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Oct

28

Archeology Month 4: The Country Doctor

Posted by : Erik Walsh | On : October 28, 2011

Category: County, Guest Columnists

By Peggy Smith
Henderson County Historical Society

I thought I would wrap up archeology month with the country doctor. The Henderson County Historical Museum in Athens houses several artifacts that have been found pertaining to medicine. In the course of history medicine has evolved greatly from blood-letting and surgery without anesthesia often until the end of the 19th century. Examinations included a general observation of the body, using the stethoscope or the analysis of blood. Other treatments included diet instructions, rest, baths, massage, blistering specific areas of the body, sweating, hand mixed medicines, or a host of creams. Surgery was done in someone home, a doctor’s office (if he was lucky enough to have one) or in a hospital in large cities. These hospitals

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Oct

28

Archeology Month 3: The Mercantile

Posted by : Erik Walsh | On : October 28, 2011

Category: County, Guest Columnists

By Peggy Smith
Henderson County Historical Society

Not too many places in town had more traffic that the Country Store. There seems to always have been a bench or chairs just outside where many tales were born and some of them even true. Sometimes it was where the “spit and whittle” group met to carve whatever object might be hidden in a block of wood while discussing crops, family, and politics. Store owners

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Oct

28

Archeology Month 2: Cemeteries

Posted by : Erik Walsh | On : October 28, 2011

Category: County, Guest Columnists

By Peggy Smith
Henderson County Historical Commission

Don’t you just get so excited when you hear someone talking about the old family cemetery or get-togethers where they clean and repair cemeteries? As a young person I just thought those people needed to get a life. Now, I get excited when we get a few people together to go traipsing through cemeteries looking for relatives and famous individuals in the area. I grab my camera, pencil and paper, and water bottle.

Cemeteries are a necessity in life and many times they sit beside

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Oct

28

Archeology Month 1: October is Archeology Month in Texas

Posted by : Staff Reports | On : October 28, 2011

Category: County, Guest Columnists

 

By Peggy Smith
Henderson County Historical Commission

October is designated each year as Archeology Month by the Texas Historical Commission. Often when we hear the word archeology, we associate it with digging methodically in sands of some foreign country. I must say that it used to bore me when I saw articles talking of the hours spent painstakingly digging small pieces of bone or pottery, etc… Archeology, as defined by Webster’s New World Dictionary, is “the study of the life of ancient peoples, as by excavation of ancient cities, etc…”. Now that in itself didn’t entice me but as I matured I began to research my family history. Curiosity provoked me to research

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Oct

21

Rep. Gooden talks about Monarch Water

Posted by : Erik Walsh | On : October 21, 2011

Category: Government, Guest Columnists, Opinion

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State Rep. Lance Gooden

Dear Friends,

This update will be of particular interest to the almost 3,000 ratepayers in Henderson County that are customers of Monarch Water. For the majority of the citizens of Henderson and Kaufman Counties, water service is provided by city governments or water supply corporations with a city council or governing board made up of local residents that are held accountable to the people they represent.

As an example, I live in the city of Terrell and the city provides water service to my house. If there was a problem with my water service or a discrepancy with my water bill, I would call the city of Terrell water department and the matter (in most cases) would be resolved quickly. If my problem wasn’t resolved, I might escalate the matter to my city councilman and expect him to get involved. I would also expect to be charged a fair price for water service and not to be billed for water I did not use. That seems reasonable, right?

For about 3,000 citizens in Henderson County that live near or on Cedar Creek Lake or Lake Palestine, the simple scenario I describe above is a dream that never comes true. When many of the housing developments were built along

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Oct

21

Ariel Humble gets to speak with Bob Schieffer

Posted by : Staff Reports | On : October 21, 2011

Category: Guest Columnists

Ariel Humble meets Bob Schieffer.

By Ariel Humble
Special to The News

As a junior in high school I visited Texas Christian University with the highest of hopes. I wanted to apply, be accepted, get good grades, snag a degree from the Schieffer School of Journalism and maybe (just maybe) get to meet the grand master himself, Bob Schieffer. I got to tour the Schieffer School that day, with all of its fancy equipment and award-winning publications, never knowing that I would eventually have the chance to be a part of such an establishment.

I applied and was accepted to TCU but came in as undecided or “pre-major.” I had the rare chance to move somewhere new and start over so I decided to be equally as open to my options of study. I think I’ve probably taken a class in every field of study at TCU ranging from theatre to pre-med and nothing ever felt quite as satisfying as writing a good story. This fall I finally gave in to my passion, ignored the ever shrinking job market and claimed journalism as my major. I have finally found my

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