Views of the Neighborhood

September 18, 2016September 17, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 59 Comments

This week I thought I would give you a quick tour of the Port Aransas museum. The first photo is an external shot of the building which is a fine example of a kit house sold in the early 1900’s. A person would buy the home complete in a kit and then put it together on their land.

PA Museum

The creation of the Port Aransas Museum was accomplished through a joint effort between the Port Aransas Preservation and Historical Association [PAPHA] and the City of Port Aransas.

PAPHA was created November 15, 2002. One of its goals was to create the first historical museum in Port Aransas to preserve and showcase the town’s history. Another was to inventory historic Port Aransas sites.

The site survey was accomplished by obtaining a matching grant in 2006. PAPHA also received the Visionaries in Preservation grant from the Texas Historical Commission, completing the process needed to advance as a preservation organization.

Owners of an early 1900s kit house offered to sell it to PAPHA where it stood. That was not an option due to the cost of land in Port Aransas and the lack of funds in the PAPHA treasury. Another option was for the owners to give the house to PAPHA to move to another location, which is what they did.

In 2007, Preservation Texas, a private, non-profit statewide preservation group, named the house one of the state’s top 12 most endangered structures.

Papers were signed transferring ownership to PAPHA on Feb. 8, 2007. The problem then was where and how to move it, and how to pay for all aspects, including remodeling into a museum after the move.

PAPHA applied for grants, held fundraisers and met with the City of Port Aransas, utility companies and movers. Enough money was raised to move the house, but not for land.

The City Council and City Manger agreed to find a place on city property for a museum, finally settling on part of the Community Center property site.

In April 2008 the house was moved to it’s current location. It was renovated and opened as a museum by December of the same year.

Here is a small sample of what is inside.

Farley boat — A depiction of the fishing trip of FDR in 1937

A Tarpon. Once plentiful in Port Aransas now very rare

PA Museum — Interesting exhibits of some extraordinary town citizens

I can’t possibly place all the photos of the interior in this post. Maybe someday you will visit and take a look. Thanks for reading

Views of the Neighborhood

September 11, 2016September 6, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 33 Comments

You will recall that I ran this picture of what looked like an eyesore of a freighter.

Ugly Freighter

Well, as follow-up our local newspaper “The Island Moon,” ran an article by reporter Dale Rankin because a lot of people were asking questions. The article is very complete, so I am going to use it here.

Island Moon

Around the Island
By Dale Rankin

Rusty old dredge
“We’ve had several questions about the rustic ship making its ponderous way up and down the ship channel in Port Aransas the past week. While the paint-challenged vessel might look like it came straight out of Waterworld, it is really the 8432 ton, 351-foot dredge Stuyvesant from Mobile. It is cleaning up some shoaling in the ship channel. It is called a Trailing Suction Hopper Dredge that drags a sled along the bottom and sucks up the silt and stores it in onboard bins until the ship goes out to open water and drops the silt back into the water. The rusty sides are a result of the overfull bins belching out saltwater over the sides. Think of the stains as the red badge of courage.

In the background of the photo, you can see the mothballed drilling platform that arrived a few weeks ago and is being stored on Harbor Island. Now, this may be a Fish Story, but the word around Port A is that the platform brought part of the ecosystem that lived under its steel columns that support it, including a population of rather large Red Snapper which a few locals have been helping to reduce. The person who told us that said to keep it to ourselves, but as we told him, there is no way in the world you are going to keep that a secret in Port A.”

Sorry to have to run the photo again, but now we have an answer.

Views of the Neighborhood

September 4, 2016September 3, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 52 Comments

Today’s view of the neighborhood is the Chapel in the Dunes. On top of the highest dune in Port Aransas sits a tiny chapel. It was built in 1937 by Aline Carter who later became the Poet Laureate of Texas. It was in this chapel that Ms. Carter gave Bible lessons to the children of Port Aransas.

In the 1970’s Texas Artist John Cobb was inspired by Ms. Carter’s memory to paint the walls and ceiling of the chapel. His artistry along classic lines of the ancient biblical painters took over three years to finish.

So come with me on a tour.

We start with a long climb to the top of the dune

stairs to the Chapel

We see the chapel at the top

The woman to the right will give you an idea of the size of the chapel. Very tiny.

chapel

Inside there are several pews, and you can begin to see the result of John Cobb’s work. The altar in the center of scenes depicting the multiple religions of the world. You can also see that the floors made of pieces of granite cut in the Texas hill country and shipped to Port Aransas. The altar is solid marble.

Chapel

As you enter the Chapel facing the altar the walls on the left depict scenes from the Old Testament of the Bible and the right from the new.

Here is a sample of the left wall showing Adam and Eve and other stories.

Chapel

Here is the right. Although hard to see, New Testament events such as the coming of Christ are recreated.

Chapel

Here is a shot of the back wall. This is a summary of faith with Christ (in the center above the door) holding the keys to heaven (left) and hell (right).

Chapel

The final shot is a thank you to our Docent Laura Davis for taking us on the tour.

Chapel

Sunday – Views of the Neighborhood

August 28, 2016September 15, 2020 ~ John W. Howell ~ 42 Comments

While out walking the dogs on Friday I was amazed by the way the sun played off the water. I took this shot and although it looks like it might be a rain storm coming it was not. These are clouds formed by the tropical moisture in the Gulf. If they do form rain clouds, they dump the rain further inland later in the day. This shot is at about 8:30 in the morning and this is looking North East.

This next photo is one I captured the same day only later. I took it because this freighter moving through the Corpus Christi Channel had to be the ugliest one I have seen for a while. Here is what I mean.

To the left is a ferry getting ready to make a crossing. This long view doesn’t give you the correct picture. Here is a closer look.

Check this thing out. I also took a shot of a ferry starting across the channel after the freighter passed. (The freighter is still ugly)

Finally, to redeem myself, I took a shot toward the entrance of the channel where it meets the Gulf. (This is where the freighter entered.) I will confess I normally have my producer with me on these shoots and this time I was running solo. My solo act may be the last time I try that maneuver.

If you look close, you can see a guy fishing off the sea wall. Next week will be better.

Views of the Neighborhood

August 21, 2016August 20, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 42 Comments

This week I thought it would be fun to take some pictures of the signs people put on their houses. I have to give credit for this idea to my producer Molly. In fact, the first photo is one in which she is very familiar. This particular sign is on a house she did the interior design work. The owners picked up some advice that their home should be named after an animal. (Not form Molly) An animal name is not an unique concept but the result took some finesse to work into the design scheme.

Hog heaven

The next house label keeps the animal theme but seems to have a more tasteful way of display. (This is a house in my neighborhood, and you can see the effects of regulated signage)

Heron Point

The next four are in the downtown area.

House names

All of them chose to go with something other than an animal name. (Unless there is something about Tiki we don’t know)

The next three continue the no animal theme.

House names

Howes name

House name

I was quite glad to see someone had a happy place all their own. The next house took a cue from the first two and decided on an animal.

House name

Wait. We need to see what inspired these guys to name their house the Orange Flamingo (besides too many mimosa’s)

Orange flamingos

Yup and you think this is a random stuff. The next series of photos are more or less unique kinds of labels for a residence.

House names

I think the last one, “This is it!” says a lot.

Here are three more unique placgues.

House name

Have to wonder about the canoe concept. I think “Blue” fits though.

House names

This one made me laugh out loud.

House name

I think these guys were in a hurry and had just come from a visit to Disneyland. (I’m sure Edward Scissor hands would like a few minutes with this one)

The final photo pretty much sums up the island experience.

House names

I hope you enjoyed the view of the neighborhood.

Views of the Neighborhood

August 14, 2016August 13, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 46 Comments

Port Aransas has a long history with a particular boat named after its designer and builder Charles Frederick Farley. The boat was initially needed to handle the choppy waters of the Gulf while fishing for Tarpon. In 1915 the Farley and Son Boat Builders company was founded with the idea of building unique boats in Port Aransas for the rough waters of the Gulf and Tarpon fishing. These boats had a large bow to break the waves and relatively low sides to make fishing easier.

Here is a famous picture of President Roosevelt catching a Tarpon from a Farley boat.

Farley boat

The Tarpon eventually ran out, and the Farley Boat Works stopped building boats.

Today Port Aransas keeps the spirit of the Farley Boat alive through the Farley Boat Works Museum (which we will visit another time) and cement Farley Boats scattered around town.

This post will give you an idea of some of the Farley boats on display.

The first shows a boat that the owner painted to match the house

Farley Boat

This next one is in front of a business which I featured a couple of Sunday’s ago. All pink indeed blocks out the boat name.

Farley Boat

I love this next one since it is in front of a person’s house. Notice the water waves at the bottom of the boat and the beware of dog sign on the fence. (I sure did) The flowers are lovely.

Farley Boat

This next one is in front of the newspaper office and has some plants as well as a partially hidden cat ready to have some fish. You can also tell by the color of the grass in these pictures that we have not had any rain since early June.

Farley Boat

This one is interesting in that the owner painted it to look like wood and then loaded it with rocks. (which don’t require much water)

Farley Boat

This next one is also painted to look like wood and has a beautiful turquoise deck.

Farley Boat

These next three are along the road wich leads to Robert’s Point Park. The last of the three is quite colorful.

Farley Boat

This boat is outside the Chamber of Commerce. Hard to believe these boats are made out of concrete isn’t it?

The next three are in front of businesses.

Farley Boat

The final boat for this tour is in front of the cutest house that is under remodel. A little bit of the porch is visible.

Farley Boat

I hope you liked the Farley Boat tour.

Views of the Neighborhood

August 7, 2016August 6, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 48 Comments

I had to make a run downtown yesterday, and as I was driving down the main street, I was struck by the number of sidewalk “sandwich board” signs there were. It also hit me that some them would make a pretty good post. So here is a sample of the signs that one can see in Port Aransas.

The first is for a restaurant. I have never eaten there, but the sign looks pretty inviting. It almost leads you to believe it is a free kitchen. (it’s not)

Moby Dicks

Then again maybe food is secondary.

Moby Dicks

This next one is curious

Henna Artist

Glad it is not Henna by a monkey. Also, notice the left leg of the sign. Clearly, the artist is not a carpenter.

Another curiosity

Ice cream

Is Tropical Ice Cream different from let’s say Antarctic Ice Cream? Maybe not as hard.

Now for the sin factor

Cigars

You can get it all here. (The lung doctor is up the street )

The next sign is a place where you can do pottery

Fire it.

I guess that is one way to sell the idea of working with a 1000 degree kiln

In Texas, we have a “Tax-Free” weekend where certain school supplies and clothes are state tax-free. The idea is to give parents a break on back to school items.

Tax Free

Unfortunately or fortunately silver jewelry is not on the list. (Nice try there retailer)

I like this one.

Sweet cheese

Has Eurythmics written all over it.

So that you don’t think all the signs are relatively culture-free here is one for our community theater.

Bye Bye Birdie

The final sign is in the “if you can’t beat them join them,” category.

Church sign

I hope you liked the sign tour.

Views of the Neighborhood

July 31, 2016July 30, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 39 Comments

Another big oil drilling rig has come to Port Aransas on Thursday for refitting.

Big Rig

This platform is the Noble Jim Day, and it has moved from the Gulf of Mexico to its mooring on Harbor Island in Port Aransas. The Nobel Jim Day is owned by the Nobel Corporation with offices in London and Sugarland, Texas. The unit is a semi-submersible and capable of operating in 12,000 feet of water and can drill to 37,000 feet. She was built in 1999 and retrofitted in 2010. She was primarily deployed in North America.

You can see in the background another rig The West Sirus that was parked back in July of 2015. This shot shows how the tug boats push and pull the deepwater drilling rig into place.

big rig

This photo is a shot of the rig nearing Harbor Island. It is now blocking the other apparatus from view. While the platform passed through the channel, all ferry-boat activity was halted.

big rig

Once the platform moved by the ferry-boat landing, the boats began running. You can see the long white ferries in the foreground beginning their crossing.

This photo shows the emergence of Harbor Island to the right as the big rig gets closer. Also, the ferries take on a frenzied appearance.

Big rig

The final shot shows the big rig in its new home.

Big rig

Views of the Neighborhood

July 24, 2016July 23, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 36 Comments

My apologies in advance for a somewhat random post. I began the day with the desire to put up some pictures of a few of the unusual ways businesses attract customers. We have our share of sharks and Octopuses, but there are a few others. As I was heading out, I happen to catch a photo of a gray heron in our backyard. He wanted to pose so I thought what the heck. Here he is.

Herron

Then walking on the beach, I came across this bouquet of flowers. My imagination took hold, and I decided a brokenhearted lover who lost his true love to a boating accident made a visit to the beach and brought her a gift. Well, that’s my version maybe you have one of your own.

Memorial

Finally, I turned my concentration to the project at hand, unusual ways to attract customers. The first I call, “shower your customers.”

shower your customers

Yes, that is a waterfall over the entrance of the shop. One does not get wet going inside but the potential is certainly there.

This next shot is a new RV resort in town. Oh yes, we need another RV resort almost like we need a case of black mold. If the resort isn’t enough, check the anchor out front.

Day Glo Anchor

Yup. That’s Day-Glo pink. So in keeping with the environment. (not) The next photo is also an abundance of pink but done in the style of the island.

Gratitude

Gratitude is a gift shop that uses pink to the ultimate, and it works.

Hope you like the views this week. I’ll leave you with a quiz.

for sale

What do bikinis, flip-flops, and sunglasses all have in common? Give up? They are all disposable at these prices. Have a good week.

Views of the Neighborhood

July 17, 2016July 16, 2016 ~ John W. Howell ~ 44 Comments

The city of Port Aransas does not allow food trucks to operate within the city limits. If you want a good meal, snack or drink on the quick and you want high quality there are some excellent places to go.

Tropical Snow

Here is one of the famous places. It is called Tropical Sno and is in the parking lot of a liquor store. As you can see, it is kind of busy. Yes, those are people standing in line. There are two cute signs in the window that you can read in this photo.

Tropic Sno

“Here I am. What are your other two wishes?” and “Making Mouths weird colors.”

Another outlet is the Lemonade stand. Here is one run by some young folks. They make a mean Arnold Palmer. (Of course, they never heard of Arnold Palmer)

Lemonade stand