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Not Responsible
The town is set up to have a big picnic. There wasn’t one going on back in December, and I guess the summer’s about to slip by without a big gathering. But the shelter’s there, whenever big picnics can resume.
Mobeetie, Texas
photographed 12.27.2019
Playground on a dripping day
It’s been a hot summer here in Texas, so to make myself feel cooler, I’m posting this picture that I made on a cold, damp day last December. I found this antiquated playground in a tiny town way up in the top of the Texas Pandhandle.
Mobeetie, Texas
photographed 12.27.2019
Municipal Government
Here are some trash receptacles. And the Mobeetie City Hall. There’s a sign taped to the door at City Hall, giving a short list of contact numbers. You can reach the Bill Umsted, the city manager, or Bobbie Walker, the mayor. But if you need to reach offices of the City of Mobeetie, you’ll get an answering machine. That’s what the sign says.
Mobeetie, Texas
photographed 12.27.2019
Church + Bell (with windows)
I’ve only been to Mobeetie a couple of times. The time before this was about thirty years ago when I went with my parents for some kind of an important church event (An anniversary of some sort? I can’t remember any more.) and this trip last month. Both visits were on cold days, with low clouds and mist and drizzle. I am having a hard time even imagining this town with sunshine and leaves on trees – it’s lodged in my mind as a gray place, and a summer trip there may not even make that image evaporate.
Mobeetie, Texas
photographed 12.27.2019
Boyhood Church
Most of the churches were built like this, with a sort of half-basement and a sanctuary up a set of stairs. According to the historical marker in front of the church, the Methodists “built the basement” in 1930 and began holding services there. In 1947, the sanctuary was added above it.
Today, according to that same marker, “the church continues to serve as an area spiritual center.” The United Methodist Church’s handy find-a-church tool indicates that the church has 36 members and a pastor named Claude Early. But then again, none of the buttons on the site to learn about worship, ministry, staff, or additional information return any information at all. This leads me to the conclusion that is either a currently-active church or it is not. But I’ll just go ahead and accept that is a spiritual center.
Mobeetie, Texas
photographed 12.27.2019
One Day | One Image 