Friday, April 26, 2024
Sometime around 2005, a small group of Hood County citizens became intrigued by the idea of a new museum that could preserve the legends and stories of Granbury and Hood County.
From this gathering, the Bridge Street History Center was born, and a local estate attorney named Maurice Walton has been the spirit and guiding light behind the emergence of our little museum as a worthy addition to the other historical associations in this area.
Maurice had moved to Granbury in 1976 and had now found a worthy outlet for his interest in history.
Although the museum’s future looked somewhat dim in its early years, Maurice and the intrepid BSHC Board stayed resolute in their mission of preserving the stories and oral history of Hood County for future generations.
Their resolve has been rewarded.
Granbury is fortunate to have many residents with an interest in history, and Mr. Walton has certainly taken his place among the exalted through his utter dedication to the History Center.
Visitors on a Saturday afternoon can now read interesting story boards, see historical displays and photos, watch a slideshow, or just listen to a docent tell a story from Hood County’s past.
And recently, with Maurice’s enthusiastic prodding, the BSHC has extended its efforts beyond its walls to reach even more of the public.
In the last four years, the BSHC has hosted six different lectures by prominent historians at the venerable Granbury Opera House. Their topics have ranged from Generals Hood and Granbury in the Civil War to the Comanche Indians and the Texas Rangers.
And this year the museum even commissioned and sponsored its first production, The Great Texas Feud, a play about an actual feud in Hood County with subsequent murders, a trial and a hanging.
Again, Maurice pushed hard for these events and was a major player in their success.
Several others have played key roles in the continued progress of the History Center, but all will agree that Maurice has been incredible in his never-ending efforts to see the Bridge Street History Center become a viable entity.
