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Front Page Headlines

Third officer resigns in as many weeks,

city adds deposit to auditorium rental

By JON AWBREY, Publisher

 DeLeon lost its third police officer in nearly as many weeks Thursday, when Det. Heather Hill abruptly resigned from the police department. Her resignation was accepted at Thursday night’s regular meeting of the DeLeon City Council.

It was reported that Hill left the department to pursue a career outside of law enforcement.

The resignation follows those of Chief Ralph Dickey, who will remain on duty until the end of the month, and officer James Elliot, who left the department in November for a similar position in Brownwood.

In other news, all council members were present to discuss the new wastewater plant project. It was reported that the firm Enprotec/Hibbs and Todd was working on the planning of the project, and should have “something to look at” for the Council by the end of January, or first of February.

Construction dates will depend on how long TCEQ requires to approve the preliminary plans, with the city going out for bids next fall, in the best case scenario.

“What if this thing comes in over budget,” asked Council Member Bobby Schuman.

“We account for some amount of inflation,” said Clint Bissett of Hibbs and Todd, “but if we come in over that - you will have to come up with money or we will have to trim something out of it.”

Bissett reported that contractors were so in need of work that they did not anticipate any real cost overruns.

Schuman stated that he wanted regular reports on the project, and Mayor Owen suggested quarterly reports, to which they agreed.

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Court looks to approve stop sign,

Ok’s early election preparations

By JON AWBREY, Publisher

Comanche County Commissioners Court was largely empty Monday, as four commissioners, Kenneth Feist, Gary Underwood, Sherman Sides, and Jimmy Dale Johnson, as well as County Judge James R. Arthur, were joined in court by a handful of county officials and staff.

Johnson and Arthur jocularly explained the lack of citizen participation as a sign that the commissioners had been doing a good job, the DeLeon Free Press suspects, as no citizens were in court to complain about anything.

Commissioners approved the appointment of a County Health Authority for a two-year period beginning Dec. 24, 2009. The County Health Authority’s responsibilities include sanitation, quarantine decisions, and birth and death records, among other responsibilities that would be allocated to a Health Department in a larger county. Arthur reported that he had been in the habit of appointing Dr. Paul Livingston in the past, and all approved Livingston’s reappointment for another term.

Precinct Four Commissioner Jimmy Dale Johnson reported that four non-fatality accidents had occurred at the intersection of CR454 and CR456 north of DeLeon. Johnson said that the stop sign at the intersection of 454 and 456 is not a legal stop sign, as it was never officially approved, and without official approval, any tickets handed out for violations regarding the sign have no legal standing in court. Johnson motioned that a legally required public hearing be held so that the sign could be approved. The hearing was scheduled for Dec. 28, and notices will be placed in the area newspapers. All approved.

“I just thought we’d try this before we had a fatality,” said Johnson.

An “increase in county employees’ salaries for the month of December only” was also approved to serve as a sort of Christmas bonus. Full time employees are to receive $100, and part time employees are to receive $50. All approved. Motion carried.

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The Chronicles of Comanche County ———————————

Stinnett: DeLeon’s First Pioneer

By JON AWBREY, Publisher

When Henry Stinnett – the first of the DeLeon pioneers – died, having just turned 40, he was already an old man. He had been a frontiersman and a soldier – and he had lived a lifetime before turning 21.

The first real settlement of the DeLeon vicinity was begun in 1859, when 15-year-old Henry Stinnett and his family settled on a farm on the Sabanna River. Among those in the household were Henry’s 43-year-old father John William Stinnett, mother CameliaMarse Stinnett, 20-year-old brother Gilbert W. Stinnett, and three younger siblings, including Thomas and William. These five children were all that remained from the 11 children born to John and Camelia Stinnett – the hardships of nineteenth century life had taken more children from the family than not.

The Stinnett’s appearance on the Texas frontier seemed foreordained – Henry Stinnett’s father had been taken from his home in Coke County, Tennessee when just a year old and carted into the Territory of Arkansas by his own frontiersman father – a Virginia native who had led Cherokees in battle, and who, once his fighting days were through, obtained a contract to provide blacksmithing skills to the tribes moving west. Many of the first plows used by native Americans in Arkansas were built by Henry Stinnett’s grandfather.

It was not uncharacteristic, then, that John W. Stinnett – who himself recalled wearing buckskin breeches – would cart his own family, including Henry, into unknown and hostile frontiers.

The Stinnetts were a poor farming family when they came to Comanche County in 1859,  …

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Coming Events

Call 254-893-6868 if you have an event to list

House and Business Decorating Contest

Women’s Division Chamber of Commerce will sponsor a Christmas house and business decorating contest which will be judged on December 19, 2009. You can nominate yourself, or someone else. Categories include: Most Original, Most Beautiful, Most Religious and Town Favorite.

Danny Owen, the Mayor of De Leon, has a personal website.

Open Danny's website by Clicking Here

Scott Hall has creating an Internet website with history & photos of our town.

Click Here to visit his website

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