Historic Hospitality
The historic Annie Riggs Museum has undergone a facelift, but has kept its 19th century feel.
Story and photos by Jeremy Gonzalez
S
pending time with family is an
important part of our laid-back
desert living. When summer
comes around we always find an occa-
sion to cook food on the grill and fill up
our ice chests with drinks. That’s just
the way life is out here, but cook-outs
and sweet tea aren’t the only things to
love about summer in West Texas.
There is an abundance of family fun
and unique experiences waiting for
you just beyond the backyard fence.
My family recently traveled from
Dallas to visit me here in Fort Stockton
and I wanted to take them to a place
that captures the best qualities of this
town, a place that demonstrates our
rich history and penchant for relax-
ation. We got in their rental car and
coasted beneath the open skies into the
historic downtown area. I instructed
10
Cenizo
Grandpa which way to drive until we
pulled up to a baby-blue building sit-
ting on top of a hill. There it was, the
lovely Annie Riggs Memorial
Museum.
The Museum immediately greeted
us with its neighborhood-sized porch
that wraps around the building like on
a beautiful Victorian home. I can hon-
estly say that this porch is my favorite
spot in town. It provides you with a
great first impression of the museum,
amazing shade to cool off with and a
crisp view of the surroundings. It was
nice to see Grandpa gazing off this
porch with both hands behind his
back. I wondered what he was staring
at through his glasses. Perhaps he was
just admiring how the trees of Rooney
Park look like they gradually engulf the
rest of the road. Grandma and my sis-
Third Quarter 2014
ter sat down together on one of the
many rustic benches out on the porch.
These benches lure you to sit down,
breathe easy and let your shoulders
just drop. That’s exactly what my sister
did, but everyone knows that
Grandma doesn’t take a break.
Grandma stays ready for action.
There has been plenty of action
lately at the Annie Riggs Museum with
their recent renovations. The updates
begin on the porch with the installa-
tion of some brand-new light fixtures. I
was happy to see that the new fixtures
still have a great vintage appeal, every-
thing about them just feels right. Big
porch, new lights, cool evening
breezes…sounds enjoyable, doesn’t it?
The over-sized porch is just the start-
ing point of the Annie Riggs museum,
but I have to say that it’s one of the
best features. Can you imagine how
many cowboy boots have walked
across this deck in past generations? I
let that thought sink in as I watched
Grandpa’s worn Sperrys and
Grandma’s pink flip flops head toward
the front door.
We walked inside like true tourists.
Everyone was talking at the same time,
Mom wanted us sit down and watch
the video, Grandma was looking at all
the antique furniture, my sister
announced that she wanted a bracelet
so that someone would buy it for her,
and then our host kindly asked us to
sign the guest book.
Annie Riggs is family-friendly and
there is so much to be explored. As we
took a look around, each family mem-
ber found something to love. I have
always loved the parlor room that sits