Where was this school located? Owen Lowak thinking of the old Poth, Wilson County, Texas grammar school recalls, " this  old building of days gone by, exists only in a few photos and the minds of people who as kids graced her halls and rooms. I attended from 1957 to 1960, after which she was taken down and put to rest. A new building was erected in her place, but did not hold the same charm. The wood staircase at each end that squeaked as the children went up and down. Sliding down the fire escape was quite a thrill. At recess, boys playing baseball, girls jumping rope and hopscotch on the dirt playground. All this exists only in the minds of those who attended back in those days. Just My Memories." [Thanks Owen for the photo & Memories ]

Calaveras (Spanish for "skulls") is at the junction of U.S. Highway 181 and Farm Road 3444, eight miles northwest of Floresville in northwestern Wilson County.

It was originally in Bexar County and was called Wright when it was established in the early 1860s. A boundary change put the site in Wilson County in 1869, and the name was changed when a post office was granted in 1882. The population was twenty in 1885, when B. Johnson was postmaster and mail was brought by horse from San Antonio. The San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway reached the area in 1886. By 1892 the town had a hotel, three brickyards, a saloon, a barber shop, a bakery, two general stores, a meat market, and a reported 250 residents.

A Calaveras school was in operation by 1896, when it had an enrollment of sixty-three. The town reached a peak population of 369 in 1900. In 1925 the post office was closed, and the station was reduced to a flag stop.

 In 1947 Calaveras had one business and a population of 100. Since that time the population has remained steady, and in 2000 Calaveras still had 100 residents.
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COURTESY / Texas State Historical Association
PHOTO COURTESY /Wilson County Historical Society

DID YOU KNOW .... the roaring Floresville Tigers were once the jumping Kangaroos???

Elaine H. Kolodziej in 2013 wrote that
Cotton Beam, owner of Shorty's Café in Falls City, thought folks might be interested in seeing a picture of an early Floresville football team. He could not remember who gave it to him "a long time ago," but it bears the logo for Farmers Insurance Group on one sleeve. He thought that people might want to see what the 1926 Floresville football team looked like.

Indeed, the photograph on the T-shirt shows striped uniforms. Preliminary research shows that football was organized in Floresville in 1914. The games were played on a dirt field behind the "peanut scales," which is now Lubianski's. According to "What's Cookin', FHS," the original school colors were black with yellow stripes, and they were known as the Floresville Kangaroos.

The book also said that by 1926, the colors had changed to maroon and gold and the Tiger mascot had been adopted. The photograph, however, appears to be that of the Floresville Kangaroos, although it is dated 1926. It was apparently taken the year that they changed their name to the Tigers.

During those years, pep rallies were held in the old Pershing Theatre, 1012 C St., which was the original building of the Wilson County News complex. Interestingly, when the football squad acquired "new togs, shoes, and gear," in 1921, the players would take their shoes to the Vela Saddle Shop to have cleats added. (The Vela Saddle Shop, located next to the Pershing Theatre, is now the main office of the Wilson County News.)

The T-shirt and a copy of the book "What's Cookin', FHS" are on display in the newspaper's lobby.
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COURTESY / Wilson County News