Something to please most everyone at Heritage Village
Tyler County Booster - September 2007

  Have you ever been to Heritage Village? If so, was it recently? If not, you need to see the changes, improvements, and additions which make it a unique experience. For those older folks, you will see things which trigger memories of times in the past. For younger folks, you get to see how life was lived about a hundred years ago.
  Until about two years ago, I was unfamiliar with Heritage Village, but thanks to our friends Bill and Oleta Stewart, we visited the Village, ate at the Pickett House, and a new love began! My husband Dewey Robertson and I have a passion for The Village and enjoy every chance we have to be there.
  Hurricane Rita damaged The Village, as well as other places in Woodville and surrounding areas. It reminds me of an old quote “sometimes something good comes from something bad.” Damaged and downed trees were collected and transformed into lumber by Durwood Ling at his sawmill, then the lumber was used to build the “Buggy Barn,” a special new addition. Durwood and Estelle Ling, Jack Whitmeyer, and others should be proud of their hard work on this project.
  The Buggy Barn sits on a hill overlooking The Village, on the west side. It has a long, wide, front porch with benches and rocking chairs that are used by visitors who wish to stop, sit, relax, and visit with others. Inside is a collection of 22 antique fully-restored buggies and wagons. This collection was previously in the Panhandle Plains Museum in Canyon, Texas, some 400 miles west of Woodville. Sandi Hargrove was instrumental in obtaining the collection. Several members of Tyler County Heritage Society, their family and friends volunteered to travel to Canyon to bring these treasures to Woodville. They arrived in Woodville the day before Hurricane Rita arrived, and the collection was stored in a large metal building, surviving the devastation. There they stayed until the new building was completed, and they were then transported to The Village via flatbed trailers, in the Western Day Parade for all to see. What an exciting moment that was!
  The nature trails at The Village are being cleared and improved with new signs and directions. Our thanks to Elizabeth Toliver, Jack Whitmeyer, Boy Scouts, and all who have participated in the project.
  A visit to Heritage Village is like going back in time to the years mid-1800 - early 1900 — to a way of life as it once was for our ancestors: No electricity, no indoor plumbing, no television, no Wal-Mart or other stores to buy needed clothing, furniture, or ready-to-eat food.
  Our ancestors had to make just about everything they needed. In The Village you will see a general store, blacksmith shop, livery stable, barber shop, sheriff’s office and jail, school house, Cherokee Church est. 1860, hotel and saloon, railroad depot and museum, various barns, newspaper office, just to name a few.
  During special guided tours, Bill Stewart, retired teacher and principal, sat in the schoolhouse, playing the part of teacher, and greeted guests. He told them all about the one room school of the past. Recently the school was named “Stewart School” in Bill’s memory. Bill, a Woodville native, loved his birthplace, and he loved The Village. His contributions have been many, and he is greatly missed! The Stewart family has donated several rocking chairs for use on the porch of the Buggy Barn.
  We are proud of the newly renovated Pickett House Restaurant, which is open year round, and uses the boarding house style of serving food. You can smell the bread baking and chicken frying as soon as you arrive! No one goes away hungry. It is world famous, and when you experience eating there, it is something you do not forget. There are circus posters, recently cleaned and restored, which adorn walls. The good service along with delicious food will make you want to “come again” very soon!
  The Village has big plans to expand the parking areas, and the newest addition to be built soon is the Fiber Arts Building, an exhibit for the Spinners and Weavers, and the Sassy Scrappers Quilters. There will be display cases for antique quilts, old sewing crafts - embroidery, crochet, and other related items - old spinning wheels, quilt frames, etc. It will be like no other place!
  If you have anything old and do not know what to do with it, please consider donating it to the Village. The village continues to operate largely on donations of your time, old objects of interest and historical significance, as well as monetary donations and Tyler County Heritage Society memberships. You may also make monetary donations in honor or memory of a loved one or friend. We appreciate all you have done and continue to do for The Village.
  Gloria Newsome does an excellent job of training docents. Being a decent and giving special guided tours for groups is fun and rewarding. Perhaps this is an interest you have and would like to do occasionally - to dress in period costumes and brighten the day for school children, senior citizen groups, and others. Call Ofeira Gazzaway, Director of Heritage Village, and ask her what you can do. You may be surprised how happy you can make someone - and that someone may be YOU!
  At the Gift Shop and Museum you will see Jack Whitmeyer’s collection of rocks and minerals, and Indian artifacts, etc. as well as the library. Also in the gift shop (where you may purchase Village Tour tickets) you will find the most unique selection of gifts and collectibles of books, toys, quilts, and all kinds of handmade items. Many are made locally. Come to see the new line of Texas style picture frames made of old barn wood. There are handmade candles, clothing, jewelry, candles, jams, jelly, candy -- truly something for everyone of all ages - even the hard-to-buy-for, “have-everything” folks. See for yourself. The variety is endless. New selections arrive weekly.
  There are special events all during the year, and a few of these upcoming events are the Mexican Dinner on September 21 and “Texas Tales and Legends” by Janet Wilson on September 29. Harvest Festival is one of our biggest celebrations. This year it will be held October 19,20, and 21, so don’t miss it! We will have all kinds of music on stage, demonstrations, arts and crafts for sale by local artists and others, and good foods from several vendors, and people dressed in period costumes. Mark your calendars and please join us!
  The first Sunday in December, we have The Village decorated with old fashioned Christmas decorations of greenery and ribbons. Heritage Village comes alive with an evening of seasonal music on the “Front Porch Stage,” and we will have festive food. There is no admission on this day.
  Heritage Village is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily with admission only $4.00 for adults, and $2.00 for children under 12. Where else can you go for such a small fee and get so much in return?
  For information about special guided tours or events or to make reservations, call 409-283-3371 or 409-383-2272. For reservations at Pickett House Restaurant, call 1-800-323-0389. Or you may go to www.heritage-village.org, or e-mail info@heritage-village.org.
  See you soon!

            Ann lives in Lufkin, Tx and is a new member of Tyler County Heritage Society Board of Directors. She is originally from the Dallas area where she was a secretary for real estate developer Trammell Crow, founder of Trammell Crow Co., and for the Crow family. She is docent, along with husband Dewey Robertson, at Heritage Village.