Texas Highways Magazine August 2021

In the hinterland of the Texas Panhandle, the tiny town of Lipscomb has managed to hold on to a way of life that has largely disappeared across the country. Contributing writer George Getschow, who visited four times over the last year to capture life in Lipscomb—population 44—for our annual Small Towns Issue, says he felt like he was on the wild frontier of Texas. “The people who live there have learned to endure," the Dallas-based writer says. "They get along with each other because they have to—they’re survivalists. But they also go out of their way to make sure everyone’s OK. They define what it means to be a good neighbor.” When someone heads out to buy groceries, Getschow relates, they buy for three or four weeks and often plan the…

Near the end of their reporting trip for “Beyond the Tail” (Page 66), writer Laurel Miller and photographer Eric W. Pohl expressed their disappointment over not capturing a photograph of a wild alligator for Miller’s story. That’s when Lee Wullenwaber, who co-owns Rodair Bar & Grill in Port Arthur, exclaimed, “Well shoot—we can get ya a gator in five minutes!” Within a literal five minutes, according to Miller, Wullenwaber and his friend called saying they’d caught a gator, though it escaped before Pohl could get a good shot of it. “It really showed that level of hospitality that both Southerners and Cajuns are known for,” says Miller, an Austin-based food writer who hadn’t enjoyed cooked gator until reporting this story. “Eric and I had both had alligator before, but we’d…

Melanie Grizzel The Austin-based photographer enjoys capturing small-town life, like she did in “Bringing Back Brownwood” (Page 30). “Being able to spend a couple of days to immerse myself with the culture and the people and getting to know what they think makes their town so special is both an honor and a treat,” Grizzel says. “In the case of Brownwood, it’s the people. Brownwood’s town slogan is ‘Feels Like Home,’ and it really does.” Her work has appeared in The New York Times and People magazine. Sergio Troncoso Troncoso wrote “Dust to Dust” (Page 14) about returning home to Ysleta post-pandemic and reuniting with his mother. “The people give meaning to the land,” Troncoso says, “but to capture that meaning we need to patiently hear all of their stories. That’s why I…

Erich Schlegel’s photograph of the Blanco River’s Narrows is simply stunning. We’re out-of-staters planning on moving to Texas soon, and your magazine has caused us to look forward to it all the more. Wilma Dyer, Canon City, Colorado 50 Years at Jacob’s Well I went there in the mid-’70s and scuba dived with some friends [“Bottoms Up,” July]. We just parked and walked through the field to get there. No people or fences. Mark Tooley, Denison I remember diving this well in the late ’70s. Beautiful memory. @deshotelsharon On the Blanco The author left me wanting to further explore this Texas gem [“Behold the Bounty of the Blanco,” July]. I particularly appreciated the section about wastewater impacts on this and other Hill Country streams. @rking4rivers Let the River Run Great spread of the Blanco [“Behold the Bounty of the Blanco,”…

Dave Shafer couldn’t resist grabbing this photograph while shooting for “The Ghosts of Archer City” (Page 46) in the North Texas town, which is located 25 miles south of Wichita Falls. “On stories I’m shooting, I’m always looking for that unique angle or moment that is different and totally my vision,” Shafer says. The image includes Archer City's sole traffic signal at State Highway 79 and Main Street. The mural at the forefront is the result of a 2019 community fundraising project that allowed participants to purchase a portion of the wall to paint. As people colored in their squares, the full artwork was slowly revealed.…

The year was 1991. At the Purple Sage Dance Hall in Uvalde, Jimmy Albarado asked Alma Alaniz to dance. He’d noticed her on campus at Southwest Texas Junior College, where they were both students. Alma accepted the dance, but didn’t say a word. “I came back to my buddy and said, ‘Worst dance of my life—I’ll never do that again,’” Jimmy recalls. “About three or four songs later, somebody taps me on the shoulder. It was Alma, saying, ‘What, is that it?’” Jimmy and Alma have been together ever since, making their home in the western Hill Country town of Leakey. Historically rooted in ranching, Leakey is a regular stop for campers, tubers, and motorcyclists visiting the Frio River and nearby Garner State Park, as well as a home base…