Cass County's historical courthouse has added another memorial of interest on its outside lawn.
The new memorial is the Blue Star Memorial Highway marker, which had been on state Highway 155 at the edge of town. It's now on the courthouse's west side.
The sign has been refinished, too, and is elegant with a large, deep blue star surrounded by gold lettering on a dark brown background.
The memorial was placed here just before Veterans Day Nov. 10 by the Atlanta District of the Texas Department of Transportation.
The meaning of Blue Star Memorial goes back a half century. The Blue Star itself honors the service of men and women during World War II and was a recognized symbol during the war placed in the homes of families who had a son or daughter serving in the military.
In 1945, the National Council of State Garden Clubs originated and suggested the memorial highway program to honor these veterans.
The program became official in Texas in 1976 when the Texas Department of Highways approved an order granting the Texas Garden Clubs' request to designate the memorial highways and erect the blue star markers.
Across the state, garden clubs and other patriotic organizations would purchase the signs and erect the Blue Star Memorials in their counties. Between 1976 and 1988, eight stretches of roadway were selected as Blue Star routes.
Cass County has two of these roads so dedicated. t This one on State Highway 155 from Palestine to Linden and the other is along U.S. Highway 59 from Houston to Texarkana. The marker there, however, is just over the Cass County line in Bowie County near the Wright Patman Lake turn-off.
Here are the other six:
- FM 3188 from State Highway 94 to its end at Camp Olympia in Trinity County (1983).
- US 271 from Paris to Gladewater (1978).
- US 287 from the Anderson-Houston county line to the Johnson-Ellis county line (1976).
- US 385 from Big Bend National Park to the Oklahoma state line (1976).
- US 77 from the Oklahoma state line at Gainesville to Denton, then by other highways to the New Mexico state line (1947 and 1953)
- US 496 from its junction with U.S 287 at Avondale to Saginaw, Fort Worth and its junction with US 287 in Mansfield (1988).
If not well maintained, roads and memorials may become part of the changing landscape or fade over the years.
Cass County's marker on SH 155 had become a traffic hazard, too, since it had a rather small turn-off and was across from a property owner's driveway. It also showed signs of mistreatment, local TxDOT officials said.
In discussion with the Linden Garden Club and other officials, the decision was made to move the marker to the courthouse, where it would be more publicly appreciated and cared for by the garden club.
Marcus Sandifer, public information officer for the Atlanta TxDOT office, said the adjacent landowner volunteered to pay for having the memorial beautified, and the highway department agreed to take it down and move it to the courthouse.
The memorial now reveals something more of interest to those people looking at Texas oldest courthouse in continuous use. The lawn also has a Civil War obelisk and a veterans memorial.
The Blue Star Memorial appropriately recognizes the Linden Garden Club, the Cass County Historical Society and Veterans of World War I Barrack 1612 and Ladies Auxiliary.
Shirley Baker, president of the Linden Garden Club, said the club will plan a dedication for the memorial in the near future.