Livingston is
located in the Piney Woods region of Texas on the east part of the state. This
was our favorite state park as it offered a lake view, lots of trees, hiking
trails and kayaking opportunities and a place to put up our feet and relax.
 |
| Our site by day |
 |
| Our site by night with rope lights |
We arrived at the Lake Livingston State Park on December 30, 2014 and rang in the New Year. We chose this location so we could get our RV weighed in Livingston by each tire vs. each axle, a service provided by Escapees RV club. It was good information to have to allow us to redistribute weight so that we are more balanced which is a good thing to do so we can avoid a tire blowout.
Sharon picked the perfect site with a view of the lake that offered spectacular sunsets and a great place to relax. Texas parks only allow you to stay for 14 days, but we would have stayed longer!
Tall loblolly pines
and red oaks shade Lake Livingston State Park. Boat ramps and fishing piers
provide easy access to the lake, which supports crappie, largemouth bass, white
bass, striped bass, and flathead, channel, and blue catfish.
The weather was
rather chilly during our stay. We took a hike around the park and checked out
the boat ramp for launching the kayaks. It was a very windy day and the waves
reminded us of back home.
Kayaking on Lake Livingston
We finally did get a nice day to launch our kayaks. It was a huge lake. Mike wanted paddle across to the island, but it was quite a distance and would have taken another hour before we made it back!
 |
 |
| Remnants of old bridge |
 |
| Island in distance, too far to paddle! |
 |
| Sharon with our RV in the background up the hill |
Town of
Livingston
“Get Hooked on
Livingston” is the slogan for Livingston. We visited historic downtown, a Texas
Main Street City. Of course like any
small town, you have antiques, gifts, ice cream parlors, country store, museums
and plenty of good food. We enjoyed the
Whistle Stop Café, El Burrito Mexican Food and Florida’s Kitchen which boasts
“The Best Home Cooking since Abraham Lincoln Was President!” The BBQ ribs are
supposed to be really good, but they go fast and we weren’t fast enough!
 |
| Florida's Kitchen - Anything named after Florida had to be good! |
If there is a
museum in town, we will go, as you learn so much about the area and its history.
The Polk County Memorial Museum in Livingston had great exhibits highlighting
the history and heritage of East Texas and the local culture. The museum showcases
the unique aspects of Polk County with The Land-Home of Giant Mastodons, Native
Americans and Pioneers, Civil War Life and the War Years, East Texas Timber
Industry, Days of the Iron Horse, River Boats on the Trinity, Development and
Social Life of Polk County and The Main Street Collection.
The Days of the
Iron Horse exhibit featured a diorama and artifacts of Polk County’s first
railroad lines which include the Waco, Beaumont, Trinity and Sabine
Railroad. The ride was so uncomfortable
that it was dubbed by passengers as the Wobblety, Bobblety, Turnover &
Stop. Built in 1911, the No. 5
locomotive contributed to the development of the area’s timber industry. No. 5
is on display in Heritage Park adjacent to the Museum.
Polk County’s rich heritage includes many cultures and characters. Items used in pioneer everyday life are on display as well as original Indian artifacts. While all but one Native American group left Texas, the Alabama-Coushatta tribes have occupied a reservation in Polk County since the 1850s.
Most of the hand-crafted baskets were made by members of the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe using pine needles and raffia.
The Livingston
Telephone Company was the first utility in Livingston in 1903 and it used the
candlestick phone to carry local conversations.
This pump organ
once belonged to “Moon” Mullican, Grand Ole Opry star in the 1940s.
Visit to Conroe
Just south of
Livingston is a town called Conroe. We ate lunch at the Red Brick Tavern, a refined American pub grub and craft brews in nostalgic surroundings! In
1881, Union Calvary officer lumberman Isaac Conroe founded a sawmill north of
his native Houston. By 1904 the city of Conroe was incorporated and within a
decade grew to be a thriving and dynamic community. If you love the outdoors,
Conroe has many venues to enjoy fishing, hiking and bird watching year round.
Downtown Conroe boasts two historic theatres with performances throughout the
year as well as two outdoor live music venues.
Fernland
Historical Park in Montgomery
We also visited
the Fernland Historical Park located within the heart of downtown Montgomery,
just outside of Conroe. It was a Sunday
afternoon and one of the oldest remaining structures within Texas, a log cabin,
was closed. We did get a peek inside the windows of the historic Jonas Davis Cabin and an interesting story was
posted outside.
Old Iron Works Classic & Vintage Auto Showroom
We both love old
cars and along the highway in Montgomery, we noticed the Old Iron Works
showroom. It specialized in restoration of vintage vehicles 1950 and older,
including paint, upholstery, body work, mechanical and detailing. Car buffs can checkout the
website at www.oldironworks-tx.com. When we walked in we were amazed at all of the trophies, some of which were entered into Concours shows and have won either Best in Class or Best in Show. Old Iron Works participates in Concours d’Elegance shows all throughout the United States, including Amelia Island in Florida.
The showroom collection included a 1930 Packard “733” Roadster, 1931 LaSalle “345” Roadster and a 1930 Rolls-Royce Springfield Phantom I that was given to Marlene Dietrich from her director, Joseph Von Sternberg, who was responsible for bringing her to Hollywood. He purchased the car under instructions from Paramount Studios.
 |
| Right: 1930 Rolls-Royce Springfield Phantom I given to Marlene Dietrich |
Once we toured the showroom we were invited back into the restoration garage. The shop specialized in Stutz Bearcat restoration.
One interesting
and passionate restorer revealed the intricacies of restoring some of the autos
he was working on. One in particular was the 1932 Marmon that has taken nearly
a year to restore, partly because the owner insisted they locate a cow hide large enough
to replace the roof of the car. The wooden spokes, the leather, the engine and
the overall workmanship of this restoration was unlike any we have ever seen.
There was a lot of money inside this showroom and garage. Jay Leno had offered $1.2 million for their 1930 Stutz “M” Supercharged Lancefield Coupe, but the owner felt that the car would be worth at least $2 million since it was the only one in the world.
Nederland and Port Arthur
We decided to take
a drive to Port Arthur. We got a late start so we were unable to see the Museum
of the Gulf Coast to learn more about the region’s natural history and
industrial roots. We were curious to see the museum which featured a replica of
Janice Joplin’s 1965 psychedelic Porsche and memorabilia from other hometown
celebrities. Joplin was a Port Arthur native and blues great!
On the way to Port
Arthur we stopped at a little town called Nederland which was founded by Dutch
immigrants from Holland in 1897 named for their native Netherlands. The new
colony thrived, although torrid summers, frigid winters, and swamps prompted a
few to return to Holland. Those who remained built a sound economy of farming
and ranching, now largely replaced by rice-growing and industries.
In town there was a
40’ replica of an actual Dutch windmill which houses a museum. Artifacts are
displayed on three floors of the building and include a trunk brought from
Holland before the turn of the century, wooden shoes, the 1952 Gold Medal won
by W. F. (Buddy) Davis, a native son, and mementos of the late Tex Ritter,
country and western music star, who called Nederland home. Soon after Nederland was settled, many French people came from South Louisiana to make their home here. La Maison des Acadiennes is a replica of early Acadian homes in South Louisiana. The French house museum displays historical items and information depicting Nederland's rich Cajun French roots.
This doesn't happen often, but when we got to Port Arthur, we were unimpressed. It was an oil refinery city along the Gulf Coast. Needless to say, we drove right through!
Moving along, our next blog will include our adventures in Lockhart and Lake Corpus Christi State Park.
Mike & Sharon
“Live in the present, do all the things that
need to be done. Do all the good you can each day.
The future
will unfold.”
(Peace
Pilgrim)
