By STEVE HATHCOCK
Special to the PRESS
Moments in Time is a collection of recovered newspaper briefs and other publications, compiled by local historian, Steve Hathcock, offering a look back at the history of the Rio Grande Valley.
Steve Hathcock is a local historian and a regular columnist for the Port Isabel South Padre Press. He has spent many years collecting and sharing the history of the Rio Grande Valley, as well as treasure hunting and formerly owning an Island-based bookstore.
They Will Fly Again In Speedier Machines
Now comes the news that First Lieutenant Lon C. Hill and others will come again from Brooke Field, San Antonio, soon. That is the present expectation.
On Saturday the Harlingen men came down in two Curtiss J. M. 4 D Training planes, each 120 horse power. They attracted a large crowd for the fifteen minutes they were at rest back of Ward School No. 2.
Finding that something was wrong with their machines, the mechanicians advised not to make the trip up the valley during the day, and they only pulled off a few stunts such as a nose dive and others, before landing here.
At night they returned to Harlingen to make temporary repairs, and returned Sunday to their aviation field in San Antonio
(San Benito Light (San Benito, Tex.), Friday, July 26, 1918)
Hotel Brazos Ideal Resort
Situated right on the water front at Port Isabel, the Hotel Brazos offers the vacationist the ideal place to spend a holiday whether it be for a week-end or the entire summer. According to Mr. Terrell, the manager, nothing is spared to afford the guest an enjoyable and restful stay at this famous hostelry located at one of the most famous resorts of Texas. Popular report indicates the fishing season at Port Isabel this year is one of the best in years and ever increasing numbers are availing themselves of the opportunity of spending an enjoyable fishing trip with all the modern conveniences of a modern hotel located right at the water’s edge. The cool, ever-blowing breezes of the gulf make the dining room of the Brazos Hotel a delightful place to enjoy a real sea food dinner in comfortable surroundings. Open the year round, a stay at the Brazos Hotel provide an occasion long to be remembered. To those who plan a prolonged stay special weekly and monthly rates are offered.
(The Brownsville Herald (Brownsville, Tex.), Monday, June 11, 1934)
Fritos Ideal For Hot Days
When a product has merit it rapidly forges itself to the leadership of its field. Such has been the history of Fritos, a delicious food crispie that is finding increasing favor with the consumers of the Valley.
Manufactured under the highest sanitary condition, Fritos are produced from only the purest of ingredients and this delicious product provides for children as well as grown-ups an ideal food confection.
According to W. R. Gleaser, who for the past several months has maintained quarters at 811 E. Monroe St., in Harlingen as Valley distributor for the Frito Co. “Freshness, and incidentally, wholesomeness, is guaranteed by the fact that Fritos are rushed to retail stores over the entire Valley twice weekly. This product is ideal for the summer lunch, a tasty food for in-between meals or a welcome accompaniment to a glass of 3.2 beer.”
(The Brownsville Herald (Brownsville, Tex.), Monday, June 11, 1934)
Editor’s Note: In 1932, San Antonio businessman Charles Doolin paid a roadside vendor $100 for a proprietary corn chip recipe and the trademark “Fritos,(Spanish for fried.)
Operating from his mother’s kitchen, Doolin initially used a hand-operated potato ricer to extrude the corn masa dough. Early 1930s advertisements championed these thick, crunchy chips as a sanitary, wholesome “delicious food crispie,” marketing them to children and adults alike.
By the 1940s and 1950s, the Frito Company had expanded across the Southwest, introducing the iconic Fritos Chili Pie in 1948. This regional success paved the way for massive corporate consolidation.
A 1961 merger with H.W. Lay & Company formed Frito-Lay, Inc., which subsequently merged with Pepsi-Cola in 1965 to form PepsiCo. What began as a $100 kitchen table enterprise ultimately helped popularize mass-produced corn snacks globally.