I bought a 1958 map of Texas and was scoping it to see how possible it might
be to get to places using only roads available back then. More of a mental
exercise than a reality. However, I happened upon a small Texas town called
Imperial. Located eight miles west is Imperial Reservoir. The town is 28
miles north of Fort Stockton, which is 312 miles west of San Antonio and
still more than 230 miles from El Paso and the New Mexico border.
Well, rats! Now I have to go there. That's about 340 miles, one way. I
have wanted to go to Odessa and Midland for some time now, so I will just
add this to the itinerary. When I lived in Scotland, long before I ever
knew I would end up here, I was captivated by the movie, "Paris, Texas."
So, sooner or later, you have to go. I mean I have been to Dallas, Scotland
which must have a much smaller population than Imperial, which is hovering
around the seven hundred mark. Of course, Dallas has a whisky distillery,
so you have to stop there, don't you?
An Imperial in Imperial, Texas sounds neat. I could be the only person on
the list who stayed overnight in Imperial. When I went to Hemphill, Texas,
I got to take snaps of all kinds of neat stuff, like the Hemphill VFD fire
truck, the radio station, etc. I look forward to having pictures of an
Imperial fire truck, and post office, etc, etc.
Hemphill is the county seat, but Imperial does not enjoy that status in
Pecos county.
And I looked at a map of San Antonio and, sure enough, there is an Imperial
Boulevard. I think it's maybe in the shabbiest part of town, right next to
the old Kelly Air Force Base, now civilianized. I have little doubt that my
Imperial will be there, and probably a little sooner than I'll make it to
Imperial.
By the by, a 1958 makes a most impressive dust cloud on unpaved roads. I
have been told the fins add to the dramatic effect very effectively. I hope
to get a picture of that, too.
Hugh
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