A special thanks the Round Rock Leader for letting us post these wonderful articles.
The Time Capsules stories are prepared by Bob Brinkman
Texas Historical Commission
Svante Palm writes to N. Nelson in Paxton, IL about what Williamson County had to offer Swedish settlers : "Green things are growing all around....Here in the highlands winter is seldom but for a few days...The summers may be longer but the heat is at times much drier than in the northwestern states...Almost all the greenery of Sweden is here."
Lots in the railroad town of Round Rock are auctioned off and an economic boom begins. Approximately 500 people visit to purchase lots the first day, including Brueggerhoff, Koppel, Tobin, C.C. Johnson, Steinbock, Davis, Penn and Michael from Austin. The Austin Daily Statesman remarked with a note of jealousy that in Round Rock “the drinking of crooked whisky and card playing are carried on without limit”.
Round Rock travelers can enjoy a total solar eclipse in north and east Texas, and a jousting tournament on the Burnet courthouse square.
Pastor Abram Weaver announces a camp meeting to be held half a mile from the depot in Round Rock. Single meals are advertised at 25 cents each, while those not camping can stay at hotels for one dollar per night.
A correspondent to the Williamson County Sun reports "The Round Rock boys play ball despite the hot weather. Call on them for one fourth the exertion in a corn patch and they would be dead with the back-ache in ten minutes".
The Gothic Revival style Palm Valley Lutheran Church is built with red brick and a steeple visible from miles away.
Heavy rains push the Woodmen of the World Picnic to the end of the month. At Rice’s Crossing, Brushy Creek rises 17 feet.
At the Rough Riders Reunion in Oklahoma City, J. E. Merrell of Round Rock wins first prize for quick roping and tying of cattle with a time of 51 ½ seconds.
The cornerstone is laid for Trinity College on East Main Street. The school opens in October 1906 with an enrollment of 96 students and four teachers. The college achieves state accreditation in 1926 but three years later merges with the Lutheran school from Brenham to become Trinity Lutheran College at Seguin. The Round Rock campus became a home for orphans and senior citizens, still operating today after nearly a century in the community.
Presidents of Southwestern University and Fort Worth Polytechnic, returning from the installation of the new President at the University of Texas, hatch the idea for Southern Methodist University at the Round Rock depot.
Farmers State Bank is chartered and opens for business a month later. The former bank building is now Main Street Grill.
In a town baseball game, Round Rock wins at Liberty Hill 4-2.
The Round Rock Ex-Students Association is organized and holds its first summer picnic.
First Frontier Days held in downtown Round Rock.
Robert Hernandez of Round Rock is killed in action in Vietnam; his name is engraved in the black marble memorial in Washington, D.C.