I hope everyone in the US had a great Independence Day!

Have some fireworks shots from tonight~





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This has to be done in multiple parts, because I took so many photos while out there on day two. I also got sunburned. :(

I need a sunhat.

However, let's start at the beginning. One of the first things I did was go to mass at the Cathedral Santuario de Guadalupe. When in this area, that church tends to tower over everything. You'll see it in a lot of backgrounds of my photos from the Dallas Arts, as well.

I'll start with the exteriors:



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Interior shots:

This was my fifth attempt to go inside the church to take photos. I seem to have had issues with arriving during hours while the cathedral was closed. Well, if you're going to go inside, go inside for mass.

The inside was breathtaking. We arrived about 30 minutes before mass, and I spoke with an usher who was kind enough to let me wander around and take photos, as long as I didn't disturb the service.

We didn't, don't worry. But we did stay for it. It was a good service. :)



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...also, because I promised.

asmaria and Michaelangelo. The turtle. Not the artist.
I guess he was sort of at home at Dallas Arts, right? :D

Yesterday, we saw the Meyerson, and got a tour. And kind of wandered around a bit. The bulk of these photos are the Meyerson Symphony Center, however. There are more from today.



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Went to see the Mustangs of Las Colinas sculpture yesterday.



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Last weekend, I went with babyzerochica to see her little sister get married. Below are some of the photos from it.
(If you don't want these posted, let me know, and I'll remove them.)


First Dance

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I am currently working on three full galleries that will be posted on swordbreaker.com eventually. Unfortunately, both of them have so many photos in them, that I won't be able to get them all done very soon. It'll probably take several more days before even one of them is completed.

They're for:
The Austin Trip (this started with 600 something photos. I've pruned it down to 192)
San Jacinto party - This hasn't been pruned down yet. It has 409 photos in it.
and the random church hopping I did recently- this gallery currently has roughly 72 photos. So it's not as bad as the others, thankfully.

However, I mentioned church hopping- so I've got some previews posted from that.


This is Munger Place Methodist Church. I've got another photo of it, but I'm not posting it until I hear back from the pastor. This church, historically marked (# 6792) will be celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2013. ...however, it will be closing its doors in June. I have made contact with people to attempt to get some photos of the interior of the building. When I hear back concerning it, I will be providing more details, such as the marker itself, and whatnot.


Historical Marker # 6861 - St Matthew's Cathedral

The Rev. George Rottenstein held the first Episcopal service in Dallas in a storehouse on May 25, 1856, and organized this parish on St. Matthew's Day, Sept. 21, 1857. The Rt. Rev. Alexander Gregg, first bishop of Texas, visited Dallas in 1860 and conducted services in the Masonic Hall. In 1870 the Rev. Silas Dean Davenport led the congregation in erecting its first church building, a frame structure at Elm and Lamar. St. Matthew's became a cathedral in 1875 when the Rt. Rev. Alexander Charles Garrett, the first missionary bishop of North Texas, chose it as his see church. The growing parish moved to a new brick edifice at Commerce and Kendall in 1877, but that soon became too small. A stone cathedral at Ervay and Canton was occupied in 1895, the year the Diocese of Dallas was created, and consecrated in 1899, just 25 years after Bishop Garrett's consecration. The Rev. Hudson Stuck, benefactor of children, was then dean of the cathedral. The very Rev. Harry Tunis Moore, dean of St. Matthew's in 1907-1917, became second bishop of Dallas when Bishop Garrett died in 1924. In 1929, the congregation moved to the former St. Mary's College Chapel, at this site. By 1976, the original six-member parish numbered over 1300.

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This isn't a historically marked building, but it's still amazingly beautiful. This is St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in the lower Greenville area of Dallas. I've been wanting to see it in person for awhile. After talking to the front office, I was granted permission to photograph the interior as well.

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This phrase is emblazoned on a flag that was famous during the Texas Revolution. Mexico made a cannon to be stationed in San Antonio, but when the battles started, Texas forces moved it to Gonzales. There, a battle waged between Texas and Mexico as Mexican forces attempted to take their cannon back.

They were driven back. As such, the members of the Texas Revolution made this flag, emblazoned with a star and cannon, challenging the Mexican army to come and take it.

April 21, 1836 is the day of the Battle of San Jacinto- the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. Sam Houston led the Texan forces to strike Santa Anna's men as he made a terrible mistake. He forgot to post a watch during their afternoon siesta. The battle went on, with shouts such as "remember the Alamo!" or "Remember Goliad!" - it was over within 18 minutes. It was a very decisive victory and though he fled, Santa Anna was quickly captured.

This weekend, I went to a party to celebrate 'San Jacinto Day.' The highlight, amongst the barbecue and music, was the reinactors that brought out the cannon for several firings. Despite the threats of rain, celebrating went on. It was a great afternoon for everyone.



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After the party, I ended up going to track down a nearby marker. Not only did I find this elusive marker, but it was one of the more obscure areas I could imagine. It was also very surreal. The extremely busy road of Northwest Highway was behind me- but despite that, as I stepped further in to where this tiny, and very overgrown cemetery was, I began to lose track of the sound of cars passing by.

Much of the brush is overgrown and the place is very poorly maintained. There are many gravestones lost underneath the grass and flowers. It took awhile to really find how many of them there were, but it was also so muddy that it was just too difficult to maneuver through the place. So I'm sure I've still not found many of them.

This cemetery is, from what I've read, in danger due to development. However, now that I see that it has a historic marker on it, perhaps the state will do what they can to protect it.

Garvin Cemetery - Marker # 6723



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asmaria as Daisuke Aurora
sandkarasu as Clair Leonelli

Photos taken at various locations in and around the Hyatt Reunion in Dallas, Tx.

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There were wildfires in the area today.

It's hard to display this in photos, but I tried.


The haze had a nasty color to it parts of the day.


It was clear today. These aren't clouds. The sun should be back behind the light post closet to me on the right. The smoke was so thick, you couldn't see it anymore.


And amidst all the crazy weather today, I met with a birdy that was happy to pose for me. Yay!


I'll be posting photos from my AFest photoshoot in a day or so.

Two churches on my way to the east of Waco.

One was the St. Paul United Church of Christ.

Marker # 5072:
In 1894 German settlers founded the St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Congregation with the Rev. F. W. Ernst Hartmann as pastor. In 1896 they built a school and called their first resident minister, the Rev. Dr. Samuel D. Press (1875-1967), who was later head of Eden Seminary in St. Louis for 35 years. The first church building was replaced by the present structure in 1920. Renamed St. Paul United Church of Christ after four denominations merged in 1957, the fellowship has played a vital role in preserving the German community's heritage.

I spent a bit of time in its cemetery and got a few photos of the building, but had to move on. The sun was setting. I actually landed a sunset photo from the church's parking lot.

Then I saw a sign for a marker, and decided to try and make it to the building before the sun completely set and I lost my light entirely. I was on an unpaved, rock road and moving as fast as I dared. *laughs*

Though I found it, and I was very happy that I did. I also took my photo of the moon from my summary post of this trip from that parking lot. I then heard something big rustling in the bushes and decided to pack it in and call it a night, before driving home.

Marker # 6533:
The first Lutheran worship service in this area of Falls County was conducted in 1882 by a traveling missionary, The Rev. John J. Trinklein. Speaking to a largely German congregation, he encouraged the organization of a Lutheran church. By June 1883 Trinity Lutheran Church was established, and the members had purchased four acres of land and had erected a chapel. Within ten years, growth in membership at the church near Riesel necessitated the construction of a new sanctuary. The building was completed in 1891, only to be destroyed by a tornado the following year. A new church building was dedicated in June 1893. The fellowship now worships in a sanctuary completed in 1937 during the pastorate of the Rev. E. A. Heckmann. Trinity Lutheran Church has been served by numerous pastors, including the Rev. F. Wunderlich, who founded a Christian day school that was operated by the church for more than 80 years. The Rev. H. Studtman served this fellowship form 1904 until 1926, when he was appointed first president of Concordia Lutheran College in Austin. The Rev. Louis Boriack translated the church's constitution from the original German and rewrote it in English during his 1951-56 pastorate. Elements of the church's German heritage are still visible today.



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Marlin is the county seat for Falls County. It's just southeast of Waco. My rural route took me through there and out to the northeast of Waco from there, before I drove back into Dallas to the northwest. (If you can't tell, I took a zig-zaggy route back home)

Marlin is the home for a number of historic markers. I only found a handful, however. After looking things up, I realized that I missed so many. Oh well, gives me an excuse to go back! :D



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I should've done this awhile back, but life caught up on me and I've not had a chance to really do too much. Anyhow. I'm doing another post of my photos from Austin. This location is found in Westphalia, Texas. The Church of the Visitation has two historical markers. One for the church itself (marker # 863), and one for the Westphalia Little School (# 5772), the building next to it on the property.

I think this was the highlight of the entire drive up from Austin. Not only because this was a magnificent location, but the groundskeeper was gracious enough to give me time inside the sanctuary without anyone around.

Church of the Visitation
German natives who settled originally in Colorado County came here in 1879 looking for better land. Pleased with the soil and location, they brought their families and immediately purchased 100 acres for a church and school. The earliest Mass was said in 1882 in the home of the first settler, Theodore Rabroker. The original church building, completed in February 1884, was destroyed the following May by a terrible storm. The congregation rebuilt the structure by July. Large numbers of German-American Catholic families moved into the area. Westphalia was named after the province from which the early settlers came. Visiting priests served until 1893 when the Rev. Michael Heintzelmann was assigned as the permanent pastor. He led the congregation for the next 36 years. In 1895, with A. Fuchs of Waco as the designer and contractor, the present church house was completed. The stones were shipped by railroad from Muldoon, Texas, to Lott (8 mi. NE) and then hauled here by wagon. The central church area forms a Latin cross. For safety in storms, six inches of sway was built into the bell towers. The original-design stained glass windows are very rare and priceless. This is one of the largest wooden church buildings in the state.

Westphalia Little School
Plans for the establishment of a school to serve the German Catholic community of Westphalia began soon after the earliest settlers arrived here in 1879. Under the direction of the first trustees, Anton Jansing, Joseph Hoelscher,and Stanislaus Rollewitz, the school was set up to provide parochial and public instruction. The Westphalia Little School opened in 1884. Early teachers were J. H. Pels; Professor A. Kechoff; Brother Stefan Geiser, CPPS; George Laloumoudiere; G. Horst Daniel; Joseph Henke; and Tim Sullivan. The building was originally constructed as the Church of Visitation. After being heavily damaged by storms, it was remodeled in 1893 for use as the community schoolhouse. In 1899 the Sisters of Divine Providence from Our Lady of the Lake Covent in San Antonio began teaching in the school. Although the parochial program ended in 1935, the Sisters have continued to serve in the public school. Since 1884 Westphalia Little School has continued to offer area residents a quality educational program based on a cooperative effort between public and parochial instruction.



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There are a ton of pics. Each of these are individually sectioned.

Ocker Bretheren Church - Marker # 3664
Located in the town of Zabcikville, this church, while interesting to me, was nowhere near as interesting as the cemetery. About 98% of the gravemarkers there are actually written in Czech, with no English on them.

A group of deeply devoted followers of the Unity of the Brethren faith were among the Czech immigrant families who settled in this area of eastern Bell County in the late1870 s and established the farming community of Ocker. The group initially worshipped informally in their homes. Annual visits from 1884 to 1891 by the Rev. Henry Juren and the Rev. Bohuslav Emil Lacjak encouraged them to organize. The Evangelical Congregation of the Bohemian and Moravian Brethren of Ocker was established in 1892. The dedication of their first church building, erected in 1893, was conducted by the Rev. Juren and the Rev. Adolph Chlumsky, noted early-day Czech community preachers. The church cemetery was established later that year. Membership in the church grew from 52 families in 1900 to 92 families in 1925. A new church/Sunday school building was erected at this site in 1931 to meet the spiritual needs of a growing congregation. By mid-1940, English had replaced Czech as the language used in Sunday school and worship services. The congregation was served by part-time pastors until 1981 when a full-time pastor was called. The church continues to serve the local community with spiritual guidance and outreach programs. (1994)



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And that's the end of today's random history lesson.

Holy Trinity Catholic Church in New Corn Hill



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First United Methodist Church of Bartlett



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Two random photos taken on my Austin trip:

On FM 437, just north of Bartlet and Davila, this gives a good look at the sort of view I frequently had while driving:


On FM 320, just south of Westphalia, is this one lone marker standing on the side of the road. This is pointing out the former homesite of Theodore Rabroker.

And one more update on a different note entirely. More AnimeFest photos. There will be one more update after this.



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And have a teaser of my next AnimeFest Update:

As I worked on these in an application than I normally do, they aren't going to be in their typical gallery. They will probably eventually show up on my site, but for now, they're staying here.


This was a long exposure shot of the Texas Capitol. Not as long as some others in my batch. This was probably 3-5 seconds.

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Continued from part 1.

From Bartlett, I traveled on, continuing along 487. I passed through Davila, which was actually a really nice town... then turned north on 418. At least, that's how I mapped it. I never saw 418, and just found myself on 437. I traveled along north, staying on 437, passing through Rogers, Leedale, Red Ranger, and Zabcikville.

...though located in Zabcikville was the Ocker Brethren Church, the owner of yet another historical marker. (I started seeing these just pop up on the highway. It was almost ridiculous by the time I got off of the FM road.)

Ocker Brethren Church was formed by a community of Czech immigrants. WHen wandering through its cemetery, many of the gravemarkers had only Czech written on them. No English. It was small, but very crowded. Everyone's graves were very close together.


See? (This is also me experimenting with black and white photography.)

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