Remembering Jack Reid

Issue 12...........May 2021

The Lake Jackson Historical Association provides Education relative to the

History and Culture of Lake Jackson, Texas.

The History Museum and Plantation Site

continue to mix the OLD with the NEW

NEW....Digital Scan Day Comes to the

Farmers Market!

The LJHA is in the process of building up its digital archives. Do you have photographs from the past, historic documents, or letters that pertain to the city of Lake Jackson and/or Brazoria County? Please bring them to the Alden B. Dow Office Museum, 101 South Parking Place, on Saturday, May 8 between 9 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Volunteers will scan your items, make a copy for you on your flash drive, and keep one for the LJHA's collections. TO FIND OUT MORE, CLICK HERE.

CURIOUS COLLECTION.............OLD ITEM

How did a rotary dial telephone from the First State Bank of Lake Jackson, Texas, end up in Pagosa Springs, Colorado? Curator Angela Villarreal is seeking an answer to that question. The red telephone bearing the number CY7-2471 (CY for Cypress) in the center circle was donated recently to the History Museum by Harold Cox. His daughter, Debbie Brooke, spotted the phone in a Pagosa Springs antique store. She purchased it for $75.00.

Prior to today’s 10-digit phone numbers, an alphanumeric code, known as the 2L-5N or “two letter and 5 number” system was used. The two letters represented the nearest telephone exchange. “I Love Lucy” aficionados may recall the show’s characters reciting the number Murray Hill 5-9975 (or MU5-9975). Freeport natives may remember Belmont 3 (or BE3) as their telephone prefix,

As demand for new phone numbers increased, the alphanumeric system became untenable. Thus, area codes were inaugurated in 1951. When meting out the codes, ease of dialing was a consideration for heavily populated localities. The first code, 201, was earmarked for the state of New Jersey. New York was assigned 212, Los Angeles, 213, and Chicago, 312. Larger, harder to dial codes, like Texas’s 915, were given to rural areas.

NEW………………………………FLAG DEPOT

The History Museum will accept your worn out, tattered, or faded American flags. They will be held in safekeeping until the Boy Scouts conduct another retirement ceremony.

OLDIE, but Goodie...

JACK REID – A Lake Jackson Legend

“You just do what you say you’re going to do.” Sounds simple enough, but this philosophy is what Jack Reid credits to his success as a businessman in Lake Jackson for over 40 years. Most of us who grew up in Lake Jackson knew of Jack Reid’s appliances, but his impact on the community went well beyond providing us with appliances.

Originally from Illinois, a young Jack was making a trek out west to California in 1948 after serving in the military. He made a detour down south through the Brazosport area to visit with his mother and stepfather, who worked in Freeport as a brick layer. During his stay, a happenstance blind date with Henrietta Horak caused a change of plans! Jack and “Henri” were married in 1949, and decided to begin a life together in the city of Lake Jackson.

At that time, the City had a population of 1500, and Jack began his adventure into being a local business owner, starting with a masonry company. By 1951, he joined with 2 friends and began the Jack Reid lumber company, later selling out and starting Jack Reid appliances in 1954.

His outgoing, colorful personality made him known as a guy “who could talk to a rock and sell anybody anything”! And his children are quick to point out their father was the hardest worker they’ve ever known — never backing down from a long day at the store, and making sure customers were satisfied with their purchase.

Jack Reid felt so blessed to have been a successful businessman that he spent his life giving back to the community he loved. His son, Randal Reid, quoted his father, “I shouldn’t have all this, with my meager eighth-grade education. This community has been so good to me that every opportunity I have to give back, I grab it and run with it.’”

Besides being a former councilman and mayor of Lake Jackson, Jack was also a member of over 11 organizations throughout his lifetime, and a Charter member of many. He was inducted into the Brazoria County Business Hall of Fame; and on March 15, 2010 he was honored with “Jack Reid Day” by the Lake Jackson City Council.

He managed to balance his busy schedule with time for leisure activities as well. One of the organizations he helped charter was Riverside Country Club, as he was an avid golfer. He took off every Wednesday afternoon to head to Riverside and play a round of golf with his friends.

Playing cards was another activity he enjoyed and said he was ready for a poker game “anytime, anywhere”!

Jack Reid was known for his character of hard work and integrity. Former Lake Jackson City Manager Bill Yenne said “He was a very, very important man in our community. He was a great guy. When you think of the word gentleman, that’s Jack Reid. He was a remarkable man.”

He passed away on August 1, 2015 at the age of 89, having shaped the city of Lake Jackson with his leadership and service. What great fortune came to our city when such a hard-working, thoughtful, honest, creative man decided to make Lake Jackson his hometown.

by Fran Hammond

New Exhibit....................June 16-August 11, 2021

Attention all chefs, caterers, grillers, family cooks, and wannabees. Apron Strings: Ties to the Past is coming to the History Museum in mid-June. In this exhibit, aprons dating back to the early 1900s through present day will be on display. As a group, they chronicle changing attitudes toward women and domestic work. A wide range of design and craft techniques are highlighted. As one moves through the decades, one notices that elaborate and opulent embroidered aprons dominated the 1920s. In contrast, functionality became more important in the Depression and WWII years as bib aprons began to reign in popularity. Post-war years of the late 1940s and 1950s brought an emphasis upon family and motherhood as demonstrated by a flourish of commercial and intricately hand-decorated aprons. The Apron Strings exhibit is organized into thematic groups focusing on design, historical context, use, decoration, and materials. Come visit, select from a group of five (5) to try on, and take a selfie!!

A Program of ExhibitsUSA, a national division of Mid-America Arts Alliance with Texas Commission on the Arts and The National Endowment for the Arts.

For more information on the exhibit Click Here

BUY A BRICK!

Leave your lasting imprint AND support the LJHA at the same time. Honor a friend. Memorialize a relative.

Pave the walkway to the museum or the Jackson Plantation Historic Site with a personalized brick.Order a Brick here.

A Word from the Executive Director

The Alden B. Dow Office Museum (ABDOM) Restoration project is garnering a lot of attention! Last month I was very pleased to announce the award from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the nations’ leader in Preservation efforts. Today, I am equally pleased to be able to announce that our own great state, Texas, has also seen fit to support the ABDOM project! As the National Trust is to preservation nationally, so too is The Texas Historical Foundation for our own state. The Texas Historical Foundation (THF) has informed LJHA that they will: “Support your project as proposed by providing a grant of $5,000 from the Michael C. Duda Historic Architectural Endowment for phase two of the restoration of the Alden B. Dow office building.” And “Let me close by wishing your organization every success with this project. It is through the work of dedicated individuals and groups such as yours that we are able to preserve and promote Texas’ exceptional history and heritage for future generations.”

The support of these grants is more than just the funding needed to accomplish the restoration. The grants are also an endorsement at the highest level for preservation standards and significance. LJHA members and supporters have every reason to be very proud! Please show your appreciation and support for the preservation of Texas History by going to the THF website; https://texashistoricalfoundation.org/news-events/blog.html and stay informed about the ongoing efforts by clicking their ‘Sign UP’ button to receive their newsletter.

As supporters of LJHA, I hope that you are all as excited by these endorsements and show of support as I am! If so, you will surely be happy to hear that I have one more to share with you today. The Alden and Vada Dow Family Foundations have awarded the ABDOM project a grant in the amount of $25,000! You can read their letter below.

Local support is critical to this effort! If you or somebody you know would also like to contribute, you can send a check to P.O. Box 242, Lake Jackson, TX 77566. If you would like more information, please contact me, or LJHA Board President, Susan Buell. LJHA is a 501c3 Nonprofit; as such your donations are tax deductible as allowed by law.

Read letter from The Alden and Vada Dow Family Foundations here.

David Thomas

LJHA Executive Director