August 16, 2006

The City crews cleaned up the old concrete slab across the street that was installed some 65 plus years ago. That old slab of concrete has served its intended purpose throughout many years. The progressive minded City officials decided to clean it up and haul it off. The City crew and the governing body deserve our commendation for making the progressive decisions of acquiring this land that has been frequently referred to as the Peanut Festival Grounds.

The progression of the downtown area has also been influenced by Steve Murray’s progress in beautification of the Main Street area.

The area currently known as the Peanut Festival Grounds has a historical significance. There are not many of us around who recall the old weigh station that sat where the slab was located in the early 1940's.

After the cotton weighing station was demolished, a local man named, Johnny Ransonberger constructed the wood frame structure that housed the Johnny Ransonberger Grocery and Feed Store. Johnny sold ice, feed and bought pecans. Homer Sanford occupied the building soon after Johnny Ransonberger. Johnny relocated to Watauga. After he moved, Homer Sanford and his son ran a grocery, ice and feed store in this building. Ida Mae Kirby operated a grocery store in this same building after Homer Sanford.

After Ida Mae Kirby’s grocery store closed, O.D. Melton used the building for a cabinet making shop. As I recall, O.D. Melton was one of the first cabinet manufacturing businesses in this area.

The building had a small ice storage room on the north side. During World War II, when I was a teenager, my mother would help me wrap up a load of ice with quilts and load it in my dad’s John Deere wagon and horse. I would haul ice to Johnny Ransonberger. I would spend the night with my Grandfather and Grandmother or go by Uncle Joe and Mattie Lee and help Martha Jo hoe out the cotton. Cotton chopping was a short lived job, because Martha Jo was always busy dreaming up a trip for taking out Joe’s new 1939 Ford pickup. Martha Jo would drive the pickup and we would travel 70 miles per hour on the gravel road.

Another historical event this past week, was L.Z. Harmon’s 80^th Birthday Party. This was one of the largest parties I have attended in a long time. It was held in the new Aubrey Library Community Center. There were a lot of Aubrey folks at the birthday party.

I even got to visit with Bill and Jo Nash at the party. I remember about 15 years ago, when Bill Nash tried to purchase the sod farm for construction of a livestock arena. Bill and Jo also deserve out commendation for their efforts and time in the many large projects they have been involved in that have resulted in the betterment of Aubrey and the entire area.

The photo for this week is of the old Johnny Ransonberger grocery store. The building sat on top of the slab over 65 years. The City of Aubrey is now cleaning this slab up. But when this building was constructed in 1938, there were no building inspections, no city hall, no fire station, no ambulance, no planning and zoning commission, no library, no fire trucks, no sewer system, no water system and no Bill or Jo Nash.

It is interesting to watch the progress of the demolition of the slab downtown and visiting the new library.

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