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The Country Palace going up in flames,
the fire weathering into a tornado
Burning of the
Country Palace
By LaVerta Johnson
Watching a familiar landmark burn to the ground is like watching an old friend die. I am sure that’s how a lot of the local spectators felt on Saturday morning in August as the Fire Marshall set fire to the Old Country Palace. The burning was set for 6:30 a.m., but like most executions, details take time and the first sign of smoke did not occur until a little past seven a.m.
The idea of burning it down helped not only in the demolishing but also served as a drill for local fire fighters. The area was cleared to make way for a Farmer’s Market grocery store.
A lot of memories went up in flames that morning. How many of us remember the once-upon-a-time good times there. Years before it was the Palace, it was the Midway Bar and a good place to meet friends and go dancing just about any time of the week.
The building was built in the 1950s to accommodate a restaurant, bar and dance hall. Reedy and Joanie Hall bought it in 1978. The Halls had their own band and wanted to settle down, stay put as musicians.
“We had 3 boys and 1 girl and we wanted to settle down to six nights a week,” Joanie said.
But eventually they wound down to 5 nights a week.
As a musician from Kentucky, Reedy had met a lot of famous country-western artists, among them George Strait, Faith Hill, Willie Nelson, Mickey Gilley and Vince Gill, all of whom went on to perform at the Palace.
In 1995 San Juan County built the race track and the Halls were asked to be in charge of the food and beverage. They set up a concession stand at the race track and worked it for three years. They leased the Palace and the face of the property changed. It became a strip-club.
Joanie said, “Once you lease it, you have no say-so.” Furthermore good help was hard to find, and the Hall’s final decision was to sell. “That era of going out; dancing… is over,” Joanie said.
What about the memories? “A lot of memories, our boys grew up there and we met everyone from town and they were all so kind,” Joanie said.
The Halls were visiting their daughter in Montana when she answered my call, but she had already viewed photos of the burning building, thanks to friends and email. The Hall’s children are all grown and make their home in Utah, Albuquerque and Montana. They too had seen the pictures. “It broke their heart,” Joanie said. “We could not have watched it burn.”
Founders’ Day Parade and Celebration September 13
Aztec Founders’ Day
• Saturday, September 13, 2008 •
Aztec Museum & Pioneer Village
The annual Founders’ Day celebration hosted by the Aztec Museum will be on Saturday, September 13, 2008 this year.
The festivities will begin at 10:00 a.m. with a parade down Main Avenue given by the Aztec Museum Association and the San Juan Mountain Chapter of Antique Trucks. Activities and events will continue all day at the Aztec Museum and at Riverside Park.
Throughout the year, the Aztec Museum Association strives to preserve the history of Aztec and the surrounding community. For Founders’ Day each year, the organization selects one pioneer family to receive special recognition. This year, the Aztec Museum Association wishes to pay special honor to the Dusenbery family. The family will be honored at a short ceremony during the parade, and later at the Aztec Museum.
Events include:
• Fishing Derby at Riverside Park 7:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
• Parade through downtown Aztec 10:00-11:00 a.m.
• BMX Bike registration 10 - 11am, races at Riverside Park begin at noon.
• Gun Fight at Pioneer Village, Aztec Museum 12:00 noon
• Talk by author, Barbara Marriott and signing of OUTLAW TALES OF New Mexico, Aztec Museum & Pioneer Village 1:30 p.m.-2:30 p.m.
• San Juan County Historical Society presents… Local authors sign and sell copies of their books 2:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m.
• Antique Truck Show at Riverside Park all day
• Music to be provided by Jane Voss and Hoyle Osborne and the Desert Sky Fiddlers at the Aztec Museum & Pioneer Village throughout the afternoon
Food and soft drink vending, crafts demonstrations and crafts sales will be on-going at both Aztec Museum & Pioneer Village and Riverside Park throughout the day.
All events are free and open to the public. Admission to the Aztec Museum and Pioneer Village is also free on Founders’ Day.
See below for information about entering the parade and other venues. For more info, contact Ron Holloway, Founders’ Day Event Chairman, (505) 334-8951.
Founders’ Day book signing
Barbara Marriott will be on hand for a book signing at the Aztec Museum during the Founders’ Day celebration, Sept.13. She will talk about her book, "Outlaw Tales of New Mexico: True Stories of New Mexico’s Most Famous Robbers, Rustlers and Bandits," at 1:15 at the museum and be available to the public after the talk. She is being brought to the area by the San Juan County Historical Society.
"Outlaw Tales of New Mexico" presents the stories of 11 men and one woman from New Mexico’s past. Included are Clay Allison, Jesse Evans, "Mysterious" Dave Mather, the Stockton brothers, Dave Rudabaugh, Milton Yarberry, Billy the Kid, Joel Fowler, Ada Hulmes, Vicente Silva, "Black Jack" Ketchum and Pancho Villa.
Perhaps the least known of these outlaws is Ada Hulmes, an actress and saloon piano player described as a "fallen woman" and "a bold adventuress." In 1889, scorned by her lover, Hulmes shot him in Silver City’s Monarch Saloon. Her trial lasted five days and attracted much attention from the press. She pled insanity and was sentenced to three years in the territorial penitentiary at Santa Fe. Hulmes got the governor and prison doctor to support her early release and, less than two years into her sentence, she was pardoned.
Her story and 11 others are recounted in this book.
Last “Movie in the Park”
Sept. 5th
In honor of the Olympics, the Key Club will be showing Disney's "Cool Runnings" at 8:30pm for the last Movie in the Park this season. This comedy is loosely based on the true story of a Jamaican sprinter who fails to qualify for the summer Olympics so he turns to a former bobsled Olympic champion to put together Jamaica's first bobsled team for the 1988 winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada. The hilarious antics of the sprinters training on the Caribbean island without snow, coupled with their experiences in Calgary and a surprise ending sets up a fun, family outing. Note the earlier start time at 8:30pm and bring jackets as the nights are getting quite chilly. A concession stand will be provided. Hope to see you there!!ls@gmail.com or call Kelly at 334-2828.
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The Farmington Red Apple Transit
now has service to Bloomfield,
Aztec, Kirtland and Flora Vista
Red Apple Transit Dispatch 325-3409
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Note: TALON e-mail: aztecnews@sisna.com
© Copyright 1993-2008 by The Aztec Local News. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the editor.
Printed by The Gallup Independent.
The Aztec Local News (TALON) is published semimonthly, on the 1st and middle of each month. As a community-input newspaper, serving the Aztec, Bloomfield, Cedar Hill, Center Point, Flora Vista, Navajo Dam, and Blanco areas, we welcome stories, news, events, poetry, photos, etc. from area residents. Please call 334-1039, fax 334-1551, or e-mail us at aztecnews@sisna.com, to give us your input.
6500-7000 copies of The Aztec Local News are delivered to over 150 locations in the area for free pickup and mailed to those who prefer the convenience of a subscription.
Editor & Publisher: Candy Frizzell, 505-334-1039
Reporter: Cherry Church; Katee McClure, 330-4616
Ad Sales: Candy Frizzell, 334-1039
Photographer: Cherry Church
Distribution: Dorothy Stamper
Proofreaders: Gina Martinez, Linda Lawson, Debbie Israel
Subscriptions: Debbie Israel
PO Box 275 • Aztec, NM 87410
505-334-1039 • fax/voice 334-1551
e-mail: aztecnews@sisna.com
© Copyright 1993-2008 by The Aztec Local News. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the editor.
The Aztec Local News is a compilation of
articles, poems, stories, etc. written by area residents. The opinions expressed in these articles are those of the individual authors, and do not
necessarily reflect those of The Aztec Local News.
If information is presented as fact and it is relevant to you, verify it. Although we strive for correctness and honesty, this community paper does not have the resources to check all incoming info.
Printed by The Gallup Independent.
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