PN-G and Texas State History

[15PNG]

Hello all - My wife and I made it down to the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum in Austin today to see the exhibit that features PN-G. It's pretty cool and we are well represented.

When you first get there, the pamphlet they hand you has a picture of the PN-G band smack on the front cover. As soon as you walk in, there is an exhibit that has different parts of the state, and Port Neches-Groves is one of the buttons you push. You hear folks "back home" talking about PN-G football. As you round the corner, there is another exhbit that talks about rivalries and it specifically mentions Port Neches-Groves v. Nederland as the "fiercest in the state". Then my favorite part as you walk into the main walkway..... there is this large elevated glass case holding the Indian Spirit costume. It is definitely the biggest piece in the whole thing. It explains what the costume means and gives some history behind it. On the wall directly behind it, there is another exhibit that only talks about PN-G called "More Than a Mascot". Taking up half the wall, there is big a picture of Brandon dancing at the Alamo Dome. There are a couple of other large pictures featuring Jimmy Girouard I believe. Then next to that in a glass protective case are the letters from the Cherokee Nation granting PN-G permission to use the name 'INDIANS'. Then there is another letter to PN-G that talks about using "Cherokee" as a fightsong. There is another spot on the wall that talks about how PN-G upholds the proud traditions. Walking on through, you see "Down Trails of Victory" displayed in a glass case...... then over to a huge purple case that holds the drum major headress and the history behind it for PN-G. Off to the right of that is a button you push that plays Cherokee :woot: :woot:. The book in the giftshop about the exhibit has a centerfold 2 page spread of the spear carried by the Indian Spirit.

Folks, I was GLOWING with pride - still am. One lady in the museum even commented how our two year old had on a shirt that said PN-G Indians. She asked if we lived in Port Neches and came up to see it. I said "no, we live in Round Rock, but are die hard Indian fans". She thought that was pretty cool. Go see it folks if you get the chance or come up this way for hurricane evacuations. It's awesome. :clap:

 

[bandkid]

We're driving to Austin next week and the Bullock museum is set to be our first stop. Are cameras allowed? If so, I'll see if I can get some pictures for the site.

 

[pngfan93]

How long will the exhibit be up for?

 

[NDNband69]

From the P.A. News:
The exhibit will be on display at the museum from July 30 through Jan. 22, 2012.

I hope to make it before Football season starts.

 

[15PNG]

No, there are no cameras "allowed" and there are about 4-5 employees going through there checking. I tried to sneak a couple with my cell, but it didn't come out very good, the lighting is dark in there except for the displays.

I think it's supposed to be there a pretty long time, but I don't know for sure the exact length of time.

You know, I'd always heard about the letters from the Cherokee Nation, but I've never actually seen them. It was really incredible to see. I just kept saying "Wow! There they are." When we pushed the button to play "Cherokee" the little one started smiling and I said to him "Who is that?"....... and he goes "The eenians".... just like Paul Brown ;D

 

[IndianFan]

Wouldn't is be nice if there was a permanent display of those items in Port Neches? The original stadium plans had a large area designated as 'pro shop' that might have served such a purpose along with sales of spirit items. But that was cut when the stadium renovation was downsized. Maybe a classroom at the high school could be designated for such a purpose.

 

[Pngrick72]

FROM THE AUSTIN POST:
Where else do we cheer the Cuero Gobblers and the Itasca Wampus Cats? Only in Texas. The most impressive has to be the Port Neches Grove Indians, who outfit their mascot in full Native American garb, with a feather headdress, boots with bells, and a feathered spear.

 

[ingainerYYZ]

thanks for sharing 15png.

 

[NDNband69]

I saw this on the Museum web site:

First Saturdays
The first Saturday of every month
2 - 6 p.m.
FREE

The Museum offers FREE admission to the exhibits from 2 - 6 p.m. on the first Saturday of each month with First Saturdays. Visitors can also take advantage of the monthly thematic TEXplorations Family Story Time from 2 - 3 p.m. on First Saturdays.

 

[NDNband69]

They mention a book?

http://gotopublicschool.com/austin/texas-high-school-football-more-than-the-game

 

[NDNband69]

WOW!

http://austin.culturemap.com/newsdetail/07-29-11-15-22-bigger-than-religion-texas-high-school-football-exhibit-opens-at-the-bullock/

 

[NDNband69]

I found this on austinculturemap:

The Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum celebrates the most popular sport in the state and explores the culture it has fostered over the past 90 years with a multimedia, interactive exhibit that captures the sights and sounds of the autumnal ritual.

Nearly 200 artifacts have been gathered from every region of Texas to help tell this story. Select artifacts include: Ball High School's cheerleading yell, ca. 1892; A marching band uniform from Abilene High School, ca. 1930; a Lubbock High School game program, ca. 1939; the Little Southwest Conference Bell, ca. 1954-56; the drum major headdress from the Indian Spirit uniform from Port Neches-Groves High School (PN-GISD), ca. 1964, also, the framed certificate from the Cherokee Nation granting PN-GISD permission to use the Indian name and likeness.

The special exhibit is coordinated by guest curator and author Joe Nick Patoski and will be on display in the in the Albert & Ethel Herzstein Hall of Special Exhibitions until Jan 22, 2012.

 

[NDNband69]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_KGW_U-dSk&feature=related

 

[NDNband69]

This is like taking the whole tour. Note the picture of our Indian Spirit at 8:56 in the background at right. Great video of the Indian Spirit outfit......along with visitor reaction.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xkecpj_springnet-471-joe-nick-patoski-texas-high-school_sport

 

[NDN fan 4ever]

No, there are no cameras "allowed" and there are about 4-5 employees going through there checking. I tried to sneak a couple with my cell, but it didn't come out very good, the lighting is dark in there except for the displays.

I think it's supposed to be there a pretty long time, but I don't know for sure the exact length of time.

You know, I'd always heard about the letters from the Cherokee Nation, but I've never actually seen them. It was really incredible to see. I just kept saying "Wow! There they are." When we pushed the button to play "Cherokee" the little one started smiling and I said to him "Who is that?"....... and he goes "The eenians".... just like Paul Brown ;D

I believe this is when we became an "Honorary Reservation" and Ambassadors of Goodwill to the Cherokee Nation. I remember Chief John ( remember his last name ) had said we could always be "Indians" as far as he was concerned. He actually came to a game (maybe 2 ) to check us out....

 

[pngfan93]

No, there are no cameras "allowed" and there are about 4-5 employees going through there checking. I tried to sneak a couple with my cell, but it didn't come out very good, the lighting is dark in there except for the displays.

I think it's supposed to be there a pretty long time, but I don't know for sure the exact length of time.

You know, I'd always heard about the letters from the Cherokee Nation, but I've never actually seen them. It was really incredible to see. I just kept saying "Wow! There they are." When we pushed the button to play "Cherokee" the little one started smiling and I said to him "Who is that?"....... and he goes "The eenians".... just like Paul Brown ;D

I believe this is when we became an "Honorary Reservation" and Ambassadors of Goodwill to the Cherokee Nation. I remember Chief John ( remember his last name ) had said we could always be "Indians" as far as he was concerned. He actually came to a game (maybe 2 ) to check us out....

And this is why we have to be careful with the poor sportsmanship penalties. If the school doesn't continue to illustrate Honor, Pride, and Tradition via it's students, faculty, community, and fans, we risk losing the support of the Cherokee Nation.

 

[NDNband69]

This is a radio program about the exhibit......they mention a lot of S.E. Texas teams.

http://kut.org/2011/08/texas-high-school-football-more-than-the-game-2/

 

[bandkid]

Well, we made it out to the museum Tuesday. Since cameras aren't allowed, I decided to sketch all of this from memory. ;D

Before I add the photos, I'd like to say that I made it a point to get everything there that was related to any Southeast Texas football team. Unfortunately, there were four things we missed because there was no way we could get the shots without getting caught by a museum employee. The first two were in the area immediately to the left of the entrance called "Bragging Rights," which is a diner set-up with a bunch of football posters and buttons you can press to hear fans of six different schools talk about their teams over the years. We were one of the schools that had a recording, and the second item in that area was a 2009 Nederland poster on the wall (the only Nederland item in the exhibit). The third missed item was a plaque and TV screen about a third of the way into the exhibit that mentioned Mid-County Madness as the state's fiercest rivalry and several important events in the histories of Beaumont, Hebert, French, South Park, Forest Park, Charlton-Pollard and Ozen. The fourth item was another plaque across the hall from the TV screen that was part of the "Texas High School Football Timeline" and mentioned the attendance record we set at the 1977 state championship. I basically left the exhibit slapping myself in the back of the head for missing these four things, but hopefully someone else will make the trip to Austin and get the missing shots.

So, without further adieu, here's what we managed to get:

We get there and what's the first thing we see? 2010-2011 PN-G Drum Major Seth Beaugh and the Indian Band on the cover of the exhibit's brochure. You can't tell it from the photo, but a close inspection of the brochure reveals that this shot of the band was taken at last year's Livingston game. As a former PN-G band member, this was a very proud moment. ;D

When you leave the first section of the exhibit (which is the area where we missed all of those shots), you come into a section that talks about mascots. The centerpiece of this exhibit is Jimmy Girouard's Indian Spirit uniform from the 1964-1965 school year.

Standing in front of the uniform and its showcase and looking to your left, you'll find a picture of Mr. Girouard in full Indian Spirit dress dancing down what is today known as A-Hall at the high school, a picture of 2010-2011 Indian Spirit Brandon Provost dancing on the field in the Alamodome, and a plaque denoting the importance of the Indian mascot to PN-G, West Texas High School and El Paso Ysleta High School.

As you look at these displays, you'll notice something along the wall to your right that every PN-G fan everywhere should recognize: the letter, certificate and seal of the Cherokee Nation presented to our school in 1979.

As you move out of the mascot section and into the next section, you'll find an exhibit dedicated totally to spirit organizations (bands, cheerleading squads, drill teams, etc.). In this section, you'll find a PN-G Drum Majorette Headress on display and a station where six different songs can be played over the loud speakers. Wanna guess which PN-G crowd favorite was among those six songs? ;D

This was another proud moment for a former Indian Band member.

The last section of the exhibit is a tribute to the fans, media and communities that have showcased high school football in Texas for decades. In this section, you'll find memorabilia, news articles, a television set programmed to play some famous plays from Texas high school football history, and a bookcase filled with books dedicated to some of the most famous teams in Texas. Among them, of course, was a copy of Dr. John Buck Ford's Down Trails of Victory: The Story of Port Neches-Groves High School Football.

In the same section of the exhibit, you'll find a plaque dedicated to long-time Texas high school football fan and Orangefield native Bennie Cotton:

... and some Port Arthur Momentos:

Folks, PN-G was the best represented of any school in our area, if not the state. Other SETX schools were mentioned here and there, but PN-G was showcased for the entire state to see. I even met a fellow PN-G grad (c/o '63) that's lived in Austin since her UT days and still showed up wearing purple and white to take pictures of the exhibit and show her grandson what PN-G is all about. Most schools were lucky to have one item on display - some lucked out and got two - but PN-G had six separate items in the exhibit. I know exactly what 15PNG meant when he said he walked out glowing with pride. If you get a chance to go to Austin and see it, go - it's worth every penny.

 

[yankeedawg]

Pretty dang impressive!!

 

[PNG Proud]

Bandkid, Thanks for all the effort and pictures. I'd love to see it personally.
PNG Pride is not just a saying around here, AND THIS PROVES IT!!!!!!!