1942 Arthur Rothstein - Charro Days fiesta, watching the children's parade, Brownsville, Texas
1942 Charro Days band on E Levee St and 13th
Showing posts with label Colorized photo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Colorized photo. Show all posts
2016/11/21
1942 Arthur Rothstein photos in Brownsville, Texas
2016/09/11
1942 Arthur Rothstein photo of E Levee St
1942 E Levee St with sign for Gateway Bridge for Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico from Brownsville, Texas. This photo includes a rare view of Missouri Pacific Railroad station and El Jardin Hotel built in 1928. The photo was taken during the annual Charro Days international celebration between Brownsville and Matamoros still held every February but bull fights in Matamoros are no longer part of the celebrating.
Colorized by Javier R Garcia
1942 Photo of Shoeshine boy Arthure Rothstein
Photographer: Arthur Rothstein
February 1942
Brownsville, Texas
(Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Collection, Library of Congress)
2016/08/24
2015/12/22
John C. Fanning and the Annual Capitol Christmas Party
Story compiled by Javier R. Garcia from Brownsville Herald archives
(Brownsville Historical Association photo colorized by Javier R. Garcia)
On a cold rainy day on December 23, 1947, strings of colored
Christmas lights stretched across E Levee St., candy canes decorated a light
pole and an ebony Christmas tree stood on a platform in front of the marquee of
the Capitol Theater. The long line of
kids numbering close to 1500 who received free tickets earlier that week stretched
around the corner to the alley and perhaps back across the street. Across the corner was a man and a rain slicked street wearing a raincoat with a large camera on a tripod. It might have been the photographer from nearby
Rogers Studio who snapped a photo and managed to get the attention of almost
every brown faced kid anxiously waiting to get inside for the fun to begin.
This news photo would have been after 1933 or 1938; depending on when marquee was changed.
Businessman Morris Edelstein had nice furniture giveaways in 1940!
Mr. Fanning played Santa for nine straight years until
becoming ill in the early 1940s. In
1941 he suffered a stroke and was in Mercy Hospital while a substitute Santa
passed out gifts in front of the Capitol.
In 1943 Fanning was the honored guest of the Brownsville
Fire Department which hosted the procession from the Central Fire Station on E
Adams and 10th to the Federal Building /Post Office. Ol’ Saint. Nick rode a hook-and-ladder truck (instead
of his sleigh) which was led by a motorcycle cop, local junior high school band
and jeep carrying Mr. Fannin. With his
health declined he may not have been up to the task of donning the red suit
this last night. He had once been an
avid fisherman and had photos of himself with fish he caught in the gulf on the
wall in his office but after the stroke of ’41 he had sold the boat and his
civic work had to be less arduous. And then
he suddenly he died the next night from heart failure at the age of 68.
The heart attack struck him while he was walking past El
Jardin Hotel to his home apartment on the upper level of the Capitol. He had been under the close supervision of
his doctor and traveled to San Antonio for treatment. He felt he recovered and made leisurely
travels to Kansas and later, Mexico City.
County Attorney Franklin Graham was at his side when tragedy struck and
with the help of an unknown sailor and night watchman, the three helped Mr
Fanning to his room. A doctor was called
and fire department dispatched to bring their “pulmotor” to revive Fanning back
to health. Mr. Fanning repeatedly
assured his last companions on earth “I’ll be alright,” but twenty-five minutes
after having his stroke he was gone.
With his wife Bertie they had raised two daughters who lived
in Fort Worth and a son who lived in Lubbock and supposedly had a hat called
the Fanning named after him by the Knox Hat Company.
John Cullen Fanning was born August 21, 1875 in Natchez, Mississippi but
raised in Fort Worth, Texas and by the time he arrived in Brownsville in the
early 1920s from Cisco and Mineral Wells (places near Dallas, Texas), he
already had experience operating movie theaters beginning in San Angelo since
1911.
He partnered with Ed Brady, President of the Delta Amusement
Company of San Benito and its vice-president, Brown White to operate the Texas
Theater in downtown Brownsville. Paco
Betancourt, who operated the Queen Theater, joined the three men and they
became the “Brownsville Amusement Company” which incorporated the Capitol,
Queen and Texas theaters in 1928. The
Dent Theater chain bought out Fanning’s partners while he retained his interest
in the theater. Dent sold to Publix and
Publix sold to Interstate in 1932.
The Capitol opened on Valentine’s Day 1928 to much fanfare
and had a capacity to seat 1,000 persons.
By 1938 Interstate Theater gave the Capitol a complete renovation. Fanning stayed on as its manager.
Our story begins in the early 1930's after the Great Depression left
many people out of employment. Civic
organizations in Brownsville answered the call for charity around
Christmastime. Volunteers of America,
Red Cross, American Legion’s Southpoint Chapter of Disabled American Veterans,
local city churches and local fire department urged the more fortunate in
Brownsville to contribute to these causes for disadvantaged children.
December 22, 1933 Brownsville Herald announcement
The Capitol was also one of sixty theaters across the United
States to host the Mickey Mouse Club Theater program for kids which began in
1930. Fanning also conceived the St.
Patrick’s celebration of 1931, the Fourth of July celebration of 1929 and Better
Brownsville celebration of 1932. He also
organized the “Kid Parades” to celebrate the opening of the Port of Brownsville
in 1936 and was a participating organizer of Charro Days in 1937 and yearly
Easter egg hunts.
Each year Fanning erected a tall ebony tree in front of the
theater which was decorated with the help of local store merchants, the
Brownsville Fire Department and Junior Chamber of Commerce. This tradition probably followed the one
which had begun on the former James Wells property in front of the Federal
Courthouse/ Post Office on E Elizabeth and 10th St. It was a giant 20-plus foot tree with a
spreading 12 ft branch which lighted by the local electric company to honor the
memory of W.B. Clint who was director of the Brownsville Chamber of Commerce
for many years. Christmas carols were broadcast
down E Elizabeth St businesses over loud speakers and various groups appeared
on the streets of Brownsville. By the
way, that property later became the Majestic Theater built by Interstate in
1949.
James Wells house on corner of E Elizabeth and 10th circa 1920. There's no need to point out a large ebony tree for you to get the picture.
But the photo this story is about was taken three years
after John Fanning died. It was Interstate
Theater who continued the tradition.
They ran ads with “Your theatre man – Jimmy McNeil says – Seasons Greetings
to you all and suggests you -- Give Entertainment” by buying their coupons
redeemable at any of their Rio Grande Valley Interstate Theaters.
The free matinee was “Philo Vance Returns,” a
mystery film which seems like a lame choice for children but we'll assume they enjoyed the fun of having seen cartoons with free popcorn
and candy. What’s amazing is the absence
of parents in the photo. Where were
they?
Anyways, you get the picture.
It’s doubtful the Capitol tradition carried on much longer after Mr.
Fanning’s demise. Once the Star Drive-in
was built in 1948, followed by the Majestic Theater and Charro Drive-in in 1949, the
Capitol would last a few years into the late 1950s or early 1960s but its place
as Brownsville’s main theater was long gone and as generations passed, the
memory of John C. Fannin would fade away.
2005
2015/08/21
1969 Chevrolet G10 Sportvan Custom lowrider revised
Villa de las Pelucas parked on E Elizabeth and International Blvd. near Jacob Brown Auditorium
2015/07/08
2015/07/03
1928 July 4 Brownsville Tigers
I'm going to begin with the "M" written at the bottom center and say this might indicate photographer Manuel Morales took this photo. By 1928 Robert Runyon was probably lost in his botanical studies. Morales and Rogers Studio and another called Alex Studio emerged as the next generation of local studio photographers.
This motley crew of ball players are all wearing different uniforms because they had experience playing for other local semi-pro teams; with the exception of maybe the first two players.
I'm going to make a story up about this and since I'm just a folklorist that should keep any snotty historians off my ass for being irresponsible but I'll make it as believable as I can. There will be some truth to it.
The first player has a uniform with "Snake King" written on it. What we know for sure is that his last name was Santiago, or was it his first name? It doesn't matter. He played ball for the Brownsville High School all-star champs in 1925 and was idolized by the second player wearing his B.H.S. sweater and cap. That's Joseph King whose adopted Dad was none other than William Abraham "Snake" King.
One day Joseph asked the Snake King if Snakeville could have its very own baseball team. W.A. King knew nothing about baseball but if there was money or free advertisement to be made from it he was interested. Joseph relayed how Santiago's heroic playing led his team to the championship in high school and that would eventually lead to big wins for the team if Joe, a ball player himself, was also on the team. From this photo we can ascertain that at ol' W.A. King shelled out a few bucks to have a tailor made uniform for Santiago. Joseph and W.A.King Jr (seated) recruited a few players they had scouted the previous season and got them together for this historic photo taken on July 4, 1928.
Note Santiago's uniform says "Snake King" in cross-form rather than "Tigers" or a "T". W.A. King was better known for selling snakes and other wild animals, most of which were caught locally such as javalinas and horned toads but if you wanted monkeys or parrots he could get that also. Special orders from Africa bought lions and tigers but no baseball team would do-well to call itself the "Brownsville Snakes" would it? In the upper valley they already had a team called the "Mercedes Lions" [which would have been their first logical choice if they want to have an intimidating name] so this team ended up with the "Tigers" once it became official and written on the photo.
1922 photo of Mercedes Lions. Photo credit: Rene Torres
I'll leave the real history to Rene Torres who contributed the truth-part to this story and adds that this team was sponsored by W.A. "Snake" King into the 1940's and they gave other valley teams a run for their bases. They were also managed by Adolfo Arguijo who was a draft pick for the Yankees in 1923 but didn't quite make the grade. Had he been chosen to play he might have been the first hombre with Mexican blood to play with the pros.
* Thanks to Brownsville Station Facebook page member who sent this but whose name I misplaced *
2015/06/21
1939 Life Saving Tamales story & photo
Life Saving Tamales - 1939 Brownsville Market Square Plaza by Carl Mydans LIFE magazine. Colorized by Bronsbi Estacion.
She came to the U.S. as an illegal immigrant
While in Brownsville
she found love, hardship and the American Dream
By Rene Torres
Felicitas Ramirez was not any different than the many of
today who want to come to this country for a better life. As a youngster she grew tired of the many
stories she heard of the wonderful opportunities afforded in the United States.
So in 1912, Falicitas decided to take the journey from
Huatuzco, Veracruz to the promised land.
Carrying only the necessities and risking her life—she safely crossed
the river and made Brownsville her home—and before long found employment as a
housemaid with a pioneer family in town.
After several years in Brownsville, she found love when she
meets Miguel Izquierdo, a legal citizen of the United States born in
Brownsville. Miguel sold home-made
candy, moving his portable display counter from street to street or wherever
there was a demand for his candy.
Miguel expressed to Felicitas that he needed help with his
business, so in 1919 they married. She
continued to make home-made candy until 1924, when a more lucrative trade
attracted him.
There was more money
in Tamales
In 1937, Bill Brewster of the Herald wrote their story, “He built a small, two-wheel cart and
began selling tamales. Each day while
his wife worked at home cooking, Miguel wheeled his wagon to a location by the
memorial fountain of the Market Square and hawked his wares. The tamales were excellent and Miguel’s
tamales prospered. He soon became known
to his customers as the “Tamale King.”
Business was thriving and the original wagon was
inadequate. Miguel saw the need to build
a second one that resembled a small steamboat.
It was mounted on wheels and from its smokestack raised steam from the
heated tamales. From then on the her
tamales were known as the “Life Saving
Tamales.”
Only seven years after their marriage, one day Miguel failed
to show at Market Square. The entrepreneur
who had work so hard to build his business was dead. Customers wondered if the “Life Saving Tamales”
were a thing of the past.
But then after Felicitas replaced the “King,” to continue the
sale of tamales from the familiar little steamboat cart located at its usual place.
Because her responsibilities grew of now making and selling,
she was forced to change her hours. No
longer was the wagon standing at the Market Square all day. Her business hours were from 4:00 p.m. to
7:30 p.m.
It was common for many of her customers to go by her house
on Twelfth Street opposite the courthouse where they could also buy the fresh
beef, pork or chicken tamales.
The once illegal immigrant that came to this county to live
the American dream—with weary hands and fingers was still selling tamales in
1937. Although she knew no English,
Felicitas had found it necessary to learn enough to handle her trade, for the
majority of her customers were English speaking who knew no Spanish.
Miguel set the foundation for a successful business, but
Felicitas convinced the people, her customers, she had something they wanted. The amazing thing is that part of their story
occurred during the “Great Depression.”
Was Grover Cleveland thinking about Felicitas when he wrote
“a truly American sentiment recognizes the dignity of labor and the fact that
honor lies in honest toil?”
Public Market and Town Hall Photograph no12 The Portal to Texas History.
Mydans' photo in original black & white
2015/06/15
2015/06/01
*FREE* Vintage Photo Exhibit June 4
We welcome Mel's Antiques as an added sponsor to the event which will feature vintage toys on display. We also hope to be visited by a few cars from Brownsville Classic Car Club.
Please share this post. Thanks
2015/05/30
2015/05/27
2015/05/21
Vintage Colorized Photos Exhibit opening June 4
The public will have an opportunity to own any of these rare but limited vintage colorized photos of Brownsville, Texas. Funds raised will go toward the acquisition of preservation materials for the Market Square Research Center downtown where rare photos and documents are stored. FREE admission for opening of exhibit on June 4 at 5pm ~ Brownsville Heritage Museum 1325 E Washington St (Stillman House Museum).
2015/05/13
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