This article by Ray Spitzenberger first appeared in Images for Jan 13, 2022, East Bernard Express, East Bernard, Texas.
As one who has always loved small Texas towns, and for years, enjoyed discovering some I didn’t know about, and going there, I became keenly aware that some attracted lots of visitors and some were rarely visited.
It seems those small towns that lots of folks go to have something special which beckons visitors. Here are a few examples.
Some friends of mine not long ago went to Brazoria, Texas, to enjoy the Yellowstone Paddle Wheeler [River] Cruise and Dinner. Those from East Bernard were taken by the fact they were river-boating down their own river, the San Bernard.
In December, a group of East Bernard ladies, including my wife, took a trip to Columbus, Texas, to the very impressive Santa Claus Museum. I have always wanted to visit the Texas Polka Museum in Schulenburg, Texas, and the Rosenberg Railroad Museum, in Rosenberg, Texas, but, of course, now I’m not able to.
Other towns with special attractions are Granbury, Texas, and its famous doll museum, and Jacksonville, Texas, with its nearby Cherokee Trace Drive-Thru Safari. Both sound intriguing. And there are many more Texas towns with fascinating things to experience.
Last week, my wife and one of her friends had a delightful time traveling to Flatonia, Texas, for a tour of the Lyric Theatre, with its Blue Bell Ice Cream Parlor and its Big Time Pizza food truck, equipped with a brick oven. Peg brought home for supper an awesome Flammkuchen German Pizza from their brick oven!
Owners, Terry Ehler and John Knotts, offer a delightful variety of performances and shows at the theatre, from actors performing a Christmas play live on stage to a special Elvis Presley Birthday Celebration on January 8, Elvis’ birthday! While my wife was there, a wonderful marionette named Dolly visited with her, and a skeleton handed her a lollipop, which suggest there are marionette shows, too.
The Lyric Theatre began its life in 1879 in the Foster Buildings as the Happy Hour Theatre, performing indoors when the weather was bad, outdoors during good weather. The Happy Hour Theatre continued its live theatre performances in the Foster Buildings until 1931, when it was known as the Lyric Theatre for the first time. Undergoing exterior remodeling in the 1950’s, closing in 1967, and reopening in 2016, it is now a very vibrant theatre under Terry and John’s imaginative direction. John is a very talented artist, and so is Terry, who also has an impressive background in broadcasting and theatre.
There is more to small town Texas than folks may think. You don’t necessarily have to travel to the big cities to have fun, as those who have experienced the places I mentioned would testify to. At all of these special attractions, the people who operate them are warm and friendly, traits that characterize small town Texas.
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Ray Spitzenberger is a retired WCJC teacher, a retired LCMS pastor, and the author of three books, It Must Be the Noodles, Open Prairies, and Tanka Schoen.