Dear Dad, Glen Rose Law 09.04.21
The best trips are sometimes very close to home. The breakfast we had at Crave, the new bakery in Glen Rose was quite good. The Danish and the muffin were excellent. Crave is at a level not often seen in a small town. The location in an old barber shop makes it interesting and the owner is just eccentric and friendly enough to fit in perfectly in Glen Rose. I predict her business will do very well.
Being next to the courthouse square this morning in Glen Rose reminded me of many stories from over the years. Many people have favorite stories or remembered events from downtown Glen Rose. Most are things like showing their kids or grandkids the dinosaur track in the side of the band stand. Or maybe a street dance or festival. However, the story that comes to my mind first is something I was told and may have occurred before I was born.
Up until about 1970 Somervell County was dry. The area though was infamous for moonshining and bootlegging operations up until finally voting “wet” around 1970. During prohibition, this area supplied much of the contraband liquor consumed in the greater Dallas area. I was once told by one of the old-timers, that during prohibition you could stop on the hill overlooking the Glen Rose and Paluxy River valley and see many columns of smoke rising from locations in the cedar breaks across the area. I wouldn’t be too surprised to learn there is still a moonshiner or two continuing to ply his or her trade. I suspect it would be easy to find a market for the product with current twenty something trend setters.
This story was told and most likely embellished by Clyde Stacey many years ago. The night was probably sometime in the late 40s or early 50s. Recalled here in 1st person much as I remember it being told to me………
Some buddies and me were sitting around the courthouse square with the county sheriff on a couple of benches and pickup truck fenders one Saturday night drinking, smoking Camel and Lucky Strike cigarettes, and talking about the world situation as seen from Glen Rose, Texas. About 10:30 we ran out of whiskey. The sheriff declared “What is this world coming to, 10:30, Friday night and we don’t have anything left to drink. You boys wait right here, I will be back directly.”
The sheriff drove a short distance to the house of a known bootlegger and parked his car with the lights off a little way down the street. About 15 or 20 minutes later, one of the bootleggers’ customers appeared, made a purchase, got back in his old truck, and started to drive away. The sheriff got out of his car stopping him before he could depart. “Son, I think you have had enough to drink tonight. I will take that bottle. Why don’t you just head on home.”
The sheriff then drove back to the square where we were all still sitting around smoking but now mostly telling stories about our hunting dogs. The sheriff stepped out of his car with the new bottle, which we gratefully passed around.
Always good to have the law on your side…….
