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Texas
| Architecture
| Museums
The Spirit
of Somerville
Address - 651/655
Avenue A
Mailing address - P.O. Box 782, Somerville, TX 77879
Hours - Sat., 10am - 12 noon and 1 - 3 pm
or by apppointment call 979-596-1604
Somerville,
Texas Area Hotels › Brenham
Hotels |
| There’s no excuse
for not finding Somerville’s Historical Museum since its right on
main street (Highway 36). Occupying two former stores (with a cozy
park occupying the space where a third building once stood) the museum
may at first resemble many Texas small town museums. |
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The Dateplate
of the Museum
TE
photo, April 2010
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| The town’s railroad
connection is immediate evident by the “illustrated” miniature locomotive
appropriately called Somerville’s “Train of Thought” parked in the
grassiest part of the park. Local artists have painted every flat
space on the wooden engine with scenes from Somerville’s history,
many taken from photos in the museum’s archives. |
Somerville's
"Train Of Thought"
TE photo, April 2010 |
1926 photo of
1900 Santa Fe Round House in snow
Courtesy
Somerville Historic Society and Museum
More Texas Railroads |
We spent a good
hour in the museum before our guide mentioned (as gracefully as possible)
that the museum was actually closed. She was there getting ready for
an event to be held the next day when we entered – but we can’t imagine
a more informative tour, even during business hours.
So, from our very first personal contact with Mrs. Sylvia (Tinka)
Murray we realized there was an strong undercurrent of energy in Somerville.
She spoke of the abundant volunteers in Somerville
and mentioned a few of the town’s ongoing projects. We never leave
a museum without asking the docents or curators what their favorite
relic or artifact is – and we were a little surprised to learn that
Tinka’s favorite was a “cooling bed” from the local funeral home.
It is indeed a rarity but what makes it Tinka’s favorite is the reactions
it brings from visiting schoolchildren. |
The mortuary
Cooling Table
TE photo, April 2010 |
| Other rarity
is a license plate from a time when drivers had to make their own.
Our favorite was an oil painting of the neighboring town of Lyons.
Painted in 1983, it was spotted at a yard sale by a Somervillain who
bought it and donated it to the museum. It was that recognition and
(perhaps more importantly) the museums acceptance that won us over. |
Home-made License
Plate
TE photo, April 2010 |
|
There’s a well-done
bust of the museum’s founder, a local boy Barney M. Davis who never
forgot his hometown despite his huge success in business. If it
wasn’t for Mr. Davis, there wouldn’t be a museum. Not far from Mr.
Davis’ bust is a photograph of a Mr. John Morgan (circa 1950) holding
aloft two of his cantaloupes (which weighed 9 and 10 pounds). You
have to love the egalitarianism of small town museums.In Somerville
it extends beyond the museum doors.
|
Museum founder
Barney M. Davis
TE photo, April 2010 |
John Morgan bursting
with pride with his cantaloupes
Courtesy Somerville Historic Society and Museum |
| Outside, in the
all-weather relic category, you’ll find Somerville’s
first traffic signal as well as the “pole” of a former barber not
far from Somerville’s old two-cell
concrete jail. Relocating the old cells from their original location
two blocks away was initially thought to be impossible, but determination
and the free loan of a crane and operator lowered the jail into place
– over the existing power lines. |
|
The two cell
Somerville Jail, circa 1940
Transported by crane and lowered intact over power lines.
TE photo, April 2010
More Texas Jails
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| If
there’s a rating system for small town museums, Somerville
ranks firmly in the top ten percent. |
|
The story may
never be known: a woman leaves her car (with door open) on a Somerville
bridge c. 1920s.
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