The Grand Opening and unveiling of the Lone Star Monument and Historical Flag Park will be held Thursday, April, 21, 2011 at 5:30 p.m. at the site of the park at the intersection of I-45 and FM-105 in Conroe, Texas. There will be a parade from downtown Conroe to the Lone Star Monument and Historical Flag Park.

Texian re-enactors and SRT/DRT members: You are needed to make this a great 175th annivesary opening of this great site dedicated to the heroes of the Texas Revolution. For more information see the Lone Star Monument and Historical Flag Park web site or contact David Martin at dmartin@lonestarsrt.org or (281) 467-8146. This will be a 3 1/2 rated event. There will be volley salutes and at least one cannon.

SRT Lone Star Chapter Annual Dinner Meeting

Lone Star Chapter #58 of the Sons of the Republic of Texas will be holding their annual dinner meeting at the Steamboat House Restaurant On July 10, 2010 at 7:00 p.m. The Steamboat House Restaurant is located at 8040 N. Houston Parkway W., Houston, Texas.

The Lone Star Chapter of the SRT will welcome as their guest speaker Texas historian, Dr. Gregg Dimmick. Gregg Dimmick is the author of the the much acclaimed book, Sea of Mud. The dinner program will also include the Montgomery County Texas History Teacher of the Year Awards. There will also be a drawing for a Brown Bess Musket and a Bowie Knife. Dinner including gratuity is $40 per person. Please R.S.V.P. by July 8, 2010 by emailing dmartin@lonestarsrt.org or by calling 281-467-8146.

Confederate Flag Memorial - Texas Division SCV

Honor your ancestor by helping the Texas Division of the SCV construct a Confederate Flag Memorial on Interstate-10. See an artist rendition of the Confederate Flag Memorial in the image above. The land for the new Confederate Flag Memorial is located 5 miles west of the Texas/Louisiana state line on I-10. Your support will enable passengers in over 55,000 cars per day to see Confederate Flags flying proudly in the Texas breeze.

Help the Texas Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans make this dream a reality, become a sponsor with your tax deductible donation. Sponsor one of the 20 Memorial Flagpoles available at $1100 each, or one of the 13 State Memorial Columns for $2000 each. Flagpoles and Columns will bear a plaque with an inscription of the donors choice. Or, sponsor a Memorial Brick at $50., $100 or $300; or a Memorial Bench at $800. Memorial Bricks and Benches will be engraved with an inscription of the donor's choice. You can also recieve a "Texas Dvivison Crest" for each $10.00 donation to the Confederate Flag Memorial fund.

Mail checks payable to "Texas Division-SCV," and mail to Texas Division Sons of Confederate Veterans, c/o Lt. Commander Granvel Block, 1604 Buckingham Dr., Orange, Texas 77632. For more information, contact Granvel Block Lt. Commander of the Texas Division at granvelb@gt.rr.com

or at his cell phone # (409) 779-6657. You can also make a donation online at https://www.bricksrus.com/order/texasdivscv/index.php

Texas Heritage Society Meeting - June 17, 2010 Dr. Gregg Dimmick

"The Archeology of the Mexican Army in Texas" will be Texas historian and archeologist Gregg Dimmick's topic of discussion at the next meeting of the Texas Heritage Society on June 17, 2010. The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m at 18 West Shaker Court in The Woodlands, Texas. Refreshments will be served starting at 6:00 p.m.

Beginning with his work with the "Sea of Mud" (El Mar de Lodo) in Wharton County, Dr. Gregg Dimmick has done more to advance our knowledge and understanding of the Mexican Army in Texas during the Texas Revolution than any other historian or archeologist before him. He has performed archeological digs at numerous historical sites around Texas including the "Sea of Mud," the San Jacinto Battleground, the Fannin Battleground, and Madame Powell's Tavern. Dimmick is a member of the Houston Archeological Society, Texas State Historical Commission, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Friends of the San Jacinto Battleground.

Gregg Dimmick is the author of the highly acclaimed book, Sea of Mud, which completly modified our perception of the retreating Mexican Army following the Battle of San Jacinto. He is also the editor of General Filisola's Analysis of Jose Urrea's Military Diary which has also shed considerable light on this period in Texas history.

The Texas Heritage Society informs us that Dr. Dimmick will be bringing copies of his books to sell and sign. Hope to see you there.

David Crockett in Congress Wins IPPY Award

In February, I had the opportunity to review David Crockett in Congress: The Rise and Fall of the Poor Man's Friend by James R. Boylston and Allen J. Wiener (Bright Sky Press, 2009). We have just been advised that David Crockett in Congress has just received a 2010 Independent Publisher's Book Award for Best Regional Non-Fiction.

For fourteen years the Independent Publisher Book Awards have been conducted annually to honor the year's best independently published titles. The "IPPY" Awards reward those who exhibit the courage, innovation, and creativity to bring about change in the world of publishing.

David Crockett in Congress is the first significant new biography of the famous frontier congressman and Alamo martyr in over a half a century. Crockett emerges as a savvy politician, hardball campaigner and advocate for the poor. The book is based on Crockett's own writings and other original documents and appends all of his surviving correspondence, political circulars and key speeches.

Congratulations to the authors, Boylston and Wiener, for their much deserved recognition for this important and detailed work on the life of David Crockett. I continue to recommend this book very highly to anyone looking for a better understanding of David Crockett and/or the Jacksonian age.

Clayton Library Hours of Operation

With thousands of books, microfilm and microfiche, the finest genealogical research facility in southeast Texas is the Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research in Houston, Texas. As it is part of the Houston Public Library System, the Clayton Library is free and open to the general public. Recently, the Clayton Library changed its hours of operation and will no longer be open on Mondays.

The new hours of operation for the Clayton Library as of June 14, 2010 are:

CLAYTON LIBRARY HOURS

Monday - CLOSED
Tuesday - 10:00 A.M. - 6 P.M.
Wednesday - 10:00 A.M. - 8 P.M.
Thursday - 10:00 A.M. - 6 P.M.
Friday - 10:00 A.M. - 5 P.M.
Saturday - 10:00 A.M. - 5 P.M.
Sunday - CLOSED

The Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research is located at 5300 Caroline, Houston, Texas. As the hours of operation have been changing frequently lately, be sure and call the Clayton Library before you go at 832-393-2600. For the locations and hours of other Houston Public Libraries call 832-393-1313,