March/April 2021 County Line Magazine

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Upper East Side of Texas

MARCH/APRIL 2021

M A G A Z I N E

KRIS

HUNT

Telling Hollywood and the World the Truth About East Texas

WINNING DOWNTOWNS DINING ALFRESCO CAS HALEY MANTLE MANORS MOUSE TRAPS CORSICANA BRONZE VIRTUALLY ANYWHERE ALLY VENABLE PUDDIN HILL MARY

VisitMarshall

VisitMarshallTX

county line MAGAZINE

destination guides Get to know the spirit of the lively communities that define the Upper East Side of Texas.

EVENTS. ARTICLES. ARTS. DINING. PLAYING. SHOPPING. LODGING.

www.CountyLineMagazine.com/Destination-Guides 2 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

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CONTENTS

FEATURES

8 Screenwriter Highlights Texas Characters

41

Kris Hunt creates nuanced characters for his stories based on authentic people he’s met in the Upper East Side of Texas.

By P.A. Geddie

14 Dining Alfresco

A sampling of restaurants in the region offering outdoor dining experiences.

By Lisa Tang

20 Winning Downtowns

Texas Downtown Association awards several downtowns in the Upper East Side of Texas.

By P.A. Geddie

DEPARTMENTS 5 Editor’s Note

THIS TIME OF YEAR

26 Mineola Black Spiders, The Great Debaters, What’s Brewing, A Woman’s Place, Lois Towles Caesar

LIFESTYLE & ENTERTAINMENT 28 Virtual Fun Around the World 30 Welcome to Mantle Manors 33 Take Me Out To the Ballgame

ARTS & CULTURE 34 Bronze Statues Tell Corsicana History

14 34 42

LITERARY 38 Sincerely Ty Cobb 39 Poetry

MUSIC 40 Mouse and the Traps Honor Dylan 41 Ranky Tanky, Joseph the Spouse, Tom Paxton and the Don Juans 42 Allly Venable Releases Heart of Fire 43 We Banjo 3, Sunny Sweeney 44 Cas Haley at Big Hope Farm

FOOD & DRINK 48 Mary of Puddin Hill Comes Home 50 Winnsboro Blooms, New Queen in Palestine

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MAGAZINE

Serving those living & playing in the Upper East Side of Texas

EDITOR’S NOTE Dear Readers, Here we are knocking on the door of spring 2021. We’ve sure come a long way since this time last year.

As social distancing, masks, and hand washing became our normal, many people got creative with ways to have fun.

I have thoroughly enjoyed many Zoom meetings, parties, travel tours and online murder mysteries and other activities. I’ve found a whole new batch of fun to try soon and share them with you on page 28. Please send us your ideas!

PUBLISHER & MANAGING EDITOR P.A. Geddie

CONTRIBUTORS Lisa Tang Judy Peacock Tracy Torma Dave Shultz Mac K.Miller III Peter Frank Edwards Darrell Lindsey Judy Sanders Marena Hussein Susan Harrell Mitchell Thani Viriyaki Photography

Although we’ll still need to abide by CDC guidelines for the foreseeable future, there are plenty of safe things to do out and about in the Upper East Side of Texas.

Art and other museums, outdoor concerts, shopping, nature centers, and driving tours to name a few. The beautiful wildflowers start popping up this time of year making for fun afternoon drives.

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SUBSCRIPTIONS

Check out the bronze statue tour in Corsicana among other outdoor art tours available in the region.

Many of our venues are managing to have events either outdoors or meeting all the safety guidelines for indoor gatherings with limited seating. Give them a call before you go to make reservations or to get a feel for how things are going at each location.

Lisa Tang gathered a few ideas for outdoor dining, each one with really great food and views.

See the list of winning downtowns also for afternoon stroll-worthy places to visit.

Learn some history and meet some really great people from the region in this issue including the Black Spiders, a long list of outstanding women, Mouse and the Traps, Ally Venable, Sunny Sweeney, Cas Haley, and our cover story on Kris Hunt. He’s written a story based in the Upper East Side of Texas that starts filming this fall. Award-winning actress Geena Davis plays the lead character. Read more about his work and his mission to set Hollywood straight on the nuanced characters that live in our region.

P.A. Geddie

info@countylinemagazine.com

County Line Magazine eEdition is published every other month, 6 times a year in digital format. Material may not be reproduced without written permission. Opinions expressed in articles or advertising appearing in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. Mailing address: P.O. Box 608, Ben Wheeler, TX 75754 Phone: (903) 312-9556. E-mail: info@countylinemagazine.com Website: www.countylinemagazine.com.

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For over 20 years,

For over 20 years,

Texans for the Texans for the Arts has consistently has consistently worked to: worked to:

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Arts

Protect Occupancy (HOT) arts funding Hotel Protect HotelTax Occupancy Tax (HOT) arts funding Increase funding for the Texas Commission on the Arts

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The Official Artsfor Advocacy Organization Texas Organization Texas Texans for the Arts is at the forefront for of empowering artists,

CHECK OUT COUNTY LINE DIGITAL PUBLICATIONS arts leaders, committed supporters, and citizen activists like

Texans foryou! theTogether Arts isweatcan theamplify forefront of empowering artists, our powerful voices to increase both committed public and private resourcesand to build strong, dynamic, arts leaders, supporters, citizen activists like and creative communities all across Texas. you! Together we can amplify our powerful voices to increase both public and private resources to build strong, dynamic, and creative communities all across Texas.

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Advocate artists for increased funding for the National and arts organizations Endowment for the Arts and for federal policies that artists Advocate fororganizations. increased funding for the National support and arts

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Endowment for the Arts and for federal policies that support artists and arts organizations.

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Hollywood Screenwriter Kris Hunt Embraces Nuanced Texas Characters

By P.A. Geddie Kris Hunt tells stories inspired by his colorful upbringing in the Upper East Side of Texas. He’s committed to changing long-outdated stereotypes of Southerners as rednecks, hicks, and hillbillies.

People from our region, he says, are just as likely to be worldly, educated, or otherwise well rounded.

“Some Texans may wear worn-out clothes, have strong country accents, and drive old trucks. But they also may speak four languages, play the piano, and tell you all about fine wines.”

Hunt once met with someone from a major TV network and laughed out loud at the executive’s narrow-minded view of Southerners.

“He told me, ‘We might want to work with you because we’re talking about getting into hick humor,’” Hunt says.

“That is how narrowly people think about places they’ve never visited.”

Hunt is determined not to cave to those false perceptions.

“That’s not what I do. I create more nuanced characters like the real ones I know.”

He is sticking to the inspiring, funny, smart, gumption-filled characters he’s experienced in the region — not only from places like vineyards, art galleries, and bookstore coffee shops, but from farms, pool halls, gravel pits, rodeos, and flea markets.

But it’s not easy to swim against the Hollywood tide.

“The thing about sticking to your guns is it’s not an immediate return on your investment of time,” Hunt says. “It takes a long time to get the right attention and hopefully these nuanced characters will connect with people.”

Susan Cartsonis (What Women Want), Suzanne Farwell (The Intern), and Brent Emery (The Stanford Prison Experiment).

“I’d write poetry against the low hum of the Southern Junction dance hall just down the road.”

The story is about an aging, but stillrebellious Texas cowgirl who escapes a Dallas nursing home to make a perilous, soul-searching journey back to her native East Texas. Starring as the lead character, Fay, is Oscar-winner Geena Davis, star of Thelma & Louise among other hit movies.

While he developed his creativity in the boonies outside Royse City, he struggled in high school to fit in and to keep up his grades.

Filming begins later this year and, though far away from his life in Los Angeles now, Cowgirl is set in the place he still considers home.

Hunt comes from a long line of East Texans — eight generations or so — from Longview, Lufkin, Terrell, Quinlan, Jacksonville, Kaufman County, and Lake Palestine to name a few of the places embedded in his memories.

One day his class was going on a field trip to visit a college.

“My grades were bad so I couldn’t go,” Hunt recalls, but says college was something that had never really crossed his mind anyway. No one in his family had attended and it wasn’t a topic of conversation as they worked hard to scrape and save for necessities.

In a fortunate turn of events, Hunt says one of his teachers, who recognized promise in his writing, pushed for him to go on the trip.

“I have family all over East Texas. My cousins live in Lufkin. My aunt lives in Greenville. Many come from Terrell. My grandpa had a tractor repair shop in Quinlan and was a water witcher. Another grandpa was a bass fisherman, often on Lake Palestine.”

“I had to sit in the front of the bus with the teachers,” he recalls, being that his circumstances were different than the other students.

In between time with relatives around East Texas, he spent much of his childhood living in and out of motels and trailer houses on the east side of Dallas.

“I remember the smell of the English department,” he says, no doubt getting a whiff of thousands of new books. “It stuck with me.”

To help pay rent, Hunt and his older brother collected cans and rummaged through trash piles for things they could sell including used vacuum cleaners, a boom box, and old carpet. They mowed yards and did whatever they could to contribute.

During his teen years, Hunt discovered he had a talent for comedy as he hung out with his cousins and watched closely all the nuances of relatives and “the old guys.”

“We even went door-to-door selling candles in scents like Vanilla Bean and Snickerdoodle,” Hunt recalls. “I learned to hustle, in a good way.”

His persistence is starting to finally pay off.

He loved skateboarding until concrete and asphalt gave way to soil when the family moved to rural Royse City, Texas.

His feature-film script, Cowgirl’s Last Ride, is currently under production by Resonate Entertainment, formed by

There, he found a new way to pass time sitting on old piles of wood out in the pasture.

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He says he was more than impressed with the college campus — he’d never seen anything like it before.

“I started clowning around and learned how to improv on the porch or on a tailgate with these crazy characters,” he says, noting it helped him feel valued.

“Even if you have pimples and crooked teeth you can get laughs, and that’s awesome.”

He bought his parents’ old car and drove to Dallas to The Back Door Comedy Club on Greenville Avenue at the age of 16 to perform at an open mic. continued page 10

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HUNT continued from page 8 “I was nervous, but I got laughs,” he recalls. “That got me stoked and excited enough to know in some form, I’m going to keep doing this. It was enough to plant that seed.”

At the age of 17 he dropped out of high school and started working in factories alongside his parents during the day and performed in Dallas at comedy clubs at night. But that trip to the college campus a couple of years earlier had left an impression he couldn’t shake and he started wanting more for himself.

“I saw too many people in my family struggling. They are all hard workers.

We’d do good for a couple of years, then not so good.

“I’m not going to screw around and get in trouble,” he said to himself. “If I stick to it, maybe I can help my family.

“I lucked out with a bit of intelligence somehow and decided I should do whatever I can to make things better even if it takes a long time. And do it with something I love — writing, TV and film industry, performing comedy.

He eventually earned his G.E.D. and spent the next summer begging his way into college.

The first in his family from both sides to go to college, Hunt graduated from the University of North Texas in Denton.

He majored in theater and anthropology and earned an unofficial minor in billiards. Shooting pool became a lifelong hobby and sometimes profitable side hustle.

A big influence in his life came when he saw the movie Sling Blade, starring Billy Bob Thornton.

“I saw a guy who sounds like me and who wrote and starred in his own southernset film,” Hunt says. “It blew my mind — that even though it took him a long time, he did it.”

After college Hunt spent a few years working as a copywriter and at Dallas country clubs. He dabbled in a few TV spots and working on documentaries, while keeping his dreams of writing about — and performing — authentic Texas characters.

In 2009, a good friend enticed him to

move from Texas to Los Angeles.

“I lived on a boat in Marina Del Rey, waited tables and performed my outlandish characters at comedy clubs,” Hunt recalls of his early years in California. One such character was a country boy abducted by aliens who communicates through slam-poetry. Other performances included stints at The Comedy Store and Improv Olympic. While also doing copywriting on the side, he got to know a lot of movers-and-shakers in the industry.

With “absurd, silly comedy,” now firmly in his comfort zone, Hunt is now developing numerous TV and digital projects. The Texas Triplets is a faux documentary centered on adult brothers who meet for the first time to find their birth parents. Rednexpert is an animated series about a redneck jack-of-all-trades who specializes in everything from drywall to marriage counseling — the series is illustrated by Mississippi-based artist Kyle Hilton.

Another film in the works is A Poor Girl From Texas.

“It’s loosely inspired by my own experiences as a teenager living in motels and working day labor jobs with my parents,” he says, noting that the film isn’t autobiographical as the lead character is a teenage girl.

Hunt plans to play the girl’s dad, who is autistic. That hits close to home.

Two years ago Hunt was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

“Stories like Poor Girl are never written by — and definitely not played by — people who are actually on the spectrum,” he says. “It’s a gritty, dramatic story that incorporates humor. Hopefully I can inspire other people or kids with ASD who are out there struggling.”

Hunt admits his life might have been different if he’d gotten the ASD diagnosis when he was younger.

“I definitely see how it affected me in school. If I was interested in a subject — like English or wood shop — I would excel. But if I didn’t care about the subject, I couldn’t process anything the teacher was saying and often flunked the class.”

The struggles he had as a kid are the same he has today including trouble

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concentrating, understanding tone, remembering things, and stimming (repetitive or unusual movements or noises).

“For many people, it’s an invisible disorder,” Hunt says. “You can’t see how much a person with ASD may be struggling unlike someone who, say, has physical impairment. But while having ASD is an aspect of my life, it’s only one thing that defines me. I’m also a husband, fun friend, co-owner of an old shih-tzu, writer, performer, skateboarder, pool player — and very proud Texan.”

Like his own layered personality, Hunt says he’ll continue to do his best to create fully realized, flawed, and nuanced Southern characters for his stories.

“I’ll take you there,” he says, “to see my view of the region. It’s where I come from and all my relatives come from. It’s what I know.”

In 2013, Hunt married Stacey Wilson, an entertainment journalist who has written for The Hollywood Reporter, People, The New York Times, and New York magazine, and others. He frequently tells her about growing up in Texas and they visit as often as they can.

“I don’t get back home as often as I’d like, but after I’m gone a while I yearn to come back. It pulls on my heartstrings.”

He has a fondness for the trees.

“If someone blindfolded me and took me to Northeast Texas, I would know I’m back home because of the smell of the trees — the combination of them is like no other scent.”

He also loves seeing things now in the Upper East Side of Texas that he didn’t see before. Like the County Line Magazine, he says, more public nature offerings, and other fun things to do.

His wife loves First Monday Trade Days in Canton he says and they stayed at a bed and breakfast in Tyler a while back they really enjoyed.

He still has relatives scattered over the area and his parents live in the Cash community near Greenville.

“The last time I was home we picked up my parents and drove to a winery called Los Pinos (Pittsburg). There was a light sprinkle falling over the pines and we had a whole day together going through

Winnsboro, Sulphur Springs, and back to Greenville.”

These are the kinds of things he wants Hollywood and the rest of the world to know about East Texas as well as the many artists who are calling it home.

“I wish that was more celebrated. I know there are a lot of storytellers back home in the form of music, visual art, acting, and film.”

He also says he appreciates that people have different viewpoints and that it’s okay to think differently, but he draws the line at narrow-mindedness from both those in and outside his Texas home.

“Stereotypes tend to lean into us as racist and uneducated; that the Southern accent isn’t enlightened. And we know that’s not the truth. I know people that live on a dirt road that are very enlightened.”

Hunt adds, laughing, “I’ve got some strong-ass accents in my family, but that doesn’t make the people stupid.”

Narrow-minded people are inside the Texas borders too, Hunt says.

He remembers during his teenage skateboarding years that some people equated the sport to being a “thug” and didn’t like his hair either. He was told, “Cut off that damn long hair. You’re never gonna amount to anything.”

“As if the length of someone’s hair amounts to their potential success,” he says, dismissing the notion.

Getting his first script produced now has Hunt right were he wants to be in his own quest for success.

“It’s amazing and strange,” he says, thinking about all the work he’s put in to get this far.

Hunt says he’ll continue selling his Southern stories and is working on “some really cool stuff.” He plans to be in Texas as much as he can, surrounding himself with the characters he loves and sharing them with audiences around the world.

TOP: Kris and Stacey Wilson Hunt married in 2013. MIDDLE: Kris visits with Robert Duvall about their mutual love for Texas. BOTTOM: Kris with Billy Bob Thornton whose movie Sling Blade inspired his career path. Courtesy photos MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 11

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We at Winnsboro Center for the Arts in Winnsboro established a relationship with P.A. Geddie and County Line Magazine over five years ago. They worked with us then in developing an advertising plan and continue to work with us now on ad content and direction.

CLM has always been responsive with the changes and edits that are a part of the changing needs of advertising and promotion. The staff at CLM has a passion for promoting the Upper East Side of Texas and all of the many events, concerts and activities in it. They have created a truly excellent magazine and it's not unusual for folks to tell us that they saw us in County Line Magazine.

Jim Willis Director of The Bowery Stage Winnsboro Center for the Arts County Line Magazine is our “go to” publication for marketing Mineola, Texas, to our target audience in the North by Northeast Texas area. We know that County Line Magazine will present our entertainment and leisure information in the best light possible with attractive ads and interesting articles that its readers will notice and enjoy.

Visitors to our city often comment that they saw our information in the County Line Magazine. Fast response on ad proofs and changes make working with staff a pleasure. We love County Line Magazine.

Lynn Kitchens Director of Marketing Asst. Director Economic Development City of Mineola

Reach those Living & Playing in the Upper East Side of Texas

County Line has always been and continues to be a significant partner to our community. The magazine is beautifully laid out, filled with relevant information, and reaches our most important target market — the Northeast Texas drive market. The County Line Team is always very professional and the magazine is a great asset to the entire area.

Kevin Banks Manager, Greenville CVB P.A. Geddie and the County Line are a tremendous asset for us at Four Winds Steakhouse. We have worked together for about 14 years. Through the years I have seen the publication grow and consistently get better. It has been a great local tool for our business and its reach continues to grow. They do a great job putting our ads together and I enjoy working with P.A. Frank Rumore Four Winds Steakhouse

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Dine and Relax in the Perfect Outdoor Setting

By Lisa Tang Imagine dining on a terrace with a view of a relaxing sunset. People are walking, sailing, or biking along a shimmering lake. The air is fresh and liberating.

Or perhaps a large deck surrounded by mature live oak trees that rustle in the wind. The restaurant is within the city limits, but the peaceful setting allows guests to feel like they are in a more secluded vacation setting.

Outdoor dining is “in” now more than ever. The pleasant weather and large open spaces in the Upper East Side of Texas offer many opportunities for optimal outdoor dining experiences.

Read on to find a few samples of how the region’s restaurateurs are creating exquisite dining experiences by pairing their cuisine with the natural beauty of the outdoors.

Rustic Ranch Triple N Ranch & Winery in Trinidad, Texas, offers an inviting outdoor ambiance near Cedar Creek Lake. Proprietor Michelle Anderson transformed the ranch’s barn into a wine tasting

gallery with large-covered patios that accommodate up to 60 chairs on each side.

Weekend dinner service includes wine tastings with bruschetta, charcuterie, pizza, or salads. The venue also hosts special dinners, meetings, seasonal classes and events, and community fundraisers.

Grazing nearby are the ranch’s longhorn steer, visible from the barn and outdoor dining areas. Anderson says she often brings them up to the fence to greet guests.

The barn’s upstairs room — primarily for wine club members — features oversized doors that open to allow fresh air to flow through.

Additional outdoor seating on the large lawn, including picnic tables, allows the ranch to accommodate up to 200 guests. The ranch offers open-air concerts, lawn games, and three outdoor fire pits.

This spring, the ranch is offering tribute concerts covering the music of country artists, the Eagles, Frank Sina-

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Restaurants all over the Upper East Side of Texas provide excellent opportunities for dining al fresco.

Check out Switch-Brick Oven Pizza & Wine Bar in Palestine (above), and Gloria’s Latin Cuisine in Rockwall (opposite). Courtesy photos.

tra, and Christian contemporary artists.

During concerts, guests are welcome to move tables and chairs out on the lawn for improved social distancing.

Triple N Ranch is located at 5220 Key Ranch Road in Trinidad. Reservations are required. Call (361) 867-9463 or visit www.triplenranchwinery.com.

Lakeside Sunset Gloria’s Latin Cuisine features authentic Salvadoran and inspired Tex-Mex dishes at 22 Texas locations. Outdoor dining is popular on warm weather days at the restaurant’s locations in Rockwall and McKinney.

Gloria’s Rockwall location sits on a terrace above Lake Ray Hubbard — a popular dining destination on warm weather days.

“Our Gloria’s Latin Cuisine location in Rockwall is very popular when it comes continued page 16

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DINING continued from page 14 to outdoor dining, especially at sunset overlooking the lake,” says Brian Penrod, Gloria’s marketing director.

Just yards away from the lake, Gloria’s is also a popular destination for boaters. On warm spring and summer days some boaters dock nearby, pick up their orders, and enjoy dining privately on the lake.

Gloria’s McKinney location opened in 2020 as the chain’s first free-standing restaurant, featuring a large covered patio with several tables. The restaurant also ensures safety by providing contactless menus, which diners access by scanning a code with their smartphones.

Other safe dining options at Gloria’s include curbside service and DoorDash delivery. For information about Gloria’s Rockwall location, call (972) 772-4088.

Contact Gloria’s in McKinney at (469) 631-0484 or visit www.gloriascuisine. com.

Wooded Retreat

Al fresco — or fresh air dining — has been growing in popularity at restaurants like Switch-Brick Oven Pizza & Wine Bar in Palestine, Texas, which takes pride in offering the region’s best brick-fired pizza.

Proprietors Carmen and Regina Santone had outdoor dining in mind when they purchased the former hilltop church surrounded by mature oak trees.

The first outdoor addition — an 800 square-foot deck — was just the beginning. They eventually added a roof to shelter the deck and more recently, an overhead natural gas heater and fulllength curtains to provide warmth on cooler days.

Patrons enjoy dining on the deck among the ancient oaks, where they can escape from the bustle of town.

Indoor areas at Switch also provide a connection to the outdoors. The Santones installed large barn doors that open to the outside and large floorto-ceiling windows that allow guests to view the restaurant’s natural setting.

For information about Switch, call (903) 729-7700 or visit online at www. switchbrickovenpizza.com.

Brick Street Vibe

Kitchens Hardware & Deli in Mineola, Texas, is a favorite local hangout at 119 East Broad Street, just two blocks from the Amtrak line where the Texas Eagle passenger train passes every day.

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Dining with an outdoor view is a great experience at Triple N Ranch & Winery in Trinidad (above), Gloria’s Latin Cuisine in McKinney, (opposite, top), and Kitchen’s Hardware & Deli in Mineola (opposite, bottom). Courtesy photos.

Kitchens receives many five-star reviews for its great American food and charming historic atmosphere. It also has a brick patio perfect for outdoor dining with six large tables with enough room to spread out.

Outdoor plants and a large trellis add greenery, scenery, and some shade to the patio. The plants also help reduce noise coming from the town’s main intersection. The patio offers a relaxed setting on warm days for a leisurely weekend brunch with family or outdoor dining with friends.

Gustavo Arango praises Kitchens’ menu variety and its environment on Facebook, calling it “a great environment that makes you feel like [you’re at] home.”

Open seven days a week for breakfast and lunch and Monday through Saturday for dinner, guests can enjoy the outdoors at Kitchens nearly any time of day.

For information, call (903) 569-2664.

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 17

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17TH ANNUAL HIGH SCHOOL ART

EXHIBITION on view

March 28 through

May 16, 2021 Visit www.tylermuseum.org for updated information about educational programming and special events.

Tyler Museum of Art 1300 South Mahon Avenue • Tyler, TX www.tylermuseum.org

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 19

WINNING DOWNTOWNS Award-Worthy Towns Dot the Upper East Side of Texas

Texas Downtown Association (TDA) is a statewide organization dedicated to supporting downtowns and communities as a whole. They represent more than 300 cities and towns, economic development corporations, nonprofits, small businesses, and individuals from across Texas. Members network and use their resources, ideas, and strategies to impact communities to thrive for residents and visitors alike.

Every year TDA holds its President’s Awards Program allowing submissions, voting, and judging for outstanding projects, places, and people that contribute to communities across the state.

There are two themes, Design and Achievement, which are judged by different industry experts. The 2020 judges were Bill Hidell, Hidell and Associates Architects; David Newman, MESA Design Group; Marie Oehlerking Read,

Komatsu Architecture; Lynn Osgood, Civic Arts; Chance Sparks, Freese & Nichols, Inc. and APA-Texas Chapter President; AJ Fawver, Verdunity; P.A. Geddie, County Line Magazine; Lynda Humble, Consultant; and Julie Kunkle, Open Sky Media, Inc. Here are a few winners from the Upper East Side of Texas.

In the Design category, Ennis’ Dallas Street project won Best Public Improvement for a town with less than 50,000 population. Before improvements, Dallas Street in downtown Ennis was dominated by vehicles and inaccessible curbs and sidewalks and had an outdated water and sewer system.

Dallas Street now offers widened sidewalks that are completely curbless and fully accessible. The street also features benches, streetlights, and planters with

20 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

Downtowns across the Upper East Side of Texas continue to meet the needs of residents and visitors alike. The Dallas Street project in Ennis (above) made it much more inviting; (opposite top) businesses in Waxahachie got in to the #HachieHeart program to help keep up the fun after the pandemic began; and (opposite bottom) Longview’s Alton Plaza/Petroleum Building.was transformed into a 48-apartment complex.

native Texas flora. The streetlights house speakers that play music and advertisements for local events and businesses. There is now free public WiFi downtown that can be utilized by pedestrians and festival/event vendors.

The new design is not only safer for pedestrians but also draws them in with its beauty and functionality.

There were several winners in the Upper East Side of Texas in the Achievement category.

Tyler’s Fitzpatrick Architects was named Best Downtown Partner for a community with over 50,000 population. The team at Fitzpatrick Architects became a vital downtown partner over the last few years and the City of Tyler saw much of their work come to fruition this past year. With much of this vision and effort led by firm partner Brandy Ziegler, the Fitzpatrick team invested thousands of pro bono man hours over the past five years involving their entire staff in research, revitalization plans, design ideas, and presentations to potential investors, institutes of higher education, and business owners to woo them to downtown and improve the economic vitality of downtown Tyler.

The firm is instrumental in helping the Tyler’s Main Street department with streetscape plans and grant submissions, and they are actively involved in the new county courthouse project by honing the design to best fit public and municipal needs.

Garland’s “Made Fresh & Local” wins the Best Digital Promotion Campaign for a city over 50,000 population.

Downtown Garland was accustomed to the Jazz on the Square and Sounds of Summer Concert Series. Though the pandemic put a wrench in traditional plans, the community came together to produce an event found only in Garland. The goal was to showcase the hidden talent, culture, and style of the community.

Local resident and classically trained pianist Bobby Orozco played a majestic set in the landmark Plaza Theater. His wife Jessica simultaneously painted a piece on stage without brushes — only various everyday textures. Local businesses across the city cross-promoted the event with exclusive event items and specials. The concert was accessible via stream on social media and guests attended a live party following the event to bid on the art piece.

The goal of this event was simple: to tell the story of what makes downtown Garland so remarkable — community, collaboration, and creativity. Due to its success, the program was expanded to include a regular series of performances. On average, these events reach just over 13,000 people with roughly 135 responses. continued page 22 MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 21

WINNING continued from page 21 Neighboring Mesquite wins the prize for Best Traditional Event Promotion for a town over 50,000 population with their Front Street Station Groundbreaking. The goal of this event was to celebrate the first major downtown reinvestment in decades and to demonstrate the function and impact of Front Street Station once it is completed.

Though the bulk of the cost was going to necessary upgrades, what was in the mind’s eye were those beautiful aboveground images and the tendency to forget about the necessity of the belowground improvements.

When planning the groundbreaking, the volunteers in charge wanted to communicate that not only was great stuff happening on the ground, but great (and necessary) things were happening below the surface. So, it was decided to do a living demonstration of Front Street Station at work.

The idea was to use spray paint to mark the exact location of every feature of the area, both above- and below-ground.

Visitors received detailed maps of the improvements and infographic hand-

outs explaining in detail everything that was being installed and why. By walking through this to-scale pre-construction living charette, the public was able to, for the first time, get a vision of the entire project and how it holds one of the keys to a successful future for downtown Mesquite.

In addition to the independent judging panels for TDA’s President’s Awards, the submissions are put out to the public to choose winners as well. The People’s Choice Awards allow downtown supporters to show their appreciation for projects, programs, businesses, buildings, and groups. These awards are a part of our larger President’s Awards Program, which bestows separate awards that are determined by independent judging panels.

Mesquite’s Front Street Station Groundbreaking project selected by the judges was voted a winner by the public as well for the Best Traditional Event Promotion.

Winning the People’s Choice for Best Renovation/Rehabilitation/Restoration is Longview’s Alton Plaza/Petroleum Building. The story of the Pe-

22 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

troleum Building is a story of adaptive reuse. Originally built in 1953 as a fivestory parking garage, the building was converted into a modern office building just two years later and served that purpose until the 1990s. After almost two decades as a vacant eyesore, Saigebrook Development purchased the building in 2018 with a vision to transform the property into a 48-apartment complex.

New plumbing, electrical and HVAC systems were installed to accommodate the new use. However, many interior and exterior historical elements of the building were preserved. On the inside, the terrazzo floor with an inlaid oil derrick, tile work, marble and even the original mailboxes were retained. Signage from some of the original tenants, numbers in the parking garage area and even original fixtures can be seen throughout the building.

For Best Economic Game Changer, the People’s Award goes to Tyler for their Plaza Tower. The revitalization of Plaza Tower and the leadership of its owners — Garnett Brookshire, Andy Bergfled, and Tim Brookshire — has made a tremendous impact on downtown Ty-

ler. In addition to a significant capital investment in the building, they have also done massive renovations and redesign to the ground floor, making it much more usable for the tenants and the general downtown community.

What was once a large, empty former bank space, is now transformed into a multi-use and multi-tenant space that includes shared office space for multiple partners and a redesigned façade to include three retail/restaurant businesses.

The economic impact is evident, even in the midst of COVID, as tenants continue to move into the space and all three new retail/restaurant tenants stay at maximum allowed capacity. This catalyst project has proven to understand all aspects of how to be successful by transforming an unused building, activating the space, providing an experience, providing uses to meet the retail gap, increasing the amenities, beautifying the area, and most importantly believing in the potential and future of downtown Tyler.

Waxahachie’s #HachieHeart Windows project won the People’s Choice Resiliency Award. The project consists of displaying encouraging thoughts and sayings on the windows of all the downtown buildings and including the city’s marketing hashtag — #HachieHeart — at the bottom of each sign. The merchants came up with the list of possible sayings and distributed it to the business owners who were able to choose which one they wanted on their window.

61st Student Invitational

Kilgore College Rangerettes:

Featuring works from 9-12th graders from 15 schools. Oils, Acrylics, Photography, Digital Photography, Sculpture, Pottery, Mixed Media, Pencil & more.

ON DISPLAY

MAR 13 – APR 3

Celebrating 80 Years A Photographic Essay

by O. Rufus Lovett ON DISPLAY

215 E. Tyler St. Longview, TX 75601

MAR 13 – JUL 3

903.753.8103

LMFA.org

Admission is Free for Members, $5 for Guests. Visit the website for exhibit details.

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Upper East Side of Texas

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MARCH/APRIL 2016

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Beginning April 21, 2020, and continuing through that week nine large signs and 27 smaller signs were placed on the windows of businesses in downtown Waxahachie. The impact was immediate and overwhelmingly positive. The sign program was completed for an investment of $1,125, generated thousands of dollars in television coverage, and encouraged residents to support local merchants.

For a complete list of all the 2020 Texas winners and to learn more about TDA, visit www.texasdowntown.org.

(Opposite) Plaza Tower in downtown Tyler won the people’s choice award for Best Economic Game Changer. Courtexy photo

V isit M cK inne y . com /CL

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 23

Shop. Dine. Discover.

s op h S Unique Artists

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Experience Winnsboro all year long:

• Concerts on the Bowery Stage • Art Exhibits • Gallery Artists • Fine Dining • Day Spa & Boutique • Bed & Breakfast Locations • Unique Shops • Live Outdoor Events • Antique Car Shows

For details, go to:

www.WinnsboroOnlineGuide.com

Music

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MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 25

THIS TIME OF YEAR MARCH 5

MARCH

A Woman’s Place March is Women’s History Month, a time dedicated to reflect on the oftenoverlooked contributions of women to history, culture, and society.

Follow the links below to get to know a sampling of the women of the Upper East Side of Texas covered in the pages of County Line Magazine over the years.

• Bessie Coleman

VIDEO

• Ima Hogg • Mary Kate Hunter

 Remembering The Great Debaters In honor of National Speech and Debate Education Day March 5, we pay tribute to The Great Debaters of Wiley College in Marshall, Texas. They gained national recognition when history was made April 2, 1935, as they defeated the top-ranked University of Southern California debate team.

The Great Debaters film (2007) covers the

Marshall team’s story and stars Denzel Washington as Melvin Tolson, poet and the debate team’s coach. Longview native Forest Whitaker also stars in the film and Oprah Winfrey is one of the producers. It features original buildings on the college campus.

Watch the trailer above and learn about “the team that got America to listen.”

• Pioneers of Prominence: Mary Louise McKeller Herndon, Lallie Briscoe Carlisle, Ima Hogg, Bessie Coleman, Sarah McClendon, Lady Bird Johnson • Hattie Brantley • A Woman’s Voice: Pud Kearns, Yaziri Orrostieta, Dana Goolsby, Mercy L. Rushing • Lulu Belle Madison White

• Pleasant Hill Quilters • Embark Women • Women of World War II

APRIL 7 NATIONAL BEER DAY

• Anna Pennybacker

What’s Brewing?

For those who enjoy a good cold beer, add these breweries in the region to your bucket list.

• Jen Katz • Deborah L. Burkett/Spunky Women

• Oil Horse Brewing Company/Longview

• Modern Mavens: Barbara Bass, Judith Guthrie, JoAnn Hampton, Kristen Ishihara, Debra Robinson, Scarlett Sloane

• Athens Brewing Co./Athens

• Elise Tvede

• Fredonia Brewery/Nacogdoches

• Cedar Creek Brewery/Seven Points • ETX Brewing Co./Tyler

• Texas Women of Strong Will: Jane Long, Francita Alavez, Mollie Bailey, Lillian Richard, Elise Tvede Waerenskjold

• Backstory Brewery/Sulphur Springs

• Women of Greenville

• True Vine Brewing Co./Tyler

• Cypress Creek Southern Ales/Winnsboro • Pint and Barrel Drafthouse/Palestine • Q & Brew/Canton 26 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

Stay tuned for so many more stories as women continue to lead the way to better lives for all human beings.

APRIL 4, 1912

EARLY 1900s

Mineola Black Spiders Played Ball in Texas and Midwest

Happy Birthday Lois Towles Caesar American concert pianist, music professor, and fashion model Lois Towles Caesar was born in Texarkana April 4, 1912.

She obtained a degree at Wiley College, Marshall, in 1933, and then studied at Julliard School of Music in New York.

Her musical accomplishments took her to Nashville, California and Paris, France. While in Paris, Towles, like her sister Dorothea, became one of the first internationally-known black models in the world of high fashion and wore the clothes from famous Parisian designers, including Christian Dior.

Back in the U.S., she regularly hosted fashion shows and piano recitals (often combined). After marriage and a move to San Francisco, she helped establish several philanthropic and arts organizations.

In 1978 she was honored with the American Institute of Public Service’s Jefferson Award for Community Service.

Towles became a “Founding Patron” of the Texarkana Symphony Orchestra, sponsored by the Junior League of Texarkana, by a donation from her sister Dorothea in memoriam. She died March 18, 1983 in San Francisco. One month later the chapel at the Youth Guidance Center in San Franciso was renamed the Lois Towles Caesar Memorial Chapel in her honor. (From Texas State

Historical Association)

Citizens of Mineola honor the determination of the towns former independent baseball team, the Mineola Black Spiders, with a historical marker.

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, African American teams played separately from Caucasian teams. Though it was small, the town of Mineola had both.

The Spiders, also known as the Texas Black Spiders, formed in the late 1920s when about 30 men and teens formed a team to play against other AfricanAmerican teams in the area.

The team wore gray uniforms and played at south Mineola’s Epperson Park, where they sometimes played for 200 spectators. The team also traveled to play in Dallas, Commerce, and Shreveport.

Vernon Klingaman moved to Mineola in the late 1920’s and began managing the team, opening the roster to non-residents, and changing the team’s name to the Texas Black Spiders.

Klingaman moved the Spiders to the

Midwest in 1932 to improve their opportunities. They often staged exhibition games in rural areas, and became known for their fast-paced, entertaining style of baseball. Some newspapers referred to them as the “Champions of Texas.”

The same year, the team’s name became the Mason City Black Bats, headquartered in Iowa, though some members stayed with the Spiders, while others moved back to Texas.

The Spiders continued their success.

In 1936, they achieved a record of 34 to 1, but underwent a major change in personnel and probably disbanded in 1938.

Mineola’s Black Spiders are mostly forgotten, yet remain an important part of the town’s history as a team that achieved success in Texas and the Midwest.

More information is available at the Mineola Historical Museum.

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 27



LIFESTYLE & ENTERTAINMENT

Check out the eMAGAZINE www.countylinemagazine.com for extended event listings.

Have Some Virtual Fun Around the World

By P.A. Geddie The possibilities for fun from the comforts of home alone or with family or friends are endless.

More and more museums, attractions, and individuals are getting on board with virtual tours and other activities.

Google Arts & Culture’s collection in-

cludes the British Museum in London, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, the Guggenheim in New York City, and literally hundreds of more places where people can gain knowledge about art, history, and science. See the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican museums and get a glimpse of areas usually off-limits to the public. See more at www. artsandculture.google.com.

UrbanAdventures.com also offers fun online experiences for groups or individuals. Their local guides from around the world lead guests through all kinds of activities including hands--on cooking classes, virtual city walks, and interactive trivia.

Check out Online Experiences on Airbnb.com for live interactive sessions, conducted over Zoom by guides around the world. Over the course of an hour or two, the hosts dive into a wide range of artistic, cultural, musical, culinary and athletic topics like “Dance Like a K-pop Star,” presented live by a guide in South Korea; “Cooking with a Moroccan Family,” from Marrakesh; “Tokyo Anime and Subcultures,” from Japan; “Day in the Life of a Shark Sci-

28 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

Weird Homes Tour takes guests inside the eclectic and wonderful world of Barbie (above). The collection includes nearly 500 Barbies. This event takes place March 16. Go to www.weirdhomestour.com for tickets. (Left) Alley Kat Adventures specializes in virtual scavenger hunts for groups or individuals.

entist,” from South Africa;” and “Harry Potter Magic” in Edinburgh, Scotland.

The average cost is about $10 per person.

Another group, www.withlocals.com pairs up individuals and groups with activities by live local people: Loris teaches how to make tiramisu from his home in Venice. Omar takes visitors on a city walk of the Red City of Marrakech. Explore historic Berlin with Miha, ancient Rome with Simone, the wilderness of Sydney, Australia, with Matt, experience Nairobi through the Eyes of Street Children with Godfrey. These tours are about $45.

Alley Kat Adventures, www.alleykatadventures.com, is a global custom event design company offering hand-crafted, unique experiences for groups and individuals. They specialize in online virtual scavenger hunts. Company founder

Steve Wiman, owner of Uncommon Objects in Austin, gives tours of his home with a collection of personal acquisitions from around the globe. It’s a Zoom experience on March 3. Tickets are $12 and available on www.weidrdhomestour.com. Photo by Thani Viriyaki Photography

Kat is a former teacher, a public speaker and SAG actor with national principal print, film, and TV credits. Cost averages $9 per person.

AtlasObscura.com offers a diverse selection of activities like Zoom shark exhibits, bat life talks, museum tours, trivia night, cooking and art classes and much more.

Others enjoy www.weirdhomestour.com which features virtual tours of collectors of oddities and rare art, performance artists, painters, sculptors, and architects in cities all across the world. Some highlights in March include homes of Austin’s Steve Winnan, a Barbie doll

Spend a fabulous day in Paris with a Parisian Online experience hosted by Anto Herbert Peter Tais through Airbnb.com. Learn why the Eiffel tower should not be standing today. Join us off the beaten path to where Parisians go to have fun.

Find out the funnier side of the Louvre museum while breaking the rules. Discover the birthplace of an iconic drink in the Royal Palace. Go to the open-air market and learn to prepare a Parisian picnic!

collector, and The Mannequin Queen.

Other tours are available via video.

Don’t find anything here of interest? It’s easy to do an online search for something that might be more appealing or a specific location to tour. There’s likely a virtual tour of most anywhere ready to roll.

Buy a ticket, invite some friends, and dive in with a “when in Rome” attitude.

Get in the spirit by dressing for the occasion and prepare accompanying food. Text with any friends or family not in the room after to discuss to keep the fun going.

At 5 p.m. March 25 join an underwater happy hour with New York Aquarium. This is a Zoom experience and guests can talk directly to the hosts, and pick their brains for selachimorpha trivia. Go to www.atlasobscura.com for tickets.

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 29

Welcome To Mantle Manors Mickey Mantle’s Legend Lives on at Cedar Creek Lake

By Lisa Tang Actor and entrepreneur Rob Gough of DOPE streetwear fame surprised the world of sports memorabilia collectors in January when he paid $5.2 million — the highest ever — for a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle baseball card.

Gough is not alone in how much he values the name of the greatest pitch hitter ever in professional baseball and arguably the best all-around player in history.

In the Upper East Side of Texas some see reminders daily of the legendary baseball player as they go about their lives in Mantle Manors, a subdivision on the shores of Cedar Creek Lake, 70 miles southeast of Dallas. The New York Yankees star helped develop the properties in the 1960s.

Mantle Manors is located in Gun Barrel City with street names including Leg-

endary Lane, Yankee Circle, Pennant Circle, and Mantle Drive. Today’s properties with homes — some in the original ranch style popular in the 1960s — sell for $140,000 and up to $450,000 for newer homes, depending on their access to the lake.

A small, solitary sign now represents the Mantle Manors property owners’ association. It’s an enduring symbol of the community and a nod to Mantle’s role in attracting buyers to the booming development on the state’s fourth largest lake. The reservoir boasts 32,000 acres and 320 miles of shoreline.

Mantle and his family — his wife Merlyn and four boys — moved to Dallas in 1958 for more privacy than they were able to find in New York. He was still at the peak of his career — a full decade before retiring from the Yankees in 1968.

Cedar Creek Reservoir was constructed

30 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

in 1964 and Mantle served as front man for a group of investors known as the GWM Corporation of Dallas, which sold lakefront lots for $695 each.

Although Mantle never actually lived on the lake, he and his family spent weekends there from time to time.

Advertisements used a bit of creative license with Mantle making statements that read, “Welcome to Mantle Manors.

Your neighbor, Mickey Mantle.”

Freelance writer and Cedar Creek Lake resident David Webb recalls a billboard also that stated Mantle and his family enjoyed getting away from it all on the lake shore.

“There’s no longer a billboard on Highway 175 letting newcomers know that one of American baseball’s greatest players helped develop Cedar Creek Lake, but maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to erect another one,” Webb says. “His name will forever be linked

to the history of the lake and should be memorialized prominently.”

Photos appeared in area newspapers of Mickey and Merlyn Mantle touting the development’s progress. In one photo, the Mantles stand on a new fishing pier.

Another photo shows them touring a model home. Others showed the family enjoying fishing, boating, and swimming on the lake.

Mantle’s involvement in real estate and other business ventures show he realized the cult-like popularity and mystique of his baseball years — and made a second career of capitalizing on it.

He continuously pursued profitable ventures from appearances, endorsements, and business investments during his 39 years in Dallas — including many before his retirement from the Yankees — like selling real estate at Cedar Creek Lake.

Born near Commerce, Oklahoma, in 1931, Mantle was the son of a miner who taught him to hit from both sides of the plate. He started playing professionally at age 19 for the Yankees beside Joe Dimaggio. His rags-to-riches story — along with his wholesome good looks and record-breaking baseball career — made him one of the most popular sports figures of all time.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame inducted Mantle in 1974, calling him “an iconic baseball player with immense talent,” who led the Yankees to win seven World Series games.

Mantle continued to make appearances and lend his name to business ventures in 1988 and beyond, when he sat for an interview with D Magazine’s Dan Baldwin. In a story titled “The Last Hero,” Baldwin describes the depth of Mantle’s mystique.

“No player has ever captured the imagination of the country more than did Mantle; no player was ever more strongly associated with the American dream of rising from humble roots to grandeur.”

The article explains that Mantle, starting at a salary of $7,500 in 1951 and a high of $100,000 in his later career, came from a generation of baseball players who earned less than actors and brain surgeons.

It was a far cry from the earnings of today’s baseball stars such as Mike Trout, who is reaping a phenomenal $426 million for a 12-year contract with the Los Angeles Angels.

ter in Palm Springs, California. He left the center frail and humbled, publicly sharing his grief in a Sports Illustrated cover story titled, “I Was Killing Myself: My Life as an Alcoholic.”

Though many of Mantle’s earlier business attempts did not last, later ventures like Mickey Mantle’s restaurant in New York City paid generously to use his name.

While performing a liver transplant in June of 1995, doctors discovered malignant tumors. The cancer continued spreading rapidly to his lungs and abdomen, soon taking his life. He died at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas in August 1995 at age 63. He’s buried at Sparkman Hillcrest Memorial Park on Northwest Highway in Dallas.

Despite his hero status on the field, Mantle’s seemingly flawless performance was eclipsed by physical pain and alcoholism, which became an extreme struggle in his last years.

While working as a greeter at the restaurant in 1994, Mantle checked himself into the Betty Ford Treatment Cen-

No baseball card can ever show the former slugger’s influence in developing Mantle Manors or his heroic struggle at life’s end, but his name and influence are always part of Cedar Creek Lake.

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 31

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Take Me Out To the Ballgame

By P.A. Geddie Whether conjuring up childhood memories of “peanuts and Cracker Jack” or hearing a booming crowd sing it during the seventh inning of a pro game, “Take Me Out To the Ballgame” is firmly embedded in our national consciousness.

It is the chorus only that most know and love, but the song’s little-known verses tell a much more meaningful story.

America’s favorite pastime song is a beautifully mastered rally cry for women’s equality.

The song was written by singer, songwriter, and vaudeville performer Jack Norworth in 1908 and put to music by Albert Von Tilzer. At that time women were still relegated to kitchens and quilting clubs. If they were seen in public it certainly was not cheering boldly in a crowd of male sports enthusiasts — a lady was expected to remain quiet and demure — seen, not heard. Professional baseball games were considered an exclusively male domain and women were not welcome.

In 1908, Norworth was in a relationship with fellow vaudevillian Trixie Friganza (born Delia O’Callahan). Friganza was not your typical woman during these turn-of-the-century years. She was independent and outspoken. She was a fighter for women, claiming equal value among men. She was a suffragist, drawing crowds to rallies where she was often a key speaker.

“I do not believe any man — at least no man I know — is better fitted to form a political opinion than I am,” Friganza declared at a suffrage rally in New York City in 1908.

show,” she instead tells her beau to “take me out to the ball game” where she can “root for the home team” and tell “the umpire when he was wrong, all along, good and strong.”

Like Friganza, Katie Casey is empowered, engaged, and living in the world uninhibited and full of passion.

The song’s popularity promoted the idea of women attending baseball games as knowledgeable and enthusiastic fans. Over the years, more and more women took their place in the cheering crowds, as well as in other places where their voices needed to be heard.

Perhaps the song and the positive energy that followed helped women finally win the right to vote in American elections in 1920. Perhaps its message continues to stir compassion for human equality today.

With that in mind, humanity owes a debt of gratitude to Jack Norworth who had the courage and understanding to write this song with its inclusive message, to Albert Von Tilzer for his catchy tune that’s stood the test of time, and to their inspiration Trixie Friganza and all the bold women who would not be relegated to the sidelines.

Source: Smithsonian Magazine

Katie Casey was baseball mad, Had the fever and had it bad.

Just to root for the home town crew, Ev’ry cent Katie spent.

On a Saturday her young beau Called to see if she’d like to go To see a show, but Miss Kate said “No, I’ll tell you what you can do:” Take me out to the ball game, Take me out with the crowd; Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack, I don’t care if I never get back.

Let me root, root, root for the home team, If they don’t win, it’s a shame.

For it’s one, two, three strikes, you’re out, At the old ball game.

Katie Casey saw all the games, Knew the players by their first names.

Told the umpire he was wrong, All along, Good and strong.

When the score was just two to two, Katie Casey knew what to do, Just to cheer up the boys she knew, She made the gang sing this song.

VIDEO



Norworth’s fictional “Katie Casey” in “Take Me Out To the Ballgame” is just such a character, and an Irish lass to boot. Not settling to accept an invitation to go to a dark theater to “see a Trixie Friganza, noted feminist, suffragist and inspiration for "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during a suffragette demonstration in 1908.

Photo from Library of Congress. Click on VIDEO to hear Carly Simon sing the song from the original soundtrack of “Baseball,” a TV documentary series by Ken Burns.

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 33

ARTS + CULTURE Bronze Ambassadors Beckon Visitors to Corsicana

By Lisa Tang The city of Corsicana extends its hospitality through a unique group of ambassadors who stand throughout the town on street corners and in front of key buildings and memorials — permanently.

try chef leans over to offer a fruitcake to passersby; and a pet wolf guards the spot where its owner Lyman T. Davis first served his famous Wolf Brand Chili.

Corsicana’s Bronze Sculpture Tour is a life-sized art exhibit that tells stories about the unique individuals who built the city’s history.

The statues invoke curiosity while beckoning visitors to learn more about the city’s heritage. Most are located on the streets of downtown, while others are a short drive from the town’s center. All are highly visible and accessible, making Corsicana a tour-worthy destination.

Created by different artists, most of the lifelike sculptures interact with the cityscape: an oil field worker appears to cross a street on his way home; a pas-

Curious visitors who want to learn more about the figures and their role in the town’s heritage can visit the Corsicana Visitors Center, which provides a map

and a narrated audio tour at www.visitcorsicana.com. The center is located at 301 South Beaton Street. Call (903) 654-4850 for information. Visitors can also scan a QR code on each sculpture with a smart phone camera to quickly access the audio tour.

Oil Field Worker

The Oil Field Worker was the first statue officially created for the Corsicana Bronze Tour and pays homage to thousands of men who worked during the city’s oil boom days. Though the city hired contractors to dig for water in 1894, they discovered oil instead. After many more wells were dug, the Magnolia Oil Company — the precursor of Mobil Oil — built the first commercial oil refinery in the West in Corsicana.

Bronze artist Lisa Perry depicts the oil field worker striding home satisfactorily after a full day of work. He carries a long-handled wrench and a lunch pail, two essentials in the field.

The statue is dedicated to all oilfield workers in the region and was commissioned by Joe Brooks of the group Art in Public Places. The E.M. Shepherd Foundation provided funding for the project, which was installed in 2012 at the downtown corner of 6th Avenue and Beaton Street.

Jim Acree

Extending a football as if handing it to a player, the sculpture of Coach Jim Acree stands at the corner of West 6th Avenue and South Beaton Street. Acree led the Corsicana Tigers to state football victory in an undefeated season in 1963. A group of former players commissioned artist J. Payne Lara to create the sculpture which was installed in 2017.

Collin Street Bakery

Artist J. Payne Lara pays homage to Corsicana’s reputation as “fruitcake capital of the world” with this sculpture of Collin Street Bakery’s 60-year employee Jerry Grimmitt. Holding a life-sized fruitcake, Grimmitt leans over as if offering it to passersby at the bakery’s Sevcontinued page 36 34 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 35

BRONZE continued from page 34 enth Avenue location. The Bill McNutt III Family Foundation commissioned the statue, which was installed in 2018.

Wesley Green Wesley and Lucille Green sold western wear to generations of families for 50 years. They owned and operated a boot and shoe repair shop on West 5th Avenue. The Greens supported youth agriculture projects and the Navarro County Youth Expo. Artist Lisa Perry shows Wesley Green in a work apron repairing a boot outside his shop.

Dr. Kent Rogers Beloved physician Dr. Kent Rogers served the community of Corsicana for decades in private and public practice.

He also supported the city’s education

and sports programs, serving on the school board and volunteering on the sidelines at Tiger Stadium on Friday nights. Artist J. Payne Lara depicts Dr. Rogers wearing a stethoscope and a warm smile.

Sower of the Seed The Sower of the Seed on Beaton Street is a tribute to the farmers of Navarro County. Obe Veldman of Corsicana commissioned artist Lisa Perry to design the statue in the image of his father Lutzen Veldman, who farmed in the Netherlands.

Perry depicts the elder Veldman as his son remembered him — spreading seeds from a bag with an outstretched hand. The bag of seeds features “The Parable of the Sower” from the book of Luke inscribed on its side.

Wolf Brand Chili

Artist Nancy Rebal created this likeness of Corsicana’s most famous wolf to commemorate the beginnings of Wolf Brand Chili in Corsicana in 1895. That’s when 12-yearold Lyman Davis sold hot chili from the back of a wagon next to the town’s Blue Front Saloon. Lyman named his chili company after his pet wolf, Kaiser Bill, who still guards the original spot.

Aldama and KAND

Artist Tim Harmon portrays Richard “Dick” Aldama speaking into a microphone at Collin and Beaton streets. Aldama served as the voice of KAND Radio of Corsicana for four decades. He wears a pinstripe vest and holds a cane as a tribute to former station owner Richard Parker, who dubbed the station KAN-D LAND.

Brent Thompson

Officer Brent Thompson became a hero when saving the lives of others from a gunman in 2016 in downtown Dallas. The Corsicana native is memorialized in a bronze statue at Sixth Avenue and Beaton Street.

The statue also honors the memory of Thompson’s son William, who died in 2017.

Thompson is depicted writing a mock ticket for two children — one who resembles William — on a notepad with the title “Heaven’s Roll Call.” The sculpture by artist J. Payne Lara was installed in 2019, the same year Thompson posthumously received a Medal of Valor.

José Antonio Navarro

A statue of José Antonio Navarro, one of the founding fathers of Texas and the namesake of Navarro County — sits in front of the Navarro County Courthouse at 300 West 3rd Avenue. The sculpture honors Navarro’s role in the Texas Revolution and as a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence from Mexico in 1836 and the state constitution in 1845.

Navarro County was named in his honor in 1846. As a second honor to the statesman, the county allowed him to name the county seat. He chose the name Corsicana after his 36 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

father’s birthplace, the island of Corsica near Italy. The state of Texas installed the statue in 1936 during its Centennial.

Candelario “Spider” Garcia

Corsicana native Candelario Garcia entered the U.S. Army in 1963 and fought bravely in Vietnam in 1968, risking his life for his fellow soldiers. Garcia received the Distinguished Service Cross after the war, but a review begun in 2002 determined that politics and prejudice had prevented him and 23 others from receiving the Medal of Honor.

Garcia died in 2013 and is buried with military honors in the Dallas/ Fort Worth National Cemetery. He was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously in 2014.

Created by artist Lisa Perry and installed in 2016, the bronze statue stands at the Navarro County War Memorial on the grounds of the Navarro County Courthouse.

Corsicana Library Kids

A bronze sculpture of two children reading a book in front of the Corsicana Library celebrates the city’s children and encourages their lifelong love of reading.

The children sit side by side with heads bent over, engrossed in reading a picture book. The statue is one of many civic projects for youth sponsored by the Corsicana Kiwanis Club.

Lefty Frizell

The sculpture and small mural behind it stand as a tribute to 1940s and 1950s country singer and songwriter William Orville “Lefty” Frizell and his significant musical influence. Frizell’s songwriting talents came to the fore in 1950 with hit, “If You’ve Got the Money (I’ve Got the Time).”

Wearing colorful boots, fringe, and sparkles, Frizell brought bling to country music performances and is considered the original Rhinestone Cowboy.

However, his most lasting impact on the genre was his characteristic twang and emphasis on long syllables, often heard in songs by George Jones, Merle Haggard, and Willie Nelson.

The statue by artists Doug and Sandra McDonnell stands near Corsicana’s Pioneer Village at 912 West Park Avenue,

where a small museum displays artifacts from his career.

Stuart Beebe Bronze artist Lisa Perry poses Stuart Beebe as if watching a youth baseball game in the stands at Corsicana’s Community Park. He leans over the railing, engrossed in the action.

Known as “Mr. Baseball,” Beebe was a local businessman and a devoted volunteer to operations at the park, where he mended fences, brought in sheep to keep the fields in perfect condition, and sometimes called scores over the loudspeaker. Beebe’s name now graces the city’s baseball complex at North 45th Street, built in 2016. The statue was installed in 2018.

Navarro Indian Titled “The Invocation,” this 13-foot sculpture is of a Native American offer-

ing the skull of an animal as a sacrifice to the gods. Artist Buck McCain of Arizona said the inspiration for the statue came to him in a dream.

Installed in 1990, the statue still stands in front of the Cook Education Center and Pearce Museums on the Navarro College campus at 3100 West Collin Street in Corsicana.

Cadet Memorial

The Cadet Memorial at the Corsicana Municipal Airport honors the city’s significant contributions to World War II. The airport served as an air training center for 8,000 troops from 1941-1944.

Erected in 2009, the memorial includes a bronze sculpture of a cadet wearing a flight suit and parachute as if walking to board an aircraft. The memorial also honors the 90,000 men and women who served in the US Armed Air Forces during war combat operations.

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 37

LITERARY



Author Recounts Memories with Baseball Greats

By P.A. Geddie Hank O’Neal has a fondness for the game of baseball — he says in his book Sincerely Ty Cobb, recently released by TCU Press, that just thinking about baseball magnifies the happy times and suppresses anything bad.

“I just remember the long sunny days when I had but one thing on my mind: to find someone, anyone, to catch the baseball I always had in my hand — someone who’d not only catch it, but who’d throw it back and let me hurl it at them again.”

A renowned photographer and author, O’Neal was born in Kilgore, Texas. His work has been displayed in New York, Canada, and France among other worldly places. Some of his favorite things to write and talk about surround his life growing up and traveling through East Texas.

His love for baseball started as a child hearing stories of his grandfather Curtis Austin (C.A.) Christian and the great baseball legend Ty Cobb. Christian and Cobb were teenagers together in Royston, Georgia, and then were semipro teammates around 1899-1900.

The O’Neal family was living in Fort Worth when young Hank got serious about playing baseball and was thrilled to learn about his grandfather’s experience. He was grateful C.A. took the time to play ball and teach him about the game.

After his family moved to New York in 1954, Hank hung around MacArthur Stadium and “pestered” players of the Syracuse Chiefs. During this time, he also began writing letters to major league players, both active and retired.

Ty Cobb, who was known as the “nastiest man in baseball,” was kind and support-

ive with Hank and they became pen pals in 1955.

O’Neal kept 12 pages of handwritten letters from Ty Cobb along with cards and notes from other Hall of Fame players. Sincerely Ty Cobb is illustrated with the memorabilia and traces 10 years of his own life in baseball as well.

The book contains colorful snippets of his collection and memories of many players throughout its 145 pages.

Baseball enthusiasts find enormous treasures. But even a novice feels the simple nostalgia that perhaps conjures their own memories of neighborhood ball games, picnics, the sound of the

ball hit by a wooden bat, crowd support of an unfortunate strike out, the cheers for hitting one out of the park, and the rush of a barely safe home run.

Coincidentally, the two biggest baseball influences in Hank’s life are both buried in cemeteries called Rose Hill, although they are 790 miles apart. His grandfather C.A. Christian, is buried in Tyler, Texas, and Ty Cobb is buried where the two made their turn-of-thecentury memories in Royston, Georgia.

Find Sincerely Ty Cobb wherever good books are sold. To learn more about O’Neal, visit www.hankoneal.com.

READ A GOOD BOOK LATELY? Book review submissions welcome. Submit your book review for possible inclusion in a future County Line Magazine to editor @countylinemagazine.com.

38 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021



POETRY

Beating Heart Packed

You Can’t Go Home Again While I was gone, the cutters came to my beloved wood.

Nothing since has been the same, the evil or the good.

ATTENTION POETS

In that wood I hid myself, an elf in evergreen, whose conversations, self to elf, came sharp and clear and lean.

Sharper still, the cutter’s skill has stolen half a heart and left a barren, bleeding hill, a mind/soul sawn apart.

Submit your poem for possible inclusion in a future County Line Magazine.

All ages.

editor@countylinemagazine.com

Give me back my wooded glen, my mystery, my face!

I never meant to leave again that haunting, holy place.

Susan Harrell Mitchell Edgewood

No Cheap Kind of Solace When the light begins to shine a little brighter and hope fills the holes in so many lives maybe then we’ll realize we weren’t forgotten though we may have felt that way at times When the curse that has crisscrossed the world finally travels its last cruel mile maybe then we’ll be granted the wisdom that turns life’s curves into a straighter line But I offer no cheap kind of solace six feet apart or otherwise ‘cause your sorrow may be six feet deep and need a touch much higher than mine When we can all gather in a garden where roses aren’t torn by a storm maybe then we’ll again feel the love that’s followed us since we were born But I offer no cheap kind of solace six feet apart or otherwise ‘cause your sorrow may be six feet deep and need a touch much higher than mine Darrell Lindsey Nacogdoches

I want to run Far into the unknown.

To vanish, into a speck.

Living until the air Is stolen from me.

I wish not to know The outcome, The beginning, Or the End. Only to be present For the journey.

Taking a train, Or walking the way.

Alongside batman, Or teleporting there.

To my never land, Where there is no turning back.

No questioning.

No existence of doubt.

Only a suitcase, With my beating heart packed.

Marena Hussein White Oak

growing up i remember as a little girl we had the best of all worlds. daddy took the 3 boys to see the car races, and mom with her 3 little girls, a movie we’d embrace. little girls playing dress up in mommy’s clothes and sorts, the boys with their cars and their big dump trucks. mommy washing and ironing our little dresses, then daddy driving us to church before we got messy. we all played in hot summer showers, while judy played and sang to make believe flowers. debra ran head on, into the garage wall, while larry would dodge her short fall. michael climbs the tree to avoid a little spanking, see grandmas morning glories on the porch railing. peggy has in her mouth, 2 little fingers, and tommy sticks out his tougue, and caught a bee stinger. larry loved a good garden tomato fight, while mommy rocked a sick one, way in the night. i remember growing up, so much fun. bed time stories, make believe, and playing in the sun.

Judy Sanders Brownsboro MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 39

MUSIC Mouse and the Traps Honor Dylan VIDEO



The sixties rock group Mouse and the Traps recently released a new album.

Walking in Dylan’s Shoes is a recording of iconic songs from Bob Dylan’s most prolific writing period. The album is the band’s homage to a songwriter who created the soundtrack they feel most completely captures the essence of the sixties.

One of a handful of bands formed in Texas during the mid-sixties, Mouse and the Traps was known for their catalog of original music, including their first early 1966 hit, “A Public Execution.” It was a two- track recording, made when multi-track recording was in its infancy. With music by Ronny “Mouse” Weiss and lyrics by Knox Henderson, “A Public Execution” immediately received comparisons to Bob Dylan, particularly for the opening guitar/organ riff reminiscent of the beginning of Dylan’s 1965 hit “Like a Rolling Stone.” A strong regional hit, “A Public Execution” eventually reached 121 on the Billboard charts.

Despite releasing several albums of original music, Weiss and producer Robin Hood Brians both shared a dream of one day having Mouse and the Traps record an entire album of Dylan songs.

“The Beatles and Dylan were probably the two biggest influences on the rock sound of the sixties,” recalls the group’s producer and manager Robin Hood Brians. “The word-imagery that characterizes the lyrics of most of Dylan’s songs is what elevates them to the status of literature.”

Fifty-four years after releasing “A Public Execution,” and three years after Dylan became the first songwriter to receive the Nobel Prize for literature, the dream of an entire Mouse and the Traps album devoted to the music of Bob Dylan came to fruition.

“As a producer and songwriter, when you first start a recording session, you are never sure if you have a hit or not.

That’s not the case when you start an

40 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

Current group making up Mouse and the Traps include (l--r): David Stanley, Ken “Nardo” Murray, Ronny “Mouse” Weiss, Gary Freeman, and Larry Stanley. Photo by Mac K. Miller III

album of Dylan songs. You know the material is good,” Brians says.

Weiss agrees. “We felt the responsibility of introducing a new generation to Dylan. Our greatest hope is they will appreciate his music as much as we do.”

Performers on Walking in Dylan’s Shoes include lead vocals, guitar, steel and dobro: Ronnie “Mouse” Weiss; bass, harp: David Stanley; percussion and drums: Ken “Nardo” Murray; guitar, and banjo: Larry Stanley; trombone: Curtis Fox; organ, keyboards: Gary Freeman; backup harmony vocals: Suzanne Brians; piano and backup vocals: Robin Hood Brians The music is available online at CD Baby, Spotify, YouTube, and Mundt Music in Tyler.

VIDEO

Photo by Peter Frank Edwards



Grammy Award Winner Ranky Tanky is Set to Perform in Lufkin This Grammy Award winning, Charleston, SC-based quintet, Ranky Tanky, performs timeless music born from the Gullah culture of the southeastern Sea Islands.

Their debut album was featured on NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross and the TODAY show. It also soared to the #1 position on the Billboard, Amazon, and

iTunes Jazz Charts. Playful game songs, ecstatic shouts, and heartbreaking spirituals can all be found on their latest release Good Time, which also offers the group’s first original songs inspired by Gullah tradition.

The music draws on the culture of slave descendants from Gullah, a region of coastal sea islands that stretches from

the southern coast of North Carolina to the northernmost part of Florida.

Ranky Tanky performs at 7 p.m. March 4 at The Pines Theater in Lufkin.

The event abides by COVID protocol with social distancing and masks required. Go to thepines.visitlufkin.com for tickets and more information.

See Paxton and Don Juans in Livestream Concerts VIDEO

 VIDEO

 Did you know?

Hey “This Is Us” fans — did you know that Toby/aka Chris Sullivan has a band called Joseph the Spouse? He’s really good. Listen to this one called “Laughing As Hard As I Can,” from his album Six Feet From Under. The song is co-written with Dawes’ front man Taylor Goldsmith. Goldsmith is also Sullivan’s co-star Mandy Moore’s husband.

Grammy Lifetime Achievement awardwinner and folk icon Tom Paxton teams up with the Grammy-winning singer songwriter duo The Don Juans — Don Henry and Jon Vezner — to do seven livestream performances in April. The

shows promise an intimate concert experience full of harmonies and original songs, plus a 15 minute Q&A following.

Tickets are $20. Visit www.tompaxton. com to see all the dates, times, and links to purchase tickets.

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 41

VIDEO



Ally Venable Releases New Record Ally Venable, an award-winning 21 yearold guitarist from Kilgore, Texas, just released her fourth long player, Heart of Fire via Ruf Records.

Rolling up the amps, this release from the acclaimed singer-songwriter is a record Venable hopes her fans find inspiring.

“My vision was to spread a positive message of love,” Venable says. “The world needs that right now.”

If Heart Of Fire finds Venable giving the globe some much-needed love, then the feeling is entirely mutual. Still, in her early twenties, her two decades have moved as fast as her fingers, her path winding from childhood church choirs to the teenage influence of local heroes

like Stevie Ray Vaughan and Miranda Lambert.

So far, Venable has released four albums; No Glass Shoes (2016) and Puppet Show (2018) earned her international fans, Top 10 charting, and ETX Awards, but it was 2019’s #2 Billboardcharting Texas Honey and house-rocking sets on that year’s Blues Caravan tour that sent her to the next level. Now, with Venable’s fanbase snaking further around the block every time she blows into town, Texas roots icon Mike Zito has no doubts, “Ally is the future of blues and the crossover music of American roots-rock.”

Working at the Bessie Blue Studio in Stantonville, Tennessee, with worldrenowned producer Jim Gaines, Heart

42 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

of Fire finds Venable laser-focused on her songcraft, challenging herself to write unguarded honesty, even if it hurts.

“On this album, I wanted to create a tone of overcoming struggles and persevering,” she explains.

Like any battle, this record gets loud.

In a world of electronic pop, this oldsoul gunslinger riffs up a storm on the Led Zeppelin-worthy sting of “Hard Change” and “Do It In Heels,” revs up the slinky hook of “Sad Situation” and drives the title track’s intro with a heavy boot.

“That song is about being in a state of sadness,” she explains, “and someone comes along and brings you out of it,

and then nobody can snuff out your flame.”

The only player who could follow her fretwork is special guest Kenny Wayne Shepherd, who tears up “Bring On The Pain.”

Watch Virtually As We Banjo 3 Band Members Perform Together in Ireland

Venable says, “That song is about loving someone, staying true to yourself during the bad times and saying, ‘No matter what’s going on, my love won’t change. Kenny is one of my heroes, so I’m very honored he said yes to be a part of the song.”

While nobody is better at squeezing fresh juice from the blues-rock genre, Venable’s songwriting frequently forks into left field. There’s the chaingang stomp of “Hateful Blues,” its lyric cursing a cruel lover. There’s the pace-changing cover of Bill Withers’ classic “Use Me,” reborn here with congas, rubberband bass, and a groovin’ lick. And the impossibly wistful “Road To Nowhere,” featuring Devon Allman dovetailing with Venable on the chorus harmonies.

VIDEO



“Devon jumped right into the song, elevated it, and brought it to life,” she says. “His vision for the song aligned perfectly with mine, and I’m so happy with how it turned out.”

Tune in from the comforts of home at 4 p.m. CST March 13 to see the dynamic We Banjo 3 perform together live on stage for the first time since the Pandemic Pause from the Pearse Lyons Distillery in Dublin, Ireland.

taining an unwavering devotion to the essential audience experience. They converge the shared and varied traditions of Americana, Bluegrass, and Celtic music with pop-sensible songcraft to create their signature sound.

The same could be said for Heart Of Fire. Defiant, passionate, honest, and raw, this is the record these times demand from an artist who refuses to wait for the storm to pass but prefers to dance in the rain.

The Galway, Ireland, and Nashvillebased quartet––comprised of two sets of brothers, Enda and Fergal Scahill and Martin and David Howley––continually push musical boundaries while main-

Click on the video link to hear “Prettiest Little Girl.”

“My goal for this album was to give an outlet for people,” Venable says. “That’s really where the core of these songs comes from.”

Get Sunny Sweeney’s Latest Album

Find out more on www.allyvenableband.com.

Tickets are available on www.webanjo3. com for $20.

Sunny Sweeney didn’t have great aspirations of being a singersongwriter while growing up in Longview. She said she just did “regular kid stuff” but she was surrounded by country music and somewhere along the way she developed her own fiercely independent, country-girl vibe.

She’s taken advantage of some down time during the Pandemic Pause to entertain with virtual livestream concerts and put together a new album Recorded Live at the Machine Shop Recording Studio. Learn more about her in the County Line archives and on www. sunnysweeney.com.

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 43

Catching up With Cas Haley at Big Hope Farm

By Lisa Tang Cas Haley makes great music look easy.

He sings joyfully and dances on stage and in videos, igniting the world with hope.

The Haleys’ Big Hope Farm near Paris, Texas, is full of that. The Haleys — Cas, Cassy, Eben, and Nolah — raise chickens, Red Wattle hogs, vegetables, and music — lots of music.

More than the family home, the farm also serves as a retreat, music studio, and movie set for podcasts and music videos.

Cas’ latest album is All the Right People, just released on Jimmy Buffet’s Mailboat Records label. People celebrates the simple life, combining easy rhythms with more complex instrumental arrangements.

The sound is characteristically Cas — optimistic and sunny, confident and contemplative. His honeyed voice lends itself to upbeat reggae rhythms like Bob Marley’s “Three Little Birds (Everything’s Gonna Be Alright)” and his other favorite male soloists: Paul Simon, Sam Cook, Stevie Wonder, and Paul McCartney.

The first single on People is “Blue Jeans,” a simple story of a young couple enjoying their life together: “You want to go to town, girl / don’t want to see you frown, girl / No, just want to make you happy.”

The album’s cover song, “All the Right People,” is a joyful sing-along with Haley’s band and family. It’s a celebration of his intentional work-family balance.

“I started traveling with the family and then that led naturally to us playing more music together and my kids getting more interested in music,” Cas says. “I’ve really tried to make it a family thing versus just a me thing.”

In People, the Haleys write songs and sing together, while son Eben plays bass and daughter Nolah plays fiddle.

Jon Batiste, bandleader and music director for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert states his appreciation for Cas’ outlook:

“Your purpose in the music is all about the community, in particular the community that you have built in your household,” Batiste says. “I imagine, in a hundred years, your songs could be folk songs — like people will sing your songs because they are the fabric of everyday life.”

Another smash performance of “Red, Red Wine” with reggae group UB40 landed Cas squarely in second place.

He fell short of the $1 million prize but grew his connections in the music industry and even landed a Sony recording contract — before leaving it all and returning to Texas.

Cas shot to fame singing “Walking on the Moon” by The Police in 2007 for Season 2 of America’s Got Talent.

Too much fame proved too far outside Cas’ comfort zone. Wanting to be true to roots, he returned to his family, farm, and music.

His pitch-perfect honeyed high tenor wowed judges and the audience. Impressed with the talented performance, Judge Piers Morgan exclaimed, “You actually sang it better than Sting.”

44 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

Authenticity is his way of life.

Like a big kid, Cas just wants to have fun playing music and make everyone

VIDEO



“I always feel like I’m writing lyrics as advice to myself,” he says.

ance from professionals like Texans Matthew McConaughey and Ruthie Foster before heading to Capitol Studios in Hollywood to record an album.

He also filmed commercials for Lincoln and a documentary about “The Road I’m On.”

Now at 40, the part-time musician, parttime farmer is hoping to keep it real with his fans — but especially with his family.

Instead of taking it on the road though, Cas took a sabbatical at home at the onset of COVID-19. The folksy “Road” celebrates the twists and turns of life.

Cassy Haley is still overcoming a battle with a rare, aggressive form of breast cancer diagnosed in 2017. Her near tragedy is drawing the family closer and affecting his outlook.

“Sunshine, rain or storm, yeah / It’s all the same. / Blessings always come / Rearranged.”

else happy. His lyrics speak to listeners’ hearts because he shares his life like an open book but never attempts to preach to anyone.

One thing the family is happy about is that Cas won the grand prize in Lincoln Motors’ “Chart Your Course” songwriting competition in 2020. His song “Every Road I’m On” beat out 1,600 contestants nationwide.

He won a new SUV and received guid-

Though written before the pandemic, the song struck a familiar chord. “[Road is] all about the unknown and embracing presents through the unknown,” he says.

Cas still focuses on writing songs, working on the farm, and hosting live podcasts. He’s looking forward to resuming

(Opposite) Singer songwriter Cas Haley on his family’s Big Hope Farm near Paris, Texas.

(Above) Nolah, Cas, Cassy, and Eben Haley live, work, study, and play music together at their family farm. Cas and Cassy are homeschooling Nolah and Eben so they can travel together. Courtesy photos.

live performances but continues to connect with fans.

On the “Big Hope Podcast,” Cas speaks to the different musicians who contributed to his album and discusses their backgrounds.

On “Coffee with Cas,” he plays requests from viewers around the world on Saturday mornings to share his own music, prizes, and covers of the greats. He enjoys connecting to listeners and always ends on a hopeful note.

“I hope you guys have a good weekend and, ya know, stay positive,” he says during a recent “Coffee with Cas” episode.

“Keep the vibes up.”

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 45

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YLINEMA GAZINE

.COM

Townes Van Zandt TRIBUTE TO

This event is outdoors and follows CDC safety guidelines.

SUNDAY

March 7, 2021 2 - 4 p.m.

Followed by Open Jam

FEATURING Cole Allen Dave Sherman Nick Brumley Presley Haile Nate Kipp Andie Kay Joyner Zach Aaron

BEN WHEELER

Van Zandt County, Texas FOR MORE INFORMATION www.theforgebenwheeler.com (903) 833-5970

Singer-songwriters pay tribute to the most influential Texas songwriter of the 20th century.

FREE ADMISSION. Suggested Donation: $10

VIDEO



All proceeds go to musicians and the Van Zandt Arts & Cultural District Foundation

To learn more about the Van Zandt Arts & Cultural District Foundation and find lodging visit www.VanZandtACD.com.

VA N Z A N D T ARTS & CULTURAL DISTRICT

VA N Z A N D T

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 47

Mary of Puddin Hill Returns to Greenville

By Lisa Tang A Texas Snowball, a Thingamajig, and a Little Pud are just a few of the sweets known far and wide produced by Mary of Puddin Hill. But it is another treat that started it all and a recent turn of events that brings this famous fruitcake story full circle.

It was more than 180 years ago that the Republic of Texas gave James and Mary Horton 625 acres of Blackland soil near Greenville, Texas. The Hortons arrived on their new property on a rainy day in 1839. As Mary slogged up a rise through thick, black mud, she told James, “This is like walking in pudding.” James spread his arms wide, and there and then proclaimed it “Puddin Hill.”

It is here where Mary became known for

making delicious fruitcakes. Her recipe was passed down through the family for generations.

More than a century after the Hortons arrived on Puddin Hill, their great, great granddaughter — also named Mary — took the family fruitcake recipe to a whole new level. In 1948, she and her husband Sam Lauderdale were living in Austin and attending the University of Texas. They began baking and selling the fruitcakes from their apartment. The couple then moved to her ancestral land in Greenville and started Mary of Puddin Hill bakery, which continued for almost seven decades.

A retail store was added in 1975 and a candy kitchen in 1980. It was a magical place for visitors and tourists alike filled with heavenly aromas and sweet

artistic creations. From white chocolate 300-pound doll houses, to a seven-foot tall carousel featuring ponies in dark, white, and milk chocolates, the store was famous for its warm ambience and entertaining concoctions.

Despite its popularity, by 2011, Mary of Puddin Hill was struggling. Larger bakery chains circling the area, construction and a downturn in traffic on Interstate 30, and other economic factors caused then owner Ken Bain to open and close a few times until he closed the doors for good in 2014.

In 2015, another long-standing Texas bakery, Eilenberger’s of Palestine, bought the name, recipes, and equipment, and relocated operations to Palestine.

“Mary of Puddin Hill was a great match for us because they had compatible products and ingredients,” says Ava Harmon, Eilenberger’s marketing director. “The [Puddin Hill] candy line made it even better for us.”

The famous Mary of Puddin Hill cakes, pies, cookies, and chocolates are sold in person at Eilenberger’s and online through an extensive mail order business.

After six years, the people of Greenville were still grieving the loss of their beloved fruitcake paradise. Luanne Dickens of Greenville Floral & Gifts decided

48 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

to see what she could do about it and met with the Eilenberger’s team. To everyone’s delight, they formed an agreement to bring a Mary of Puddin Hill store back to Greenville.

Known as Luanne’s Mary of Puddin Hill, the new store in downtown Greenville sells many of the bakery’s original treats, alongside dozens of gift items.

Dickens provides a full showroom of candies, chocolates, pies, and the famous fruitcake that all come from the Palestine bakery factory.

Opening in November of 2020, just in time to sell Puddin Hill’s famous treats for the holidays, sales at the Greenville store resulted in a blockbuster year for Eilenberger’s which struggled (in a good way) to meet the demand. “[Their truck was] coming on a weekly basis and taking the items back to Greenville because they were flying off the shelves,” Harmon says.

Dickens is also pleased with the shop’s sales and the community’s enthusiasm for the products.

“People are just so excited about having it back,” Dickens says. “It makes me get chills when people are so happy.”

Welcome home Mary of Puddin Hill.

Luanne’s Mary of Puddin Hill is open 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and is located at 2518 Lee Street in Greenville across from the Hunt County Courthouse. Call (903) 453-8033 for information and visit their Facebook page. For more information on the Palestine store, go to www.eilenbergerbakery.com.

The Original Texas Pecan Fruitcake (opposite top) came from a recipe passed down in one family for many generations. (Opposite left) Luanne Dickens and her family in front of the sign that once hung in the Mary of Puddin Hill store owned by the Lauderdale family. The new store is located in downtown Greenville and bears the name, Luanne’s Mary of Puddin Hill. (Top right) Mary and James Horton and their children. They settled a land grant of 625 acres near Greenville in 1836 — where legend says the first Mary of Puddin Hill made and sold fruitcakes. (Middle right) The Mary of Puddin Hill bakery and retail store on I-30 near Greenville served the public for almost 70 years. (Bottom right) Sam and Mary Lauderdale built a nationwide fruitcake business based on her great grandmother’s recipes.

MARCH/APRIL 2021 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • 49

FOOD & DRINK Winnsboro Life Blooms This Spring The small, but mighty, town of Winnsboro, Texas, always seems to have so many good things going on. Much of that has to do with the fact that its foundation is centered around food and art.

Several big projects are blooming wide open this spring.

Sinclair Market is a neighborhood corner store that offers freshly prepared grab-and-go meals as well as an assortment of self-serve coffees and teas. An inviting patio welcomes people to sit and visit, eat a quick bite, or have a glass of wine. Visit Sinclair Market on their Facebook page to keep up with their progress.

The Winnsboro Farmers’ Market kicks off the 2021 season in April with a new home that’s a destination all its own.

Relocated next to the railroad tracks along Carnegie Street, they’ll continue

VIDEO

 to provide fresh, local produce. It features several pavilion like structures for vendors, sitting areas, and a boxcar serves as another structure. Check out this video to see more and visit www. winnsborofarmersmarket.com.

There are several new restaurants opening soon in downtown Winnsboro. Z’s

Main Street Treats & Eats is featuring an old fashioned ice cream parlor, elevated casual dining, and a specialty bar.

Learn more at www.zsmainstreet.com.

Cypress Creek on the Bowery is a new brewery and winery on Market Street.

Visit their Facebook page, CCSA Bowery.

A New Queen in Palestine

Queen St Grille in The Redlands Hotel in Palestine, Texas, has a new chef, a new menu and a new look. See Lisa Tang’s recent review in FEAST Texas.

Photos by Dave Shultz 50 • WWW.COUNTYLINEMAGAZINE.COM • MARCH/APRIL 2021

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