Burnet County Historical Commission picks officers
The Old Burnet County Jail was renovated in 2021 and reopened in 2022 as a visitors center and museum. As of 2024, it is the home of the Burnet County Historical Commission. File photo
The Burnet County Historical Commission elected new officers on Tuesday, Nov. 5, and had to be called to order and adjourned twice when a dispute erupted over canceling the December meeting.
In January, Polly Krenik will take over as chairperson from Rachel Bryson, who is ending a two-year term. New member Doak Field will be vice president, replacing current VP Krenik, and Danielle Meredith will replace Carolyn Liles as treasurer. Terry Berger remains secretary.
The officer lineup and at least eight new applications for membership will go before the Burnet County Commissioners Court when it meets Jan. 14, 2025. The Historical Commission is an arm of the county government. Commissioners must approve a new slate of commission officers and members in January of every odd-numbered year.
It’s not too late to apply to be a BCHC member. The deadline to turn in applications, available online, is Dec. 5. Applicants must be 18 years or older and live in Burnet County. Terms are two years.
“Prospective members must express a sincere interest in the preservation of county history and must be willing to comply with attendance requirements and serve on at least one committee,” reads the application. “Members must attend at least four meetings per year to continue to serve on the BCHC.”
The commission meets at 1 p.m. the first Tuesday of the month in the meeting room at the Herman Brown Free Library, 100 E. Washington St. in Burnet, although one member made a plea for moving the meetings to 4 p.m. on a weekday or Saturday morning so more people could attend.
“For instance, a teacher could think about being a member if the meetings were set at a more convenient time,” said member Jane Knapik in a presentation of agenda items she would like to see discussed in 2025.
She also suggested a requirement that historical items in the Old Burnet County Jail be limited to those that relate to the jail only. The building was reopened in 2022 as a visitors center and museum.
“We have general interest museums in the county that do that job extremely well,” she said, referring to The Falls on the Colorado Museum in Marble Falls and Fort Croghan Museum and Grounds in Burnet.
Knapik also listed the commission’s accomplishments over the past two years, including a historical marker for Buchanan Dam, which she said is on its way from the foundry. Knapik wrote the marker application with marker committee members Tommye and John Potts.
“We will have an unveiling ceremony very soon,” she said.
Knapik also noted the Untold Marker approved by the Texas Historical Commission for Stringtown Cemetery and the commission’s move into the Old Burnet County Jail. The BCHC now has accessible storage for its archives and is providing docents for jail tours on a regular basis.
Bryson adjourned the meeting by noting it would be the last of the year as the commission has traditionally only held 11 meetings annually. In 2023, the first Tuesday of the month landed on the Fourth of July, so that month was skipped instead of December.
Several members questioned whether that was allowed by the bylaws and challenged the cancelation. Bryson quickly gaveled the start of a second meeting to quiet the disruption and settle the issue formally. She read the section of the bylaws pertaining to meetings aloud. According to the bylaws, the commission must hold at least four meetings in 12 months.
As the discussion heated up, member Lynda French moved to cancel the December meeting; it was seconded and passed with only one nay vote. The meeting then adjourned for a second and final time.
The next meeting of the Burnet County Historical Commission is 1 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in the meeting room at the Herman Brown Free Library. The new officers will be seated at that time.