A new year invariably presents us with the opportunity to review our lives and the values that are important to us. It is my wish that each of you in the PTGAH has the occasion to experience a 2003 filled with renewed business opportunities that will translate to more profits and a greater dissemination of our combined knowledge of Houston and its history to our collective clients. Our goal as an association is to aid each of our members in any way we possibly can to help you achieve more.

During our December Executive Committee meeting, we discussed the perception that some may have that it is the singular purpose of the association to provide Certified status to each and every one of our membership. In other words, some may assume that we have a ‘get Certified or get out’ policy. Nothing could be further from the truth. We welcome one and all to our ranks as either Certified or Associate members ad infinitum. If you find the association to be of benefit to you as a vehicle for interaction among peers, a good place to gain new insights into your trade, or a chance to partake of our continuing education efforts (classes, site visits, etc.) you are more than welcome. Attaining Certified status in our association is our way of helping you advertise your expertise to your potential clients but it is not required.

If all this sounds like a subtle reminder that your 2003 membership fees are due, it is. If you haven’t already done so please remit your check in the envelope provided.

(President’s Message Continued on Page 2)

Tour of Minute Maid Park for PTGAH Members Announced

Your association is pleased to announce that our membership will be given a free guided tour of Minute Maid Park (lasting 1 – 1 ½ hours) on Saturday, February 8^th beginning at 11 AM. If you would like to take advantage of this great opportunity, you must have a reservation. Please contact Mike Kees at 281-474-1225 or at mrk1807@covad.net no later than Tuesday, February 4^th. Be sure and let us know if you will have more than one in your party. Remember, you must have a reservation for this event. Guests will meet inside the Union Station lobby (corner of Crawford and Texas) no later than 10:45 AM. Free parking is available along Texas Avenue or in the surface lots immediately to the east of the ballpark (Texas and Hamilton). There are a limited number of tour slots available so get your reservation in soon!

WEBSITE NEWS

In our ongoing attempts to get our association website up and running, we need your assistance once again. Entering your biographical information into our website along with your picture will be easier and more cost effective if you are able to send your picture to us as an email attachment in the .jpg format.

Please send your emails directly to PTGAH member Richard Cook at rgcooktx@swbell.net.

(President’s Message Continued)

Dues Schedule: January – December 2003

Certified Members - $36

Associate Members - $25

Please make sure the PTGAH receives you check no later than January 31^st. Also, please direct any questions regarding your membership status to Lynn Gaines at (713) 524-2381 or trelleslg@aol.com.

At our December Christmas dinner, a spirited discussion ‘broke out’ concerning, mainly, the true meaning of your membership in the association and what value it brings to you. Many valid (if differing) points were made during the discussion. Suffice it to say that our relationship with the Convention and Visitors Bureau was high on the list. Dealing with the CVB has proven to be a challenge in some respects for a variety of reasons. We are doing our best to address these points of concern in order to better serve you, our members. Some question how we receive referrals from the CVB. It is important to remember that, since the PTGAH is a non-profit organization with no employees, we do not have authority to speak for each of you and ‘assign’ you to opportunities that the CVB may provide. We continue to update our membership list to the CVB as updates are provided from you. The information contained on this list about you and your business is no more or no less than what you provide to your association. Rest assured that any opportunities relayed by the CVB (candidly - except for the NTA convention in 2001 – there have been very few to date) will be promptly referred out. I suggest that, individually, you can enhance your standing with the folks at the CVB by making direct contact, via both face and phone.

As I’m sure you know, our monthly meetings are held on the 3rd Thursday of every month. We have, however, moved this event one week later to be held on Thursday January 23. This month we’ll be at the downtown Spaghetti Warehouse Restaurant (corner of Travis and Commerce). We’ll meet in the upstairs private dining area. Each attendee should plan on ordering any food and drink on an individual basis directly from the menu. Networking begins at 6:30 p.m. with dinner and our business session commencing at 7:00p.m.

Thanks for your continued support and interest in our organization. Please let any of your board members hear from you regarding any issues or questions you would like to see addressed.

Mike Kees

BLAST FROM THE PAST

Metrorail engineer Jim Schroeder, a Metro consultant employed by the engineering firm Carter & Burgess, had often wondered why maps of underground utilities in downtown Houston always showed the rats' nest of pipes and cables beneath Main Street detouring around the McKinney intersection. Now he knows. On January 2, 2003, a backhoe operator, ripping up pavement on Main for Metropolitan Transit Authority's light rail tracks, struck concrete - a lot of it. After clearing away about a foot of black dirt, construction workers exposed a flat block more than 6 feet square, with a metal rod sticking out the top. They tried to unearth the object, but after digging down 6 feet they still had no idea where the bottom was, or what the thing might be. "Before we started pounding on it, we tried to find an owner," Schroeder said, but nobody claimed possession. Whatever it was, Schroeder said, "It was in the way . . . so we just started chipping it apart. Some 18 inches of concrete have already been smashed into chunks, and another 6 inches should complete the job. "Then we'll be able to go right over the top of it," Schroeder said.

Thanks to the long memories of several Chronicle readers, it was determined that the big chunk of concrete once supported a tall flagpole on a heavy pedestal. The base also may have previously supported a police traffic control tower. The flagpole appears in numerous old photos and in a painting, signed J. Chapa, which was presented to the Houston Chamber of Commerce in 1924 and hung for several years in the Greater Houston Partnership offices.

Local historian Ann Wilson said the flagpole was erected in 1919 and was "a gift from the War Mothers Club -- women who had sons in World War I." The base was inscribed: "Erected in recognition of our heroes who served in the world war for liberty," according to Houston: A History and Guide, published in 1942 by the federal Works Progress Administration.

Actually, recalls 91-year-old Al Wiggins, "There were three different things on that intersection." The first, he said, was a "metal contraption" called a semaphore, with a round base. "When the policeman came on duty he rolled that out from the curb into the intersection. It had a handle on the side, and when he turned the handle, it would say `stop' to one street and `go' to the other." Wiggins stated the semaphore was followed by a raised traffic tower where a police officer stood and controlled several blocks of traffic lights along Main. Then came the flagpole monument, which was probably removed in the early 1930s. Local historian Betty Chapman said the flagpole is shown in a 1925 photo but not in one from 1934.

"When they found out it was too much of a traffic hazard, they moved it," Wiggins said. " Cars would slam into it. Of course, cars did not travel at the same speed they do now, so they didn't do as much damage." But John Richardson, 91, remembers one bad wreck at the site. "It was during Prohibition, and during the Christmas holidays somebody would run into that flagpole almost every night," he said.

Source: Rad Sallee, "Chipping Off an Old Block: Giant underground concrete slab puzzles downtown rail crews," Houston Chronicle, January 15 and 16, 2003.

Thanks to the following for the great programs:

October: National Museum of Funeral History

November: Murat Ozcelik, Turkish Deputy Consul-General, Economics and Politics; Lucette & Richard Rieger; Kamil Ramazanoglu, Owner, Empire Turkish Grill, 12448 Memorial Drive.

December: Sandra Lord, Chesterfield's Restaurant, 1010 Lamar Building

A Texas Trivia Tidbit from Sandra Lord

I recently gave a Tunnel tour attended by a Reference Librarian from the Texas State Library and Archives Commission. She gave me the official word on why the Texas flag flies at the same height as the U.S. flag and why other states' flags (such as the Pennsylvania flag) don't: The following is quoted directly from her email:

Although it is a widely held myth that only the Texas flag can fly at the height of the United States flag, it remains a fact that all state flags can fly at the same height as the United States' flag. None may fly higher or to the right of the United States' flag.

The "reason" associated with the myth is that the Texas flag was once the flag of another country--the Republic of Texas.

However, a search of the annexation documents, available on our Web site at http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/ref/abouttx/annexation/index.html revealed no mention of the flying of the flag. According to the United States Code, Title 4, chap 1, section 7f, "when the flags are flown from adjacent staffs, the flag of the United States should be hoisted first and lowered last. No such flag or pennant may be placed above the flag of the United States or to the United States flag's right." The flags may be flown at equal height.

The Texas Flag Code includes additional information about flying the flag. Instructions for viewing the current code can be found at http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/ref/abouttx/flagcode.html. You may also access the U.S. Code online at http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/

The staff and librarians at the State Library are happy to assist you with any additional questions you may have. You can e-mail the Reference Desk at reference desk@ tsl.state.tx.us. Or call us at 512-463-5455 between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.

The About Texas section of our Web site may also be of interest to you:
http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/ref/abouttx/index.html.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

MIKE KEES

President

SANDRA LORD

Vice-President

GARY WHITE

Recording Secretary

LYNN GAINES

Membership Secretary

MELISSA DIXON

Treasurer

ESTHER PORTER

Immediate Past President

ANNUAL MEETING NOTICE

Tour of Minute Maid Park for PTGAH Members Announced

GUIDE POSTS

The Professional Tour Guide Association of Houston

P.O. Box 2844

Voice Mail: 281-586-2161