Tag Archives: historical markers

local news

Where is the marker?

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

DRIPPING SPRINGS, Texas — Maybe it’s just me, but I am curious about something every time I drive into this lovely Central Texas community.

It is this: Who are individuals honored by the signs that designate sections of U.S. Highway 290 in their memory?

We see these signs honoring what I presume to be law enforcement officers. They sections of the highway are called “memorial highway,” which tells me that the individuals honored are deceased.

My curiosity, which I have in abundance — given that I spent my career as a newspaper journalist — forces me to ask: Who are these people? What did they do to merit this memorial designation?

One section is named in memory of John Allen McCarty. What did he do to merit this memorial? Did he die while performing a heroic act? I want to know these things … you know?

In North Texas, where we now live, we see a section of U.S. Highway 75 that runs through Collin County named after the late U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson. Hey, I know a little about Rep. Johnson: former congressman and a former Vietnam War prisoner held captive for more than six years in Hanoi; the man was a serious hero who earned the honor.

I am left to ponder whether it is possible to erect a marker near the sign to enable nosey-Ned motorists such as me to stop to read a bit about these individuals?

I once wrote a series of features for an Amarillo TV station about historical markers. One of the sources for that series was a gentleman who worked at the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum. He admitted to me that he stops to read all the historical markers he sees as he travels through Texas, which is saying something because the state contains hundreds of these markers.

I might be inclined to read about the fallen law enforcement officers who are honored in this fashion.

local news, media news

Searching for ‘Roadside Attractions’

sign

One of my favorite answers to the question “How are you doing?” is one I heard years ago … but it bears repeating.

“If I were any better, I’d be twins.”

There you have it. Life is good.

One of the highlights of my recent life has been the opportunity to continue writing and reporting on the community where I live. My full-time job in print journalism ended four years ago, but I’ve stayed busy.

One of the gigs has been with KFDA-TV NewsChannel 10. The folks at the Amarillo CBS affiliate gave me the title of “special projects reporter” when I started writing a feature for NewsChannel10.com. We called it “Whatever HappenedĀ  To … ?” It told stories about the status of big stories and big promises.

My bosses at News Channel 10 decided that feature had played itself out. So, together we came up with another idea.

“Roadside Attractions” is its name.

You’ve seen those historical markers scattered throughout the Texas Panhandle, yes? They tell motorists about events that happened at those sites. If not precisely at those locations, then they point you to where the event took place.

We’re going to tell the stories of historical markers. The idea is to give us all a glimpse back at our past. They’ll tell us how thisĀ region has arrived at this point. We’ll post the stories on NewsChannel10.com each Wednesday as the station airs the segment telling viewers about the markers profiled that week.

The Texas Historical Commission says the state has about 15,000 such markers. The Panhandle alone has hundreds of them posted along our farm-to-market roads, our state highways and our two interstate thoroughfares.

I’m going to search them out.

I’ll have some help in telling those stories. My friends at the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum in Canyon have been helpful in the extreme so far. They have pointed me toward local historians and have given me plenty of background on the markers.

You won’tĀ mistake these pieces as being a version of “On the Road” series that the late CBS correspondent Charles Kuralt made famous many years ago. I’m not nearly that good a story teller.

I’ll do my best, though, to bring you slices of local history as told through these markers. They’re everywhere, man. I’ll find as many of them as I can.

Michael Grauer, associate director for curatorial affairs at PPHM, calls himself a “stopper and reader” of these markers. Perhaps we can entice more of our viewers to become stoppers and readers, too.

I want to thank my friends at NewsChannel 10 for allowing me to keep doing what I love to do. It’s been a blast so far.

Let’s enjoy the ride together.