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September 24, 2024
Growing Up In Bandera
By Glenn Clark
The Bandera Prophet
I wonder what Jack Jones would say if he was still around and could see what was going on with the old Longhorn Steakhouse location. For sure, I.E. Adamietz wouldn't recognize his insurance office location on Main Street today. Next door, Clarence Rhodes would be going in for a dental checkup instead of stacking groceries on the shelves of The Country Shopper. Here today and gone tomorrow.
Curly "The Toad" D'Spain probably wouldn't be too upset over his garage being bulldozed, because he would just get to fish more instead of working on some old car or truck. More than once he hopped in my truck when I was pulling my boat through town, only to return after dark to close up his shop. He was quick to grab a rod and reel out of the back of his truck as we headed to Medina Lake. His rods always seemed to be missing the line guide on the tip. That was probably due to the supply of used vehicle parts floating around in the bed of his old truck. If there was a spark plug attached to his line, that meant he had recently been fishing for big catfish at night on the river.
Fred Knaggs and Vince Anderwald's bbq joint next to the Chuckwagon has long ago disappeared. Don't worry though because just a little further north on Main Street now there's a place called Chicken Charley's that has filled the void. Art Clymer has some of the best brisket to be found around the Hill Country. It's the closest thing you can find today to compare with Smith Wright's bar-b-que from back in the day.
Henry Lloyd Kalka's Sinclair Service Station of earlier Bandera days has been transformed into Tripp's Tire, where Cody Tripp and his crew still serve up the same friendly service we were accustomed to in those earlier times. Henry Lloyd's "Hey cowboy" greeting was usually served up with a piece of bubble gum for any kid passing through. It was the closest place to get free air for my bicycle tires when I was hanging around Granddaddy Kindla's house.
It was really a sad time for Bandera when the Bantex Theater burned. Along with "The Swing" at the river and dragging Main Street, it made up the world we lived in as teenage kids. I always hoped we would get a new theater to rekindle those lost feelings of socializing with friends. With San Antonio steadily creeping nearer, maybe the time will come that it will happen. Do you think my friend Paula Adams would be interested in working the concession stand again?
In my mind, I can look back in my Growing Up In Bandera years and recall when Boerne and Bandera were both little sleepy Hill Country towns. We all now know how that has changed. If we finally get that theater we had hoped for, it won't resemble anything in our town back in the day. Things are a bit more complicated and a lot more expensive these days.
#413 2024
Curly "The Toad" D'Spain probably wouldn't be too upset over his garage being bulldozed, because he would just get to fish more instead of working on some old car or truck. More than once he hopped in my truck when I was pulling my boat through town, only to return after dark to close up his shop. He was quick to grab a rod and reel out of the back of his truck as we headed to Medina Lake. His rods always seemed to be missing the line guide on the tip. That was probably due to the supply of used vehicle parts floating around in the bed of his old truck. If there was a spark plug attached to his line, that meant he had recently been fishing for big catfish at night on the river.
Fred Knaggs and Vince Anderwald's bbq joint next to the Chuckwagon has long ago disappeared. Don't worry though because just a little further north on Main Street now there's a place called Chicken Charley's that has filled the void. Art Clymer has some of the best brisket to be found around the Hill Country. It's the closest thing you can find today to compare with Smith Wright's bar-b-que from back in the day.
Henry Lloyd Kalka's Sinclair Service Station of earlier Bandera days has been transformed into Tripp's Tire, where Cody Tripp and his crew still serve up the same friendly service we were accustomed to in those earlier times. Henry Lloyd's "Hey cowboy" greeting was usually served up with a piece of bubble gum for any kid passing through. It was the closest place to get free air for my bicycle tires when I was hanging around Granddaddy Kindla's house.
It was really a sad time for Bandera when the Bantex Theater burned. Along with "The Swing" at the river and dragging Main Street, it made up the world we lived in as teenage kids. I always hoped we would get a new theater to rekindle those lost feelings of socializing with friends. With San Antonio steadily creeping nearer, maybe the time will come that it will happen. Do you think my friend Paula Adams would be interested in working the concession stand again?
In my mind, I can look back in my Growing Up In Bandera years and recall when Boerne and Bandera were both little sleepy Hill Country towns. We all now know how that has changed. If we finally get that theater we had hoped for, it won't resemble anything in our town back in the day. Things are a bit more complicated and a lot more expensive these days.
#413 2024