On display at our print shop

The display of Kerrville memorabilia in the front office of our print shop had gotten, well, cluttered.  I attacked the display with firm resolve, and boxed up 3 full boxes of items, leaving a spare but uncluttered display.  In a month or so I'll change the display. 
For directions to our shop, click HERE.
I have been blessed by so many gifts to my collection, so I'll have plenty to display.
If you have an old Kerrville photograph you'd let me scan, I'd appreciate it.  I'll give you back the original (if you want it back).  If you have any old Kerrville memorabilia you'd like to give to a "good home," please consider giving the items to me.  I'll take care of them.

Click on image to enlarge

Display of Kerrville historic items at Herring Printing Company, Kerrville, July 2012
In addition we have 13 photographs displayed on our office walls.

Mystery Building!

Just when I think I know where everything was in Old Town Kerrville at the turn of the last century, a photo comes along that proves how little I know.  Here are two photographs.  The first I've published here before, saying I didn't recognize the building at the corner of Water and Main opposite Schreiner's store.  That building turned out to be Dr. Domingues's office and pharmacy.  Now I've noticed another building in the corner of a different photo -- and the building looks to be in the middle of Earl Garrett Street between Water Street and the river.  Hmm.  Perhaps one of you might know what that mystery building is?

Click on any image to enlarge

200 block of Earl Garrett, Kerrville, looking toward Water Street.
Dr. Domingues's office/pharmacy is behind wagon farthest right.

Same block, Kerrville.  Note "Mystery Building" shown by arrow.

Newly found photo of the Tivy Hotel

I'm sure others have seen this image of the Tivy Hotel, but it's new to me.  This hotel was built by Capt. Joseph A. Tivy, Kerrville's first mayor.  When it was built it faced Main Street; in the 1930s it was moved to its current location, at the back of the lot, and facing Tivy Street.

Click on image to enlarge

Tivy Hotel, Kerrville, possibly around 1900.

A piece written for Kerr County's Sesquicentennial (2006)

I found this short piece in my files today, while working on my next Kerrville book.  I liked it (if it's ok to say that about something I've written), and I hope you find it enjoyable, too.  Joshua Brown was so young when he came here that first time.

* * *

Joshua and Sarah Brown, with their youngest
child, Potter Brown, around 1873

One hundred and fifty years ago a group of people living in this place petitioned the state to create the county we now call home. The county created has changed boundaries several times since its inception, but the idea of this place as special, as blessed, has not changed from the moment a solitary shingle maker on horseback first scouted the area in the mid-1840s.
I have tried to imagine that ride and the rider.
 Joshua D. Brown, a veteran of the Battle of San Jacinto, explored the upper reaches of the Guadalupe River and decided shingle making could be profitable there. Born in Kentucky in 1816, he came to Texas at the age of 14, coming to DeWitt's colony at Gonzales, where James Kerr was an official. Brown was 20 when he fought at San Jacinto.
In 1844, he moved up the Guadalupe River to a site called Curry's Creek, in what is now Kendall County. Shingle making was going strong at Curry's Creek, and soon many of the nearby cypress trees were felled. Following a rumor that giant cypress trees were farther upriver, Brown explored the area now known as Kerrville in 1846. He was 30.
What did he see here?
From my collection of Kerr County photographs, I know our river valley has changed in the past 100 years. The earliest photos in my collection show a place with far fewer trees than we have today; I don't see a lot of juniper trees in the photos, and the giant trees we have in our yards and along our older streets were not yet planted. There still were trees along the river (Brown and his shingle makers didn't cut them all), but the area that would soon hold the grid of streets of which we're familiar is oddly barren of trees.
Photos of our area, taken earlier than 1900, are scarce because cameras were scarce. So there's no accurate way to guess what Joshua Brown saw when he first visited on horseback. It was a valley absent of the landmarks with which we're so familiar. There were no limestone buildings, no traffic lights, no courthouse, no stores, no bridges. It was a face lacking the creases of expression. The web of tales we hold to this place had yet to be written. The lives had yet to be lived.
It would be tempting to take a romantic view of the place as you imagine what Joshua Brown saw when he came here. The pristine beauty of this place, from our present-day point of view, must have been breathtaking.
But to Brown all of the land he'd traveled was pristine. It was all untouched, unspoiled.
Traveling in 1846 in any direction from Curry's Creek, it would have been harder to find developed, populated land than to find what today we might consider a Hill Countiy Garden of Eden. It was all Eden.
Why then did he pick this place? Partly for the cypress trees. Brown's solitary expedition was economically motivated. The availability of water might have been another factor. The nearness of German settlements might have played a role. The apparent absence of Native American activity also might have influenced the choice.
History records Brown's response to the area. He was excited by what he found.
He returned to Goliad and recruited a band of 10 men to join him in establishing a shingle-making camp here.
They weren't prepared for life here. In their excitement, they neglected to prepare for one of the constant factors of the Hill Country frontier. In the history I've read, the quote says "the Indians proved troublesome," and Brown and his companions were forced to leave the valley within a few months.
But the idea of the place stuck with Brown, and he returned two years later in 1848. This time he was better prepared and chose as the site of his camp a bluff which was more easily defended, where the 800 block of Water Street is today. And this time, the community took hold.
Only eight years after this shaky beginning, Kerr County was created. It was named for a friend of Joshua Brown, James Kerr, a leader in the early affairs of Texas.
So this year we celebrate the 150th anniversary of the creation of a county. Really, in the long story of man, 150 years is less than a blink.
Recently, I found near Old Town Kerrville relics of an earlier community that lived in our river valley about the time of the Egyptians were building the pyramids.
The stone tools they left scattered in the dirt remind us we're not the first tribe to see these hills, to drink from this river, to live and die here.
We may not be the first tribe to live here, but since Joshua Brown first passed this way on horseback, we've known this place, nestled in the curving arm of a green river, is a great place to call our home.

Summer memories of downtown Kerrville

Downtown Kerrville as it appeared
when I was a boy.

Summer days in downtown Kerrville in the late 1960s and early 1970s when I was a boy were filled with outdoor adventure and some occasional mischief.
When my parents bought the print shop in 1965, I was just 4. But as the 1960s came to an end, I was an elementary school kid, and summers were spent downtown as my parents worked.
In those days printing presses had whirring gears and exposed pulley belts, hazards for a children's fingers. My parents figured we were safer outside, and so our summer days were largely spent out of doors.
There were four of us kids associated with the print shop: my sister, Judy; the Ridgaway kids, Mark and Melinda; and me. (The Ridgaways' parents, Tommie and Charles, were for many years partners with my parents in the printing company.)
There was also one child who lived nearby, Kay Ann Saunders, who lived in the big A. C. Schreiner house between the print shop and the library. Later, in the early 1970s, when the Rollins family owned the "Gent Shop" near the Arcadia Theater, we also had Darrell and Lynn Rollins, the two oldest Rollins kids, in the neighborhood.
In the stories that follow, I will not reveal my fellow-conspirators by name. A lot of time has passed, but I'm not sure if we've all met the parental "statute of limitations" quite yet. If pressed, I'd have to say I don't remember who was with me during the incidents that follow.
A part of each day was spent at the library, which was built in 1967, so it was still very new. Books provided a lot of entertainment during the summer, believe it or not, in the days when we didn't have electronic gizmos or the Internet.
Another benefit: the library was air-conditioned. Like most other businesses then, the print shop was not. (In fact, I attended all 12 grades in Kerrville schools that lacked air-conditioning.)
I'd like to report I was always studious and spent a majority of my time at the library, but that is not the case.
Because we were specifically told not to go to the river behind the print shop, we of course spent a lot of time at the river. I remember spending quite a few days building a raft which we planned to use to explore Tranquility Island.
In those days no bridges connected the park or library to the island, which was covered with dense vegetation. It was not open like it is today. It was a jungle, at least to us, and I remember seeing snakes and rabbits during our explorations there.
We found many things along the river -- old Pampell's bottles, for instance -- but there were some interesting things to explore, too.
I remember one summer was spent trying to climb all of the buildings downtown, a feat which was easier than one might think. Many had convenient trees beside a wall which provided access; a few were so close together we could chimney up between them. Some roofs were close enough together you could hop between them.
There were a few buildings that escaped our efforts, though not for lack of trying. Those few we could not climb became the subjects of long discussions as we formulated routes and tactics to reach their roofs.
That summer we also climbed the metal archways over the old bridge on Sidney Baker, reasoning it was a downtown structure like the buildings we'd climbed.
We even found a way to make it to the top of the Sid Peterson Memorial Hospital, though we only went up there a few times.
We explored underground, too, including the tunnels under the old Ice House on Water Street, and I have a vague memory of searching the basement of the Charles Schreiner home for tunnels. One drainage tunnel along the riverbank comes to mind, though to this day I have no idea why we chose to get flashlights and explore it. Today I wouldn't go into that tunnel for a large pile of money. I do remember an octagonal room in the tunnel which we boys thought was pretty neat.
Then, way too soon, and just as we were about to get in real trouble, summer ended. I have fond memories of those days downtown, and of the friends from those days.
Until next week, all the best.
Joe Herring Jr. is a Kerrville native whose children did not accompany him to work during the summers, perhaps because he knew what they might get into while there. This column originally appeared in the Kerrville Daily Times June 23, 2012.

Answer: Four Churches in Kerrville photograph

Yesterday I posted a photo James Partain shared with me, taken from atop the Tivy Hotel, back when that building faced Main Street.  (It faces Tivy Street today, having been pushed back to the edge of its lot, and turned 90 degrees clockwise.)
I asked if anyone could name the four churches in the photo.
First, the original photo:

Kerrville from atop the Tivy Hotel.  Main Street is on the left, and heads toward
the Courthouse and downtown.

In this detail from the photo above, you can see the four churches with labels, plus a bonus church of which only the tip of the steeple is visible.

Four Churches identified, plus a bonus church.

Can you name the four Kerrville churches in this photo?

My friend James Partain shared this image with me some time ago, and I've been working on it with Photoshop since then.  The original has some issues -- and I'm trying to correct them.  So far I haven't been too successful.
The photo was taken from atop the Tivy Hotel (back when that building faced Main Street), so it's taken from Tivy and Main Streets, looking up Main toward the courthouse, roughly headed northwest.
I see tfour churches in the photo -- plus the old courthouse.  I'm sure you can see additional things.
Can you name the four churches?

Click on image to enlarge

View of Kerrville from Tivy House, I'm guessing around 1900.

Surprising little detail in a Kerrville photograph

I just noticed a surprising little detail in an aerial photograph of Kerrville I've published here before.  First, the photo:

Kerrville from the air, probably around 1960

 Studying the photograph, I noticed a little detail:

Ski boat in river, heading toward bridge.

For those that don't know, folks used to water ski in that little wide spot of river.  There was even a ski show put on there by Cotton Eldridge.  My own parents skied there after work at the print shop; I remember riding in the boat.

Can I be sure it's a ski boat? Not 100%.  But spotting the boat in the river did make me smile, and I thought it might make a few of you smile as well.

A brave but forgotten Kerrville family

There are parts of our local history that almost break my old heart.
Take, for example, the story of Henry and Annie.
Like many families, they came to Kerrville because a family member, Henry, suffered from tuberculosis. For those who do not know, many families in Kerrville can trace their family's arrival in Kerrville back to a relative who was ill with this disease. In those days our dry climate was thought to help those who suffered from tuberculosis.
Henry was like so many who came, seeking health: a few years after he arrived, the disease finally killed him, in 1913.
The couple had four sons. One died young before they arrived in Kerrville. Another son, an infantry captain, died in France. One lived most of his life here in Kerrville, and yet another got his PhD and became a university professor and author.
Henry and Annie were well-educated themselves -- Henry had a doctorate; Annie had studied at a very famous school.
Henry made quite a name for himself as a young pastor in another state. He found a political cause, Populism, for which he was willing to risk his life. Though he received constant threats he traveled his home state and gave speeches. Once someone in the crowd took a shot at him, but the bullet struck a man standing nearby. Another time the threats became so serious that the candidate for whom Henry was making speeches asked his supporters for help. 2,000 people showed up to protect Henry.
A famous writer, one whose name you'd recognize, wrote about Henry's bravery and ideals -- and dedicated an entire chapter in one of his books to Henry's beliefs and politics.
And yet despite these accomplishments it's almost impossible to find out anything about this couple (or their sons) if you limit your research to local sources, such as old Kerrville newspapers.
You can be a prominent leader in another state; you can be well spoken and well educated; you can have a child die for his country; you can have a child live most of his adult life here; you can have a child earn his doctorate from the University of Chicago and become a respected author, professor, and pastor. Just don't expect the Kerrville newspapers from the early 20th century to write a single thing about you.
In fact, only one small monument still stands in Kerrville as a memorial to Henry and Annie's family, and it was named for her, not him.
You see, Henry and Annie were black. God made them with dark skin. Back in those days, in a part of our community's history I cannot understand, that was enough, enough to prevent you from being prominent in Kerrville.
Henry Sebastian Doyle and his wife Annie Walker Doyle came to Kerrville because he was very sick. He died in 1913; she stayed on.
In her obituary, the Kerrville Mountain Sun noted Mrs. Doyle was "always among her people she has been an inspiration and a leader."  Her people. Not the whole community, because she was different from the majority.
When she got here she saw the great need for education of the black children of our community. "Soon after her arrival here she found the education among her race was sadly neglected...she collected money and purchased three lots...and persuaded the members of the school board to donate an old school building for the purpose of establishing a school. She was the only teacher there for many years, and had served as principal for more than 25 years."
As an early graduate of the Tuskegee Institute, founded by Booker T. Washington, she was described as "the best educated [African American] to have ever lived here," though her pastor husband had more education.
She was paid $85 per month to be the sole teacher at the school, which, I noticed, was considerably less than other teachers in the district made at the time.
When she died in 1937, two dozen years after her husband, there was a small push to name the school after her, but even this took a few years. The name change only occurred after B. T. and Itasco Wilson arrived here as teachers at the school, in 1940.
The Doyle School served our community as the separate school for African American students until the district was integrated in 1964. In recent years a non-profit organization has operated the facility as the Doyle School Community Center.
Few Kerrville families have had the impact upon the larger world as had the Doyles. Both father and son wanted to bring understanding between the races; one son died for his country; and Mrs. Annie Doyle dedicated her life to educating children. I think that's impressive, even if few here know anything about their story.
Until next week, all the best.

~~~

Joe Herring Jr. is a Kerrville native who still hasn't found time to take a swim in the Guadalupe this summer. This column originally appeared in the Kerrville Daily Times June 16, 2012.

Kerrville -- around 1980?

If I were to guess, I'd think this aerial shot of Kerrville was taken around 1980. 
The clues I'm using to make this guess include the absense of the Blue Bonnet Hotel, but the appearance of the little drive in bank for Charles Schreiner Bank.   I see that Charles Schreiner Bank has torn down the old bank building but erected the building that's there today.  It looks like the old First United Methodist Church has been transformed into Guadalupe Savings and Loan.  One Schreiner Center has not yet been built, but the Guy Griggs medical offices building is up.  The new Sidney Baker bridge is completed.  I see the Rialto Theater down by our print shop.  H-E-B has expanded their store at Main and Clay streets. There are probably clues I'm missing.  If you see something, just add it to the comments section below.

Click on image to enlarge

Kerrville, around 1980.  I think.

Parker and Schreiner Lumber Company

This nail apron came into my collection last Tuesday -- love the two-digit phone number.  This lumber company was housed in the area now occupied by Rails, I believe.

Click on image to enlarge

Parker and Schreiner Lumber, Kerrville, perhaps mid-1950s.

Cascade Pool -- Downtown Kerrville

I suppose because it's been so hot here lately swimming has been on my mind.
There once was a swimming pool in downtown Kerrville -- the Cascade Pool.  It was about where the back part of the current Bank of America building is today -- the long part of the building overlooking the bluff above the river.
Many Kerrville old-timers have fond memories of the pool.  Some do not, since it was segregated, and they never got to swim there.
It would be nice to have a municipal pool downtown again.

Click on any image to enlarge

Cascade Pool, taken from the Blue Bonnet Hotel

Cascade Pool, taken from Arcadia Theater side. Kerrville, probably 1930s.
Note boys playing on the spinning "top" in the center of the pool.

Cascade Pool Postcard, Kerrville, fairly early, but date unknown.

Cascade Pool, Kerrville, 1950s.  Note girl performing swan dive from high board.

Dog Tag -- Kerr County, 1954

That headline was probably a little misleading: this dog tag was really for a dog.  This little gem came into my collection Tuesday.

Click on image to enlarge

Kerr County Dog Tag, 1954

First Peek: Schreiner Store site of new Bank of the Hills branch.

For over a year Bank of the Hills has been the subject of a persistent rumor: my sources kept telling me they were going to open a little branch office in the renovated Schreiner Building.  Now that construction on the little office has started, I thought you'd like to see what they're doing.  The little bank office will be where the old Schreiner Department Store offices once stood, where Scott and Junior Schreiner worked, where, later, Clyde Parker had his desk.  This is on the Earl Garrett side of the building, between what was once the Ladies Department and the Sporting Goods/Hardware section.

Click on any image to enlarge

Bank of the Hills branch inside the old Schreiner Building, opening July 2012.
These teller windows face Water Street; the windows in background face Earl Garrett.
The old store safe is behind the tellers.

Inside the little office.  Additional teller space, plus a small office.

Another view of the teller windows, plus a glimpse
down the long hallway parallel to Water Street.

Racy Bathing Costumes -- Kerrville, 1920s

I guess it's because it's been so hot, but I've been daydreaming about swimming in the Guadalupe.  I need to grab my trunks and a towel and go.  Here are some images from the 1920s -- of young people playing in the river.  Enjoy.

Click on any image to enlarge

A 1920s swimming costume, Kerrville. Note shoes. And cap.
Pretty racy, huh?

Possibly a self-portrait (note string).
Regardless, this girl is in peril.

A waltz to "Water Music."

Rapids remain fun, even today.

The Incident on the Nueces

This coming August 10th marks the 150th anniversary of the Battle of the Nueces, where Texans loyal to the Union were attacked by a small force of Texas state and Confederate troops. Only a few of the "Unionists" escaped, and those taken prisoner by the Confederates were executed.

Treue der Union monument
Image source: Wikipedia

After the war ended families of those slain there visited the site and gathered the bones still scattered on the ground. They brought these to Comfort and erected a small monument to their memory, inscribing it, in German, with the motto "Treue Der Union."   It is said three hundred attended the dedication ceremony August 1865, which included a salute fired by federal troops.
The monument still stands, though it seems small and tucked away off of the main thoroughfare. A U.S. flag with thirty-six stars flies at half-mast beside the limestone obelisk. The monument underwent restoration in 1994.
Comfort, at that time, and before the creation of Kendall County, was a part of Kerr County.
There are descendents still living in our area who can count a relative who was there that day -- descending from both sides, some from the Unionists, and some from the Confederates. Like today, those who met there at that bend of the Nueces were neighbors.
I ran across an interesting article in the July 2000 issue of the Southwestern Historical Quarterly, by Stanley S. McGowen, which investigates the incident quite thoroughly. I found the article online.
What happened that August 10th when the two forces met has been the source of controversy for most of the 150 years since it happened.
There are those, especially those who lost loved ones there, who consider the event a massacre; there are others, more often those descending from the Confederate forces, who consider it a battle.
"Were unarmed German farmers ridden down and murdered by bloodthirsty Confederate cavalrymen or was this a legitimate battle between armed combatants?" McGowen asks in his article.
It's a good question. Given the information available from eye witnesses, often recorded many years after the event, the answer is not altogether clear. That, and the fact that a few of the Confederate forces acted ignobly, executing wounded prisoners, left a strong feeling of distrust and anger among those who survived.
It is true between 9 and 11 of the wounded Unionists were executed. Under whose authority this atrocity was committed is not clear; the commanding Confederate officer was wounded in the skirmish, and so the line of command is not clear.
But it's also true the Unionists were not "unarmed German farmers."  The Unionists were quite well armed. Henry Schwethelm, one of the surviving Unionists, stated the settlers were "fully equipped with rifles and six-shooters (the rifles mostly of German make) and mounted on good horses with pack animals."
"At one camp along the trail, the settlers cut human figures into large trees and used them for rifle practice -- not an indication of poor, defenseless farmers," McGowen writes.
"At the conclusion of the engagement, the pro-Union German casualties totaled twenty-five to twenty-seven."   As for the Confederate forces, around twenty-one casualties were sustained, according to the article. That sounds like a battle to me.
"Despite their unpreparedness the [Unionists] fought bravely and well, inflicting enough casualties on their attackers that [the Confederate unit] would be considered combat ineffective," McGowan concludes.
The cruel act of shooting wounded prisoners could well be called a massacre, but that occurred after the skirmish. I suppose the incident is rightly called the Battle of the Nueces, but it was followed by a dark deed which could be called a massacre.
150 years ago our area was in mortal turmoil. Here it was not so much North versus South, but, in many ways, German immigrants against English-speaking settlers.
Until next week, all the best.
Joe Herring Jr. is a Kerrville native who is thrilled to have both of his children at home today.  This column originally appeared in the Kerrville Daily Times June 9, 2012.

Kerrville Tivy downtown pep rallies, around 1970

Mary Jacobs let me scan these images of a Tivy pep rally parade downtown -- I think it might have been the homecoming parade, because the antique car has "German Club" on the side.  (The girls are holding beer steins, as well.  I doubt that would be smiled upon nowadays.)
I'm hoping someone reading this will be able to identify some of the kids in the photos.  If you recognize someone, please let me know in the comments section below.

Click on any image to enlarge

Tivy Pep Rally in downtown Kerrville, 1970.
I can see the Kerrville Mountain Sun offices behind the girls.

More pretty girls in a Tivy Pep Rally Parade, 1970
Peterson's Auto and a bit of the bus station are visible behind the girls.

Tivy homecoming parade, 1970.  Note the beer stein.
You can see a bit of the old Schreiner warehouse to the left,
and of course the Sid Peterson Hospital in the background.

Tivy pep rally parade, 1972. 
Nice shot of the old "Favorite Saloon" building in background, back when it was
the Western Auto Associate Store.

Kerrville's Chautauqua, 1905

The Chautauqua movement began in New York state in the latter part of the 19th century and by the turn of the 20th had spread as far as Kerrville.  This lovely old postcard, published by the Kerrville Book Store, shows the "Presbyterian Chautauqua Grounds," one mile from Kerrville.  I believe this was the site of the present-day portion of the Schreiner University Campus that houses the Westminster open air chapel and the renovated Union Church. 
Note two things: the hand-written note, and the fellow on horseback in the creek crossing. 
In recent years Schreiner University has held events they call "Chautauquas," but in reality they're far from the original events, either in New York, or in Kerrville in 1905.  Those were events where you came for at least a week, heard numerous edifying lectures and talks, ate good food in community, and had time to reflect.
It's my opinion Kerrville could once again host a real Chautauqua, just like the old-time events.

Click image to enlarge

Presbyterian Chautauqua Grounds, published by Kerrville Book Store, around 1905

Old postcards show Kerrville river fun

Quite a few postcards showing Kerrville from days past cross my desk and I certainly enjoy seeing them.  More than a few show fun on, or beside, the river.  Since the weather is getting warmer day by day, I thought these old-time river scenes might be fun to see.

Click on any image to enlarge

River Scene, Kerrville, by Wheelus Co., around 1923.

Lake Cathorne, Kerrville, Texas, date unknown.
Lake Cathorne was formed by the mill dam, and would be about where
Louise Hays Park is today.

Boating Postcard, by Huntington Photo, Kerrville, around 1910.

A nice picnic by the river, site and date unknown.

Postcards of Kerrville's downtown mill

Kerrville once had a mill in the downtown area -- about where One Schreiner Center is today, in the 800 block of Water Street.  Here are three separate postcards depicting the old mill.

Click on any image to enlarge

Schreiner's mill as seen from the river.

As seen from the street; this shot was taken around the intersection of
Water and Earl Garrett streets.

As seen from below dam; there is a kiddo hiding in the weeds.
Can you spot him?

Kerrville's oldest thoroughfare

There is a road in Kerrville that might be the very oldest, if what I read recently is correct. Oddly enough, the road itself no longer exists, though it might in the near future.

The old Town Creek crossing, 1899

My long-time friend Dr. Joseph Luther, who, like me, is a student of local history, recently published a book about Camp Verde. I found it very interesting, and copies are available at Wolfmueller's Books on Earl Garrett Street.

Dr. Luther gives a good account of the fort famous for its camels, but goes a step further and describes the history of the spot well before its brief connection with those ships of the desert.

Since the fort was located so close to Bandera Pass, the site has a long history. Bandera Pass has several archeology sites nearby, and a friend tells me the pass was "known" at least 5,000 years ago, judging from some of the artifacts found near there.

Bandera Pass, then, as now, was a road. For at least 200 generations people and goods have moved through that notch in the hills, and a good number of them, in their travels, continued through what is now Kerrville.

But where was their road?

Dr. Luther talks about these "roads" and "trails" in his book, and he points out many of the ancient paths became, over time, our highways. The progression was something like this: prehistoric people traveled along the same trails again and again; when the first European explorers arrived, they often followed these same paths; when this area was under Spanish rule, those roads often connected remote colonies and presidios; later, when the Texians arrived, the same routes connected early settlements; and finally, during our time, these settlements were connected by highways. It's interesting to think ancient people, traveling by foot before Europeans introduced the horse to North America, plodded along the same routes you and I zip through in our air-conditioned horseless carriages.

Thinking about this, there is some speculation where the people 5,000 years ago passed through what is now Kerrville.

I tend to favor the idea the earliest "road" in Kerrville extended from what is now Guadalupe Street toward the Lemos Street bridge, at the confluence of Town Creek and the Guadalupe River.

Freighters, Kerrville, 1905

I have an old photograph of a wagon descending from what is now Lemos Street heading to the crossing toward Guadalupe Street. This was the crossing nearest to downtown Kerrville connecting it to the area west of Town Creek until the bridges on Water and Main streets were completed. You can still make out the cut in the riverbank on the Riverside Nature Center property, and a corresponding cut still exists at the sharp bend Guadalupe Street makes as it joins Lowry.

As a child, I remember an archeology site being excavated along Water Street not far from Lemos, where apartments stand today. That such a well-used campsite existed so near a known crossing suggests the little link between Guadalupe Street and the Lemos Street bridge might be the oldest thoroughfare in our community.

Today, of course, no road exists there. Soon, though, if the City continues with its planned River Trail, a walkway might connect the two in the form of pedestrian bridge. If so, the trail would come full circle -- it started as a path traveled by walking nomads thousands of years ago, and it would once again be a path for walkers.

It's funny how often things we consider modern rest upon traces of the past.

Until next week, all the best.

Joe Herring Jr. is a Kerrville native who once again has a summer wife. This column originally appeared in the Kerrville Daily Times June 2, 2012.

A free copy of a rare Kerrville Mountain Sun

Several weeks ago Julius Neunhoffer brought by an extremely rare copy of the Kerrville Mountain Sun, the Christmas 1899 edition.  You can get a free copy.  Read on for details.

Facsimile, Kerrville Mountain Sun, Vol. 1, No. 1.  Free for the first 10 people.

It was published in a magazine format and includes photographs of Kerrville, of prominent citizens, and of homes of the day.
This edition is doubly rare because it is also Volume 1, Number 1 of the Kerrville Mountain Sun.  When J. E. Grinstead bought the newspaper, it was called, in a bit of brilliance, the "The Kerrville Paper."  Soon after the purchase, Grinstead changed the newspaper's name to the Mountain Sun. 
Here's a bit of trivia: he so named it after the sunrise over Tivy Mountain.  Grinstead's home was on Jefferson Street, behind St. Peter's Episcopal Church.  From his porch the sun rose from behind Tivy Mountain each morning.
I've printed 10 copies of this first Kerrville Mountain Sun, and I'll be happy to give you a copy.  First-come, first-served.  Once they're gone, they're gone.   Stop by our print shop for your copy.  Click here for directions to our print shop.
These copies differ from the original in two respects: the original is slightly larger; the copy measures just under 8.5x11.  And the stock used is different: these are printed on acid-free 60# white offset.  They are printed in color to show the yellowed age of the original.
Hope to see 10 of you on Monday morning.

Starbucks Show

Five photographs from my collection of historic Kerrville photographs are on display at Kerrville's Starbucks through June 30th.
Two special photographs are included in the display: a portrait of James Kerr, and a photograph of Mrs. Florence Butt and the earliest employees of what became H-E-B grocery stores.  
This is the first time the portrait of James Kerr has been displayed in public.

Display of a few of my Kerrville historic photographs, Starbucks, June 2012