After the success of the first Texans Incorporated Reunion in 2005, another gathering of the Texans Inc. faithful was inevitable. And so it was on November 18th, 2006, when the Second Annual Texans Incorporated Reunion took place at the TexasBank in Bangs, Texas. David and Martha Cole did a spectacular job of coordinating and promoting the event, setting up posters, lamp displays, and a slide show of historic photos. One table showcased the various markings found on Texans lamps, another the “pre-Kron” TV lamps. (shown at right) The slide show was of great interest, as it included dozens of old images of the Texans plant and their displays at the Trade Mart and World Trade Center in Dallas. For many alumni, the photos of the 1971 fire and its aftermath brought back somber memories of that trying time in the companies history.
Attendance was up significantly from the previous year, with visitors coming from as far as Illinois. The stars of the show were the many former Texans employees. Tommy Young was one of the founders of Texans and a long-time President, and his family was represented by David Young and his wife Elizabeth, Sharon Young Rambo and Margaret Young Blackburn. Also present were Lonnie Sikes, Pete and Evengeline Eads, Richard Gunter, Jean Fitzgerald, Jimmy Hunter, Alvin and Pat Miller, Karlene Wadsworth and many others. The second reunion surpassed all expectations, and the third promises to be better yet. Many thanks to David and Martha Cole, the fine folks at TexasBank and all the great residents of Bangs, Texas!
– Mark Stevens
TexasBank
The TexasBank venue, and the weather, were perfect.
David Cole and Richard Gunter
David Cole and Richard Gunter look at the slide show before the doors opened.
This display showed the many different markings found on Texans Inc. products.
bicentennial lamp
The third from the right is the rare limited-edition Bicentennial lamp.
Texans Incorporated products for sale.
TV lamps produced prior to Howard Kron’s association with Texans, illuminated by a spectacular Kron table lamp!
Yours truly did the t-shirt art!
Such a motley crew! Myself, Char Korcz (all the way from Illinois!), David Cole, and Richard Gunter.
Richard Gunter greets Evangeline Eads.
Charles Yates, Pete Eads, Richard Gunter, and Evangeline Eads.
David Cole and David Young review the slide show.
My traveling companions to Bangs: Charles Yates, my wife Scherrie, and Richard Gunter.
Gene Deason, Managing Editor of the Brownwood Bulletin, greets former Texans Inc. President Lonnie Sikes. (seated)
Discussing the old photos: Jean Fitzgerald, Evangeline Eads, Sharon Neill and Ann Hunter (seated), and Pete Eads.
Nona Giddens, June Winfrey, and Martha and David Cole look at June’s photos of Lamp Land, the retail outlet owned by her family from 1956 to 1958.
