COUNTY LIFE
Unique hobby full of surprises for Bowie man
By BARBARA GREEN
editor@bowienewsonline.com
When Tom Cate picked up his first brick from an old downtown building site the “King. B” brick just caught his eye. He thought it was unique so he took it home. Six years later he has nearly 400 bricks in an unusual collection that decorates his back yard.
Folks around Bowie may be familiar with Cate and his frisky brown and white dog Ginger as they make lengthy daily walks throughout the downtown.
“When I saw the King. B six years ago I thought it may be fun to see how many different bricks I could find. I’d heard of Palmer, Farris, Acme, but there are so many as I found in the research. That’s when it started for me. I looked down allies, at old buildings that were torn down, visited small towns and I began finding more. I got excited by the different ones,” explains Cate.
The collector came to Bowie in 2004 and remodeled a home on the southside of town. He retired from Coca Cola Bottling Company in Dallas after 35 years of servicing the equipment. While he had been living in Ennis, a divorce as he retired led him to explore other possibilities.
He moved to Van Alystyne and was doing some remodeling jobs when his niece in Chico asked him to come help her for a few months at her trophy shop. He worked during the week and went home on the weekend. He ended up staying four years also helping her and her husband out when she was diagnosed with a serious illness.
“I liked it up here and enjoyed riding my motorcycle. It all happened for a reason and came to together that I was able to help them. I liked Bowie and found this house that reminded me of where I grew up. It has a large corner lot and a shop in the back. I remodeled and have been here ever since,” explains Cate.
Read the full feature in your weekend Bowie News.
The Montague County Commissioner’s Court will meet at 9 a.m. on Oct. 12 in the County Courtroom at the Courthouse Annex in Montague.
Commissioners are scheduled to consider issuing a proclamation declaring October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month within Montague County.
The court also will consider accepting $850 in unanticipated revenue for the sheriff’s office generated during National Night Out activities, alongside interlocal cooperation contracts between the Texas Department of Public Safety and Justices of the Peace for Precincts 1 and 2.
An executive session is scheduled to discuss personnel matters pertaining to sewer/septic inspector for the county. Any action would be taken back in open session.
The Oct. 9-11 Art of the Song Music and Art Festival opens Friday night for three days of art and entertainment in downtown Nocona.
The festival opens on Oct. 9 with a Chisholm Trail Art Association Preview Party from 5 to 7 p.m. on Oct. 9 at the H.J. Justin Building.
Come see all the entries for the adult show, which formally opens at 10 a.m. on Oct. 10.
Live music will be played by Full Circle Band.
Also on Oct. 9 enjoy a Nocona Nights Street Dance from 7 to 9 p.m. with the Mark Murphey and Highway 82 Band. Cost is $10 per ticket and $200 for a table seating eight. Bring your lawn chairs.
Read the full schedule of events for the festival in your Thursday Bowie News.
These students are nominees for the 2026 homecoming court at Gold-Burg High School. Homecoming royals will be crowned in pre-game ceremonies before the Bears take on Throckmorton at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 9. Pictured are: Freshmen: Kenzley Foster and Jackson Allen, freshmen; Yareli Aguirre and Jojuan Grace, sophomores; Zara Andrade, junior and Brayden Odom, Kaylie Duncan, both seniors. Not pictured: Caleb Epperson, junior and Keelyn Case, senior.
-
NEWS3 years agoSuspect indicted, jailed in Tia Hutson murder
-
NEWS4 years agoWreck takes the life of BHS teen, 16
-
NEWS4 years ago2 hurt, 1 jailed after shooting incident north of Nocona
-
NEWS3 years agoMurder unsolved – 1 year later Tia Hutson’s family angry, frustrated with no arrest
-
NEWS3 years agoSO investigating possible murder/suicide
-
Show us something good9 years agoCountry music star children perform in Bowie
-
100th Birthday4 years agoLooking back at the 1958 Centennial edition of The Bowie News
-
NEWS3 years ago
Sheriff’s office called out to infant’s death