Texas Centennial marker rededicated in new Burnet location
Burnet County Judge James Oakley (left) and commissioners Damon Beierle, Jim Luther, Joe Don Dockery, and Billy Wall on Dec. 12 unveiled the restored 1936 Texas Centennial marker, which was relocated from south Marble Falls to the courthouse square in Burnet. Staff photo by Suzanne Freeman
The once lost and now restored 1936 Texas Centennial marker found in Marble Falls three years ago was rededicated in its new location on the Burnet County Courthouse square in Burnet on Tuesday, Dec. 12. At the unveiling, county commissioners joined members of the Burnet County Historical Commission and Cottonwood Shores residents Nichole and Michael Ritchie, who discovered the lost marker and helped with its makeover and move.
The 5,000-pound, pink granite stone was one of 1,100 quarried from Granite Mountain in Marble Falls and erected across Texas in the state’s centennial year, including two in Burnet County — one north and one south. The southern marker was originally at a roadside park south of the U.S. 281 bridge in Marble Falls but was lost during one of several projects to widen the road. A second marker, set on U.S. 281 two miles north of Burnet, also disappeared but has yet to be found.
Now on the east side of the courthouse square, the marker, with its bronze plaques restored, was hidden for the unveiling beneath a hand-stitched wedding quilt completed in 1934. Burnet County Historical Commission President Rachel Bryson’s mother, Estelle Bryson, who served as commission president for 20 years, and grandmother Effie Bryson made the quilt for her aunt Opal Bryson Roper when she married.
“It seemed appropriate to use a Depression-era quilt to cover the Depression-era monument rather than some old blanket,” Bryson said.
County commissioners Jim Luther, Damon Beierle, Billy Wall, and Joe Don Dockery, and County Judge James Oakley untied a rope used to keep the quilt from blowing away. The day was blustery, partially cloudy, and only slightly chilly. Together, the five men pulled off the quilt to the applause of an audience of about 30 people gathered around metal folding chairs set up in several courthouse parking spots. The pink granite courthouse, carved from the same quarry, offered a correlative background.
Before the unveiling, Oakley addressed the group and thanked the Historical Commission and the Ritchies for their work in the restoration process.
“History matters,” he said. “While no one can predict the future, we can all preserve the past and we have a responsibility to do that. History matters. The Historical Commission matters. I thank you for what you do, each and every one of you.”
Michael Ritchie told the story of how he and his wife found the marker.
“All this started three or four years ago when we were gifted this book,” he said, holding up “Monuments Commemorating the Centenary of Texas Independence” published by the Commission of Control for Texas Centennial Celebrations in 1936. It lists all of the markers, the language on each plaque, and where they were placed.
Ritchie said his research led him to BCHC member Tommye Potts, who was instrumental in starting the marker restoration process.
“It was a long process, and a lot of people helped in getting it done,” he said. “I know it’s only two of us up here, but there were many people involved.”
The Ritchies are now involved in a similar project in Llano County after finding another lost centennial marker there. The students in Nichole’s Llano ISD history class are assisting.
After the unveiling, the quilt was folded up and taken to the Historic Burnet County Jail, where the commission provided snacks and drinks.