W. K. Gordon Center for Industrial History of Texas

Mike Renfro, author of Shine On: 100 Years of Shiner Beer, and a brewer from Spoetzl Brewery, will discuss the history of the Texan company and share a taste of their specialty beers. Admission is free, but reservations are required. Seating is limited, so call to reserve your space now!

Thurber was a culturally diverse... company coal mining town around the turn of the century. Immigrants from all over the world were recruited to work in the mines or the brick factory. The company, trying to keep their workers happy, fought local prohibition for years. Thurber alone kept Erath county wet until as long as it could. When it went dry, the company moved its saloons and beer gardens over the Palo Pinto county line keeping them in service until statewide prohibition in 1919.

The Spoetzl Brewery, also known as the Shiner Brewing Association, headquartered in Shiner, Texas, produces beer that has become a Texas icon. The original company was founded in 1909, in an Austrian, German, and Czech farming community. In 1914, Kosmos Spoetzl, a German immigrant brewmaster, took over the facility. The history of this brewery is a story of immigrant life and the successes and struggles of a growing business that appeals to beer connoisseurs, Texas history buffs, or simply those who appreciate a tale of beating the odds.
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Becky Lenoir and Shanah Coe of An Ancient Art Handcrafted Soap Company will discuss the history of soap making, the modern process they use in their shop in Strawn, and bring free samples.

The origin of soap is much debated. Earliest mention of soap-like materials in use for textiles or personal hygiene comes from Baby...lon around 2800 B.C. Soap making evolved as cultural concepts of cleanliness changed over the centuries throughout the world. This produced a variety of recipes and preparation methods that rendered superior soaps. Colonial Americans in the New World simplified these techniques, making soap from readily available ingredients such as wood ashes and leftover animal fat. It was a taxing job that required precision and care regardless of which process was used because of the presence of toxic lye which is necessary for soap making.

Lenoir and Coe are no strangers to hard work. Both women are descendants of Thurber coal miners. They started the company 10 years ago, with a firm belief that natural ingredients, such as olive oil, make better products. No plastics, preservatives or petroleum are in their soap. They take pride in boosting the economy in their area by using local resources, such as Famous Crazy Mineral Water from Mineral Wells. This proved to be a very successful philosophy. Their soap is available throughout the region including Stephenville. They market to family-owned pharmacies and businesses, but are also pursued by many resorts for privately labeled luxury soaps. A wide variety of their soaps are available for purchase in the museum gift shop. Admission is free.
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Non-profit organization with offices in Abilene, Texas, dedicated to historic preservation, education and heritage tourism. Serves a 29-county area in Central West Texas. One of the ten trail regions that comprise the Texas Heritage Trails Program of the Texas Historical Commission. The "trail" refers to a 650-mile dri...ving loop through the region that is anchored by eight frontier forts and one Spanish presidio.Read More

Just in time for summer, the W. K. Gordon Center will host a temporary exhibit of popular sports in Thurber, Tex. entitled “A Company Town at Play.” The display will open at the Center at 2:30 PM on Sunday, June 7, 2009 with a lecture about the history of baseball.

Special guest Robert Bluthardt, director of Fort Concho... National Historic Landmark in San Angelo and an authority on historic baseball in Texas, will speak. He will examine the social history of baseball, how it affected the United States nationally, and what the game meant for the company town of Thurber. The opening event is free. The exhibition will continue through Sunday, August 30, 2009.

Most historians of Thurber have focused on its industrial past. They have written on the brick factory and the mines, as well as the diverse population who came to labor in those occupations. This exhibit highlights the enthusiasm with which these hardworking employees and their families played. Miners and brick workers engaged in sports and competitive games from childhood through adulthood as ways to relieve stress, socialize with others and basically enjoy life. There was never a shortage of fans among Thurber residents. The company that owned the town supported leisure activities by building a baseball diamond and an athletic club.

Bocce ball, croquet, tennis, swimming, and races were all popular, but baseball was king in Thurber. The teams evolved to compete all over the region, including company-sponsored teams, such as the Armour Lone Stars from Ft. Worth.

Born in Boston, Mass., it was inevitable that speaker Robert Bluthardt would be a baseball fan. Regularly attending Red Sox games, his interest began to fuse with his enthusiasm for history. He regularly researched and wrote papers on the game in college. As he obtained degrees at Brandeis University and George Washington University and interned at the National Portrait Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution, he further enriched his understanding of baseball history by regularly presenting programs for the Society for American Baseball Research. He even knocks the ball around a bit himself.
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