Category Archives: Texas

Dixie Chicken, College Station, TX

The Dixie Chicken. Maybe you’ve heard of it in a Robert Earl Keen tune, maybe you drove through College Station or heck maybe you even went to A&M. Frankly, I thought I should check it out while I was in town.

Anyway – I like to try to get a feel for places I go to, so when we heard Robert Earl Keen talk about the Dixie Chicken as well as a recommendation from a friend, we decided to check it out. First, we walked in and the atmosphere was definitely awesome, definitely Texan.

Here is the front of the building…

…the entrance…I love the swinging doors!

…the walls were covered with old signs. Very vintage.

In the back of Dixie Chicken is the place where you can order food – hamburgers, chicken strips and chicken fried steak (we are in the south), fries and other southern appetizers (stuffed jalapenos and fried okra) and they even had beef jerky on the menu. I asked Sy what I should get, his friend said the cheeseburgers were good. The woman in front of me turned around and looked at me like I was an alien (probably because I wasn’t wearing maroon), she then told me that this is the place to go whenever I’m in College Station. Ok, I started to feel a little better about this place. I opted for a cheeseburger, fries and a chocolate shake.

After being told it would be a 45 minute wait (it didn’t end up being that long), I though man this is going to be a damn good burger. Well one would think. Others would like to think this is a damn good burger when I’m drunk as all hell. My cheeseburger was charred – burnt really. I could feel the crunch of the burger as I would take a bite. “Where’s the ketchup?” The fries were honestly pretty tasty. The chocolate shake, or semi-melted chocolate ice cream left something to be desired to be honest however when I found the piece of clear plastic in my shake, that was it for me.

The Dixie Chicken should only be known as a watering hole, and maybe a place to eat when you won’t remember the taste of the food later.

Here are some pictures of the bar. Saddles sat over the entire bar. The atmosphere was great!

This was in the “kitchen” area – I find that it fits a lot of people I know.

The Dixie Chicken is in a prime location – across the street from campus, next to…

The Dry Bean Saloon.

Bottle Cap Alley (they have bands play here).

And just down the street from…

I’m pretty sure there is a place for everyone.

And you are consistently reminded what town you are in…

If you are in need of a cold beer… http://www.dixiechicken.com/

George H.W. Bush Presidential Library

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President George H.W. Bush (or Daddy Bush) was President of the United States from 1989 to 1993. It seems that some of the more recent President’s have established Presidential Libraries throughout the US. The George H.W. Bush Presidential Library was established in 1997.

Come to find out the “Library” is more of a museum than a library (who would’ve thought). As you walk through the museum we follow President Bush’s life, we get to know his family and learn where he found his values and what his parents were like, his childhood, his military career, how he met his wife, his family, and his career in politics. He now lives in Kennebunkport, Maine with his wife Barbara. (As a child, we vacationed in Maine yearly and I remember one year driving by his home and having the secret service tell us to turn around, kind of cool.)

The main purpose of our trip to College Station, Texas was to see the President Bush Presidential Library. Here are some highlights of our trip.

Upon arriving at the Library you will see how beautiful the building is itself…

“The Beast” may be the most classified car you may ever see…

… equipped with bullet proof windows (as thick as telephone books) and bullet proof tires where if they are shot the car can keep traveling. It also comes with a remote car starter with a bomb detector (I have one of these on my car too), self healing fuel tank, extra oxygen, and layered with kevlar throughout.

(Coming to a dealership near you in 2025).

A huge baseball lover, President Bush played baseball at Yale and even kept a glove in the top drawer of his desk while in office.

In 1947, the Bush’s bought this car for just under $1,700.00 and moved their family from Connecticut to Texas.

I made it just in time, the White House was expecting me. Little did I know I had a full day ahead…

A speech had to be made…(I think my point came across)…

… followed by a very important black tie dinner (my dress was cut out of the picture at the right)…

…unfortunately my dinner was cut short due to a very urgent top secret meeting I had to attend…

Back to the “library”, we were able to see President Bush’s office…

and reflect on his achievements…

This is part of the Berlin Wall which came down in 1989. This was remarkable to see.

We then found the library…children’s books.

You will also be able to see momentous from his year in the military, letters he sent home after his plane was shot down, family memories, the Gulf War, life in the White House and post White House. We even got to sit in a replica of his desk in the Oval Office and experience his love for sky diving. There is so much information, it is truly remarkable.

Finally, here is my favorite picture from the museum…

I think this was the highlight of his career!

Check it out – it is part of your history.

For More Info: http://bushlibrary.tamu.edu/
To see if a Presidential Library is near you: http://www.archives.gov/presidential-libraries/visit/

Robertson County, Texas

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Traveling along Route 6, you can’t help but see historical markers in what seems to be every 2 miles. Here are a couple.

Legend goes…

In 1878, a man by the name of Wootan Wells dug a seventy-five foot well to provide water to his homestead. To his dismay, the water began to turn his dishes yellow and his clothes red. His wife was completely disgusted and wanted out – so they rented their homestead out to a family and moved away. Shortly after, word got out that the folks living on the property were incredibly healthy and this awful tasting water was bring people to the area. Mr. Wells soon realized he may be sitting on a gold mine, he moved home, contacted a US Navy chemist and was told that the water, in this hear parts, were highly mineralized. Soon enough he put out word that the water was curative.

At first the water was being distributed freely, however in 1880 Mr. Wells partnered with a man named T.W. Wade to bottle the water and market the property. Soon enough the town of Wootan Wells was a resort town and a well known one at that. By 1883 the town was complete with hotels, cottages, a post office and spas in addition to at least three more wells. There was even a pavilion with a Mexican String band. A 1.5 mile mule-drawn train was established to bring visitors and bottled water to and from the nearest railroad depot. With the convenience of the train running directly through the area, Wootan Wells was the place to be, drawing tourists from miles away, including Governor James Hogg and his daughters as well as other socialites. By 1890, Wootan Wells had 200 permanent residents and 2,000 summer residents. There is even a rumor that Wild Buffalo Cody had a shooting match with George Washington Holland in 1898.

Pretty soon the town was going full stream with doctors, blacksmiths, wagon makers and schools, however as quickly as the town appeared, the down would disappear. Soon enough with the help of a depression, floods, droughts and financial troubles, the town was declining. By 1914, the town only had one operating hotel, a bottle work, a few cottages and a grocery store. In 1915, tragedy struck as a fire swept through the town. Today this is what’s left…

and to be honest I’m not even sure if this is part of a farmers old barn or actually part of the town but this is the land that sat behind the historical marker.

Be sure to stop and check out some of these markers. Buildings may not remain but history thrives.

Here is one more historical marker we checked out on our drive: