Lifestyle

English language added 690 new words

As we spend a few moments reflecting on the year as it draws to a close, we couldn’t help but consider some of the new words that have arisen to describe it during these last 12 months. According to the folks over at Merriam-Webster—they’re the people who write most of our U.S.

Soar into 2024 with a First Day Hike at a Texas State Park

As the year ends, so does Texas State Parks’ Centennial Celebration, but the fun doesn’t stop when the clock strikes midnight.

A New Year with traditions/resolutions

At midnight Sunday, 2023 will be ushered out and 2024 will be rung in that brings fresh hopes of having a better year than the previous one. This is a custom for the many who have followed the Julian and Gregorian (solar) calendars for a long, long time.

Remembering Lavaca County's old Grieve School

By Murray MontgomeryStaff Writer(Editor’s note: I wrote this article in June 2012, and it was published on the website Texas Escapes on July 27, 2012.)I have always been of the opinion that old newspapers are the most important sources for historical research and provide a true window to the past.

The inventor of the stop sign never once drove a car

William Phelps Eno, born in New York City in 1858, is known as the “father of traffic safety.” He was an American businessman responsible for many of the earliest innovations in road safety and traffic control. Eno invented the stop sign around the dawn of the 20th century.

Japanese Prison could not lock out Christmas

By Murray Montgomery Staff Writer As people around the world celebrate the Birth of Christ, I doubt if many have thought about spending Christmas as a prisoner of war (POW); unless they lived through that terrible experience.

Purchasing real Texas Christmas trees boosts economy

More than 4 million real Christmas trees are sold annually in Texas, supporting farms and agriculture businesses throughout the state. As the holiday season nears, Texas A&M Forest Service encourages purchasing real Christmas trees to help boost the Texas economy.

German pioneers celebrate first Christmas in Texas

By Murray Montgomery Staff Writer As the old saying goes, “it is beginning to look a lot like Christmas,” and this edition of our newspaper certainly fits that narrative. The communities here in Lavaca County are certainly in the celebration mode.

Is the Christmas plant friend or foe? Is the kissing plant a kiss of death for trees?

Mistletoe may be a welcome holiday sight when hung over a doorway if a loved one is near, but, it can be an unwelcome intruder when found in your trees, said a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service horticulturist.

He came to Texas hoping to become a newspaper publisher

John Henry Brown was seventy-five years of age when he left this earth in 1895. Like so many other men who came to Texas, Brown led a colorful life filled with excitement and success. In her piece that appears in The Handbook of Texas, Erma Baker writes that John Henry Brown was born in Missouri.