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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 10, 1982)
eacn otner more tnan usual. j { uj 5 r f «p w iiWr.mSf ■ 1 a| <-11 j . 1 o. 8 /It Ease, The Battalion Friday, September 10, 1982 Walk in woods vanishes woes staff photo by Dana Smelser The arboretum in Bee Creek Park offers an escape into nature, complete with the names of those trees that shelter the wanderer from the sun and worries of city life. Brochures mapping the arboretum are available. by Dana Smelser Battalion Staff After sitting in class and star ing those four boring walls all week, you need an escape. Why not escape to nature by visiting the Brazos Valley Arboretum? As you take off along the path, with a guide booklet in hand, you'll soon enter a world quite uncommon to that of cam pus. Rustling trees and sounds of scattering critters surround you. First, stop and see a Golden Raintree — a tree from China — which produces clusters of small yellow flowers. At the next stop stands a Mexican Plum tree bearing an almost round, dark purple fruit. Cross a bridge and see the long narrow leaves of the Black Willow. The trail, following the old channels of Bee Creek, winds on for 53 other stops, passing cacti, sweet gum, and dewberries. Shadowed by towering trees, the path is padded by the many leaves wnich have fallen throughout the year. If you're quiet, you may see a rabbit poke his head from the brush or hear the slithering of a snake on his way home. And if you are the first to tread on the path that day, you may bump into a cobweb a spider spun the night before. Escape even further into na ture and you hear crickets sing while you stroll past a small pond. Sounds like life in the back- woods? For a while you may be lieve it is, but the rambling of 18-wheelers on Texas Avenue will soon remind you that the arboretum is in the heart of Col lege Station. The arboretum is one way to learn about plants common to the area, such as the giant Post Oak and the yaupon. You can also see greenery not normally grown here, like the American Hop-Hornbeam, which is native of the eastern United States. See the graminetum, a collec tion of native grasses, or visit the ? ine plantation planted as a exas A&M Forestry project. And since there's so much to see, you can spend a couple of hours strolling and observing. The arboretum is in Bee Creek Park at the end of Anderson— right past Southwest Parkway. Maps are provided at the entr ance to the paths. Although it's relaxing to simply walk in the woods, the arboretum is more enjoyable if you pick up a detailed guide to the plants. The guides are avail able at the College Station De partment of Parks and Recrea tion at 1000 Eleanor. Lone Star shines on Brazos by Susan Dittman Battalion Staff ' Take a trip to a beautiful, clean park on the banks of the Brazos River and bone up on a bit of Lone Star state history at the same time. Washington-on-the Brazos State Historical Park, seven miles out of Navasota, is where the Texas Declaration of Independ ence was signed and the Consti tution of the Republic of Texas was adopted in 1836. The stae park also marks the site where the capitol of the Re- E ublic was located before Texas ecame part of the United States. For those never having the pri vilege (or pain) of taking a Texas history course in junior high school, Washington-on-the- Brazos State Park provides an in teresting crash course. February and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. dmis- daily, March sion is free August. Ac Independence Hall — Life-size replica of the building where the Texas Declaration of Independ ence was signed on March 2, 1836. Painstaking research was done to verify the site it is built on. Hours are the same as the And what would a park be without picnic tables, grills and playground equipment? These are available free on a first come, first serve basis. The best thing about them is their location — underneath the cool shade of pecan trees on the bank of the Brazos River. An amphitheater, built in the 1930's, is also available free of charge to the public. Getting to the park from Bryan-College Station is easy. R si b life th Brazo; Scienc Th the B] active natun ■ trails Altho - Take Highway 6 to stay on Business 6 g Navasota and then take ^ way 105 West seven mifey left on FM 1155 to Washif on-the-Brazos State Park. museum. Anson Jones Home—Jones, the last president of the Republic of Texas, lived in this home on his farm a few miles west of the park. In 1936 the home was moved to the state park by a historical soci ety. The furnishings in the house typical of the the Early Texas ioa. Hours are the same as the Old homes rich in history penoi museum. Star of the Republic of Texas Museum — A wide panorama of early Texas history is displayed in this museum. A 15-minute slide show about the history of Washington-on-the-Brazos plays every hour. The museum is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, September — Along with the history, Washington-on-the-Brazos also has modem day conveniences such as an air-conditioned park auditorium, which has kitchen facilities, tables and chairs. The auditorium can be rented for $43.75 per day. Reservations should be made by calling the park superintendent at (713)878- 2214. Old houses and antigues — and history — are being restored by the Citizens for Historical Preser vation as the group readies historic homes for Christ mas tours and prepares an historic archive and museum of the Brazos Valley. "We're here to let people know that these places can be saved and are worth saving," President Rand Evans said. "Our programs are mostly educational in nature. We try to show people how important the architectural history is, along with how they can preserve it." The group, form«d seven years by Brazos County residents, meets four or five times a year for work shops, speakers and films. Although the organiza tion doesn't restore homes, Evans said, it does buy homes and resell them to people who will. Last year, the group bought the Cavett Mansion in Bryan to save it from demolition. "The old Cavett Mansion is one of only two na tionally registered historical homes in the area," Evans said. "To be registered on the nation^ 1 structure must be of some real significant The Carnegie Library was another sir# the Citizens for Historical Preservation# save. When the structure in downtown $ vacated by the city this year, Evans said, th 1 will move its headquarters there. "On the first floor, we will have an 1 museum of the area," he said. "The second^ Swa have a photo archive and our offices. WeV'® (} ee , up a photo archive right now for research 3 ! others who are interested in the history of tltff The houses that usually attract theatten#? group range in age from the 19th century I 01 * the 1930's, Evans said. For those who want to tour historic honjf organization will sponsor its Christmas Homes Tour for the third year. The tour,wM| the first week of December, will indude five 1, on the west side of Bryan.