WWII).  My aunt made bathtub gin.  My mother was a flapper.  My grandmother was a cook on the king ranch.  Our lives are really boring by comparison(except for Wayne).

Johnny Sheffield

Hey everybody 

Iam in the process of setting date and new 

location for our spring get together   

It will be in April on a Saturday. 

If possible it will be on hwy 290 and 1960/hwy 6 area. 

Will

keep everybody posted I was going to fudds tonight 

but my wife has been under the weather.  Hopefully next time. 

johnny

Wayne Lake

Thanks for the feedback guys. I have enjoyed investigating family history also and even took a trip to Abilene KS a few years ago and went through pages and pages of micro-fish archives from the local newspaper of that time as reportedly my Great Grandfather wrote articles about the trail ride which I never found but  it was a hoot to read about daily/weekly real life news and ads and about a cow town where the famous Bill Hickok earned part of his reputation (check out wikipedia’s biography of Hickok).   I was disappointed with Ancestory.com, though.

Speaking of reading, two good recent reads: The Homesman (now a movie) and The Kingdom of Ice for you book readers out there – I think they are both sort of historical fiction stories and can make you really appreciate a warm bed to sleep in, something we all take for granite.  

Pat, the former Mrs. Lake’s Mother’s family also worked on the King Ranch, Rue was the surname. She had some very interesting stuff including diary/log of their family economics around the turn of the century. A few years ago, there was a great King Ranch photograph exhibition at the Houston MFA that depicted working life on the ranch over several years. One of the Kleberg matriarchs became an accomplished photographer after several visits to the ranch by another well known photographer (can’t remember her name though) and the exhibition was a combination of the two of them. By the way, my life is pretty boring most of the time.

Beau, I forgot to mention, I liked your weather station. i swear most of those weather folks can only predict  the weather if the window is open anyway.  

I enjoy being in Aransas and NOT living in League City or having to negotiate Houston traffic but miss seeing friends at Fudd’s. Also, I could get used to half priced gas since I no longer earn a living in the industry.

The fishin’ cowboy,

wtl             

John Philip Adams

For all of you budding genealogist you need to go the CLAYTON LIBRARY on Caroline. it is across the street from the Holocaust museum. Don't forget to stop in and see what man can do to his fellow man. so much for  the political,

GO TO CLAYTON, It was listed in the top 10 family history museums in the country. They have classes to give you a start and a lot of help once you start. i can say it is really addictive and little cheaper than whiskey and frivolity. 

you really have to know where you came from to see where you are going. Get going troops, we ain't getting any younger. The internet is great, but digging stuff out og the old books is something else.

JPA

Jackie Crowe (Finch)

Fuddrucker pictures have been posted.  Enjoy!  Hugs J

Steve Puckett '65

Your mention of the King Ranch brought to mind a discussion a few years ago with a friend of a cousin.  She married into the ranch family about 15-20 years ago and left the semi-rural Northeast to live at the King Ranch.  It was a big adventure at first, like going in time 100+ years to the days of Roy Roger, but she grew to hate being kept under the thumb of the family, not allowed to leave the boondocks, and not allowed to participate in family discussions/decisions.  I won't go into the details but they divorced after about 10 years.  She thought that she was then no longer suffocated and could talk to & work with people like a fellow adult.

Genealogy can be a lot of fun if you are remotely interested in history.  It helps bring history alive and personal.  Using the wonders of the World Wide Web I uncovered a lot of interesting (to me) things about my relatives including some Puckett cousins who were active in the days of early Texas: Thomas & Lorenzo Dow Puckett. My Dad looks somewhat like Roy Rogers. Many folks over the years have asked if he was related to Roy, even if he WAS Roy!  I did find out that Roy is a 4th cousin.  Ha!

In a couple of months we are moving to SW Virginia to be in the area where my grandfather came from, to live among a lot of Puckett relatives there in the Blue Ridge Mountains where the family has been living starting in the 1700's.  The area is by Groundhog Mountain between Fancy Gap VA and Meadows of Dan VA, just north of Mt Airy NC where Andy Griffith is from and the setting for his 'Mayberry'.  Actually, Andy took the name 'Mayberry' from tiny Mayberry VA which is about 25 miles northwest of Mt Airy.  We will probably go to the Mayberry church, just SW of Meadows of Dan.

Jimmie Lee Smith (Brawner)

Happy Birthday, Jackie, Beverly & Gary!  Hope today will be an exceptionally great one for all of you.  Celebrate!

Gloria Hornick (Walker)

Happy Birthday to Jackie, Beverly, and Gary!  Three on the same day!  What a special day that was __ years ago!   Hope you all have a GREAT day!

Jackie Crowe (Finch)

Thanks for all my many birthday wishes!!!  Made my day!!!!!

Here's to my Birthday Buddies, Beverly Hengst, Gary Moseley and Gary Tharp '65 have a wonderful special day and keep on dancing!!

Beau Wann, Jr.

YEAAAAA! ! ! ! !  HOPPY BOIDAY TO YOUSE YOUTES,  from the frozen tundra at Chappell Hill, Tx. 77426....

The wind is just a howlin up here in  the hygheye  country.  It is blowin so hard, it blew our weather ball off the tower. Gonna have to wait till it warms up and calms down before I retrieve it out of the muck.     Little boidies have landed on our porches and are huddled up. I notice they keep looking in the window...Uh, not just no, but HECK NO,  all yall are not coming in this house. Got enough critters in here already. 

Ah dew hope my favoryte Sister Jackie is being showered with many and plethora presnents! ! !

Hye Jimmy Lee, been thinkin about you.  Good thoughts all...

I have a long family tree on my mothers fathers side, going all the way back to the 11th century to King Malcolm of Scotland.  My mom always said I was an "EARL", never quite knew what that meant perzactly, but hey, MY MOM SAID IT,  so what you gonna do, "hey mom, youre a lyin dog"???  Nope, you just gotta take her woid for it.  I'm sorta waiting for the paper work to catch up before I announce officially that  I am the "Earl of Cooper", or some such title. 

I have a book around here someplace, that is called "The Claiborne Pedigree" which are my ancestors. The foist one to come to the colonies was Col William Claiborne, my 10th or 11th great grandfather. It goes all the way down to my grand father, Homer Stacy Jones as some 900th descendants, and I am hand written in the book as number 1004 methinks.  Got a signer of the Declaration of Independence, an aide to General Green, and a Courier to Jean Lafite, governors, doctors, Lawyers, Judges and everything inbetween. One chap was killed by an arrow in the creek indian war, or the french and indian war, or maybe they are one and the same.   Still havent unpacked my books to confirm which it was.

Ancestors fought in the American revolution, and I think one of them married Pattrick Henry's daughter, Or maybe it was William Henry Lee, hard to remmember... and another lady named  Custis/Dandridge, married George Washington. And of course she was kin to Robert E Lee... Gets kinda cornfusing in there.  Ancestors fought on both sides of the civil war.  It is all great reading if you like history, and I do, but there are no great stories like Waynes!  Just facts and numbers. Of course, all that knowledge and a couple of bucks, will only get you or me, a cup O Joe. 

Dont know about any ancestors on my mothers mothers side, cept they always kept mentioning an "uncle Kurgee"  , and I dont remember in what context they mentioned him.  If I was in the room when the growed ups were talking, they talked in hushed tones, which if I heard what they were talking about, I was too dumb to actually know what they were talking about. I generally g ot sent outside to play when I suppose they got to talking spicy or racy, whatever in the heck that meant! I'll dig through some more boxes to see if I can find that book.  It's actually a xerox copy of a copy, but I'll keep looking for it!

There are no records of my grandparents on my Dads side.  I think I heard that my great grandmother was insane and died in an asylum, which explains how I got the way that I am. I had a cousin that was researching the "Wann" side, and when she was speaking to us, said she had gotten back as far as the 16th century and that our  Grandfathers ancestors came from Transylvania or somewhere around there. Probably a direct descendant to Vlad the Impaler...YUK..That ol boy was just a mess wasnt he!

Like I said , my cousin is no longer speaking to us, (probably some fox paw I  committed back then)  and hasnt for the past 20 years, so I dont know how far back she went! 

I'm not a real patient listener when it comes to "geneology nuts", and my father-in-law is one!  It was pretty much all he talked about when he was researching his family!  Ever now and again he will blurt out, "you know I found a cousin that married another cousin and they were the son and daughter of good ol great great great great grand father Hobbard Earl Sowsbelly",  or otherwise some such useless information!

Otay, I have bored all yall to sleep, and really overstayed my welcome, so it's time to crawl back under the blankets, comforters and otherwise covers. From the looks of the weather CHIMACS weather station, it's gonna be a 2 cat and 2 dog night...and possibly day also too!

All youse birthday youtes, HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY...DO SOMETHING FOR YOURSELVES...EAT A CHEESEBURGER AND FRIES AND HAVE SOME CAKE AND ICE CREAM...YEAH, THATS THE TICKET...

YOUR long winded and simple minded frien, THE EARL OF CEPHUS...

Beau Wann, Jr.

Just a short note, if the paper work that dubs me an earl, does catch up to me, I will of course remain your humble frien. No kissing of the ring that sort of thing, maybe just a small bow and or curtsy will suffice.   

Your simple minded frien, the Earl of Cephus of Chappell Hill...

Post script:  Many folks have mistaken our small little town for the one in Noth Carolina !  Howsomever, those folks spell it wrong,    OUR Chappell Hill has  more Ls and Ps in it...Ya for shure...