GriffJon.com Blog

My extended notes after the cut, not counting a lot of the recent stuff I've found about the Sears plans.

Built 1908-09

Appears to be a modified Fullerton “Sears Modern Home” 4-Square house kit, which would have been delivered to the train depot and then transported to site and built by the original owner.

1910-11 (Earliest listed occupant) Carrol, Owen G, Teacher, TX school for the Deaf

1912-1916 Burleson, Mary (Miss) music teacher

Had her studio in the house 1916 Burleson, Mary and Jennie (Miss) Mary (b Jul 1885) and Jennie (b 1874 Death:11 Dec 1938) are both daughters of David Crockett Burleson (b 6 Sep 1837 in Texas Death:17 May 1911 in Texas), son of Gen. Edward Burleson

Louisa Weir (Wife) b. in Manchaca, TX. Marriage: 28 MAY 1861 in Travis Co., TX. Children:
1. Sarah Griffin Burleson
2. Jennie Burleson b. 1874
3. Martha J. Burleson b. Oct 1875 in Texas
4. Stephen Mack Burleson b. Dec 1877 in Texas
5. Lizzie S. Burleson b. Aug 1881 in Texas
6. Mary L. Burleson b. Jul 1885 in Texas
http://www.gencircles.com/users/belinda_pierce/12/data/3102

1910 Travis Co TX (TX,24,living w/father) -- http://www.gencircles.com/users/mickiewaldron/1/data/5346
Thelma loved her house on San Antonio Street. She could see the children on their way to school, and on the playground, at both the Elementary School and Church. Children were always special to her. Maybe that is what kept her so "young" for ninety years.
The Chambers house has a history of its own, a history she loved to tell. In 1899, Miss Jennie Burleson (a granddaughter of Gen. Edward Burleson) paid her uncle, Peter Weir, $1 for two and a half acres on the northwest side of Buda. Here Jennie built herself a house. Except for a little help from her sister, Jennie actually built the house herself. Although the Chambers added to the house as their family grew, Thelma always liked to remind people that their family's friend, Miss Jennie, really build it by herself.
http://www.buda.lib.tx.us/H11_2ThelmaChambers.html

Jennie Burleson was the second superintendent of the Waco State Home for Dependent and Neglected Children (founded 1919, currently, Waco Center for Youth) -- http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/view/WW/ynw1.html

1920 Samuel J (Fannie L) Smith Ranchman

1922 Mrs. Willie W Pryor

http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/view/PP/fpr18.html ? Maybe widow of disinherited son of William Pryor?

1924 James, Jos F (Mint O) prop James & Co

1929-31: Waldemar Metzenthin, (Aileen also Aline (student) UT Professor

http://www.utexas.edu/faculty/council/2000-2001/memorials/SCANNED/metzenthin.pdf

UT has original papers of the SongBook Committee he submitted; mostly submissions to his parody contest and some art for the cover, includes a version of “The Eyes of Texas” with alternate lyrics, and Annie Webb Blanton. He graded themm all... rather harshly...

mackbrown-texasfootball.com/pages/winningtrads/coach_index.html :
W. E. METZENTHIN
1907-08 (Record: 11-5-1)
The athletics family at UT was so impressed with the behind-the-scenes work of Waldemar Eric Metzenthin that they prevailed on him to become the head coach for the 1907 season. An energetic young language professor, Metzenthin accepted no additional pay to do the job. Born in Berlin, Metzenthin had attended public schools in Austin and in Lancaster, Pa., and had played quarterback at Franklin-Marshall and Columbia. Metzenthin did not inherit the best of worlds as Schenker’s successor. Freshmen were barred by the faculty from competing their first semester, and the program was in tough financial shape. But Metzenthin, who had been so successful in steering the program from behind the scenes the year before, came through. The first season ended successfully at 6-1-1 and the football program cleared more than $1,000. Metzenthin agreed to coach the team again, along with his professorial duties, in 1908. But his team struggled, and despite a spectacular 28-12 come-from-behind victory against Texas A&M — which allowed Texas to finish 5-4 and escape its first losing season ever — he quit after the season. Stating he was tired of the criticism, he returned to full-time professorship, and Texas began searching for a coach once again. Several years later Metzenthin would return to athletics, serving as athletics council chairman, or athletics director as it would be later known, in 1927.

1935 Harlow, Rex.F. (ruby w) student, UT (b 1892)

Wife, Ruby Daughter Esther Frances

Books:
Social Science in Public Relations c1957
Practical Public Relations, with Marvin Black 1947, 1952
PR in War and Peace 1942
Trail of the 61st (A History of the 61st Field Artillery Brigade During the World War) 1917-1919 (pub 1919)

War history
Camp Bowie during its construction
sailed to France July 31st 1918
"Sea sickness became so universal on the first evening that rail space on the deck became entirely inadequate and conditions aboard the ships were far from desirable"
--73
Brest (landed, stayed at Napoleonic barracks)
Redon by train
"Many American boys and French girls became acquainted with each other in French cafes were lessons in both French and English were exchanged. The soldiers could learn French quite easily form attractive French maids, although they experienced great difficulty in acquiring any knowledge of the language from text books or regular teachers, and the same can be said of the French girls, who preferred to learn their English from jovial American soldiers"
--p121

C.R Revis (colored) of the 347th labor battalion is responsible for a little verse that aptly describes the bean situation in Brest and Redon:
"It was beans for breakfast; it was beans for dinner;
It was beans for supper time.
It was baked beans, stewed beans, fried beans;
Boiled beans,--beans rain or shine
Sometime is was lamb, chicken or ham,
A stranger you may have seen;
But the thing I mind was I got mighty dam tired
of eatin' just beans, beans beans."
--123-4
Camp De Coetquidan
quartered Napolean troops, used by his firing squads

"Practically the only source of amusement in Coetidan was that afforded by the "drag", as it was called. The "drag" was a series of stores and selling booths erected along the road leading to the main entrance of the camp. Almost all kinds of small articles could be purchased in these stores and the men frequented them freely to buy food and drinks. Because of the great number of potatoes served to the soldiers at several places along the road, the whole place was finally dubbed, "Potato Alley."
--141
{because of fighting and overindulgence in alcohol} "An order was therefore issues prohibiting all men of the 61st Brigade from spending any time on the "drag" unless they had business there and could show proper authority for being "out of bounds."
--144

1935

San Bjorn Fire Insurance Maps list it (1935) with an additional back porch which no longer exists

1939 Dallas D. McLean and Waters Darmento, Margt. Mrs. (lawyer)

Waters (d) March 28, 1999 UT Law Degree Admission to Tx Bar in 1933 Clerked for law firm of ex-governor Dan Moody (1931-35?) before entering private practice Research Asst. to UT School of Law Left for US Dept of State in Mexico City Then a series of govt positions in Guam, Japan, France (post WWII?) Returned to florida Survived by husband Josef Darmento (married 1954) in Merritt Island, Fl and son Philip Waters in Dallas. Josef moved to Texarkana and died shortly after Margaret died.

1940 Mclean, Dallas D (Gladys r;2) musician

Dallas: 1man band during wwii, flew around in south pacific with troup entertainment guitar, piano, violin, drums, qwhistle, all together

They rented rooms out to ut students

doctor calhoun acting pres ut next door
had a garden, McLean rooster dug for worms, Calhoun chased rooster with hatchet

Girl Living in boys rooming house, cooking for them, brothers
owners had to visit UT boarding as they were listed as a boys boarding house, but had a girl living there.

http://lonestar.texas.net/~mdmclean/MDM_BIO.html
4. Dallas Duncan McLean

Born August 28, 1890.

Died February 5, 1979, at 1501 S. Wall St., Belton, Texas, the home of his son, Dr. Sterling R. McLean. Buried in Jefferson Reed Family Cemetery, Joe Lee, Bell Co. TX.

Married May 1, 1911, Gladys Robertson. Born May 13, 1890, near Salado, Texas. They were married by Rev. Morphis.

Father of Texas historian Dr. Malcolm D. Mclean, Author of the 19-volume “Papers Concerning Robertson's Colony in Texas”

Died December 5, 1967, Kingsville, Texas. Buried in Robertson Family Cemetery, Salado, Texas.
Note: Gladys Robertson is a descendant of John Robertson and Mary (Gower) Robertson. For their genealogy, see Malcolm Dallas McLean (compiler and editor), PAPERS CONCERNING ROBERTSON'S COLONY IN TEXAS, Vol.XI, pp. 204-215.
http://lonestar.texas.net/~mdmclean/mcleanlines.html

http://lonestar.texas.net/~mdmclean/

I have located the recordings done by my Grandfather, Dallas McLean,
circa 1950. He had a personal record making machine and recorded his own records. One of them has written on the label "for Johnny" ... That would be me. I can recall his recording machine setup and him making recordings with it when I was maybe 6 or 7.

I have about 10 of them.... Size of 45's about, and a couple of old vinyl commercial recordings. Unclear to me if these are 16.5, 33.3 or 45 RPM. You know, this takes a device with a needle, rotating turntable, other stuff that one usually finds in museums (grin).

Dallas’ son Malcolm
1947-1951 Instructor of Romance Languages, The University of Texas at Austin.
1951-1956 Assistant, then Associate Professor of Romance Languages, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.
1956-1959 Director, Binational Center, Tegucigalpa, Honduras, for the U. S. Information Agency.
1959-1961 Director, Binatonal Center, Guayaquil, Ecuador, for the U. S. Information Agency.
1961-1976 TCU
1976-1983 Professor of History and Spanish, The University of Texas at Arlington,

phd ut
travelled to Honuras, Equador
Historian

Gladys Robertson-McLean is a descendent of
Sterling Clack Robertson was born on October 2, 1785, in Nashville, Tennessee. His father was Elijah Robertson, a brother of General James Robertson, the "Father of Middle Tennessee," and his mother was Sarah (Maclin) Robertson, for whom he later named the capital of his colony in Texas. His education was placed in the hands of Judge John McNairy, with instructions that he should have "as liberal education as the circumstances will admit of."
S. C. Robertson participated in the Battle of San Jacinto (April 20-21, 1836), and joined in the pursuit of the Mexican Army as it fled across country toward the Rio Grande. From the fall of 1836 to the spring of 1838 he served as Senator in the First and Second Congresses of the Republic of Texas, helping to lay the foundation for the new nation. During that time he served as Chairman of the Committee on Indian Affairs, and as Chairman of the Committee on Roads, Bridges, and Ferries. This latter committee had to organize the justices' courts and create and define the office and power of the commissioners of roads and revenue. He was also a member of the Committee on Military Affairs, the Committee on Private Land Claims, the Committee on Finance, and the Committee on Naval Affairs.

---

1941 William G. Cannon (Vina H) (Not “The” William Cannon) 1942-1949 Wynn, Barbara MR (widow, gordon W) 1944-1945: W.T. Hendricks (fireman) Mattie 1952-Mrs. Edna Grey 1955 Palmer Lolete H, Mrs. (widowed) slsmn, Buttreys Inc 1960 Davis, Gale E, recpt, Christian Educ. Synod of Tx

1965 owner Francis Kelley Bldg permit 96444 July 14, 1965 Estimate 500
Contractor R.T. Davis Remodeled Residence

Probably closed in back porch to create kitchen areas.
Probably closed off internal stairway between bottom and top floors
[17:36] wonk: I suspect the unit 1 bedroom was the foyer with stairway access to the 2nd floor.
[17:36] wonk: The unit 1 bathroom was totally a closet.
[17:37] wonk: I believe the other 3 bathrooms are original.

1969: Jeremiah M. Shapiro; Mrs. Francis. W. Kelley; Yvonne Hunter; Bruce Fuller
1970 Francis Kelley
1975 Francis Kelly (Wid Henry R)
1975 Fuller, Bruce (Marie) Student
1977-80 vacant/no return
1979 Stemtong, Ann (1979 2807A) Banquet Mngr, G&M catering svcs

1985: Four-plex: 1-Vacant; 2-John Ratliff, 3-Mark Weber, 4-Jo Wagner
Ratliff is a writer for Texas Monthly, Texas Observer, and has also written for Nerve and covers SXSW every year
http://www.texasmonthly.com/mag/issues/authors/johnratliff.php
http://www.texasobserver.org/showAuthor.asp?AuthorID=213
http://www.austin360.com/music/content/music/sxsw/2004/sxsw_blog.html
http://www.nerve.com/regulars/lifeswork/kinkyfriedman/