Yesteryears: 5,500 saddle up at the new Posse stadium in San Gabriel Park
145 Years Ago
(September 9, 1880)
Georgetown boys choose
work over idleness
Some of the boys in Georgetown are made out of the right sort of material. As soon as cotton opened enough to commence picking, they procured a sack and went to the cotton field. They prefer working and making something for themselves and out of themselves, to idling away their time in town. We hope other boys in town, who are idling away their time, will follow their example, and try to make men of themselves.
Any kind of honest work is honorable if it is well done. If a boy wants to succeed in this world he must make up his mind to do something. Never be idle. If you can’t get exactly the kind of work you like to do, try something else until you can.
San Gabriel river residents warn against foul deposits
Some parties have been in the habit of depositing dead animals on the point about where the North and South Gabriels join. There are several families living near there who are complaining about it. They propose to bring suit against parties placing dead animals thereafter.
125 Years Ago
(September 6, 1900)
County court
L. Hogan, selling and giving liquor to a minor (2 cases); cases ordered retired from docket.
H. Hanks, theft; plead guilty and fined $10 and one hour in jail.
T. Dickey, affray; indictment quashed and defendant discharged. In another case charging the same defendant with carrying metal knucks, the jury brought in a verdict of acquittal.
A. Server, gaming; dismissed because all the State witnesses were ex-convicts and their testimony inadmissible.
F. W. Leubner, charged with carrying a pistol; judgment is set aside and case dismissed on motion of the County Attorney. Defendant says he has quit the saloon business, and is done with trouble.
J. Sanders, adultery; acquitted.
100 Years Ago
(September 4, 1925)
School opens in one week
Everything is in readiness for the opening of school one week from next Monday in Georgetown. The teachers will leave this week-end for Belton where they will attend the four-county Institute during the week, returning for the opening on the Monday following. The largest attendance ever registered in the school is in prospect.
Looking back on 26 years of
change in Georgetown
John M. Sharpe reminds us that while twenty-six years may not seem long in the eyes of history, for those who have watched Georgetown grow, it has been a mighty spell. Where once there were but a few graveled streets, today nearly every road is paved, and modern highways stretch into town. The days of a small, flickering light system are gone, replaced by one of the finest in Central Texas.
75 Years Ago
(September 7, 1950)
Rodeo crowd jams new Posse stadium
The new $60,000 stadium in San Gabriel Park was packed to its 5,500 capacity in spite of threatening rain Monday night for the opening of the annual Sheriff’s Posse Rodeo.
Approximately seventy horsemen rode in the grand entry drills each night to open the performance. Among the dignitaries and honored guests presented nightly was the Rodeo Sweetheart, Miss Sue Godwin, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. T. H. Godwin.
Monday night, D. B. Wood addressed the audience before the performance in a speech of recognition of those who have made the stadium and arena possible.
Williamson County community
to have modern phones
Williamson County people in the area south and west of Taylor are expected to have modern telephones by fall, according to a spokesman of the Southwestern Bell Telephone Company.
Several hundred connections are to be made in the area designated by the company for the first construction and general improvement project. These modern phones bring rotary dial service to homes that have relied on crank sets, operator-assisted calls, and shared party-lines.
50 Years Ago
(September 4 & 7, 1975)
Williamson county
property values double
Assessed property valuations in Williamson County have jumped from $46.3 million in 1970 to $84 million in 1974.
County Commissioner Wesley Foust estimates with the 25 percent hike in property valuations passed by the commissioners last December that the assessment will be $95 million in 1975, which will be determined in two weeks.
Tax Assessor-Collector William Buck attributed the increased property assessment to the growth of the county. Commissioner Wesley Johnson of Precinct 1 quipped that a new subdivision seems to pop up in his area every week.
Chairnappers leave Georgetown porches empty
Lawn chairs have apparently become hot items with thieves in Georgetown.
Ten chairs and two lounges were reportedly stolen from three local residences, two of them within two blocks of each other, either Friday night or Saturday morning of the Labor Day weekend.
Mrs. Fred Sanders of 811 Elm told police two lounges and six lawn chairs were missing from the yard of her home.
“We’ve lived here 33 years and never had anything stolen until now,” said Mrs. Sanders. “Some of our potted plants were stolen in June, and now this—I’m beginning to think they’re picking on us.”
A couple of blocks up the street, two more lawn chairs were reported stolen from the patio of the Howard Sanders residence, 611 Elm.
25 Years Ago
(September 10, 2000)
Donation helps preserve shotgun house for museum
The Georgetown Cultural Citizens Memorial Association received a $5,000 donation from State Farm Insurance to aid in restoring a historic shotgun house. The CCMA plans to turn the home, built around the turn of the 20th century, into a museum dedicated to the history of African-Americans in Williamson County.
10 Years Ago
(September 9, 2015)
Skipping school
no longer a criminal act
Williamson County Justice of the Peace, Bill Gravell dismissed over 2,200 old truancy cases—some dating back 20 years—after a new Texas law decriminalized skipping school. Senate Bill 2398, which took effect September 1, reduced truancy from a misdemeanor to a civil violation, eliminating jail time and large fines.
Students will no longer face criminal court for missing school, though parents can still be fined up to $500 for repeated offenses. Judges can now order community service or tutoring instead.
Georgetown residents Laura House and Grahm Donovan produce the Sun’s “Yesteryears” column — which highlights clips from the Sun’s archive. With a deep appreciation for Texas history, Laura and Grahm moved to Georgetown in 2011 and quickly fell in love with the town’s charm, historic structures and sense of community.