Vaquero Grill Opens on South Main

The Vaquero Grill

Roscoe’s newest restaurant, the Vaquero Grill, opened for business on Saturday.  Located on 1006 S. Main Street, it is where the Roscoe Flower & Gift Shop used to be, across the street from the Stripes station and just north of Hagerman’s Napa Auto Parts. 

Owned and operated by Victoria Armenta, the Vaquero Grill is open seven days a week, 6:00am to 9:00pm Monday through Friday and 8:30am to 9:00pm on Saturday and Sunday. 

Both Mexican and American food are served, and a wide variety of dishes is available.  A glance at the breakfast menu, for example, reveals such choices as the John Wayne Plate (2 eggs, two sausages, hash browns, and toast), several kinds of pancakes, huevos rancheros, and several varieties of breakfast burritos, along with other choices.  

Dinner choices include taco, tostada, burrito, and fajita plates among others, along with burgers, chicken fried steak, catfish, and steak.  Daily lunch specials are offered, as are children’s plates.

Prices are reasonable and fairly standard for this area, and there is a 10% discount for senior citizens.  Private parties may be booked, as there is room to seat 16 guests comfortably.

For more information, phone 325-766-3460. 

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RS&P HISTORICAL MARKER APPROVED FOR MEMORIAL PARK

At its meeting on January 27 the Texas Historical Commission approved the issuing of an official historical marker commemorating the Roscoe, Snyder & Pacific Railway and the contributions it made to Roscoe.  Sponsored by Suzie Alford’s third graders, the 18” x 28” marker will be placed in the Memorial Park on Cypress and Broadway, across the street from the Roscoe Historical Museum. 

And speaking of the RS&P, the Roscoe Historical Museum has recently added an RS&P website.  It is still a work in progress, but enough has been done to officially announce its existence.  Besides some slideshows, there is also a prose history of the short-line railroad that served Roscoe from its first run to Snyder in 1908 to its last one in 1983.  Its home page is here. 

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SOME INFORMATION ON THE ST. GEORGE HOTEL

A couple of weeks back I mentioned that I’d been unable to find out anything about the St. George Hotel, which used to be in Roscoe.  But Bruce McGlothlin, owner of the Feed Store and More, told me he felt sure he’d seen something about it somewhere before, and, sure enough, he was going through a box of papers the other day and found an old article about Roscoe that J. B. Cooper, Jr., had once given him. 

Entitled “Roscoe, the Magic City of West Texas,” it was published in the July 16, 1908, issue of the Sweetwater Telegram.  A long article for a newspaper, it begins by talking about how Roscoe is booming and what a wonderful town it is.  Then it lists all the major businesses in town and writes a brief paragraph about each one—and the St. George Hotel is on the list.  

Here’s what the article says about it:

St. George Hotel – The principal commercial hostelry of Roscoe is the St. George.  This hotel is a good one, and commercial travelers know just what we mean when we say that.  Mr. I. T. George has been at the head of this house for the past two years, and by constant effort in catering to the wants of the traveling public has now a good substantial business.  The house contains 21 rooms in all, well and comfortably fitted up for the accommodation of all guests.  Rates from $1.25 to $2.00 per day.

So, there it is.  It doesn’t answer all the questions we asked about it, but it’s a lot more information than we had.  I wonder if Mr. George considered himself the St. George in the name of the hotel.  There has to be a story there.  In any case, thanks to Bruce McGlothlin for providing this information.  The article has specific information about the various businesses of the town in 1908 and provides fresh insights into what life was like in those early days.

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PLOWGIRLS BEAT MAIDENS, LADY YELLOWHAMMERS

The Plowgirls stayed in contention for the playoffs by winning two more games this past week.  On Friday night they defeated Haskell 34-29.  Faith Boren was Roscoe’s high scorer with 11 points.  Lynnsi Moses had 7, and Sara Kingston had 5.  The Plowgirls led at the half 16-15.

Then last night in Rotan they defeated the Lady Yellowhammers 42-24.

The Plowgirls are now 14-13 on the year and 4-4 in district play.  Their next game is here on Friday night against Hamlin.

--o--

PLOWBOYS LOSE TO HASKELL AND ROTAN

The Plowboys lost two more games this past week.  On Friday night, the Haskell Indians beat them in Plowboy Gymnasium 69-31.  The halftime score was 30-15.  Jesus Leanos was the high scorer for the Plowboys with 12 points.  Luke Rovig was next with 7, while Keeston Ford had 6.

Then last night the Plowboys fell to Rotan in Rotan 50-42.  They are now 1-19 on the year and 1-6 in district.  Their next game is Friday night at home against Hamlin.

--o--

WEATHER REPORT

Since rain was still falling as I posted last week's issue,  I was unable to post its total.  At the end of the day, Roscoe's official weatherman, Kenny Landfried, had 1.5" in his rain gauge on the east side of town, while Lyndall Underwood's on the west side of town had 1.3".  Reports I heard about other area locations seemed to fall within that range.

The rain brought January's total up to 3.25", the most Roscoe has recorded for that month since 1983, which had 3.48".   The only other year since then with as much as three inches in January was 1991 with 3.09".

It would be nice if a wet January were a harbinger for a wet year, and indeed that was the case for 1991, the wettest year on record for Roscoe with an official total of 37.05".  But the total for 1983 was 19.42", more than two inches below the average.  We'll just have to wait and see.

The rest of the week was sunny and generally very nice for January.  The last couple of days have been t-shirt weather with highs in the upper sixties and lower seventies.  Today and tomorrow should also be warm and sunny with a 50% chance of rain tomorrow night and a 40% chance on Friday.  The weekend will be sunny and cooler with highs in the fifties.

--o--

† TIMOTHY SCOTT GRAY

Timothy Scott Gray, 39, of Champion died on Friday at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas due to complications from a chronic illness.  Funeral services were held yesterday at Trinity Baptist Church in Sweetwater and followed by interment in the Champion Cemetery.

Timothy Scott Gray was born on November 19, 1972, in St. Louis, Missouri.  He grew up in St. Louis and Victoria, Texas, and graduated from Victoria High School in 1991.  He then served for five years in the Air Force and met Kimberly Cornutt while stationed in Abilene.  They were married in 1996, had two children, and lived in Champion.  A member of the Trinity Baptist Church in Sweetwater, he worked as an electronics technician for Ludlum Electronics and served on the Highland ISD Board of Trustees.  

He is survived by his wife, Kimberly, and two children, Kylie and Dustin, of Champion; parents, Chris and Rosemary Jochen of Victoria; sisters, Rachel and Mallory Jochen of San Antonio; brothers, Derek and Matthew Gray of St. Louis; grandparents, Harold and Joyce Ulch of Cedar Hill, Mo.; father-in-law and mother-in-law, Donnie and Jarmila Cornutt of Champion; as well as aunts, uncles, in-laws, and cousins. 

An Unknown Local Hero from World War II?

John Pickens, USN, and his letter to Marion Duncan. (Click on photo to enlarge.)

Last October when I prepared a military display for the Roscoe Historical Museum honoring Roscoe’s veterans, I included a book entitled The Men and Women in World War II from Nolan County, which contains photos and information of over 850 local men and women who served in that conflict.  It never occurred to me at the time that of all the people included in that book, none of them were black.

Recently, however, I was looking through some materials left to the Roscoe Historical Museum by longtime local farmer Marion Duncan, who died in 2004.  Among them was an envelope with an enclosed letter and photograph from John Pickens, a black man who had obviously worked for Mr. Duncan and had probably lived on his place west of town.  Like many other young men and women in those days, both black and white, he had also apparently joined the military service when war broke out.  

The letter, written by Pickens from the U. S. Naval Hospital in Bremerton, Washington, in January 1943, is a fascinating relic of the war and at the very least deserves some recognition, so I present it to you here in its entirety exactly as it was written.  As you notice the misspellings, keep in mind that black people who grew up in west Texas in those days had little to no formal schooling, and it was unusual to find one who had been beyond the third grade.

     U S naval Hospital – Ward – E,                1-13-43

     Mr Merrion Duncan
     Dear frind Just a few lines to let you
     here from me  I am filling puty good now
     I ben in hospital 3 mounths all redy
     I had 3 Ribs Broke and my right leg Broke
     I stayed in the water 10 days on a life Raft
     Nothing to Eat no water to Drink it was 7
     of us got Save some got lost My ship was
     sunk at the Battle of Soloms iland  2 torpeds
     hit my ship By a sub rine one morning a Bout
     3 30 oclock  But when I get up I am gowing
     Back to the Sea some great Day I will Come to
     Bee a hero I hope cost I know I am cripple
     But never mind my cripple leg let me
     show my uncle Sam what I coud help
     Bring them axis Down a pag cost gord [ed.: peg because God?]
     give me right to Bee a free amer icon
     how is your father and sister and the
     Boys tell then helo for me
     So the Best of Luck to you all
     So I will close
     U S Naval Hospital – Ward – E
     Bremerton Wash
     John Pickens J D Jr USNR

The Battle of the Solomon Islands took place August 24-25, 1942, and was a major naval battle between the American and Japanese fleets.  Pickens may have been on the destroyer Blue, which was sunk by a Japanese torpedo.  

If any of you have any information about John Pickens or any other local black men or women who served in the military in World War II, I’d be interested in knowing it.  Their roles in the war should also be remembered and their service honored.

--o--

ROSCOE STUDENTS WIN HONORS, AWARDS AT THE NOLAN COUNTY STOCK SHOW

Several members of the Roscoe FFA came away with honors at the Nolan County Livestock Show held in the Nolan County Coliseum last weekend.  

Stina Tomlin had the Grand Champion goat as well as the Champion BOPB (Black Other Pure Breeds) swine; Devon Freeman and Hannah Weems both received Nolan County Livestock Association scholarships, Devon’s for $700 and Hannah’s for $500; and Alura Renteria, Devon Freeman, and Luis Villa all won showmanship honors, while Christian Diaz received an honorary showmanship award.

Other Roscoe winners included in swines John Ruben Herrerra with the 2nd place Duroc middleweight, Cameron Fisher with the 2nd place WOPB (White Other Pure Breeds), Alura Renteria with the 3rd place Cross Light Weight, and Cameron Fisher with the 3rd place Cross Heavy Weight.  

In goats, Kamren Fisher got a 2nd place in Class 3, and Chasity Diaz got a 3rd place in Class 4.  

Several Roscoe students are preparing to show their animals at the upcoming Southwest Exposition and Fat Stock Show in Fort Worth.

 

--o--

PLOWGIRLS DOWN STAMFORD IN 44-41 THRILLER

Plowgirl Lynnsi Moses calmly made three consecutive free throws with only a couple of seconds left to break a 41-41 tie as the Plowgirls won another close one in Plowboy Gymnasium Friday night.  Even then the game was still in doubt as a Stamford player threw up a long three-point shot at the buzzer that bounced off the rim.  

Moses led the Plowgirls with 21 points, while Faith Boren had 12.  The Plowgirls are 12-12 on the year now and 2-3 in district play.  They played Munday in Munday last night.

--o--

PLOWBOYS DROP TWO, ONE TO STAMFORD AND ONE TO MUNDAY

Stamford remained undefeated in district play by defeating the Plowboys 55-20 in Roscoe Friday night.  The game was never in doubt as the Bulldogs jumped out to a 27-2 lead in the first quarter and then cruised the rest of the game.  The halftime score was 42-8.  

Hermosillo had 6 points for the Plowboys and Matthew Cuellar and Cutter Davila both had 5.
Then last night, the Plowboys lost another one, this time to Munday in Munday 66-17.  Once again, the game was never in doubt as the Moguls jumped out to a 31-3 first quarter lead and were up at the half 54-9.  Jesus Leanos had 7 for the Plowboys, and Keeston Ford and Cutter Davila both had 4.

Munday is now 4-1 in district play and the Plowboys are 1-4. They face Haskell here on Friday.

--o--

WEATHER REPORT

The first sandstorm of the year came on Sunday, and it was a big one with sustained winds of 20-30 miles per hour and gusts well above that for a large part of the afternoon.  During its height, several of the composition shingles on the roof of my house blew off and landed in the back yard, and I had to get up on the roof and nail several others down to keep them from doing the same thing.

The dusty skies are gone now.  A front moved through yesterday, and it started raining after midnight last night. So far, the area has received a half to three-quarters of an inch, and a steady drizzle is still falling.  The forecast for today and tonight is for more of the same with sunny skies and cooler temperatures returning tomorrow.   

--o--

ROSCOE EXPRESSIONS CHANGES HOURS OF OPERATION

Roscoe Expressions, formerly the Roscoe Emporium, in the Shelansky Building on the corner of Cypress and Broadway, announces new hours for the store.  It is now open from 3pm-6pm on Tuesday, 1:30pm-6pm Wednesday through Friday, and 10am-3pm on Saturday.

They receive new merchandise weekly and have now added furniture.

--o--

CIRCUS COMING TO TOWN

Circus Cico will be putting on two shows this weekend in the Community Center, one at 4:30pm, the other at 7:00pm with gates opening one hour prior.  The flyer lists "Acrobats, jugglers, dare devils, funny clowns, beautiful girls and many more surprises."  The listed price is $7 for children while nothing is listed for adults.  

--o--

† NETTIE ANNLEE TOLLISON    

Nettie Annlee Tollison, 93, of Lafayette, Louisiana, passed away on January 14 in Lafayette.  Graveside services were held on Saturday, January 21, at Roscoe Cemetery.

Born December 15, 1918, in Arlington, she worked in health care for over forty years.  She is survived by four children, Betty Joyce Ellison of Sweetwater, Patsy Yvonne Ribble of Irving, Dennis Sherman Colwell of Sherwood, Arkansas, and Dianne Guidry of Lafayette, Louisiana; 13 grandchildren; 20 great-grandchildren; and seven great-great-greatchildren.

She was preceded in death by her son, Bobby Joe Colwell; daughter, Glenda Ruth Davis; and granddaughter, Betsy Ribble.

The Mystery of the St. George Hotel

The St. George Hotel.  Judging by the automobiles, the picture seems to have been taken around 1912.

As curator of the Roscoe Historical Museum, I am always on the lookout for photos, images and information of early day Roscoe, and my searches on the Internet have occasionally been rewarded with finds that illuminate aspects of the city’s history that I previously knew little or nothing about. 

One example is the old photograph at top left from a collection at Hardin-Simmons University showing a large two-story depot under construction.  The description that accompanies it says it was in Roscoe, Texas.  However, it looks pretty grand for Roscoe, and I might have questioned the location if I didn’t have a Dallas Morning News article from August 27, 1898, that says the Texas & Pacific was building a new depot in Roscoe to replace the old one that burned down—and that the new one “when completed, will be an ornament to the town.”

At the same time, I did doubt the accuracy of another old photograph from the same collection also described as being from Roscoe.  This one, shown above, is of a fine-looking building with three floors (counting the attic) called the St. George Hotel. 

In stories I’d heard from my father, my uncle Marion, George Parks, Mary Edna Worthy and other local historians, I’d heard of several hotels in Roscoe—the Turk, the Bourland, the Kern, and the Rex—but never had I ever heard mention of anything about a St. George Hotel, especially considering that it would have been bigger than any of the others. 

Likewise, Sid Gracey, in her 1924 essay on the early history of Roscoe, mentions other early Roscoe hotels, but says nothing about a St. George.  So I figured someone had made a mistake, as sometimes happens with old photographs, and forgot about it.   

Then, a few days ago, I learned that the Fire Department owns a scrapbook containing fire department information that goes back to the incorporation of the city in 1907.  Naturally, I was interested in what it contained, so, after getting permission to look it over and scan some of its pictures, I took it home and went to work.  One of the first photographs in the scrapbook is this one of east Roscoe, said to be taken in 1908:

View from Second and Pecan Streets looking northeast toward the cemetery on the horizon.  The St. George Hotel (left in picture) is located at the corner of First and Pecan Streets.  To the right of the hotel and across the railroad tracks is the Roscoe, Snyder & Pacific Railway shops.  (Someone has written 1908 at the bottom of the photograph.) 

And, lo and behold, there on the left-hand side of the picture is a big hotel—the St. George, and the caption below the photo specifically mentions it by name. 

Moreover, on the same page of the scrapbook is a copy of the December 15, 1908, minutes of the City Council, which contains the following:

Be it ordained by the City Council of Roscoe that no frame buildings shall be constructed or built or moved within said limit without a permit from Council; said limit to be bounded on north by T&P Railroad, on east by St. George Hotel, thence south to 3rd Street, thence west to Moon Shop.

So, the evidence seems conclusive.  There was indeed a St. George Hotel in east Roscoe, apparently on Broadway and Pecan.  But if that is the case, why wasn’t it a part of the general memory of the city’s history?  How could such a nice, big hotel be apparently forgotten?  When was it built, who owned it, and whatever could have happened to it? 

I asked several people about it but, like me, none of them had ever heard of it—not my mother, not Arlon Wayne Orman, who’s pretty knowledgeable about Roscoe history, not Harold Duvall, who also knows quite a bit, nor anyone else that I asked. 

Yesterday, however, while on a visit to my mother over at the rest home in Sweetwater, I ran into Pauline Heine, who’s lived in and around Roscoe practically all her life.  Like my mother, she is 104 years old and still clear-headed. 

I asked her if she’d ever heard of the St. George Hotel, and she said no, she didn’t think so.  I said it was on Broadway in the early days over in the east part of town, and she said, “It was a pretty big hotel, wasn’t it?”  I said yes, and she said she seemed to remember it.  I asked her if she knew anything about it or what happened to it, but she said she didn’t.

So, if you know anything at all about the St. George, a fine old hotel that used to be in east Roscoe, please let me know.  I’d be happy to learn anything you can tell me.  

--o--

COMMUNITY CENTER LOOKING A LOT BETTER AFTER CLEANUP

The Roscoe Community Center got a facelift last week as volunteers gave it a good cleaning.  On Wednesday and Thursday Coilla Smith brought a group of high school students, who took out all the old ceiling tiles and replaced them with new ones, which wasn’t a clean or easy job.  The Community Center is about 6,000 square feet, and the tiles were all covered with dust and insulation—and if you’ve ever worked with fiberglass insulation, you’ll know what a pain that is to deal with. Nevertheless, the students got it all done, earning the highest praise of Mayor Pete Porter and other city officials. 

Then on Saturday a group of adult volunteers gave the inside a good cleaning and straightening up, removing all the old debris and making the kitchen and other areas spic and span.  The only task that remains is to buff the floor, and that will be done soon. 

--o--

NOLAN COUNTY STOCK SHOW SCHEDULE, JANUARY 18-21

The annual Nolan County Livestock Show is under way at the Nolan County Coliseum in Sweetwater.  Here is the schedule of events:

     Wednesday  6:00pm - Steer Show, then Heifer Show

     Thursday     4:00pm - Goat Show, then Lamb Show
                           5:00pm - Rabbit Show, then Broiler Show

     Friday          4:30pm Swine Show

     Saturday     10:00am - Honorary Show
                          11:00am – Barbecue
                          1:00pm – Awards, Premium Sale

--o--

PLOWBOYS END LOSING STREAK WITH VICTORY OVER ROTAN, BUT FALL TO HAMLIN

Move over, Indianapolis Colts.  After going winless for fifteen games, the Plowboys’ basketball team broke the streak Friday night with a close victory over Rotan 33-32, making them 1-1 in district play.  Jesus Leanos led all scorers with 19 points while Dillon Freeman had 6.  Roscoe led at halftime 18-12. 

However, they weren’t able to make it two in a row.  Against Hamlin last night, they fell by a score of 43-34.  Leanos was again the high scorer for the Plowboys, this time with 14, while Freeman had 8.  The score at halftime was 21-17.

The Plowboys are now 1-2 in district play and will face Stamford here at home on Friday night.

--o--

PLOWGIRLS DEFEAT ROTAN 42-26, LOSE TO HAMLIN 50-35

Like the Plowboys, the Plowgirls took care of business against Rotan on Friday but were unable to do the same against the undefeated Lady Pied Pipers last night, falling by a score of 50-35.  Hamlin is now 22-0 on the season and 4-0 in district play, while the Plowgirls are 11-12 overall and 1-3 in district.

High scorer for the Plowgirls was Lynnsi Moses with 11, followed by Stina Willman with 6.  The halftime score was 24-17.

The Plowgirls also face Stamford at home this Friday.

--o--

WEATHER REPORT

It was a week of normal winter weather with sunny skies and high temperatures in the 50s and 60s and lows in the 30s.  Sunday and Monday were springlike with 70° afternoons, but a cold front blew in yesterday dropping temperatures down into the fifties yesterday afternoon and the low twenties last night.  However, the forecast for the next few days is for warmer weather with highs in the sixties and seventies.  No rain is predicted.

New Business to Open Downtown

The Lamberts plan to re-open Smackers as a coffee and donut shop.

Jim Covey, who owned and ran Smackers Café for years, has sold the Smackers building on the corner of Broadway and Main to Jess Lambert, who plans to re-open the place as a coffee and donut shop.  

Nothing is written in stone, but the plan is to open as soon as possible—probably within a month or month and a half—with Tim Lambert as the manager.  The times of operation are also still not set with the morning hours the only firm decision at this point.

Nevertheless, it will be great to be able once again to have coffee and breakfast downtown, and we all wish the Lamberts great success with their new venture.  

--o--

VOLUNTEER WORKDAY AT COMMUNITY CENTER THIS SATURDAY

A volunteer workday has been planned for the Roscoe Community Center this coming Saturday, January 14, starting at 9:00am.  Your help will be appreciated. 

Coilla Smith and a group of students are kicking off the work today and tomorrow by taking down the ceiling tiles, which need to be replaced. 

For more information, contact City Hall during work hours at 325-766-3871.

--o--
 

AREA SEES FIRST PRECIPITATION OF THE YEAR

Roscoe saw precipitation in almost every imaginable form this past week as rain, snow, sleet, and even some small hail fell at one point or another during the past few days.

Last weekend the weather was sunny and mild with lows in the thirties and highs ranging from 55° to 70°F.  However, on Sunday a front moved in, cooling things off and bringing clouds and a little over a quarter of an inch of rain. 

Then on early Monday, the storm hit full force with thunder, lightning, small hail, snow, sleet, and a generally slow-falling rain.  That evening it snowed enough to knock out the signal for those who get their television via satellite, necessitating climbs to the roofs to get the snow out of the satellite dishes.  Precipitation continued to fall off and on until yesterday morning, when the sun came back out and began melting the snow.   

Areas west of Roscoe got more snow than Roscoe did.  Odessa and Midland got about ten inches, and Snyder had three.  But Roscoe got more than Sweetwater and Abilene, where it didn’t snow at all. 

Roscoe got about two inches of snow and about 1.9 inches of precipitation overall, more than the monthly average for January.  Water was standing all over town yesterday with several intersections full of the wet stuff and puddles in all the low places.

The generally slow rainfall was welcome and can only be good for land still in need of moisture after all the extreme dry weather of last year.

--o--

NOLAN COUNTY LIVESTOCK SHOW SET FOR NEXT WEEK

Several Roscoe students will be competing for prizes next weekend at the annual Nolan County Livestock Show in the Nolan County Coliseum.  Calves, goats, and sheep will be shown on Thursday, January 19, and swine on Friday, January 20, starting at 4:00pm.  The Peewee Show will be on Saturday at 8:00am, followed by the sale. 

The Nolan County Livestock Association is selling raffle tickets for a drawing on Saturday, January 21.  Tickets are $20 apiece, and proceeds go to the stock show, so you can help out by purchasing one or two.  They are available from Bruce McGlothlin at the Feed Store and More, and Allen Richburg, among others. 

Prizes include an AR-15 rifle, a 51” wide-screen TV, a barbecue pit, an iPad, yard art, a tool set, a digital camera, a portable DVD player, and five $100 gift cards to local businesses.

For more information, contact the event organizers at 325- 235-5488.

--o--

CITY TO PURCHASE LAND NORTH OF RAILROAD

The City of Roscoe’s Type A Board is in the process of buying the 3.2 acres of land just northwest of the railroad crossing at Cypress.  The Union Pacific Railway currently owns the land and has agreed to the terms of the sale.

--o--

PLOWGIRLS AND PLOWBOYS LOSE DISTRICT OPENERS IN BASKETBALL

The Plowgirls began district play Friday night by losing at home to the Munday Lady Moguls 52-46.  Lynnsi Moses was high scorer for the Plowgirls with 24 points while Sara Kingston made 10. 

They lost again at Haskell last night by a score of 37-25.

The Plowboys also lost at Haskell.  The final score was 62-29.

The Plowgirls’ and Plowboys’ next games will be against Rotan in Plowboy Gymnasium on Friday night.

Several Plowboys Make All-District Football Team

Plowboys face off against Munday in September game.

Despite the team’s losing record this fall, several Plowboy football players earned the respect of district opponents and coaches and were named to this year’s District 7-1A first and second teams:

First-Team Defense:

     Tackle - Corey Hatcher
     End - Devon Freeman
     Inside linebacker - Eric Padilla
     Defensive back - Luke Rovig
     Utility player - Matthew Cuellar

Second-Team Offense:

     Lineman: Arthur Rhoades

Second-Team Defense:

    Linebacker - Chris De Leon
    Defensive Back - Brant Burnett
    Punter - Luke Rovig

Congratulations to these Plowboys for honors well earned!

District 7-1A’s Most Valuable Player was Matthew Schovajsa of Crosbyton, and Coach of the Year was Brannon Rogers, also of Crosbyton.

--o--

PLOWGIRLS STOP EULA, WIN & LOSE IN STERLING CITY TOURNAMENT

The Plowgirls have been busy since Christmas, playing three games in the Sterling City Tournament last week and another one last night at home against Eula.

They handily won last night’s game with the Lady Pirates 34-19.  High scorer for the Plowgirls was Mirian Solis with 13 points, while Sara Kingston made 10. 

At Sterling City, they won one game and lost two.  They beat Forsan in overtime 43-39 with Kingston scoring 15 and Lynnsi Moses 12.  Then they lost to Sterling City 54-35.  Kingston was high scorer with 12 while Moses had 11.

They also lost to Borden County 33-28.  Moses had 16 points and Kingston 5.

 
Their next action will be against Munday on Friday here in Roscoe.

--o--

PLOWBOYS LOSE TO EULA, DROP THREE OTHERS AT STERLING CITY

The Eula Pirates, last year’s Class A State Champions, were too much for the struggling Plowboys last night, beating them by a score of 78-17.  The halftime score was 44-10.
Jesus Leanos had 6 for the Plowboys and Keeston Ford had 5.

The Plowboys also lost three games in the Sterling City Tournament last week.  Forsan beat them 49-31 with Cutter Davila scoring 12 for Roscoe and Ford 10. 

They then lost to TLCA (Tender Love & Care Academy) 65-40.  In that game, Ford had 13 points and Leanos 10.

Finally, they lost to Irion County 61-31 with Leanos the high scorer with 17 points.

Their next game will also be against Munday at Plowboy Gymnasium on Friday night.

--o--

WEATHER REPORT

Skies were sunny and bright for the entire week.  Last Wednesday was cool, but the weather warmed up on Thursday and Friday with highs in the sixties and only light breezes.  On Saturday, the temperature got up to 77°F and was as pretty a day as you could ask for this time of year.

A cold front blew in on Saturday night and the New Year came in with temperatures in the low thirties with brisk breezes.  It has been relatively cool since then, warming slightly to yesterday afternoon’s low sixties. 

The forecast is for continued sunny skies with highs in the fifties and sixties and lows in the thirties.

Happy New Year 2012! And a Look Back at 2011.

The time to say goodbye to 2011 has almost arrived, and what a year it has been!  

Like other years, there’s been good news and there’s been bad news, and since it’s better to finish on an up note, maybe it’s more appropriate to start with the bad news—which this year was dominated by the weather.

For the people of Roscoe, 2011 will likely go down as one of its most memorable years ever in terms of the weather—and not in a good way.  It was a year of extremes and broken records. 

It began at the end of January with the coldest weather in a generation.  Back to back storms hit the area hard, bringing temperatures all the way down to 6°F with sharp north winds and wind chills of well below zero.  The storms left in their wake a multitude of broken pipes and related disasters.

The intense cold was followed by what can only be described as the spring from hell.  The whole country, already dry from the lack of rain since the preceding October, went into full drought mode with high winds, dust storms, and wildfires.  A blaze just north of Colorado City in early March burned over 10,000 acres, and destroyed many homes.  It was just the first of many wildfires that would plague the area over the next few months.  

By mid-April, wildfires were burning all over the Big Country, and the City of Roscoe’s Spring Fling Festival was held with the smell of smoke in the air from a big fire out of control in Coke County near Robert Lee.

In April the temperature was more like that of a normal June with highs of 90°F or more for 14 of the 30 days.  The official temperature for Roscoe on April 8 was 98°, and some thermometers around town recorded readings of over 100°.   The pattern would continue throughout the summer.  May had several 100° days with the high coming on May 28 when the mercury rose to 108°.

The highest temperature of the year, 109°F, came on June 17.  June had a total of 22 days in which the temperature hit the century mark, July had 24, August 26, and September 2. 

All told, Kenny Landfried, Roscoe’s official weatherman, recorded a total of 81 triple-digit days for Roscoe this year, an all-time record.  In comparison, Abilene had 82, Austin 84, Dallas-Fort Worth 70, Wichita Falls 100, and San Angelo 96.  For all these cities, the numbers they recorded broke all the old records, usually by quite a bit.

While the heat was going through the roof, the winds continued to blow, and the lack of rainfall destroyed any chance of a decent cotton crop.  Farmers dry planted because they had to if they wanted to collect crop insurance money, but there was never any hope that anything would come up because it never rained.  Fields which in normal years are green with cotton were nothing but dry dirt.  

In early October, the big rain that everyone had been waiting for finally came, with almost everyone in the area getting from 3.5 to 5 inches, but by then it was too late for this year’s crop.

The total number of bales ginned at the Roscoe Co-op Gin was just over 10,000 bales, and that includes  all the cotton from Snyder and Roby, whose gins never opened for lack of business.  It goes without saying that all those bales came from irrigated fields since there was no dryland cotton this year.  Compare that 10,000 to the Gin’s production last year of over 70,000 bales from Roscoe area fields alone.

Official rainfall for the year was only 7.69 inches, breaking the previous record of 9.35 inches in 1998, the only other year with less than ten inches since records began being kept in 1936.  This month’s rains, totaling 1.39”, at least give us hope that next year will not be so bad, but there’s no denying that 2011 was a rough year as regards the weather.

But that’s the bad news.  The good news is that a number of improvements to the city were either completed or set in motion this year.

Work on the new reverse-osmosis water treatment plant, scheduled for completion in the spring of 2013, is proceeding as planned.  The city has received the $1,765,000 promised it from the Texas Water Development Board, and progress in the early stages of the project has come off without a hitch.

The city also received a grant from the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs that offers  up to $80,000 each to five individuals to tear down an old substandard home in Roscoe and replace it with a new one.  Several people have applied for the assistance and five of them will be chosen in January.

The city saw several other improvements this year as well.  Howard Park on Fourth and Oak now has some new pavilions that were built in the spring, and the downtown park across from the bank has one as well, along with a new brick wall that helps its looks considerably.

Three new trees were set out downtown, and the Memorial Park across from the museum has just received a new fence.  Several streets were paved for the first time this summer, including portions of Third, Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Streets, while others, such as Pecan Street, received a new topping.

This past year has also seen several big changes at the school.  The old high school building, after constant use for almost three quarters of a century, was torn down in February and March to make way for a brand new building.  Although dear to the hearts of countless exes who spent an important part of their lives in its halls, classrooms, and gymnasium, its time had finally come.

Now a new state-of-the-art building is going up in its place.  It will contain classrooms, a new gym, and a concession area that can be used both for indoor and outdoor activities. 

Other physical changes to the school include the Astroturfing of the football field, which has been going on for about a month now, along with a planned new surface for the track.  Both are projected to be finished in January, well before track season starts. 

Changes to the school’s east entrance are also underway.  Elm Street will be closed between Seventh and Eighth Streets, and the school’s front area will be changed so that children who walk home won’t have to cross the busy street, while parents who pick up their children will be able to drive right up to the school’s front on a lane that leads into Ash Street.  The practice field on Eighth and Ash will also be converted to a parking lot.

Roscoe Collegiate High School continued to lead the way in educational excellence with its programs.  Its early college program, which allows high school students to get community college credit for advanced work, resulted in 13 of this year’s 25 graduates receiving their Associate’s Degrees from Western Texas College at the same time they got their high school diplomas from Roscoe High.

The school is now also involved in a program with Western Texas College and Angelo State University that will ease the often difficult transition for high school grads to a university campus.  Counselors will come from Angelo State to advise students on college coursework and majors, and students will take trips to the ASU campus to familiarize themselves with the university setting and its offerings and opportunities.

Elections in the spring resulted in several contested seats and some new faces on both the City Council and School Board.  Pete Porter was re-elected as Mayor, and Virgil Pruitt beat Don Graham in a runoff for Place 3 on the City Council.  In September, Bobby Dyer had to resign his Council seat because of health issues, and Christi Pepper Beal was appointed to take his place until the next election. 

In the Roscoe ISD School Board election, Tim Tomlin edged Frankie Santiago for the two-year term, and Jason Freeman, Wes Williams, and David Pantoja were elected to four-year terms.

Three new businesses opened downtown in the late summer.  Bruce McGlothlin opened up the Feed Store and More across from the Lumberyard, and David Pantoja and Mark Diaz opened the VP Tire Service and Garage on East Broadway.  The Reel Deal Game Room also opened, but not for long.  Within a month it had closed its doors and was history.

The Roscoe Wind Farm, still the world’s largest, continued to be an item of interest in the national and international media.  Film crews for Channel One, a channel shown in schools all over the country, were at work here in August to interview Cliff Etheredge and get shots of the wind farms, and in November a crew from Los Angeles was here for over a week doing the same thing for a series that will air this spring on the Weather Channel. 

An article in the Texas Tribune and the New York Times discussed the effect that money from wind farms has on small town schools and used Blackwell's and Roscoe's schools as examples.  And Cowboys and Indians, a magazine that focuses on the western United States, ran an article with story and photos on the Roscoe Wind Farm.  There were also groups from France, Canada, and Japan that did the same for programs scheduled in their respective countries.

And the City of Roscoe’s three celebrations—the Spring Fling in April, the Independence Day Celebration in July, and the West Texas Wind Festival in October—were all resounding successes that brought in people from all over the Big Country to enjoy the festivities and to see the live bands that performed “on the bricks” on Cypress Street next to the bank. 

Each of the celebrations featured vendors, a children’s area with inflatables of various kinds, Plowboy Mudbogs, and fireworks shows, as well as the street dances and live bands.  In addition, the Wind Festival held the annual cookoff sponsored by the Roscoe Volunteer Fire Department, and the prize money this year was bigger than ever.

The feature band at the Wind Festival was the Bellamy Brothers, who drew a massive crowd to Roscoe’s downtown to see them and the fireworks show.  An estimated crowd of 3500 was concentrated in the little park and in Cypress Street from the Roscoe State Bank all the way back to the Lumberyard. 

Several people have asked how the festival planners can top the successes they had this year, and it won’t be easy, but those involved say they’ll find a way. 

All things considered, things are looking up for Roscoe, and if we can just get some decent weather, 2012 should be another great year for the community.

--o--

† PATSY LOU WILLIAMS

Graveside services for Patsy Lou Williams, 68, were held at 3 p.m. on Friday at Garden of Memories Cemetery in Sweetwater.  She died on Thursday at Hendrick Medical Center in Abilene. 

She was born March 11, 1943, in Coleman and married Leon C. Williams there on August 7, 1959.  A homemaker, she had lived in Sweetwater since 1965 and Roscoe since 2008. 

Survivors include her sons, Jerry Williams and wife Mary of Roscoe and Clifton Williams and wife Doris of Cisco; daughter, Sheila Chase of Arkansas; sister, Janice Merrill and husband Johnny of Coleman; and five grandchildren.  

She was preceded in death by her husband Leon and a daughter, Tracy Lynn Collins.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!  Here’s wishing the best of holiday cheer to each and every one of you!  

If you’ve already got your presents bought and your tree set up, then you’re way ahead of me.  However, I do plan to buy a tree later on today and look forward to decorating it. 

I was talking to a friend a couple of days ago, and we were remembering some of the Christmas tree decorations we made as kids—things like stringing popcorn on a thread or making paper chains from colored strips of paper looped into a circle and pasted together into links.       

I also remember beading together long strings of dyed chinaberry seeds and wonder if anybody does that any more.  If you know what chinaberry seeds look like, you know they’re perfect for beading.  They’re smaller than a marble and have five ridges that make a star shape if you look at them from the end.  They also have a hole in the middle that makes them perfect for stringing. 

The seeds are in the middle, and after we kids gathered up a bunch of chinaberries, my mother would boil them in a pot to separate the seeds from the berries.  Then she would dye the seeds with food coloring, using two or three different colors.  After they dried, we strung them on long strings, which we then draped around the Christmas tree to create a festive effect. 

I tried to find a picture on the Internet of Christmas decorations made from chinaberries, but couldn’t.  I did, however, find this picture of necklaces made from dyed chinaberry seeds, so if you’ve never seen them before, this should give you an idea of what they’re like and how strings of them are a colorful addition to a Christmas tree.     

I suspect that homemade tree decorations, such as the ones I just mentioned, are not very common any more, having been replaced by premade commercial ones, but I could be wrong about that.   

In any case, the idea is to have a pretty tree to put the presents under, and even I should be able to manage that.   Once again, Merry Christmas!

--o--

ROSCOE FFA HOLDS ANNUAL STOCK SHOW 

A good crowd was on hand Saturday at the School Barn to witness the 2011 Roscoe FFA Stock Show.  Both elementary and high school students showed off their animals to the judges and many came away winners with trophies, buckles, and ribbons donated by local benefactors.

The final results are as follows:

Goats

1.    Grand Champion – Stina Tomlin

2.    Reserve Champion – Chasity Diaz

       Showmanship Awards

1.    Junior (7th grade and under) – Lane Harrell

2.    Senior (8th – 12th grades) – Stina Tomlin

Swine

1.    Grand Champion – Alura Renteria

2.    Reserve Champion – Kamren Fisher

       Showmanship Awards

1.    Pee Wee – Dakota Freeman

2.    Junior – Kamren Fisher

3.    Senior – Stina Tomlin

Swine Breed Winners

      Duroc Champion – Lola Joiner

      Hampshire Champion – Kendall Moses

      White OPB Champion – Kamren Fisher

      Black OPB Champion – Keeston Ford

      Cross Champion – Alura Renteria    

--o--

AIDEN RICHBURG SHOWS GRAND CHAMPION PIG AT WEST TEXAS REHAB IN ABILENE

Aiden Richburg exhibited the Grand Champion pig at the 20th annual West Texas Rehabilitation Center Jackpot Pig, Goat and Lamb Show on Saturday at the Abilene Wylie FFA barn. Pigs, goats and lambs were donated by breeders across the country and purchased in a sale in October that raised over $17,000 for the Rehab.

Aiden received a beautiful belt buckle as a prize and will also be getting a custom embroidered jacket.  For more information about the Rehab, click here.    

--o--

PLOWGIRLS FALL TO CROSS PLAINS 54-26

The Lady Buffaloes of Cross Plains were too much for the Plowgirls last Friday night, beating them by a score of 54-26.  The halftime score was 34-17.  

High scorers for the Plowgirls were Lynnsi Moses with 7 points and Sara Kingston with 5.  Faith Boren and Mirian Solis both had 4. 

The Plowgirls’ next action will be in the Sterling City Tournament on Tuesday, December 27. 

--o--

† J. L. CAMPBELL

Funeral services for J. L. Campbell, 81, were held yesterday at the Champion Baptist Church, followed by interment in the Champion Cemetery.  He passed away on Sunday, December 18, at the Nolan Nursing and Rehab Center in Sweetwater.

J. L. Campbell was born in Roscoe on October 21, 1930, and lived in the area all his life.  He went to Highland School and married Roberta C. Bankhead on June 11, 1949, in Roscoe.  A member of the Champion Baptist Church, he worked as a cotton ginner and a farmer, also for USG and for Nolan County Precinct 1 for twenty years.

Survivors include his wife, Roberta, of Champion; son Bob and wife of Snyder; daughter Patsy Sanford of Roscoe; three grandchildren, Shae Sanford and wife of Abilene, Kyle Sanford and wife of Bronte, and Courtney Campbell of Abilene; and three great-grandchildren.

--o--

† MARTA MORENO ESPINOZA

Funeral services were held yesterday for Marta Moreno Espinoza, 85, at the McCoy Chapel of Memories and followed by interment in the Roscoe Cemetery.  She died at home on Sunday.

Marta Moreno was born January 19, 1926, in Normanna and married Domingo Espinoza in 1965 in Loraine.  She attended Roscoe Worship Center and had lived in Loraine and Roscoe since 1955.  Survivors include a sister, Elida Calderon, of Loraine; four nephews, three nieces, and fifteen great-nieces and nephews. 

--o--

WEATHER REPORT

Early last Thursday morning there was a light rain, which didn’t amount to much but was enough to get everything wet.  Thursday and Friday were cool and cloudy, but on Saturday the sun came out and the weather was perfect for both the stock show and the Christmas parade.  

On Sunday, it was cool and cloudy again with more light rain, maybe a tenth of an inch, and then on Monday morning, it rained some more, about a quarter to three-tenths of an inch.  The sun came out in the afternoon and with it came strong winds.  Since then it has been sunny and breezy.   

The forecast is for continued cool weather with a chance of snow tomorrow night and Friday.  The sun should be back out for Christmas Eve and Christmas with highs in the forties and lows in the twenties.