LOOKING BACK

100 YEARS AGO…

Burglars were active in Rockdale. The house occupied by C.W. Matson and J.A. Thomas (the old Hiller home on East Cameron Avenue) was entered and $15 or $20 worth of jewelry taken. The thieves made their getaway just before Mr. and Mrs. Thomas got home from the picture show, as was shown by the fact that the electric light cord was still swinging when they entered. Two other homes and the high school were also broken into.

The Sans Souci Club was entertained by Mrs. Alfred Franklyn on the first day of March. Although weather was inclement, those who braved the norther were rewarded by one of the delightful parties of the season. Score cards featuring St. Patrick’s Day were used and carnations were much in evidence. After several games of 42, a salad course was served, followed by angel cake and cream. Plate favors were St. Patrick’s baskets of homemade candies.

An interesting game of basketball was played on the local high school court between the girls’ teams of Rockdale and Rosebud High School. The Rockdale girls won the game by the very close score of 12 to 10.

40 YEARS AGO…

Tamara Hebert was the overall winner in the 1982 Rockdale High School Science Fair with her project “A Quantitative Analysis of Cancer—Its Causes and Possible Cures.” Miss Hebert’s entry also won first place in the fair’s chemistry division.

The Rockdale Reporter claim that “Reporter Ads Get The Grapes” was almost questioned by Florence Fuller of Rockdale. Florence’s dachshund, Heide, was missing for a month and Mrs. Fuller had run a classified ad each week. “Finally,” she said,

“I got a call from a woman in Gause who had found Heide and had seen the ad in The Reporter.” Heide was indeed found on a bridge near Gause by Martha Thomas who, having read the ad, called Mrs. Fuller. The woman and her pet were reunited soon after.

20 YEARS AGO…

Rockdale can bank on getting a new city hall. City Council members ended two weeks of sometimes intense discussion with a 4-2 vote to purchase the Citizen’s National Bank Building, corner of US 79 and Wilcox, from CNB for use as City Hall.

The Rockdale Athletic Boosters were to award a 61” big screen television, purchased from Orsag’s, during the annual all-sports banquet, according to Connie Schielack, spokesperson.

The Rockdale Volunteer Fire Department had a new “mid-size” pumper truck in operation, thanks to a unique situation. About $30,000 of the $50,000 price tag came from the estate of Loween Maxwell. “She left it to us in her will and we greatly appreciate the gesture,” Fire Chief Elvis McQuinn said. The remaining $20,000 came from RVFD fundraisers.

10 YEARS AGO…

Tom Manskey, the first-ever executive director of Rockdale’s Municipal Development District (MDD), wasn’t fazed by coming to a small Texas town which has lost its main industry. He’d been there and done that. Manskey, who was formally offered the new job by the MDD, had a quarter-century experience in economic development in both large and small venues.

Luminant presented $500 to the Rockdale Youth Baseball Association, which conducts spring-summer youth baseball activities in Rockdale.