Meetings • Blessings of Grace Food Pantry, Dec. 17, 10a-Noon • City and County Offices will be CLOSED Dec 23-26 • Commissioners Court, Dec. 30, 9a  • City Council, Jan 3, 5:30p Carnival The Excelsior House Hotel will be kicking off Carnival Season with a Chili Bowl and King’s CakeContinue Reading

Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Charles M. Schulz created a comic strip that captured the hearts of millions in the nearly 50 years that Peanuts ran in thousands of newspapers around the world.  Schulz, an amiable and soft-spoken Minnesota native and World War II veteran, had been drawing the daily strip since 1950.  Fifteen years later, heContinue Reading

Mrs. Norma Jean Washington passed away on December 19, 2022. She was born April 2, 1937, to Samuel and Maggie Fitzpatrick. Mrs. Washington was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Maurice Washington; her siblings, Alice Johnson, Sammie Davis, Justa Davis, Wilburn Fitzpatrick, Melvin Fitzpatrick, Clarence Fitzpatrick; and specialContinue Reading

Marion County Clerk, Vickie Smith, was honored with a retirement reception on Friday afternoon thrown by her staff honoring her 23 years of service with Marion County.  Her family, friends and co/workers helped her celebrate this occasion.  Pictured  are her staff: Ashley Sibert, Danielle Mauldin, Vickie Smith, County Clerk andContinue Reading

History Today Texas

1927: “Santa Claus” robs bank but muffs getaway On this day in 1927, the Santa Claus Bank Robbery occurred in Cisco, Texas. At noon Marshall Ratliff, Henry Helms, Robert Hill, and Louis Davis entered the First National Bank of Cisco with guns drawn. Ratliff, dressed in a borrowed Santa ClausContinue Reading

History Today Texas

1943: Escaped POW William Dyess resumes flying and dies in plane crash On this day in 1943, war hero and escaped prisoner of war William Dyess resumed his flying career and was killed while attempting an emergency landing in Burbank, California. Dyess, born in Albany, Texas, in 1916, was sentContinue Reading

Best Friends Animal Society, a leading animal welfare organization working to end the killing of cats and dogs by 2025, offers the following tips to keep your pet as safe as possible:   If you don’t have a pet and are considering opening your home to a new furry companion, nowContinue Reading

Gardening by David Wall

By David Wall Seeds do expire (germination rate goes through the floor), but several factors influence “when,” and even then, that so-called expiration date is a guesstimate. Many people mistakenly think a date written on the seed packet backside and is an expiration date. Seeds are alive and able toContinue Reading

History Today Texas

1847: Governor Wood takes office On this day in 1847, George Tyler Wood took office as the second governor of the state of Texas. The Georgia native had fought in the Creek Indian War at the battle of Horseshoe Bend, where he met Sam Houston and Edward Burleson. He movedContinue Reading

Motorists urged to be mindful of TxDOT crews working on the roads   ATLANTA ­– Due to a chance of winter weather conditions on Thursday, TxDOT crews plan to begin pretreating all bridges and overpasses in the district with brine starting tomorrow/Wednesday. Crews will also pretreat Interstates 30 and 20, alongContinue Reading

History Today Texas

Duval County Democratic leader shot, opening door for Parr dynasty On this day in 1907, Duval County tax assessor and Democratic leader John Cleary was killed by a shotgun blast while sitting in a San Diego restaurant. His assassin escaped as local lawmen were enjoying a fiesta, which they claimedContinue Reading

History Today Texas

Rival Lubbock County towns consolidate On this day in 1890, the rival Lubbock County towns of Lubbock and Monterey agreed to consolidate. In July 1890, W. E. Rayner and several associates found a suitable site for a town on the north side of Yellow House Draw in Lubbock County. ButContinue Reading

History Today Texas

Conjunto legend dies On this day in 1984, conjunto accordion legend Santiago Jimenez Sr. died in San Antonio. Jimenez was born in the Alamo City in 1913 and took up the accordion at age eight. His first record, “Dices Pescao”/”Dispensa el Arrempujon” (1936), was a success, and he became known for hisContinue Reading