On 28 December 1896, in La Grange, TX, 25 local inhabitants of Czech and Slovak descent held a meeting. They were members of the Česko Slovensko Podporujici Spolek (CSPS - Czech Slavonic Benevolent Society) a fraternal insurance organization that operated in all the American states including Texas. The men selected a committee that was to start working on creating the Slovanska Podporujici Jednota Stanu Texas (SPJST/Slavonic Benevolent Association of the State of Texas). The committee members were J R Kubena, judge Augustin Haidusek, and F. Čistina. Later, Mr. Haidušek was replaced by CV Vanek.
On 29 June 1897, a convention of 22 SPJST lodges members took place. The organization started its proper work on 1 July 1897 - that was the day on which SPJST officers were elected: president I J Gallia, Mr. Fred Breska vice-president, secretary, and treasurer - J R Kubena.
SPJST was a fraternal insurance organization of non-sectary character. It offered the members death and sick benefits. The organization was also into promoting mutual acquaintance of people of Czechoslovakian descent and supporting cultural, benevolent, and national projects.
Birthplace of SPJST - Fayette County Courthouse, La Grange
Early presidents of SPJST were: I J Gallia, J J Holik, Joseph Dušek, judge C H Chernosky. The initial 22 lodges/496 members grew by the end of 1993 to 152 lodges/11,141 members.
Another insurance-type organization came into being on 1 July 1926. It was the Slavonic Mutual Fire Insurance Association. Its first convention took place in June 1927 in Houston, and the first officers were Frank Ančinec, Anton Bily, judge C H Chernosky, Stephen Valik, M Bubac, Frank Bečan, John Kelarek, and Tom Hošek.
Source: "The Czech Pioneers of the Southwest. The History of a People in the Development of a Nation", Henry R Maresh and Estelle Hudson, 1934, 1962, 1996.
The Llano County courthouse came into being in 1859. It was a wooden building - 21 years later it was destroyed by a fire.
The second (temporary) building was constructed in the same year (1880) by architect CS Jones and JK Finley, builder.
1885 - Alfred Giles, of British origin, created a new courthouse structure. Unfortunately, another fire happened in January 1892, and the courthouse was destroyed again. A year later, two architects, AO Watson and Jacob Laramour designed a new courthouse building, its construction was finished on 1 August 1893 (the foundation was made of granite).
It is quite a pretty structure - the photos were taken in 2020.Info source: Wikipedia
One of the Gs in "My Polish Alphabet" is for Gdańsk. The city situated by the Baltic Bay, in the north of Poland, is over 1000 years old. Its prettiest part is the old town, I think.
The old town was totally destroyed during WW2. It was rebuilt in the 1950s and 60s.
Golden Gate (1612/14)
Long Street and the old town hall in the background
Long Street
Hedwiga in the attic window
Every day at 1: 03 PM, a figure of a young lady appears in that attic window on Long Street. It is Hedwiga, a heroine of an old romance described in a novel in 1891. As a young girl, she had been rescued from Turkish captivity and now is to be married by her guardian Johann. However, Hedwiga is in love with somebody else. She is waiting for her sweetheart, Lieutenant Kazimierz.
Neptune's Fountain (1605/16) in front of Uphagen's House.
The two lions holding a shield (see one of the photos below) are the Gdańsk coat of arms.
---
"My Polish Alphabet" is about things, places, and people that come to my mind when I think about Poland.
The Monument is dedicated to the men who fell during the so-called Dawson Massacre (1842) and Mier Expedition.
One of the men who took part in the Somervell/Mier Expedition was Mr. Kinchen William Davis. He was captured by Mexican troops and happened to draw a white bean, then was kept at the Perote prison.
More about Mr. Davis, his fate, and family in the post HERE.
More information related to the historical events mentioned above:
The letter H is for two things in the second edition of "My Texas Alphabet".
The first one istheHill Country with its beautiful vast land, fresh air, plenty of deer and other critters, and our day trips.
When I was little, I drew people dressed in 19th-century-type clothes, ladies in long dresses, and men with top hats and cloaks around their arms. There were also single hills in the background. My teacher laughed at those hills. She said they looked like haystacks. Well, I agree the hilly areas of Poland look different indeed. Anyway, my work was laughed at in the classroom, I got ashamed and never drew those people and landscape again.
Decades later, when still in Poland and with no faintest idea or desire to leave the country, I was told by a psychic that in my previous life in the 1850s, I had lived in the very south of the US. Frankly speaking, I did not take it seriously, so I did not give any thought to that at all then. All in all, soon, I totally forgot about the psychic and her reading.
When I came to the Hill Country, in a strange way it felt like coming home. I found the hills, vast landscape, and views somehow familiar. Then, I recalled my early childhood drawings and the psychic message. Maybe I did live here before? Or maybe not?
The other alphabet "H" is History. We love learning about the history of the Land, its places, and its people.
---
"My Texas Alphabet" is quite a personal summary of our hitherto life in Texas.
Elbląg is a city in northern Poland situated on Lake Drużno. In its early beginnings, the land was inhabited by Prussian tribes. In Middle Ages, Elbląg, then called Truso, was a Viking settlement. Later, in the 10th century, Truso was destroyed by fire. After the Teutonic Knights conquered the area, in 1237 they built a castle there.
Old Town, Elbląg
In the 13th century, the history of the present city began. A new settlement was founded in 1237 and was granted city rights 9 years later.
Due to the complicated history of the region, Elbląg was part of the Polish Kingdom/German Empire/Prussia/Germany. During WW2, the city was severely damaged and was reconstructed by the Poles after the war.
In 2009 my mom and I visited the city very briefly as our main goal was a boat trip along the Elblag Canal. Everything was organized by PTTK (Polish Tourist and Sightseeing Society).
The Old Town are was being worked on then.
According to the legend, a young baker trainee once saved Elbląg from
the Teutonic Knights' siege. With his bread oven shovel, he cut the
rope that was holding the city gate, so it went down just before the
Knights managed to enter the city.
And here he is, still standing at the historic remains of the city wall/the gate. It is said that touching his nose brings good luck. Well, we did that, just in case, it was true.
The 50-mile (80.5 km) long canal goes from Lake Druzno through the Elbląg River/Drwęca River to Lake Jeziorak. It was commissioned by the King of Prussia and designed in 1825/1844 by Georg Steenke. What is so special about that canal? It has big differences in water levels (up to 300 feet/100 meters).
On a higher part of the canal
Navigation on the canal is possible only thanks to its locks and a sort of train carts (inclined planes). The latter carry boats on the ground level and then back to the lower water level again.
Our boat trip lasted 4 hours.
Double lock
The boat is about to get on the cart which is under water - see higher, side part of it
It was interesting to see all the locks and how the boat was transported over a hill, back to the water level again.
However, the time in between was a bit boring. Luckily, the weather was nice and sunny so we were able to sit on the deck and enjoy the landscape. At the same time, due to a lot of still water around, mosquitos bit us quite often.
The lock is a sign the ground level of the canal is close
... and up on the cart again...
The last part of the trip on Lake Jeziorak was very rewarding, considering the beautiful views.
The lake is a habitat for various birds and fish. The previous had their cute nest on the little islands on the lake waters.
Elblag Canal is listed by the National Heritage Board of Poland as one of the Polish Historic Monuments. It has also been recognized as one of the Seven Wonders of Poland.
Lake Jeziorak
---
My Polish Alphabet is related to things, places, and people that come to my mind when I think about Poland. More Alphabet entries here.
We came back to Panna Maria after nine years, to participate in the opening ceremony of the Polish Heritage Center. On the day of the first visit there, during our honeymoon, we met very few people, maybe four. The second visit was very different as quite a crowd gathered for the opening day celebrations.
The event and the call were quite meaningful to us, and they did appear to be full of coincidences or some kind of messages from above. Well, we knew nothing about the origins of the Center besides the fact that the first Polish Silesian settlers in Texas founded Panna Maria. During the opening ceremony, we learned that it was Bishop Emeritus John Yanta who had given the idea of creating the Polish Heritage place. The thought came to him nine years ago - at the same time, when I was still in Poland, we started preparing for our life together and initiated the legal procedure of my coming here.
After the official part, there was sightseeing and looking around time,
and the artistic program presented by the Polish folk group from Dallas.
Quite accidentally, we met an old acquaintance, who was that group
member. The three of us had used to be part of the original
Polish-American Dance Ensemble which had its base in the Dallas area.
We also re-experienced the places that we visited during our first Panna Maria call - the old Pilarczyk store and visitors center, the old church, and the school that years ago, was the only museum place there.
Some things have changed within those years. New statues near the church had been founded. We also noticed many changes in the Panna Maria area, including the oil rigs that had emerged around.
I like that part of the Heritage display. However, it is a bit confusing. The nun is pointing at the word "słoń" (=elephant). The word "koń" (=horse) is next to it, to the left. Was it meant to be like that?
The Polish Heritage Center is quite an impressive and interesting place. We were glad we could be in Panna Maria on that special day. Another coincidence was that I had not looked for the information about the place/event. I simply did not know it was being built. It found me on its own, by chance. Or maybe not. Maybe we were meant to be there.
More about our first visit to Panna Maria, years ago, in the old post here.
.png)
.jpg)
