City of Edna

Happy 4th of July!!!
Flag City shirts are all over town! Thank you to the Jackson County Tax Assessor's office for sending us their group picture. The City of Edna is thankful for all the support and patriotism celebrating Flag City with us!!!

Edna, Did You Know?
The current form of city government with a mayor, council representatives for each of five districts, and a city manager hired by the council and mayor has not always been in place.
When the city incorporated in 1926, voters elected a mayor and two commissioners to represent them. That system changed in 1951 when a group of citizens petitioned Mayor Harry Mauritz to change to an aldermanic system with a mayor and a group of representatives known as aldermen.
According to an article in the Edna Herald newspaper on Oct. 11, 1951, the two city commissioners agreed to authorize a special election on Dec. 4 to elect three aldermen. The current commissioners D.A. “Dewey” Strane and W.H. “Bill” Mercer and Mayor Mauritz would not be on the ballot but would continue to serve out their terms and be on the ballot the following year, allowing continuity of government.
A special election was held Dec. 4,1951 and the aldermanic style was adopted, with the result being that Strane and Mercer became aldermen along with W.T. Westhoff, Arthur E. Anderson, Alison Dill “A.D.” Gayle, Jr.
According to an article in the Edna Herald on Dec. 6, 1951, the election drew far more votes than any prior city election, with 338 votes cast. Previously, the highest number of votes cast had been 57.
An alderman and a city council member are the same thing. Alderman is an older, more traditional term, but both simply mean a local, elected official.
- Information courtesy of Edna City Council minutes of Oct. 8, 1951, Dec. 6, 1951, and Dec. 11, 1951.
- Information and screenshot courtesy of Portal to Texas History and The Edna Herald newspaper, Thur., Oct. 11, 1951
(https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth763834/m1/1/)
- Information and screenshot courtesy of Portal to Texas History and The Edna Herald newspaper, Thur., Dec. 6, 1951 (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth763916/m1/1/)

Edna, Did You Know?

The City of Edna hasn’t always had street lights.
In fact, it wasn’t until after World War II that the city council requested installation of six street lights by the Central Power & Light Co. That request was recorded in the minutes of the Aug. 5, 1948 council meeting.
On the evening of Sat., Oct. 9, 1948, more than 1,000 people crowded the courthouse lawn to listen to the Edna High School band play the national anthem and other songs, hear the local dignitaries speak, and to see the lights come on.
President of the Edna Chamber of Commerce, Dr. R.E. Lee, spoke as master of ceremonies, welcoming everyone. Mayor Harry Mauritz threw the switch. George Gilliam of Central Power & Light congratulated the city on its modernization efforts, and Judge Olin Culberson, a member of the Texas State Railroad Commission and local businessman, spoke about the improvements that he personally had witnessed in town since his arrival in 1921.
The evening concluded with a fiddler’s contest and street dance.
While we unfortunately do not have a photo of the crowd that evening, the photos here do show street lights in downtown Edna during the 1950s.
- Information courtesy of The Edna Herald newspaper, Oct. 14, 1948, page 1, and from the Edna City Council minutes of Aug. 5, 1948.
- Photo courtesy of Mr. Roy Ortolon, L.J. Korenek, and L.K. Miller

THANK YOU to the Edna City Council and Mayor Lance Smiga for generously paying for the city employees to enjoy steaks, potatoes, salad, tea, and dessert for lunch today!!
THANK YOU to City Public Works Director Brad Ryan and Wayne Grudzieski for grilling the steaks!
Today's lunch was the council's way of saying thank you to city employees for volunteering to make the first annual Flag City Celebration a success.

Captions: Council member Chris Jackson, Mayor Lance Smiga, and council member Amanda Friedrich attended today's "thank you" lunch.
Wayne Grudzieski, front, and Brad Ryan, rear, grilled steak and potatoes for city employees.

It was hard to go hungry this afternoon and evening at the first annual Flag City Celebration in downtown Edna.
From free hotdogs by HEB and free popcorn by the Fair Court to Dodds Barbecue, Georgia Mae's, and Shiloh's Kingdom Kids, to plenty of lemonade and beverages from Latrice's, Reverse Thirst, and Charlie's Sports Bar and Grill's beer garden, there were plenty of options for everyone.
Thank you all so much for being a part of this event!

Congratulations to the winners of the first annual Flag City Celebration Antique Car Show!
Peter Aluiso won Best of Show for his teal blue and white 1955 Chevy B el-Air.
Top 10 winners were:
1. Gene Mikulenka, red 1985 500 SL Mercedes
2. Chris Hernandez, red 1952 MG/VW
3. Willie Hernandez, red and black 1968 VW Beetle
4. Bill Walker, yellow 1950 Willy's
5. Thomas Wiley, black 1966 Pontiac GTO
6. Barret Turner, flat black 1955 Chevy Wagon
7. Barret Turner, olive green 1971 Chevy C-10
8. Pam Bartels, white 1976 Chevy Corvette
9. Dony Tise, black and grey 1984 Chevy El Camino
10. David Brogger, blue 1969 Chevy C-10

We hope to see all of you back again next year!