Approximately 65,000 years ago, Coryell County was home to Columbian Mammoths like those found in recent years near Waco. Columbian Mammoths roamed through Central Texas until they went extinct …

In a display hanging in the Coryell County Courthouse Annex is a photo of a man seated on a horse in front of the Cotton Belt Railroad Depot. The photo is identified as being of Yakima Canutt. It is …

Each spring as the weather turned warmer, the delivery of ice began. The iceman, along with his horse and wagon, became part of the summer street scene of nearly every town in the United States. …

What has been referred to as the first state park in Texas, Mother Neff State Park was created in 1921 when Isabella Eleanor Neff left six acres of land in her last will and testament to the State of …

In the old days, bells were used to summon students to class, time for recess, or to signal the end of the school day. Some schools would use a bell to announce class rotations between reading, …

Of the more than 6,000 spurs housed at the Coryell Museum and Historical Center, a few pairs of spurs tend to stand out. Prominently displaced under a glass dome are a pair of spurs that belonged to …

Prior to Liz Reinhardt’s retirement from Gatesville City Hall, in addition to her other titles and duties, she had devoted her time updating the data concerning Gatesville City Cemetery and …

Robert Lee “Uncle Bob” Saunders was an early-day resident of Gatesville and the son of one of Gatesville’s early business pioneers. Born in 1880 in Gatesville, Uncle Bob had …

Celebrating July 4, also known as Independence Day, a majority of Texas residents enjoyed the holiday with traditional picnics, barbeques, family gatherings, and perhaps an outing to a lake or river. …

Mr. Charles Freeman wrote “History of Pearl, Texas” in 1969, and it includes many delightful stories. Mr. Freeman was born Nov. 29, 1903, four miles east of Pearl. He spent his entire …

My husband and I were talking about early telephones in Gatesville, and he remembered that the old telephone office used to be in the Bill Herridge Insurance building at 1004 Main Street, in …

When Alexander Graham Bell exhibited his telephone invention in 1876 at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition, a Texas gentleman by the name of Colonel A. H. Belo became very interested. Belo was …

Strolling through the oldest section of the Gatesville City Cemetery, visitors sometimes notice very ornate tombstones as well as small inexpensive stones. People are often captivated by the …

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Gatesville Shivaree. The first Shivaree, which took place on the courthouse square, was on Aug. 3, 1974. The very first Shivaree was sponsored by …

On Feb. 4, 1854, the governor of Texas, Elisha M. Pease, signed a bill delivered to his office from the Texas State Legislature that called for the creation of Coryell County from parts of Milam and …

Cinco de Mayo, which celebrates Mexico’s victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, is not considered a popular holiday in Mexico, but in the United States has become a …

How do you encompass 100 years of Texas State Parks’ history? That was the challenge state parks staff have spent the past year tackling. The result? A wooden time capsule created by the …

In 1909, a former Coryell County resident, Jim Miller, was hanged by an angry mob in Ada, Oklahoma. It appears that his complicated life of crime began at an early age and started just on the …

Emiliano “Nano” Calderon, the CHC Program Coordinator in the History Programs Division of the Texas State Historical Commission in Austin, recently went on a private tour of the …

George Washington was the father of our country. Bill Gates co-established Microsoft. Thomas Edison improved the light bulb. Stephen King created Cujo . Walt Whitman wrote poetry, Lyndon Johnson …