abilenet August 20th, 2008
“I came here in 1883 as a black haired boy, and now I’m a white haired man,” said H. A. Tillett, prefacing his account of the forty years he has spent in Abilene.
“I arrived with $400 borrowed money and $2,000 debts, sick with rheumatism caused by being flood bound while teaching school in Arkansas. I surely was not as good a prospect for a citizen as Abilene was a prospect for a city.
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abilenet August 13th, 2008
Judge K. K. Legett, one of the most prominent of the Taylor county pioneers, was born in Arkansas, November 6, 1857. He received his early education in the public schools, mostly in the country, but since completing that early struggle with the “Three R’s”, he has been constantly acquiring increased knowledge through numerous post-graduate courses in the great “school of experience.”
He began reading law in his youth at Cleburne, and without attending any law schools, he was admitted to practice in July, 1879. Four months later, on Nov. 12, 1879, he came to Taylor county, a year after the county was organized, and located in Buffalo Gap. It was then the only town in the county.
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abilenet August 3rd, 2008
I’ve just learned of the loss of Juanita Daniel Zachry. Mrs. Zachry was the premier historian for Abilene and Taylor County, an author of many other stories in books and magazines, and by all accounts a wonderful person. I never had the chance to meet Mrs. Zachry but her books on local history inspired me, in part, to learn more about Abilene and Taylor County and to consider sharing those stories with folks outside the immediate area. There is no person that has contributed more to local history than Mrs. Zachry. Her loss will be felt by many in the area and around the world.
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abilenet July 26th, 2008
As a child growing up in the Abilene area, I saw my share of locally generated commercials on the television. One series of commercials that has never left my mind were those with “Charles Long of Middlebrook Ford in Anson,” as was always stated at the end of the commercial. I remember Mr. Long with his Levi pants and western-styled shirt claiming the virtues of purchasing your next vehicle from him.
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abilenet June 2nd, 2008
I recently sat down with Joy Wiley of the Abilene Public Library, at which time she told me that the Texas State Genelogical Society is coming to Abilene for their annual conference. This conference, the 48th, is hosted by the West Texas Genealogical Society and will take place at the MCM Elegante Suites, 4250 Ridgemont Drive here in Abilene, on October 24th and 25, 2008. The conference will host a number of vendors as well as experts in the genealogical arena. Listen in on this conversation as Joy explains what will be available at the conference to amateur and professional genealogists alike.
Joy Wiley on Texas State Genealogical Society Conference [6:50m]:
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abilenet December 14th, 2007
This episode is a recreation of a Time magazine article published September 12, 1960, titled, “Trouble in Buffalo Gap.” Join us for this lighthearted look at the life of the Marshall of Buffalo Gap during this time.
Trouble in Buffalo Gap [4:45m]:
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abilenet April 3rd, 2007
In this final episode, part 3 of 3, we will complete our conversation with Don Frazier, professor of History at McMurry University and the Executive Director of the McWhiney Foundation, on the history of Fort Phantom Hill, Texas. This episode also include a poem by Larry Chitenden about Fort Phantom Hill.
Fort Phantom Hill Part 3 Audio [10:34m]:
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abilenet March 21st, 2007
After the initial military occupation and withdrawal, Fort Phantom Hill was used by a number of groups for different purposes. In this episode, part 2 of 3, we will continue our conversation with Don Frazier, professor of History at McMurry University and the Executive Director of the McWhiney Foundation, on the history of Fort Phantom Hill.
Fort Phantom Hill Part 2 Audio [12:32m]:
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abilenet March 7th, 2007
I wanted to know more about Fort Phantom Hill, this small corner of West Texas, so I sat down with Don Frazier, professor of History at McMurry University here in Abilene, Texas and the Executive Director of the McWhiney Foundation, to find out more about this intriguing area of West Texas and to find out if the ghost stories are indeed true.
Fort Phantom Hill Part 1 Audio [15:30m]:
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abilenet October 29th, 2006
In this episode, we will talk about an early failed attempt to create a town in Taylor County. This attempt is often referred to as “Eagle Colony.” Approximately two months before Taylor County was organized and a temporary county government and county seat was established, about 15 or so German families, 25 people in all, arrive in Taylor County and settle on the banks of Lytle Creek. Their intention was to establish a new community in Taylor County named Eagle City. The area encompassed by this new town went from one or two miles south of present-day Lytle Lake up to and including present-day Shoreline Drive in the Lytle Shores subdivision. The story of Eagle Colony comes to us from a number of sources. First is a work by Mary Hampton Clack entitled, “Early Days in West Texas.” Mary Clack settled on Lytle Creek with her father, mother and siblings shortly after the dissolution of Eagle Colony. Second is an interview with S.L. Chalk in the Morning Reporter-News dated May 20, 1928. Mr Chalk was a land surveyor in Taylor County from 1877 to 1880. Mr. Chalk states that he only knew of the colony in a general way and was aware of the whereabouts of two families after the breakup of the colony. Third is an interview with Miss Tommie Clack in the Morning Reporter-News, also on May 20, 1928. She obtained the story she tells directly from Albert Betcher, Sr., who was a boy of 13 when he came here with the German colonist and settled on Lytle Creek.
Eagle Colony Audio [12:30m]:
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