- Wharton County Historical Commission thanks DAR member Hazel Foltyn for the thoughtful and patriotic displays she has been creating inside the county courthouse each month this entire year. Each display has a theme, all related to patriotism and Texas history. Hazel’s displays can be found on the landing below the staircase. If you know Hazel, be sure to thank her for the time and effort she puts into each exhibit.
- We support the Texas Historical Commission’s marker program. There are 3 marker categories: cemetery, RTHL (Registered Texas Historic Landmark), and subject. A subject must be at least 50 years old to be considered. If you have a topic you’d like to recognize with a state historical marker, contact Pat Blair.
- We look forward to receiving markers for Drastata Family Farm (Taiton), First Baptist Missionary Church (Glen Flora), Roberts Family Cemetery (Burr), St. John’s Nepomucene Catholic Church Cemetery (New Taiton), and LULAC Wharton County (which was a successful Undertold Story application).
- The marker applications in the 2024 round were all approved. They were: (1) KULP Radio (Steve Zetsche), (2) Louise Community Cemetery (Bill Sanders & Joey Cardenas III), (3) Harris Park (Annette Harris Scott), (4) Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic Church (Gary Nunez), and (5) Sea of Mud (Gregg Dimmick).
- Cemeteries: We are striving to document as many of our cemeteries as possible so that we can assist the Texas Historical Commission in updating its database. If you have knowledge about a specific cemetery and would like to help document it, contact Pat Blair.
- Ongoing projects:
- courthouse tours: 1st Saturday of every month, by WCHC members,
- book talks by our County Historian Merle Hudgins on her book War Between the States Changed Texas Forever,
- advocating for the preservation of Stephen F. Austin Elementary School (Minnie Mae Hopper) as an educational resource in Wharton.
The following publications are available at Wharton County Historical Museum, 979-532-2600:
- Hola Ranger, published in 2022 by David R. Vela, former Director of the National Park Service, $15 each.
- Merle Reue Hudgins’ book War Between States Changed Texas Forever, published April 2017, is available as a 2-volume set for $75, plus $10 to ship.
- We are in the process of revising and reprinting Marking the Way through Wharton County, originally published in 1996, a guide for travelers wanting to see the county’s historic sites. When complete, the publication will be available at the Chamber of Commerce and Wharton County Historical Museum, both on Richmond Road in Wharton.