A Century Celebration
One hundred historical years of shrimping, crabbing and fishing were all celebrated on December 1, 2012 in Seadrift. While the day of celebration has come and gone; it shall be documented as one of the most important on Seadrift’s timeline.
“It was a good day for Seadrift,” said Joyce Amason, president of the Seadrift Centennial committee. “The community came together as a family – it felt like a family reunion.”
Celebrating the centennial was not simply a day event, there were a multitude of tasks leading up to the day; preparing the town for the big day. The community truly came together to clean-up, restore and improve Seadrift. After all, we all need a little maintenance after one hundred years. Kathy Sayre restored two murals and Robert Avery’s mural which is proudly displayed on City Hall has received nothing but compliments – just to name a few.
“The community support to make Seadrift feel welcome and celebrated was incredible. Because it wasn’t a little birthday, it was a big birthday,” expressed Janie Waghorne, who has been apart of the entire process. She is a centennial committee member and the Fisherman’s Legacy Project.
The connection in the community was very great and I find that no matter one’s age, gender or if you’ve lived here all your life or just moved here – Seadrift’s history is a conversation starter. I greatly enjoy learning about our coastal community; it has much to teach us. Even greater is the power it has to bring us together.
“As with any event, it takes a lot of planning over a long period of time and I am proud of all committee members for doing such a great job,” said Nan Burnet, president of the Seadrift Chamber of Commerce. “My favorite part of the event was being involved with Janie Waghorne and Laurie Weaver in the re-print of Seadrift Memories. The revival of pleasant memories of a town and it’s people; the book was originally created and published in l986. I had the pleasure of re-typing this history and really enjoyed reading about and becoming familiar with the old families here in Seadrift. It was an enjoyable endeavor.”
Much like Nan, I share the same sentiment. Researching about the original families and learning about the past century is compelling. Finding out how the pieces of the puzzle fit is rewarding and one begins to feel apart of its history.
The centennial event had something for everyone to enjoy and ended with a bang, literally. The fireworks display were magnificent. If you missed the event, you can still celebrate on December 27th which is the actual date of when Seadrift, Texas was incorporated. On that Friday evening, one hundred years ago, the first City Council meeting was held. W.G. Stewart; Mayor, Geo L. Rhea; Secretary, J.H. McIntire, D.D. Brian, R.A. Armstrong Jr., and J.L. Knight were in attendance. The meeting is documented along with each since that evening in the old minute book which is kept at City Hall.
As I reminisced, my mind wandered to a headline which I think pretty much describes Seadrift to a T: “Located on the beautiful San Antonio Bay, the home of fish and oysters. Where the balmy breezes blow and life is like a summer dream.”
One could read this headline on Seadrift Success’s masthead. It was the local newspaper in the early 1900s of which Geo L. Rhea was the editor. The paper was published every Saturday and entered as second-class matter September 16, 1911 at the post office in Seadrift, Texas, under the act of March, 1879.
The book, Seadrift Memories, Centennial T-shirts, postcards and the DVD which was produced by the Fisherman’s Legacy Project are all still available for purchase at City Hall. When I was younger I was largely into stamp collecting so when Janie explained to me about the centennial cancellation stamp – I had to have one. Ok, maybe more than one. The public may still purchase a postcard and have the stamp put on it which is an idea I have yet to see at other events.
It was indeed a great way to finish out the year. I hope you have a wonderful holiday season and enjoy time with family. Till next year.
