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Michael Barr
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In
the Texas Hill Country,
nothing says "party" like bar-b-que smoke, and judging by the size
of the smoke cloud hanging like a fog bank over U.S. Highway 290,
the party in progress at the Stonewall Rodeo Arena was a whopper.
Traffic along the highway slowed to a crawl. Most of the time cars
and trucks rolled through this tiny hamlet between Johnson
City and Fredericksburg
without stopping or even slowing down, but August 29, 1964 was no
typical Saturday night.
The President of the United States was in town.
Let's just say it had been a big week for President Lyndon Johnson.
Two days earlier he celebrated his 56th birthday.
To make the occasion even sweeter, that very week at the Democratic
National Convention in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the Democrats chose
him as their presidential candidate.
His name was the only one placed in nomination. The convention dispensed
with the usual theatrics of a roll call vote and nominated him by
acclamation.
LBJ was at the pinnacle of his political power. Never again would
his popularity or his influence be so great. He was as famous as Elvis
or The Beatles.
On Saturday, after a hectic week in New Jersey, the President and
Lady Bird were back home in Stonewall.
Senator Hubert Humphrey, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee,
and his wife Muriel traveled to Texas with the Johnsons for some quiet
R&R at the LBJ Ranch.
But Stonewall
and the Gillespie County Democrats had something else in mind. They
fired up the bar-b-que pit and threw a traffic-stopper of a party
for the president at the Stonewall Rodeo Arena about 2 miles from
the Texas White House.
The Democratic chairmen in a 14 county area sold tickets to the event
for $2.50. Organizers expected a crowd of 3000, but 4,600 showed up.
Volunteers hauled wood for 3 days to cook 2 tons of beef. Emil Birck
of Birck's Bar-B-Que in Fredericksburg
was the pit boss.
The party began at 5pm, but the president and his entourage did not
arrive until 8. By then the crowd had already feasted on bar-b-que,
ranch-style beans, potatoes and homemade bread.
Then just before dark a line of black limos pulled up next to the
arena. Moments later President Johnson stepped into the spotlight.
Right on cue the Fredericksburg High School Band played a stirring
rendition of Hello Lyndon, the President's official campaign
song. Hello Lyndon sounded exactly like Hello Dolly,
the hit song from the Broadway play.
The program began as soon as the dignitaries found their folding chairs.
Harold Carr of Radio Station KNAF in Fredericksburg
was the master of ceremonies.
St. Mary's High School Marychorale performed The Song of Fredericksburg
written by Fredericksburg native Sister
Elaine of Our Lady of the Lake College in San
Antonio. The Fredericksburg High School Billiettes kicked up some
dust with a dance routine.
By the time Cactus Pryor of KTBC Television in Austin
stepped to the microphone the crowd was ready for some nonsense. Pryor
introduced The Geezinslaws, a musical/comedy act from Austin,
who performed a new song called The Ballad of Barry Goldwater.
The song, sung to the tune of Cool Water by the Sons of the
Pioneers, was a musical jab at Johnson's Republican opponent in the
upcoming presidential election.
President Johnson had no plans to speak at the event, but when he
got there he changed his mind. He spoke for 25 minutes. |
After the president
spoke an enormous birthday card unfurled from above. Then organizers
hauled in 2 giant birthday cakes. One cake was in the shape of the
Unites States. The other cake spelled out LBJ. Someone handed President
Johnson a knife and asked him to cut the cake shaped like the United
States. With great delight he plunged the knife straight into the
heart of Arizona, the home state of Republican rival Barry Goldwater.
The president shook a few thousand hands that evening. The crowd slowly
drifted away. The party at the Stonewall Rodeo Arena was over.
Traffic rolled through town without interruption.
The smell of bar-b-que hung around for days. |
© Michael
Barr
"Hindsights" December
15 , 2018 Column
Sources:
"Party for LBJ is Whopper at Stonewall," The Ennis Daily News,
August 29, 1964.
"Tremendous Crowd Honors President on His Birthday," Fredericksburg
Standard, September 2, 1964 |
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