Cattle Boom! Ranching in Victoria and the Texas Coastal Bend, 1845 – 1929 Cattle Boom! tells the story of ranching families, cattle drives and ranching culture through artifacts, historical photographs, documents and maps from regional collections. This exhibition is organized exclusively for the Museum of the Coastal Bend and will not be seen elsewhere. Cattle Boom! will be open to the public through Dec. 15, 2012.

The La Salle Odyssey exhibit tells the story of the first European settlement in Texas- the French Fort St. Louis, and the archeological excavation of the French ship La Belle in Matagorda Bay.

Fort St. Louis and Rene Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle This exhibition explores several subjects relating to the first French settlement in Victoria County and the first European settlement in Texas. From French explorer LaSalle’s early expeditions to life at Fort St. Louis and the archeological research on these subjects, each segment of this amazing story is told through informative scholarly written text panels, photographic images, and original artifacts found the site.

The Cannons The centerpiece exhibit in the Museum’s gallery is the exhibit of seven of the eight cannons brought to Texas by French explorer La Salle. The eighth cannon is on exhibit at the State History Museum in Austin. The Fort St. Louis cannons are the focal point of MCB’s exhibits.

La Belle artifacts Artifacts recovered from La Salle’s ship La Belle which sank in nearby Matagorda Bay, including munitions and personal items from the explorers such as this small glass fica, possibly worn as a charm to ward off evil spirits.

The Museum of the Coastal Bend is open Tuesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Closed major holidays.

Museum Dollar Days: $1 admission per person 3rd Saturday of each month.

Museum of the Coastal Bend
2200 East Red River Victoria
361-582-2511

Endangered whooping cranes have begun their annual 2,400-mile fall migration from Canada to Texas. As the rare birds approach Texas, a new citizen science initiative is inviting Texas residents and visitors to help collect sightings of whoopers.

Texas Whooper Watch (http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/whoopingcranes/) is a new volunteer monitoring program that is a part of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Texas Nature Trackers program.   According to Lee Ann Linam, biologist in the Wildlife Diversity Program, Texas Whooper Watch is being developed to keep track of an ever-expanding population of whooping cranes.

Since beginning their slow recovery from a low of 16 birds in the 1940s, whoopers have, with few exceptions, always wintered on the Texas coast on and near Aransas National Wildlife Refuge.  However, in the winter of 2011-12, several groups of whooping cranes expanded their wintering areas to include more coastal areas and even some inland sites in Central Texas—patterns that surprised crane biologists.  “Texas Whooper Watch is a program that asks the public to help us discover more about where whooping cranes stop in migration and to be ready to learn more about these potential new wintering areas,” according to Linam.

This year biologists expect about 300 whooping cranes to start arriving in Texas in late October or early November.  According to surveys on the nesting grounds in Wood Buffalo Park in northwestern Canada, the flock may contain as many as 34 chicks.  Linam notes that Texas Whooper Watch will also help improve the accuracy of surveys on the wintering grounds, as the growth of the flock has made traditional census methods more difficult.

Whoopers usually follow a migratory path through North and Central Texas that includes cities such as Wichita Falls, Fort Worth, Waco, Austin, and Victoria.  During migration they often pause overnight to use wetlands for roosting and agricultural fields for feeding, but seldom remain more than one night.  They nearly always migrate in small groups of less than 6-8 birds, but they may be seen roosting and feeding with large flocks of the smaller sandhill crane.  They are the tallest birds in North America, standing nearly five feet tall.  They are solid white in color except for black wing-tips that are visible only in flight.  They fly with necks and legs outstretched.

Citizens can help by reporting sightings of whooping cranes and by preventing disturbance of cranes when they remain overnight at roosting and feeding locations.  Sightings can be reported to whoopingcranes@tpwd.state.tx.us or 512-389-TXWW (8999).  Observers are asked especially to note whether the cranes have colored leg bands on their legs.  Volunteers interested in attending training sessions to become “Whooper Watchers” in order to collect more detailed data may also contact the TPWD at whoopingcranes@tpwd.state.tx.us or 512-389-TXWW (8999).

Additional information, including photos of whooping crane look-alike species, can be found at http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/whoopingcranes/ and at http://www.whoopingcrane.com/report-a-sighting/ .

Chester Island photo by Diane D. Nunley

Audubon is celebrating 50 years of Sundown Island! Originally built in 1962 from dredge spoils, this seventy-acre island is one of the most important rookery sites for Brown Pelicans in the state, and is widely credited as one of the sites that saved brown pelicans from extinction in Texas.

Today, Sundown is home to 18 species of birds and continues to be an important site for Brown Pelicans. Audubon wardens manage Sundown and other islands – monitoring bird colonies, patrolling for predators, and enhancing habitat.

Sundown Island was recently renamed in honor and memory of long-time warden Chester Smith.

Be sure to visit the Chester Island website: http://www.sundownisland.org.

For more information or to sign up as a volunteer contact: Tim Wilkinson, Chester Island Sanctuary Warden at twsword1@comcast.net

Seadrift Texas

by Rebbeca Bretz,
Portrait Artist of the Seadrift Legacy Project

On a sunny Sunday in Seadrift
I wander down to the docks.

Intoxicated by the bay breeze,
I play hide-and-seek with
brown pelicans and perched gulls.
Seemingly unamused, they stare back at me;
the crunch of this seashell path
has betrayed me.

Beneath a lone tree, a chair sits in shade.
Pollock’ed with bird squat.
Armies of ants, march stem-to-stern
at work in their bottle cap and beer tab universe.

Bleached white and sun-baked, the shrimp boats come in.
Exhaust fume-enshrouded fishermen
in slimed white boots
work in transfer their catch.
Their mouths move, but I hear nothing,
only the baritone hum of the boat engine.
I watch them work awhile.
Mystified by their gadgets and nets,
I guess they must speak a different language
that those of us not in the white boot club
may understand or appreciate.

Crunching back toward my reality,
I see sparrows playing Labyrinth in
teetering stacks of shiny neon-yellow crab baskets.
I pass a handsome craft in dry dock
with long rubber gloves drying vertically,
waving their faded red-and-yellow salute
to the passing of an era.

Sat., Oct. 27 Monster Dash 5K Run and Walk
8:00 a.m. Calhoun Air Center

Sat., Oct. 27 Monster Bash

Sat., Oct. 27 POC School Halloween Carnival

Sat., Oct. 27 White Elephant/Rummage Sale
8:00-2:00 St. Patrick’s Church, Seadrift

Sun., Oct. 28 White Elephant/Rummage Sale
10:00-1:00 St. Patricks’Church, Seadrift

Sun., Oct. 28 Great Day in the Morning
11:00 a.m. Port O’Connor First Baptist Church

Sun., Oct. 28 Annual Thanksgiving Dinner
1:00 a.m. St. Patrick’s Church, Seadrift

Sun., Oct. 28 POC Cemetery Association Meeting
6:30 p.m. Community Room, Community Center

Wed., Oct. 31 Halloween Parade in Seadrift
5:00 p.m. Register for Costume Contest

Wed., Oct. 31 Trick or Truth
First Baptist Youth Building, Seadrift

Wed., Oct. 31 Youth Night at the Chapel
7:00 p.m. Fisherman’s Chapel, Port O’Connor

Thurs., Nov. 1 Open House Bubba’s Smoked Meats
9 a.m.-9 p.m. 704 W. Adams, Port O’Connor

Fri., Nov. 2 Archeologist to Speak
1:30 p.m. Calhoun County Museum, 301 S. Ann, PL

Sat., Nov. 3 Service Club Garage & Bake Sale
8:00 a.m. POC Community Center Pavilion

Nov. 3 & 4 Quilt Show
10:00-4:00 Bauer Community Center, PL

Nov. 3 & 4 Arts, Crafts and Antiques Festival by the Bay
10:00-4:00 Bauer Community Center

Sun., Nov. 4 Daylight Saving Time Ends
Turn your clocks back one hour.

Tues., Nov. 6 Election Day

Tues., Nov. 6 Public Hearing
6:30 p.m. Seadrift City Hall

Tues., Nov. 6 Bunco
7:00 p.m. Port O’Connor Community Center

Sat., Nov. 10 Seadrift Clean-up
9:00-1:00

Sat., Nov. 10 PL Chamber Consignment Auction
10:00 a.m. Calhoun County Fairgrounds

Sun., Nov. 11 Veterans’ Day

Mon.,Nov. 12 Port O’Connor Chamber of Commerce
6:30 p.m. Back Room of Community Center

Thurs., Nov. 15 Seadrift Chamber of Commerce
6:00 p.m. First National Bank, Seadrift

Put it on your Calendar!
17th Annual Port O’Connor Community Thanksgiving Service
6:00 p.m., Sun., Nov. 18 at Fisherman’s Chapel

Club & Organizations’ Meeting Schedules:

AA meets each Saturday night at 7 p.m. at First Baptist Church Fellowship Hall in Port O’Connor.

POC Lions Club meets the second Wednesday of each month, 12 Noon, at Cathy’s Restaurant

Commissioner’s Court meets the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of each month at 10 a.m., 1st Floor of the Court House, Port Lavaca.

Crossroads Astronomy Club meets at 7:00 p.m., third Mondays, at U of H, Victoria, Room 223 info: wes81461@yahoo.com 935-2016

Calhoun County Quilt Guild meets the first Wednesday of each month at 9:30 a.m. at the Fairgrounds Exhibit Building.

Open Arms (Families Surviving Infant Loss) meets every third Tuesday at Central Church of Christ, 801 E. Airline, Victoria, from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.

Calhoun County Democratic Club meets the last Thursday of the month at IBC Bank, Port Lavaca, at 5:30 p.m.

Calhoun County Conservative Club meets 2nd Tuesday each month, 11:00 a.m. at the Heritage Center in Port Lavaca

CASA (Christians Against Substance Abuse) meets each Thursday from 6-7 p.m. at Seadrift Bayfront Pavilion

Friday Night Youth every Friday except the first Friday of each month, 7:00 to 10:00 p.m., Fisherman’s Chapel, Port O’Connor

POC Sports Associationmeets the third Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at POC Community Center.

National Alliance on Mental Illness (N.A.M.I.) meets 3rd Monday each month from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Parkway Church, Victoria. Support group meets at Laurent Towers fountain from 6-8 p.m., 2nd and 4th Tuesdays each month.