Palo Alto College

One of Medina’s local historian’s is Thelma Gallant. Thelma’s family has lived in Medina since 1911. Thelma is eighty-nine years old. She has contributed many sources of information to Medina’s Genealogy Room at the library, which includes books that she has written. Thelma is an active member of her church and in her community. We thought she would be of great use to our small town project. This is an interview about Medina, Texas with Thelma Gallant, Monica Cochran, and Tasia Baur on September 24, 2005. .

Monica: Would you please give us a brief background about yourself?

Thelma: I was born in Medina. I have lived here most all my life. I have taught for 44 years in Medina and 49 years in the county of Bandera.

Monica: Is there anything else you want us to know about you? Something important?

Tasia: Why did your family come here?

Thelma: My family came here for my grandfather’s health. They lived in the Eastern part of the state. The doctor told him to go to a higher, drier climate, so he chose this place.

Monica: Why did you choose to live in Medina or stay in Medina?

Thelma: I was born here and I liked it. There’s no better place to be.

Tasia: Do you want to tell us what you do for a living?

Thelma: Well, I’m retired.

Tasia: What did you do before you retired?

Thelma : I taught school for a living. I taught high school math for the last forty-three years of my teaching career.

Monica: How would describe Medina as a community?

Thelma: It’s a small community, a close community. A community where people work together and they all try to do what’s best for everybody else. It’s a friendly community.

Tasia: Can you tell us some of the money making crops of your time?

Thelma: When I was first born, people tried to raise cotton here, but the boll weevil put a stop to that. They had two cotton gins. After the crops were not successful because of the boll weevil, they went to raising corn and oats as the main money making crops. Later, people went to stock farming. Raising animals, such as: sheep, goats, cattle, and hogs. There’s very little farming here now.

Monica: Out of those, which animals are here now?

Thelma: Now, sheep are more popular. For a number of years, goats were much more popular. Mohair wouldn’t sell for several years. At the store they couldn’t get any money, so they started selling sheep instead.

Monica: Why do you think that early settlers came to Medina?

Thelma: Because it’s a beautiful section of the state; there was plenty of game, wildlife deer, turkey, and bear.

Tasia: What about religion? What kind of religions came here?

Thelma: Well, the first religious people that came in were ministers. They were circuit riders. They would come in and stay at the homes of people. Word would be spread to the neighbors and everybody would gather at someone’s home to hear them preach. Later, they started preaching in the school houses after they had schools, then later churches were built.

Monica: In this community, what are the main religions?

Thelma: In this community, there are three churches: the Baptist Church, the Methodist Church, and the Church of Christ. There are actually two Churches of Christ. The small church and the one that’s been here for a long time.

Tasia: Do you want to tell us about the black people being forced out of Medina?

Thelma: Well, we shouldn’t talk about that because that’s a black mark on Medina.

Monica: Are there any racial issues in Medina? Is there a main nationality, mainly white, mainly Hispanic or is there a mixture?

Thelma: It’s always been whites. There have not been Blacks or Latin’s. When I went to school here there were no Blacks, Latin’s, Chinese, or any other nationalities.

Tasia: What’s your favorite thing about living in a small town? What kinds of things do you like to do here?

Thelma: Everybody knows everybody else. I used to know everybody, so many people have moved in here until I don’t know so many of them. I haven’t met many of them, but in early days, I knew everybody in the county. That makes it nice, to know people and be friendly with people, and be social with people. That’s still something that Medina people do. They have their get-togethers, even tonight, one man in his eighties is having a birthday celebration. All his friends are gathering, bringing a covered dish, going down on the river, and having a birthday celebration. The people get together for things like that. Like this library, that was built by the people of Medina. For over two years, almost three years, nobody was paid at all to be librarian or to work in the library. It was all volunteer work. The whole community worked together to build the library and make a go of it. Right now, the ones at the help desk that stay every day are being paid. All the others that come in and help out with the desk are volunteers. We have one person right now who is being paid. We are looking for another one to assist that one.

Monica: What do you see for the future of Medina?

Thelma: I hope we don’t get so many people in here that we lose our identity as a small town. I’d like to see it stay a friendly town where people know each other, work together, volunteer, help each other out, and do things of that nature.

Monica: If there was one thing you’d like the future generations to know about Medina, what would it be and why?

Thelma: Well, it’s a little community located in one of the most beautiful locations in Texas. You have your hills, your streams, and so many other beautiful things. It can get hot, but we have air conditioning these days. It can get cold, but we have heat in our homes and cars. It’s an ideal place to live. Children have plenty of room to get out and play, romp the hills, and go swimming.

Monica: What were the main obstacles the settlers had to face and what were the main things they had to fight against?

Thelma: The Indian raids back in the early days. That’s what delayed the settling of Medina, the raids from the Indians. The early people who came here were hunters from San Antonio. They would come sometimes on horseback or they would come in wagons, so they could take the meat back. Game was very plentiful. Later the shingle makers came and set up camps on the river and made shingles from the cypress trees. They hauled those by wagon to San Antonio. I guess in those days, a fair price was, a wagon load would bring five dollars.

Monica: Where did the original settlers come from?

Thelma: All around, everywhere, the other states.

Monica: Were most of them already in the country because it was settled later?

Thelma: Bandera was different because the polish people came in, but here in Medina, they just came from all around.

Monica: All over the country and different parts of Texas?

Thelma: Not only Texas; but Tennessee, the Carolinas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana; all of those states.

Tasia: Do you want to tell us about some of the last Indian problems? When they occurred?

Thelma: The last person to be killed in the county was Jack Phillips. He was the deputy sheriff here. He was killed over on the Sabinal. He was sent by the sheriff on official business and had to spend the night because it was too far to make the trip in one day. The next morning, he started out and had to stop and open a gate. There were gates on the roads then. The roads were more like trails, I’d say. He got down to open the gate and noticed that there were some Indians on the hill who had seen him, so he tried to get back through the gate. He tried to get back to the house where he’d spent the night. He didn’t make it. They ran him down and killed him in a canyon over there. His granddaughter and great-granddaughter live here in Medina, right now at the present time. That was in 1876, I believe.

Monica: Was there a specific person or group of people who helped Medina survive as a town? Who helped the success or survival of the town? Can you think of anyone?

Thelma: I can’t think of any special ones. It was all working together that helped the town survive.

Tasia: We understand that the delay of Medina was because of Indians, fires, and floods. Were there any other reasons that you can think of?

Thelma: The delay of settling here? The Indians were the main reason. Because it is a beautiful section. People who came here to live would come in and stay a while then the Indians would come in and raid. It would frighten them and they would leave. It was just the more courageous families who would stay in the early days. When the Indians were run out of the country to Mexico, in the 1860’s that’s when the settlers started coming in. During the 1860’s, a lot of people came in and settled, all up and down the rivers and creeks.

Monica: Have you ever heard of any stories that significantly impacted the town? The story of the sheriff being killed was probably the main one, are there any others that you can think of?

Thelma: I can’t think of anything.

Monica: Most of the stories I’ve read about, have been due to Indian raids, are there any stories you can think of relating to flooding or fires.

Thelma: People have drowned in floods here and been washed off even in recent years. Right here on these highways that we have today, if they drive into low areas. Well, it’s really just a little dry creek, but when it rains it’s a raging stream of water. I think that washes cars off and washes people away. We’ve had loss of life due to floods here.

Monica: How would describe the town of Medina in the past?

Thelma: Well, its not nearly as thriving now as it was in past years. In the past when they didn’t have rapid transportation; like they have now, the automobiles. You had to go by horse and buggy, wagon, or horseback. You couldn’t go very far in one day. You couldn’t go to Kerrville or Bandera to buy your groceries like you do now, so that all had to be bought in Medina. We had four thriving grocery stores at one time, we had meat markets, and we had hardware stores. We had two different grist mills in the past where they ground the corn that people would bring in from the fields. There have been ladies hat stores, a skating rink, and a movie theater. We’ve had three different drug stores at three different locations. Two of those burned. We’ve had doctors. Two doctors at one time. We had a public library, just a little one for a while. When it closed, they gave the books to the high school library. We had blacksmith shops, garages, and filling stations. There were three or four filling stations operating at one time after cars came in the1920’s. Most people had a car by the late 1920’s.

Tasia: Why do you suppose that in Bandera and Kerrville some of the restaurants and grocery stores have survived, but here in Medina you don’t see that many?

Thelma: Well, because people from all the sections go in and trade there. Here we don’t have them, there’s not enough business, just for the locals. They have a bigger supply in Bandera, so that local people here will go to Bandera or Kerrville to get their groceries. We just have the one little store now. The little Old Timer up here and it doesn’t carry everything. It’s more of a convenience store. In the past we had four thriving businesses, all at one time. Some of those buildings are empty like the old Hatfield Store, the drug store. They were very busy at one time. The Koen Store was down the street. The Knight Store was over here on the corner, opposite this little restaurant building. The Adams Store was right here, where this library is now. There was a grocery store here. Oh yes, we had an appliance store here at one time, too. Grant Adams ran an appliance store here at this very location. They took care of the needs of the people at that time.

Monica: What technological changes or advances specifically impacted this town in either a positive or negative way? Like when the highway doesn’t come through the town it dies off or if the railroad does come through they grow or thrive, has there been anything that has impacted Medina.

Thelma: Well, it could have. I can remember as a child, we didn’t even have a major highway through Medina at that time. We did have a public bus service in the 40’s, 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s. The bus driver would stay here at Medina. He would leave here at 8:30 in the morning and come back at 5:30 in the afternoon. People could ride the bus. He went to Kerrville, too. That’s something we don’t have now. We were supposed to have it, but this fellow sold out his bus route. The Kerrville bus company bought it and they were going to run the bus. They did for about a year and then they quit. They said it cost too much to come over the Kerrville mountain. They quit and that left us without any bus service at all.

Tasia: Have there been any artifacts that have been left behind that are in museums from Medina?

Thelma: Oh yes, if you go to the Frontier Times in Bandera, you’ll find many things that are from Medina. Arrowheads and different things that the Indians use, things from when they had the camels at Camp Verde. Mr. Walker lived down below here, when he was a young man, he herded camels for them. He gave some things to the museum. There are a number of things they have there: rattlesnakes, I think a two headed goat that came from here, deer with their horns locked, and things of that nature.

Monica: I believe when we talked before that you told me they had found a site of an old Indian camp ground?

Thelma: Oh yes, that was right here at the edge of Medina. They sent some of the flint, arrowheads, and utensils to Austin to whoever researches those things. The researchers told us when they had lived here and what tribes they were.

Monica: How would you describe the town of Medina in the present? What do you think about the town today?

Thelma: Well, it’s a town that’s family oriented a lot of younger families moved here because they want their children to be away from the big city and the crime. They want to be in a small town and in a small school. We just don’t have a lot of things or the extent of things you have in a city.

Tasia: What about some of the negative things about living in a small town?

Thelma: Well, maybe a negative might be we need more things of culture. Now days with your transportation, you can travel to the city and stay at hotels. People who are really interested in culture, can go and get it that way.

Monica: If someone wanted to move to Medina, what reasons would you give them to move here?

Thelma: You’ll find friendly people. I think, most everybody. People who help each other when in crisis or need. Good schools. There are very good schools here. The teachers are excellent. We are very proud of our schools and our churches. We do have some entertainment, too. Once a month, musicians get together and have a play and sing. There’s no cost, you bring something to snack on while your there and everybody shares those things. We used to have a Fourth of July picnic, all the time. Last Sunday we had the Medina livestock and wildlife organization. They had a barbeque at the church, so people could go to church and then come by and get food. The food was ready for them when they got there. The whole community turned out, they had an auction later. It was their once a year money making affair. Whenever you have something like that, so many in the community turn out. Everybody supports that kind of thing. The volunteer fire department has many money making things. Ice cream socials and different things. People turn out, help them out. We have people volunteer to take the training they offer. They are quite efficient in doing their work. We are proud of our volunteer firemen and our EMS, too. We don’t have many, we only have about three right now.

Tasia: Do you ever go to the Apple Festival?

Thelma: Every year.

Tasia: What types of things go on there?

Thelma: What types of things? Every year except this year, I didn’t go this year because it was different. It was a whole week. It was in a different place. I think they’re going to change that back. What types of things? They have a little bit of everything. It use to be all in one day, all kinds of booths. People came in and brought their handiwork. Things they had to sell. Some people came every year, just to buy Christmas gifts and things. We didn’t have as much this year, because of it being all broken up. Having a little something one day and a little something another day. That made it not as efficient, so I think they’re going to change it back. I don’t know exactly what they’ll do this coming year. Whenever it is all at the Pecan Grove, it’s more efficient because all those Pecan trees offer shade and it’s all on the river. The people enjoyed going down the river. We had different activities taking place on the river; games for children, different thing for them to do, petting zoos, and all that kind of stuff. Of course, the apples. Things made of apples: apple pies, apple jellies, and apple jams. They have the apple pie contest every year. Of course, one of our Medina ladies is Tootie’s Pies. They are known throughout the United States. She has won awards with her pies everywhere. She still has her little shop up on the hill. Of course, there’s the Love Creek Store here in Medina. It’s visited by people from all over. It’s amazing how many people come in. They visit, look around, buy things, eat there, and sample things. They always have samples of their products that they make from apples.

Tasia: Do you know where the apple originated from?

Thelma: You mean the apple itself. I don’t know.

Monica Do you know what kinds of apples they grow here?

Thelma: They have many different kinds. They tried all the different kinds. They do have at least a dozen varieties now that they find quite acceptable.

Monica: Has the apple orchards helped the economy or the growth of Medina?

Thelma: Well, it probably has helped bring many of these new people. They come to the Apple Festival , see the country here and like it, so they come back and buy places. I think that’s one reason we have so many people who are new to this region. The apples that are raised here are the small trees, they’re not the big trees.

Monica: Dwarf types?

Thelma: Yes, but they produce big, nice apples.

Monica: Regular size apples on small trees. Does that make it easier for irrigation? Is that why they grow the dwarf’s?

Thelma: Yes, it’s easier for that, easier to pick them, easier to take care of them.

Monica: Oh, easier maintenance.

Thelma: Of course, they started up on West Prong on Love Creek. Mr. Adams owned property, he sold that and now has his orchard down here. There’s still an orchard up there where he was. There are several orchards on that original place.

Tasia: Do you think Medina’s going to grow? Do you think its going to grow like Bandera?

Thelma: I think it’s going to grow too much. Anywhere you look now, you see a new house going up or mobile home being put up.

Monica: Has the community done anything to help keep it small?

Thelma: Not that I know of to try and keep it small. The more that see it, want to buy property.

Tasia: Is it hard to find property here?

Thelma: Yes. Sometimes it’s difficult for the people who want to make a living. Some people buy property and they pay a big price for it. It might be land joining your land, where you might be farming. You have to pay taxes according to what the other property sold for. You don’t want to sell it, you want to make a living on that land. One of the problems we have right now, people who want to make a living here may not be able to because of being taxed to death.

Monica: Is there a reason that there is not a lot of land? Is it because people pass it from generation to generation in their families?

Thelma: There is some of that, some dividing and sub dividing.

Tasia: Does your family live here? Your children?

Thelma: I don’t have children

Monica: How many generations of your family live here?

Thelma: Three or four generations. My family came here in 1911. My mother and father came here when they were married. The place is still in the family. My brother lives on it now. The property has been in our family for almost a hundred years.

Monica: How many acres?

Thelma: Well, the original spread when my dad first came was two hundred acres. We have added to that.

Monica: That’s a pretty nice spread you have.

Tasia: Is there anything else you would like us to know about Medina? Something important that you didn’t already tell us?

Thelma: It’s a good place to live. People are friendly.

Monica: You have done a lot of work for your town. How did you get started?

Thelma: Frontier Times Museum in Bandera was built the year I graduated from high school. I used to go in there and spend a great deal of the time. J. Marvin Hunter would encourage me to save things with historical value, that is how I first started.

Monica: What do you have in progress right now for future history?

Thelma: I am a member of the Medina Genealogical Society here at the library. I am working on getting the local history so we can add materials.