The Wylie News (Wylie, Tex.), Vol. 49, No. 23, Ed. 1 Wednesday, November 8, 1995 Page: 2 of 20
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Wylie-Sachse Newspaper Collection and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Smith Public Library.
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Dear Editor,
I want to thank Mr. Lacy sincere-
ly for the wonderful story in The
Wylie News. It was really nice and I
loved seeing the pictures of my cast
from that school year. Thanks also
for sending back the photos! One
can always recycle.
As I looked over the article, I did
not find the phone number listed
anywhere for people to call for
reservations for Dallas Got Run
Over by a Reindeer. If it’s not in a
calendar listing, would you run it
somewhere in a future issue? The
number is 255-7306.
I ran into a woman from Sachse
yesterday at a public speaking
engagement who told me she had
read the article and wanted to come
see the show. I sure would appreci-
ate it! Thanks again for everything.
Judy Truesdell
Dear Editor,
I wanted to thank the Wylie Fire
Department for taking the time to
teach our children about fire safety.
My little boys couldn’t stop talking
about “stop, drop and roll” and the
911 song.
We are very lucky to have such a
caring group of people protecting
our city. I hope we never have to
face a fire, but 1 feel safer knowing
the firefighters are there if it should
happen.
Colleen Dingmore
Amplifications
& Corrections
An article appearing in last
week’s paper named Scott
Geminden as Firefighter of
the Year (Part-Time). It
should have named Scott
Goodman.
We apologize for the error
and any inconvenience this
may have caused.
Rita and Truett Smith
Public Library
Services
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• Reserves by Phone
• Local Fax Service
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Available
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• Personal Computer
• Microfiche Reader
Historical Sketches
By Miss Ethel Burch
1880-1890
A Period of Development
The new town of Wylie was as
vigorous as a Melon’s Food baby
during 1887, and that year was no
less exciting than 1886, except that
people were getting used to the
feeling.
The Cotton Belt Railroad
zoomed into town in 1887 and
Brown and Burns were quick to
secure the contract for furnishing
supplies to the construction crew. It
required almost a year to build the
road from Nevada to Wylie
because of the tremendous amount
of trestle work needed across East
Fork and Pilot bottoms.
Jan. 25, 1887 William J. Keller
of Dallas, for $ 1.00 and the love he
had for Christ, assigned lots 1 and
2 of block 5 in Wylie to Howard
Pickett, Josiah Stone, J.W. Fike,
J.T. Moore, and W.M. Rucker as a
site for a Methodist Church. The
deed was recorded Feb. 1, 1887.
The Church was built on the site of
the present home of Clyde and
Nancy Parker.
In 1884-85, George Gatewood,
R.Q. Allen, and L.L. Naugles were
ministers in charge of the Metho-
dist congregation in Nickleville,
J.R.P. Dickson served in 1885-86,
H.E. Smith for 1886-87 and J.W.
Lively for 1887-88. Lively was
probably the first pastor for the
new church.
In 1887 the office of County
School Superintendent was created
and J.T. Johnson was appointed to
serve as superintendent for that
year. Elementary schools had
expanded the curriculum to include
secondary school subjects and
those operating under the com-
munity system were adding
courses of the high school level.
The Nickleville Elementary
School had added all secondary
school subjects, and such high
school subjects as students, or the
ambition of teachers, demanded.
By 1886 Latin, advanced grammar,
advanced arithmetic, and courses
in History had been added. The
swing toward public high schools
had begun.
As usual there were those who
objected to tax supported high
schools, more than there were who
opposed any system of public
education. Even now there are
those who object to paying a
school tax and will do so only
under pressure, yet are quite
willing to send their children to
such schools. The public school in
any community is the mirror that
reflects the true image of its
citizens.
In the Lone Tree (Brown Town)
community, East Fork Lodge No.
650, A.F. and A.M. was granted a
charter Jan. 18, 1887, and was set
to work Feb. 18, 1887. The charter
members were F.M. Brooks, H.H.
Callaway, E.L. Duncan, J.B.
Daniel, R.G. Denwiddie, W.C.
Estis, B.B. Fowler, J.H. Gossett,
E.A. Housewright, W.M. House-
wright, Dr. G.C. Kreymer, Dennis
Kaufman, J.W. McCullough, J.S.
McCullah, J.A. Missin, O.F.
Poynter, S.T. Poindexter, G.C.
Page, W.A. Rippy, P S. Venable,
W.J. Walden, J.A. Walden, J.T.
Winn and J.S.A. White.
The Hall was built at Brown
Town. Following a Masonic
custom the ground floor was given
for use as a school building and
the name of the community was
changed to Lone Elm. The school
is designated in the deed as
District No. 63, however it was
always referred to as the Lone Elm
School.
H.H. Callaway was the father of
Miss Curtie Callaway, who visited
here the first week in this July.
E.L. Duncan was the father of
Attorney Fred Duncan; J.B.
Daniel an uncle of Mrs. J.A. Pitts,
E.A. Housewright the grandfatther
of Minor and Rex Housewright,
W.M. housewright the father of
Ernest and Jick Housewright, and
J.W. McCullough was the father
of J.F. McCullough of Mesquite,
Texas who is well known here.
(Editor’s note: The late Miss
Ethel Burch did a series of
historical articles for The News
in the 1970s. She was a Wylie
native and had accumulated a
wealth of material about the
Wylie community.)
CCC veteran phones in to agree
A column several months ago
about the I930s-era
X JLCivilian Conservation
Corps (CCC) struck a responsive
chord with 88-year-old Stan
Stafford of Rowlett.
Stafford phoned in a hearty
“amen” to my notion that a mod-
Weldon
Lacy
em-day version of the CCC might
be in order.
“I couldn’t agree with you
more,” he said, adding that he
served in that Roosevelt New Deal
program designed to give honor-
able, worthwhile employment to
jobless young men in the desperate
days of the Great Depression.
I had mentioned in the column
that my oldest brother spent time in
the CCC, helping build state parks
in various parts of Texas and send-
ing home $22.50 of his $30 month-
ly salary to help support the family.
Stafford said he served in the
CCC in his home state of Pennsyl-
vania, working as a heavy-equip-
ment operator on various forestry
and water conservation projects.
“I sent home $25 a month to help
my mother support her nine chil-
dren,” he said.
“We planted millions of trees,
built fire trails to head off forest
fires and worked on dams and
streams,” Stafford recalled, stating
that although hard and tiring the
work was appreciated and satisfy-
ing to the young men who other-
wise would have been walking the
streets in search of jobs.
“I think we need the CCC now to
solve some of our gang and welfare
problems,” Stafford said in agreeing
with the premise of my earlier col-
umn.
Official records show that CCC,
from its founding in 1933 to its
abandonment in 1942, amassed a
proud record of building 3,470 for-
est-fire towers, constructing 98,000
miles of truck roads, planting more
than 2 billion trees, devoting
4,135,000 man-days to fighting
fires and terracing hundreds of
thousands of acres of farm land.
The CCC developed recreational
facilities in national, state and met-
ropolitan parks and carried out
thousands of fish, game and wild-
life conservation projects.
The question in the mind of ex-
CCC member Stafford and many
other like-minded people is: Why
not organize a national work pro-
gram like, or patterned after, the
Civilian Conservation Corps of the
1930s?
As Stafford pointed out in the
phone conversation, America today
needs much work on its streets,
highways, bridges, tunnels, harbors,
overpasses, parks and other facili-
ties. Slums need to be cleaned up
and beaches cleared of trash.
He agreed with me when I wrote
in my earlier column, “It seems a
shame that the work remains
undone while billions of dollars are
doled out to idle welfare recipi-
ents.”
Stafford, who at 88 is probably
one of only a few living veterans of
the program, said his CCC service
gave him a sense of pride, dignity
and self-esteem and formed a sound
foundation for his future life.
After leaving the CCC, he served
in the U.S. Air Corps in World War
11 and later had a career as a master
electrician and electrical contrac-
tor in Michigan. He retired after
being with Chrysler Corporation
for 20 years in that line of work.
Stafford, who moved to Rowlett
in 1986 to help out in his son's
business there, said his interest in
public-works matters may have
stemmed from what happened in
his home town about 25 years
before his birth.
He is a native of Johnstown, Pa.,
the site of one of the worst natural
disasters in U.S. history.
In 1889, a faultily-built and
poorly maintained dam broke,
spilling a deluge on downstream
Johnstown and causing a great loss
of life and property.
Although he didn't say so, Staf-
ford has probably often thought
that a CCC company of young, j
dedicated American men could
have done a dandy job of rescuing
victims and cleaning up the flood’s
mess, if they had been present at
the time.
(Weldon Lacy is a Wylie News
staff writer.)
Youth Focus: On the use of inhalants
By Dana Baldwin,
CEA-4H
What are inhalants?
Inhalants are breathable chemi-
cals that produce psychoactive
(mind-altering) vapors. People do
not usually think of inhalants as
drugs because most of them were
never meant to be used that way.
They include solvents, aerosols,
some anesthetics, and other chem-
icals. Examples are model airplane
glue, nail polish remover, lighter
and cleaning fluids, and gasoline.
Aerosols that are used as inhalants
include paints, cookware coating
agents, hair sprays, and other
spray products. Anesthetics
include halothane and nitrous
oxide (laughing gas). Amyl nitrite
and burl nitrite are inhalants that
are also abused.
What is amyl nitrite?
Amyl nitrite is a clear, yellow-
ish liquid that is sold in a cloth-
covered, sealed bulb. When the
bulb is broken, it makes a snap-
ping sound; thus they arc nick-
named “snappers” or “poppers.”
Amyl nitrite is used for heart
patients and for diagnostic purpos-
es because it dilates the blood ves-
sels and makes the heart beat
faster. Reports of amyl nitrite
abuse occurred before 1979, when
it was available without a pre-
scription. When it became avail-
able by prescription only, many
users abused butyl nitrite instead.
What is butyl nitrite?
Butyl nitrite is packaged in small
bottles and sold under a variety of
names, such as "locker room” and
“rush.” It produces a “high” that
lasts from a few seconds to several
minutes. The immediate effects
include decreased blood pressure,
followed by an increased heart rate,
(lushed face and neck, dizziness,
and headache.
Who abuses inhalants?
Young people, especially be-
tween the ages of 7 and 17, are
more likely to abuse inhalants, in
part because they arc readily avail-
able and inexpensive. Sometimes
children unintentionally misuse
inhalant products that are often
found around the house. Parents
should see that these substances,
like medicines, are kept away from
young children.
How do inhalants work?
Although different in makeup,
nearly all of the abused inhalants
produce effects similar to anesthet-
ics, which act to slow down the
body’s malfunctions. At low doses,
users may feel slightly stimulated;
at higher amounts, they may feel
less inhibited, less in control; at
high doses, a user can lose con-
sciousness.
What are the immediate nega-
tive effects of inhalants?
Initial effects include nausea,
sneezing, coughing nosebleeds,
feeling and looking tired, bad
breath, lack of coordination, and a
loss of appetite. Solvents and
aerosols also decrease the heart and
breathing rate and affect judgment.
How strong these effects are
depends on the experience and per-
sonality of the user, how much is
taken, the specific substance
inhaled, and the user’s surround-
ings. The “high” from inhalants
tends to be short or can last several
hours if used repeatedly.
What are the most serious
short-term effects of inhalants?
Deep breathing of the vapors, or
. using a lot over a short period of
time may result in losing touch with
one’s surroundings, a loss of self-
control, violent behavior, uncon-
sciousness, or death. Using
inhalants can cause nausea and
vomiting. If a person is unconscious
when vomiting occurs, death can
result from aspiration.
Sniffing highly concentrated
amounts of solvents or aerosol
sprays can produce heart failure and
instant death. Sniffing can cause
death the first time or any time.
High concentrations of inhalants
cause death from suffocation by
displacing the central nervous sys-
tem so much that breathing slows
down until it stops.
Death from inhalants is usually
caused by a very high concentration
of inhalant fumes. Deliberately
inhaling from a paper bag greatly
increases the chance of suffocation.
Even when using aerosol or volatile
(vaporous) products for their legiti-
mate purposes, i.e., painting,
cleaning, etc., it is wise to do so in
a well-ventilated room or out-
doors.
What are the long-term dan-
gers?
Long-term use can cause
weight loss, fatigue, electrolyte
(salt) imbalance, and muscle
fatigue. Repeated sniffing of con-
centrated vapors over a number of
years can cause permanent dam-
age to the nervous system, which
means greatly reduced physical
and mental capabilities. In addi-
tion, long-term sniffing of certain
inhalants can damage the liver,
kidneys, blood, and bone marrow.
Tolerance, which means the
sniffer needs more and more each
lime to get the same effect, is like-
ly to develop from most inhalants
when they arc used regularly.
What happens when
inhalants are used along with
other drugs?
As in all drug use, taking more
than one drug at a time multiplies
the risks. Using inhalants while
taking other drugs that slow down
the body’s functions, such as tran-
quilizers, sleeping pills, or alco-
hol, increases the risk of death
from overdose. Loss of conscious-
ness, coma, or death can result.
(Dana Baldwin is Collin
County Extension Agent for 4-H
and Youth Development. If you
have questions, contact Ms.
Baldwin at 424-1460, ext, 4232.
Safety tips for cold weather
offered by Lone Star Gas Co.
The Wylie News
News anil pictures almut people you know
vnll 442-5515 to Miihserihe
Are you ready for winter? The
severe storms the state endured last
spring mean that there are some spe-
cial things you should be aware of
before the cold weather really takes
hold, particularly if you sustained
any roof damage from hail or high
winds.
•Make sure the flues to all of your
gas appliances are hooked together
and extend through the roof.
•If you have had your roof cov-
ered, be sure that vent openings have
not been covered over. Vent stacks
should extend through the roof to
the outside.
In addition to these special hints.
Lone Star Gas also recommends you
contact a certified heating and air
conditioning contractor to check
your heating equipment prior to the
beginning of the heating season. To
obtain the name of a Lone Star Gas
Preferred Gas Dealer in your area,
dial 1-800-545-3427. Additionally,
Lone Star offers the following safe-
ty tips for the cold months ahead:
•If an appliance's pilot light goes
out, turn off the gas at the appliance
for several minutes before you at-
tempt to re-light it. You should find
instructions attached to the appli-
ance.
•When re-lighting a pilot light,
strike the match and hold it to the
opening first. Then slowly turn on
the gas.
•The pilot light on gas appliances
should always be blue. If the flame
is yellow or red, call a certified heat-
ing and air conditioning contractor
immediately.
•Use a gas appliance only for its
intended purpose. An oven, for
example, should not be used to heat
a room.
And if you use a space heater in
your home, the following guidelines
should be observed:
•Clean space heaters before using;
remove cobwebs, dust and dirt that
may have accumulated during the
warmer months.
Lone Star Gas emphasizes that by
following a few simple safety rules,
consumers can reduce the risks and
enjoy the benefits of natural gas as a
safe, effective energy resource. If
residents have any concerns regard-
ing these safety measures, or if there
is a gas leak in your home or com-
munity, Lone Star Gas urges you to
call them immediately at 1-800-817-
8090.
The Wvlie News
THE WYLIE NEWS (626-520) is published each Wednesday by C & S Media, Inc. at 113
West Oak St., Wylie, Texas 75098. Second Class Postage paid at Wylie, Texas 75098.
Subscription rates are: $12.00 Collin and Dallas counties; $14.00 out of counly; $850 for
local senior citizens. POSTMASTER: send address changes to THE WYLIE NEWS P 0.
Box 369, Wylie, Texas 75098.
Devoted To The Best Interest Of Wylie Since 1947
“Our Job Is To Serve Responsibly, Constructively and Imaginatively”
MAILING ADDRESS: P.O. Box 369, Wylie, Texas 75098
OFFICE: 113 West Oak Street; Phone 442-5515
Margaret Cook Chad B. Engbmck
Editor Publisher
Any erroneous reflections upon the standing, character or reputation of any person, firm or
corporation which appears in the columns of THE WYLIE NEWS will be gladly corrected
if brought to the attention of the editor.
© Copyright 1995 All rights reserved. No reproduction without permission.
TEXAS PRESS
ASSOCIATION
|1995|
P’EXAS PRESS ASSOCIATION
MEMBER
1995
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Cook, Margaret. The Wylie News (Wylie, Tex.), Vol. 49, No. 23, Ed. 1 Wednesday, November 8, 1995, newspaper, November 8, 1995; Wylie, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth749305/m1/2/?q=technical+manual: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Smith Public Library.