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People have always wanted to come to Kingsland. Archaeological evidence shows that for thousands of years before Martin King bequeathed his name to the scenic valley, Indians had regularly visited the banks of the Llano and Colorado Rivers. A Spanish explorer named Bernardo de Miranda led a party of 23 treasure-hunters down the Llano River to “Kingsland” in 1756, but for more than a century thereafter the rugged hills and fierce inhabitants kept all but the most adventurous from even seeing, let alone settling, this remarkable place “where rivers flow and bluebonnets grow.”
“I may not be the only one who’s done it,” admits Dr. David Hoerster, “but I can almost guarantee that I’m the oldest.” “It” is a 125-mile kayak trip from Telegraph to Kingsland – almost the entire navigable length of the Llano River. “And it’s longer than that by canoe or kayak,” Dr. Hoerster explains, pointing out that there’s a lot of back-and-forth across the river. “Sometimes, in really shallow water, you’ve got to get out and push the boat along.”
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Cherokee is unique community in southern San Saba County, whose very name recalls a little-known chapter of Texas history. The Cherokee tribe had been one of the most populous and powerful tribes in the southeastern United States, considered by the English to be one of the “Civilized Tribes,” with their own printed language, farms, towns and even (by the 1820s) African slaves. When pressure from European settlers forced some of the Cherokees to move west, hundreds moved to Texas.
If you’re hanging around the northwestern edge of the Hill Country, eager for a good place to wet a hook, you’d do well to take a look at 6,490-acre Lake Brownwood. It was on this beautiful body of water some 40 years ago that outdoor writer Col. Dave Harbour came up with an interesting way for anglers to explore a new lake. It’s simple, fun to fish, and here’s the best part -- it’ll catch almost any thing that swims.
Guich Koock’s life has been a unique journey from the very start. A sixth-generation Texan, his mother was Mary Faulk, sister of the famously blacklisted radio entertainer John Henry Faulk, and Guich (known in his early years as “Bill”) was born at a sprawling Victorian home, surrounded by his extended family (and many notable friends) on 23 acres of beautiful farmland just south of Austin.
ohn Coleman is a master plumber, who still works at his day job. Chuck Clark is retired from a career as a civilian employee for the Department of the Army. Both want to be sure you understand that they are NOT re-enactors. But the two self-described “wild west entertainers” have managed to put together one of the most successful, entertaining and educational shows in recent memory with the custom-built, portable, western-style “town” they call Brazos Bottom.
From what I remember of the antique tractor shows in Fredericksburg, I’d say that the most popular tractors here in the Texas Hill country during the mid-twentieth century were John Deere and International’s Farmall. In Antioch, Illinois, where Bill Wurster grew up on a dairy farm near the Wisconsin border, Massey-Harris reigned supreme.
In time of war, young men bear the brunt of the actual combat; that obvious fact should never make us overlook the sacrifices of the hundreds of thousands of women who have served our country in wars all around the world. The Salute to Women Veterans event, held annually in Kerrville, is intended to honor and celebrate the service of those patriotic and courageous women.