Steam engines, mule-driven plows, beef for a nickel and beer for 20 cents a glass
From the archives
Janet Hobizal

This month, I will be gathering and sharing with you early stories about the people and places and events in Wharton County.

Early Year in Wharton

Told by Mrs. Mary Lee Allen to Kenneth Allen

The roads had ruts and the roads were dirt.

They had to pump water out of a well.

They had to cook on a wood stove.

They didn't have any electricity, they had to use lamps.

They didn't have any cars, they had wagons and mules. They didn't have electric irons, they had flat irons.

They had to make a fire and put the iron on it.

You would have a rub board because they didn't have a washing machine and dryer.

In the school house they had one room.

They didn't change rooms because there was only one teacher.

They didn't have school buses; they had to walk.

There weren't any cars. There weren't any chain saws, they had to take a wedge to break wood and had to use a cross cut saw.

They didn't have any tractors, they had a mule and a plow.

There were no diesel engines, they had steam engines.

Early Wharton

Told by Mrs. Maggie Pike to David Mason

During the earlier years Wharton wasn't a very large town but groceries and clothing were very inexpensive.

There was still some fun and enjoyment such as Wharton County Fair and there was a lot of good movies in Wharton County.

Some good times in those days you might could buy candy for a penny and meat might cost a nickel or a dime.

You might could get a beer for 20 cents or something like that.

Gas was not high and other things were not high.

Soup was five cents a bowl and it was as much as you could eat at one time.

They didn't have very good roads in that time. And that's how it was!

Hurricane Carla Told by Mr. Carl Reynolds Jr. to Neil Reynolds

Hurricane Carla began on September the fourth and lasted for about three or four days. It came with about a 120 mile an hour winds.

The wind was so strong that people had to put boards on their windows to keep them from breaking.

When it came, it brought a lot of rain.

It rained about 18 inches and filled up ditches and in some places it even went over roads.

When it came, strong wind des troyed many crops such as corn, cotton and other kinds of plants. Many homes had their roofs blown off and some houses even fell down from the strong winds.

My family had no electricity for about five days. They had to use candles and other sources of light.

When it came, it flooded the Colorado River and lots of cattle drowned.

Many people who lived by the river had to move to high land.

Millions of dollars worth of damage was done in coastal counties.

Early Wharton

Told by Ira Mae Davis to Annette Harris

The city of Wharton has been the governmental center of the county since the days of the Republic; its history is inseparable from the development of the country.

In 1846, William Kincheloe gave land for the courthouse square from his league, granted July 18, 1824 as part of Stephen F. Austin's Colony.

It was named for two brothers, William H. and John A. Wharton. Wharton County has a rich heritage.

One of the signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence, William Menefee lived here. Albert Clinton Horton, first lieutenant governor of the state made his home on a large plantation near Wharton.

Menefee and Horton were among the commissioners named to select the site for the capital of Texas.

Note: These stories were written by: The Fourth and Fifth Grade Social Studies Classes of Mrs. Billings, 1974 or 1975.

Janet Hobizal is an archivist with the Wharton County Library.