The Trails of our Past

Bi Weekly in The Van Alstyne Leader

My Walk to School

Van Alstyne, October 1901:

The autumn leaves had finally started falling and a brisk cool air had filled my growing town. The 3AM train woke me up and fearful of sleeping in I chose to pass the night with a novel by Dickens. Growing restless I was out of the house with the first hint of sunlight and an hour yet till school began. Standing at the corner of Preston and Fulton and looking northwest, I could see Charley Carter’s City Hotel, standing grand as ever. The white picket fence was laden with a thick coat of dew left behind from the long cool night. 

Moving north down Preston Street, the Taylor House stood grand at my left. Having alerted their faithful dog, I decided to take a right on Marshall for fear of being a nuisance and enter I into the downtown area. At left was a vacant frame building and at right was the brick dry goods store.  Above the store sat the Odd Fellow’s Hall who must have had a late night meeting as the window candle was nearly just a pile of wax. 

The empty buildings at my left watched my passing by as I made my way past the Harness and Buggy Shop, the Barber and the Tailor.  “There must be a show this evening at the Carter Opera House on my left,” thought I, hinted by the early morning rehearsal of a musical voice. “Extra!” I was startled only for a moment by the loud voice, but quickly realized I had passed the paper shop on my right.
 

When Marshall hit Main Street, the stockyards were quiet and to my left I went, stepping up onto the boardwalk. With the tracks to my right, the big brick buildings on my left sheltered me securely beneath their large overhangs. I passed by two furniture stores, two dry good buildings, two drug stores, three grocery stores, a jewelry shop and two barbers all before crossing Jefferson Street. With Main Street and the tracks to my right, I passed yet another dry goods store, the post office and just before reaching Cooper Street I found myself alongside the blacksmith shop. Making a quick jog across Cooper, remaining on Main, I passed the Fielder and Sheridan Lumber warehouse, crossed the cotton tracks and turned left onto Stephens Street.

Main Street
1900

The town was growing alive in this area, for I was in the heart of cotton production at its best.  Although the cotton harvest had ended a few months ago, this year had turned out to be an especially good year and workers were still trying to load the trains with the yield that had been harvested.  I crossed over Preston Street and at my left was the loading platform for the cotton.  A track ran from here, all the way back behind me toward the main tracks.  Being of the Methodist faith and seeing that there was a Baptist sunrise revival happening directy ahead in front of the Baptist Church, I decided to turn back and go south on Preston Street.

Crossing once more over the cotton tracks and passing the cotton yards I continued down Preston across Cooper Street.  At left was the Wagon Yard and at right was the Ice House, both being at the intersection of Cooper and Preston streets.  Finishing the block with warehouses on my right, I turned west onto Jefferson street. The Livery and Feed store were here on my left, with the buggy shed to its west.  The lumber shed and lumber yard were at my right and the smell of freshly cvut wood filled the air.  I passed by just before the first saws began their morning work. 

Continuing on, I turned left onto Waco Street.  I crossed over to the west side of the street and there at the corner of Waco and Jefferson was the Methodist Church. I continued down Waco heading south, passing houses, crossing over Marshall Street and just before turning west onto Fulton street I stopped to stare at the Christian Church whose peeks were just three feet taller than that of the Methodist Church and a whole 6 feet taller than the Baptist Church.

 Taking a right onto Fulton I entered into one of the residential sections of the town. I took my first right onto Dallas and continued on, passing by houses along the way. A right on Cooper, a left on Waco, I hit Stephens Street and was glad to see the Baptist Revival had ended at the Baptist church, now directly in front of me. By now I was running late, for other children quickly passed me by. I hurriedly went left on Stephens, north on Second Street, west on College Street and at the end of College stood the Public School. As I rushed up the stairs, the old school maiden stepped onto the porch to ring the school bell calling us all to class.