I had a fun conversation with Texas Time Capsule Podcast last week. We talked about Old Rip (a famous horned toad), the lynching of Santa, and the hotel. Check it out here or wherever you listen to podcasts!
Marco and Maria Pellizzari came to Galveston from Italy in 1913, just before the first world war began in Europe. Marco’s brother, Gino, arrived the year before and found a job in the coal mines of Thurber. He wrote often, urging the couple to join him, and promising Marco that he would find good, steady … Continue reading
Because of my last-minute planning, there were not many campsites available in Texas when it was time for me to book our September camping trip. I found one at Fort Richardson State Park in Jacksboro, which isn’t far from us and is a park we’ve never been to, so I reserved a spot for two … Continue reading
It’s been eight months since we moved into a one-hundred-year-old hotel. Eight months of meeting new people, and eight months of hard work. My wife and I both have our day jobs, so the cleaning and hosting and fixing happens during our time off. We make quite the team. Though I’m involved in the normal business … Continue reading
Thurber, Texas is half-way between Fort Worth and Abilene on Interstate-20, but you’ll miss it if you’re not looking for it. Although it was the biggest city between Fort Worth and El Paso with a population of nearly 10,000 one hundred years ago, it is a ghost town today. Between 1886 and 1920, the Texas … Continue reading
Josiah “Doc” Scurlock was a colorful character who rode with Billy the Kid and found no shortage of trouble in his younger years, including having his front teeth shot out over a card game dispute. The other man wasn’t as lucky. Scurlock was born in Alabama in 1849 but moved west as a young man. … Continue reading
By John Bird Eastland, Texas is best known for its most famous citizen of the past—a horned toad named Old Rip. Eastland County was amid a boom in the last years of the 19th century, and a larger courthouse was built in 1897. During the dedication, dignitaries placed various things in the courthouse cornerstone as … Continue reading
