Weslaco's
somewhat late start allowed them to avoid the trials and errors of other communities
and also guaranteed that from the very beginning the town had its history recorded
on film. S.L. Edrington was perhaps the most prolific photographer in the
area. Hall Studio and Yoder Studio were also in Weslaco and photos
from all three studios help illustrate the Hidalgo County and Weslaco books. The
information here is taken from the captions accompanying the photos, but are not
the captions of the authors. - TE
Image
1 - Little Girl
She
could be from anywhere, but she's from Weslaco and that's why her picture is here.
This is a 1926 portrait of 14 month old Elaine Walker. Weslacoans were sometimes
forced to eat apples while waiting for the grapefruit crop to ripen. From
the historic photograph collection of Weslaco Museum
Image
2 - Broccoli Harvest
Before
there was grapefruit, there was broccoli. Photo dated 1923 Photo Courtesy Weslaco Museum
Image
3
- Gentlemen Fishermen
An
undated photo of some well dressed fishermen. Photo Courtesy Weslaco Museum
Image
4 - High School Faculty
The
First Weslaco High School Faculty 1923 Photo Courtesy Weslaco Museum
This
photo shows that 50% of Weslaco women wore hats in 1928, while 100% of men wore
ties. The man who looks most like the principal isn't. He's the Superintendent.
Believe
it or not, the young man standing on the left is the Principal.
Lily
and W.T. Barbee (seated left) were married. She taught Home Economics and he taught
Vocational Agriculture.
Image
5
- Ed Couch in Weslaco's 10th Anniversary Parade
Photo
Courtesy Weslaco Museum
This
man had a town in South Texas named after him! Ed Couch was one of the co-founders
of Weslaco and a prominent banker as well. His wife taught school and his evident
good nature comes across in this photo. He may have also lost a bet. Ask your
banker if he or she will dress like this for your next parade.
Image
6 - Entries in the "Doll and Buggy Parade 1933"
The
nurse's charge seems to be sedated so this gave her time to push one of the other
entries. The caption notes that the little girl in the center is Sonya Ann Bullard. Photo Courtesy Weslaco Museum
All photos courtesy of The Weslaco Museum. Nearly all of these images are included
in Arcadia Publishing's Weslaco volume from their Images of America Series.