Fun at the Fandangle

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Do you enjoy historical reenactments? How about musicals? How about both thrown together? If so, you might be Fandangle material.
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Just forty-five miles down the road from where I live in Abilene, TX is the small town of Albany that sprang up near Fort Griffin in 1874. They have a gorgeous courthouse still standing from when it was built in 1883, and the original stone jail that has been turned into an art museum.

 


They have lots a well-preserved history there in historic buildings, but there is another way that they’ve preseved the history of their area. In an annual outdoor theatrical production called the Fort Griffin Fandangle. The cast is comprised completely of Albany citizens, many of whom are from families who have participated for generations. This year was the 87th annual production.
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I’ve lived in Abilene for more than 30 years, and I’ve never made it to the Fort Griffin Fandangle until this year. Shame on me. Since my next book series is set in Albany, I knew I had to rectify this oversight. So I grabbed my daughter, who happened to be in town, and we made a night of it.
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The Fandangle started as a senior play written by Robert E. Nail who was the speech teacher at Albany High School in 1938. The original work known as “Dr. Shackleford’s Paradise” (Albany is in Shackleford County) showcased the history of the region and was so well-received that the local Chamber of Commerce decided it should become a community event. It was presented again two months later as the Fort Griffin Fandangle. It has run every year since.The entire cast is comprised of amateur performers, so the singing wasn’t perfect, but the children were adorable, and all of the sets and costumes were super fun.
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My favorite thing about the show, however, was all the horseback riding. Children riding bareback to represent the Comanche history, cowboys and cowgirls carrying flags and banners, women in fancy dresses riding sidesaddle, a horse-drawn carriage, a covered wagon, a chuck wagon, and even the Butterfield stagecoach. They all rode through the staging area! There were even a group of cowboys who drove a herd of longhorns on stage. One of the steers even sang along!
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And for an extra dose of romance, opening night started with an impromptu marriage proposal! The little lady said yes. ?

Bethany and I had a grand time.
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What special traditions are celebrated by your local community?
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For those who love to smile as they read, bestselling author Karen Witemeyer offers warmhearted historical romance with a flair for humor, feisty heroines, and swoon-worthy Texas heroes. Karen is a firm believer in the power of happy endings. . . and ice cream. She is an avid cross-stitcher, and makes her home in Abilene, TX with her husband and three children. Learn more about Karen and her books at: www.karenwitemeyer.com.

22 thoughts on “Fun at the Fandangle”

  1. We have Osseo day where a few people come in to sell products to sell that are raised locally or crafts stuff as quilting. It’s on a very small scale as Osseo is a very small town. It’s has 3 churches, a post office, and a township building, and a bunch of people.

  2. Living in upstate New York, we grow a lot of apples. In September our town has an applefest where you can buy apples, candy apples, and watch cider being pressed. There are also games, craft booths and carriage rides and some live entertainment.

    • That sounds like so much fun, Elaine. I love apples. In fact, when I was a girl back in California, we had a few acres of land, and my dad planted dozens of apple trees, wanting to create a “pick your own” orchard.

  4. My city doesn’t have anything like this but I wanted to comment that I enjoyed reading your post this morning and what a nice memory with your daughter. Imho ‘Dr. Shackleford’s Paradise’ was a great name and didn’t need to be changed. 🙂

  6. Thank you for sharing your post. We have a Historical Day here in the Fall, and it is an all day for about 3 days, very informative and alot of fun. In July we have a Water Carnival which is also alot of fun, they also have the HS Reunions then. Sounds like you all had alot of fun, Family quality time is the Best time spent. Have a great day and a great rest of the week.

  7. That’s so cool.

    We have living history at some local historical places. East Coast, so you can find reenactments from several time periods (Revolutionary, Civil, War of 1812) at State and National Parks.

  8. That sounds like fun!! We have a Strawberry Festival here, and not far away is our Grant Seafood Festival, and there’s also a rodeo at Heritage Park in Kissimmee.

  9. Karen, I’ve gone to Albany/Ft. Griffin a few times but never saw the Fandangle. It’s a neat little town that once played an important part in history. I’m glad you made the effort to go. I can’t wait to see what your next series is about!! Yippee.

    • Thanks, Linda. I visited last year and did a tour of the courthouse and the old jail since they feature prominently in the first book. I love that they’ve done such a wonderful job of preserving their history!

  10. Since I live in such a small town that Labor Day Parade even faded away and is no more the only thing we celebrate her in my small town is July 4 and that’s celebrated by different people who live around me putting off their own fireworks ?

    • Our town is larger but we didn’t have an official city firework show, so we sat in our kids’ backyard and watched the fireworks being shot off by do-it-yourselfers. Actually made for a pretty good show. 🙂

  11. There are a couple such performances in our area. There is the official Virginia outdoor drama, Trail Of The Lonesome Pine, now in its 62nd Annual Season. It takes place in Big Stone Gap, VA. It is based on the 1908 book of the same name written by John Fox, Jr. who lived in Big Stone Gap. That is about 50 miles from us.
    The other outdoor drama is closer to us, a little over 15 miles. Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park has a re-creation of Fort Watauga. It was important to those in the first settlement in the area in 1760. The outdoor drama, Liberty! The Saga Of Sycamore Shoals, is presented every weekend in June in the amphitheater behind the fort and is the official outdoor drama of Tennessee. It deals with the early Cherokee attacks on the fort and the Overmountain Men who in 1780 formed up and hiked through the mountains to participate in the Battle of Kings Mountain, NC which was a pivotal battle of the Revolutionary War. It gives a good if brief early history of the area.

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