Tribute to The Woman’s Club of Collegeport

Collegeport Day is a time to remember and celebrate our community’s rich heritage.  Early Collegeport flourished as settlers arrived bring hope for new beginnings and prosperity.  After all, Collegeport’s motto was “The Town of Opportunity.” The Gulf Coast University of Industrial Arts attracted students who could work in exchange for tuition and board.  As businesses sprang up, so did houses and farmsteads.  Civic organizations—the Collegeport Industrial League and the Woman’s Club of Collegeport were influential in the development of the community and the care of residents.  The organization of the churches and the construction of their edifices followed.  The First Church of Collegeport—Federated (comprised of 14 denominations) and the Episcopal Church--Grace Chapel of St. Mary’s Mission were soon holding services, the former serving as the first school.  The railroad brought new vitality to the town.  Soon, the Bay View School building was completed where classes were held.  The future seemed bright, but by 1915 economic reversals brought about an exodus, and the people with means to leave did so; the rest stayed and made their lives here.  The advent of a paved road in 1928 soon saw the end of rail service to Collegeport.

It is difficult to explore any facet of the community without involving all of them, as they were so intertwined.  This year’s look-back focuses on the Woman’s Club of Collegeport and how these dedicated women influenced the life of this community.  This article is the result of the digitization and transcription of early records of this organization. 

The Woman’s Club was organized on May 19, 1910, adopting the motto “Magnify the Good,” with the objective "To be a Power of Good" in our community. The first work of the organization was to care for the sick, to institute a clean-up program and to aid the church (and school life of the community before either churches or schools were built.  After these initial challenges were met, the club began its greatest work--organizing and maintaining the first free public library in Matagorda County.  The club also began sponsoring and promoted the annual Collegeport Day homecoming to mark the anniversary of the town’s founding.  At this time, the Woman’s Club held two meetings each month, meeting in the homes of members, at the Hotel Collegeport or at the Federated Church, also referred to as the “Community House.”

Five Woman’s Club members met at Hotel Collegeport, braving a cold wet norther to organize the Collegeport Public Library on January 11, 1912.  The driving force in organizing the library was the Woman’s Club President, Dena D. Hurd, wife of Burton D. Hurd who founded Collegeport on May 25, 1908.  February 1st was set as “Library Day” when members presented 17 books.  On February 10, 1912, the official opening of the library was observed by 106 visitors, and the collection numbered 35 books, properly catalogued and numbered.  No books were issued and no donations were received, but almost all of those calling at that time donated books afterwards.  During the remainder of the first year 1,228 visitors signed the register.  Collegeport residents enthusiastically supported the new library by donating books from their private collections.  The Collegeport Public Library supported the Citrus Grove school by donating 50 books to its library on August 14, 1913.  The library and reading room were temporarily housed in the Real Estate Office of W. W. Wilkinson.  Other locations included the Buchen Store, Yeamans Store, and the Southwest room of the Bay View Public School building.

The Collegeport Public Library had a permanent home after purchasing the home of J. H. Adams for $50.00 and moving it to its present location in 1923.  The Collegeport Industrial League assisted the Woman’s Club by donating the lot and moving the building to its present site which was West of the school building.

The Woman’s Club maintained a collection reference materials and books that were accessible by both the school and community.  The Woman’s Club supplied first aid items for the “hospital room” in the school and worked with the county nurse to identify children of the community in need of health care.  The community generously supported Woman’s Club Library fundraisers which, in turn, helped the school attain and maintain its accreditation.  Among fundraising events through the years were plays, dinners, the sale of ice cream and drinks at Collegeport Day celebrations and at community fairs.

The Woman’s Club Sponsored a Girl’s Reserve program beginning early in 1932.  Miss Beryl Bell, a teacher at Collegeport was the first GR sponsor.  The Woman’s Club helped raise funds for the Girl’s Reserves work. Other sponsors were Miss Ann Ross and Mrs. Roy Nelson.  The Girl’s Reserve organization continued under the sponsorship of the Woman’s Club at least until 1947.

In 1933, rail service to Collegeport was ended, the rails were taken up, and the St. Louis Brownsville and Mexico depot was closed.  In those years of the Great Depression, it was common practice for the decommissioned depots to be salvaged for their materials which were used to maintain those still in service.  Through the tireless efforts of Harry Austin Clapp, the depot was gifted to the community by Missouri-Pacific Railroad officials with the stipulation that it be moved and attached to the Collegeport Public Library and be named MOPAC HOUSE as a memorial to the railroad.  As the depot was being prepared for its move to the West side of the library, a storm on July 25, 1934 swept through the community, collapsing a portion of the building which had been separated for the move.  The entire building was then dismantled and materials were moved to the Industrial League property.  Under the supervision of County Commissioner G. A. Harrison, a close friend of Mr. Clapp, laborers constructed a foundation of shell concrete on which the present day Mopac House was erected as an addition to the library building.  This provided additional space for a reading room, a kitchen and auditorium for the benefit of the community.  The opening of the Mopac House was May 4, 1935.  The Woman’s Club served lunch for $.50/plate to raise money to fund projects. 

As the school continued educating the youth, the Woman’s Club continued operating the library to support the school and community.  The Catalogue of the Collegeport Library 1935-1940 recorded 1,640 volumes in 1935, listing a wide range of reading materials for all ages.  The collection had grown to 1,876 volumes by 1940.  The 1940 Annual Report showed the library had an active year with 480 visitors and 528 books loaned.  A copy of this Catalogue along with the transcribed Woman’s Club Minutes will be displayed in the library on Collegeport Day.  An accession record listed books from the Palacios Library in the 1960’s, which were the last recorded books received.  Copies of the original Library Register of Guests from its “Opening Day” on February 10, 1912 through October 18, 1913, and the Collegeport Woman’s Club Guest Book that records visitors between March 23, 1933 through June 21, 1935 will be available for review.  Look and see if one of your ancestors visited the library.  The first entry in 1933 was Beulah Harvey and the last in 1935 was Rosalie Nelson.  At this time, the library was open on Fridays.  These records are a “Who’s Who” of Collegeport families during those times.

Sometime during WWII, High School students began attending Blessing High School.  On October 20, 1947 the Collegeport school along with other rural districts, consolidated with the Palacios Independent School District.  High School students then attended school in Palacios while the lower grades continued on in Collegeport for several more years.  When the local school finally closed, and all students went to Palacios, the need for the library diminished, and its use ebbed as well.  The library remained available to anyone who wished to borrow books, but was not open regularly, nor was it always tended by a librarian.

By 1966 the Woman’s Club only met quarterly for business meetings. It still sponsored the New Year's Day Dinner, Washington's Birthday Dinner (this one, a covered dish dinner on the Sunday noon, prior to February 22) and the annual Collegeport Day Celebration.  A 1970 article written after the 61st Anniversary told that the Woman’s Club only sponsored the Collegeport Day Homecoming at that time.  In 1978, the now inactive library needed a new floor.  All books and shelves were removed and stored in the Mopac House while repairs were made--funded by local donations.  The orderly arrangement on the shelves was never restored after the move.  Into the 1980’s friends of the community continued to donate books from their private collections, but these were not catalogued and the collection of books became disorganized. 

Time had taken its toll on the aging collection, and the shelves of books became more a novelty.  Due to unfavorable environmental conditions over the years, much of the collection was rendered unusable.  All but the most-treasured books that could still be shelved were withdrawn.  Remaining in the collection is A History and Genealogy of the Family of Hurd in the United States, the library’s first volume that was donated by the author, Dena D. Hurd, the first president of the Woman’s Club.  Also in the collection is the first Guest Register of Hotel Collegeport which is in storage.  Two notebooks containing transcribed entries of this register are kept at the library.  In sorting through the books, care was taken to record those that were inscribed.  Inscriptions and title pages of books in unusable condition were archived.  A record of the retained books was also compiled.  The reorganization has opened some shelf space for other displays.  We invite you to share photos of your Collegeport Ancestors to display in the library. 

The Woman’s Club melded with the Mopac House Foundation as its steadfast members faded away.  We owe the ladies who organized and carried out the mission of the Woman’s Club of Collegeport a huge debt of gratitude for their untiring and selfless efforts to make the community a better place.  Their emphasis on education and reading gave students a better chance in life.  Elaine Hendrix Shows whose name appears in the 1935 Guest Book numerous times once expressed her gratitude saying, “I can’t tell you how much that little library meant to me as a young girl growing up in Collegeport during the depression.  I read as many books as I could…”

Keeping traditions and celebrating our heritage helps us to focus on the things that are most important in life—our faith, family, friends and community.  Although now fewer in number, residents of the Collegeport community still faithfully support our annual homecoming.  Each time we gather, we make new memories to treasure.

Thank you to each person who gives of their time, talents, financial support, and for your commitment to continue our community traditions.

                                                                                    G. W. Franzen