Vonnie Fox celebrates 98th in jail (now museum)
Sisters-in-law Ann Riddell and Vonnie Riddell Fox in front of a portrait of Sheriff Wallace Riddell, Vonnie’s father, now hanging in the newly renovated historic jail in Burnet. Fox grew up in the old Burnet County Jail, which held a grand opening as a museum and visitors center in 2022 when this photo was taken. The portrait was painted in the 1970s by Fanny Thelma Normann, a renowned artist who was also grandmother to Burnet Mayor Crista Goble. Photo courtesy of Burnet County Judge James Oakley
Celebrate Vonnie Riddell Fox’s 98th birthday in jail. Fox is the daughter of the late Sheriff Wallace Riddell, who raised his family in the living quarters of the old Burnet County Jail when it was the county’s actual lockup. The building at 109 Pierce St. on Burnet’s courthouse square is now a museum and visitors center and a fitting place to hold a birthday party for its former resident.
The public is invited to the event from 4-6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 29. Drinks, refreshments, and cake will be served. No gifts, please!
Fox lived in the old Burnet County Jail from when she was 13 years old to 24. She moved out only after marrying high school sweetheart Billy Joe Fox, who was her husband for 64 years. He died in 2018.
Vonnie Fox’s father was sheriff of Burnet County from 1939 to 1978, making him the longest-serving sheriff in Texas at the time. (That record was broken in 2008.) Her mother, Rachel Estelle “Essie” Riddell, cooked family meals in the jail’s kitchen, serving prisoners whatever the Riddells ate, usually meat, potatoes, beans, and cabbage.
“It was good home cooking, just everyday food, whatever Mama cooked,” Fox told The Picayune Magazine in a 2019 interview.
The family of three daughters added a son one Christmas Day when Essie was whisked away to the hospital. She returned the next day with a surprise.
“We got a baby brother that night,” Fox recalled. “We were all happy about that. We didn’t have any boys in the family.”
Fox is the last of the Riddell children still around to talk about their unique upbringing. She was on hand when her former family home was reopened as a museum and visitors center in 2022. She cut a “chain” rather than a ribbon at the grand opening. On Aug. 29, she will share her birthday cake with the public.