Diane Adams

Diane Adams is a local journalist interested county history. Please send tips and ideas for stories to Diane through our contact page here.

DIANE ADAMS: Out of the old rock
From time to time, there are people who stand out in a community, individuals who embody the traditions and spirit of a place. Johnny Cleveland from Blanket was one of those people; a man whose life touched

Building Lake Brownwood’s Dam
Written by Diane Adams This story was originally published last year in the 2024-25 Brown County Area Guide. Pick up a free copy at one of our partner locations & stay tuned for more information about the

DIANE ADAMS: Mullins Ranch at Thrifty
A principle long practiced by Masons when creating a structure is the understanding of a cornerstone. Cornerstones are the first aspect of building, and the perfection and accuracy of the cornerstone determines the enduring properties of the

DIANE ADAMS: History of Grosvenor Baptist Church
If you blink, you might drive right past the tiny community of Grosvenor without noticing it. That would truly be a shame. While there’s basically nothing there but the Grosvenor Baptist Church, a few houses and an

DIANE ADAMS: Tales from an old trail driver
A few years back, I was working on a story about modern day cowboys in Texas. I had a chance to watch an old school roundup out in Hamilton County, where they had 20 or so riders

DIANE ADAMS: The riddle of Brownwood’s silver cannonballs
In last week’s column about the Spanish presence in Brown County, I quoted Jay Longley’s remembrance about a Spanish cannonball made of silver that was found inside the city limits of Brownwood. As it turns out, the

DIANE ADAMS: Traces of Spanish Explorers in Brown County
“To seek El Dorado, the conquistadors for a hundred years and more marched and countermarched from one extremity of half of the western hemisphere to the other, spending the lives of tens of thousands of men and

DIANE ADAMS: The wind in the grass
There are a few places my husband and I go to hear the sounds of wind in the grass and trees. To do this, you need a spot that is very quiet, away from town and busy

DIANE ADAMS: The Blanket Meteorite
Strange lights in the sky are popping up in news reports across the country. It’s almost an atavistic instinct to expect some kind of trouble to drop from the sky, and nothing scares people quite like an

DIANE ADAMS: Comanche Firerock of Santa Anna
When my son was younger, he roamed with a pack of neighborhood boys in the summer, looking for things to do. The kids had an idea to build a treehouse part of the way up Santa Anna

DIANE ADAMS: Byrd’s Store and Indian Trading Post
My friend and fellow history buff, Don King, who shares my interest in old travel routes, sent me some information on Byrd’s Store. Located a few miles north of Lake Brownwood, Byrd’s Store, now called simply Byrds,

DIANE ADAMS: Early trails in Brown County
“In the fall of 1872, I went to Brown County, where I was hired by Bob Terrell. He was trading dry goods for cattle, and was camped in an old log house, eight miles above Brownwood, on