Cyd Charisse was born Tula Ellice Finklea in Amarillo, Potter County, Texas on March 8, 1921 to Ernest Enos and Lela Norwood Finklea. Ernest was a well known Amarillo jeweler of French descent, though he was born in Texas. Ernest was the proprietor of E. E. Finklea Jewelers at 410 South Polk Street in downtown Amarillo. Finklea’s billed itself as “The Jewelry Store of the Panhandle.” The name Cyd is a respelling of the nickname her brother gave her when he could not pronounce “sister” and she adopted it as her stage name. The last name Charisse was actually her married name.
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Mary Martin
(Image credit: Playbill)
An eight foot tall bronze statue of Peter Pan was dedicated to Mary Martin on July 4, 1976 and is located on the south side of the Weatherford Public Library at 1014 Charles Street, near Soldier Spring Park in Weatherford, Texas. It was dedicated as part of Weatherford’s American Bicentennial celebration. Martin was depicted in a pose as Peter Pan, her 1954 Broadway character. An earlier stylized statue of Peter Pan was dedicated in her honor in Weatherford’s Cherry Park recreation area, 300 S. Alamo Street, not far from her childhood home.
Chepita Rodriguez
Josefa “Chepita” Rodriguez ran an inn on the old Cotton Road between Refugio and Aransas Pass around the time of the Civil War. Sometimes her name is spelled Chapita or Chipita, but Chepita appears to be the most common spelling. Her story began when John Savage, a cotton dealer and horse trader, was found dead, his body wrapped in burlap in the Aransas River near San Patricio.
Goddess of Liberty
Standing on the dome of the beautiful Texas Capitol Building in Austin is a statue known as the Goddess of Liberty. Installed in 1888, she carries a sword in her right hand and her upright left hand holds a star. The figure which stands 15 feet 7 1/2 inches tall and weighs one and one half tons was designed by the architect of the Capitol, Elijah E. Myers. Texans were proud to boast that the statue made the Texas Capitol Building several feet taller than the United States Capitol Building in Washington, DC.
The Flying Stinsons
Eddie Stinson had begun his career in aviation in San Antonio, Texas and was the brother of pioneer aviatrix, Katherine Stinson. Katherine was a prodigy in the new world of aviation. The youngest of four children, she had been captivated by the lure of airplanes, so much so that she sold her piano to raise the money for flying lessons. The year was 1912, only a few short years after the Wright Brothers made their first powered flight in 1903. Her first solo flight was in a similar-looking aircraft to the Kitty Hawk plane, which more nearly resembled a box kite than what we know as an aircraft. She said that at the time, it was supposed to take 250 minutes of flying lessons to learn how to fly. Katherine quickly took to it and indeed soloed after four hours of flying lessons. Licensing requirements were not as strict back then. Katherine said that all she had to do was climb to 800 feet, do some figure-eights, glide with the power off and make a smooth landing. She was the fourth woman ever to obtain a pilot’s license.
Texas History Notebook 