By Christine McCarthy
ROCKDALE- The Milam County city of Rockdale is hoping tourism will boost the local economy, during a decline in the industry that had dominated the city and surrounding area for years.
As aluminum plant Alcoa continues to close its operations, city leaders are trying to market Rockdale as a tourist destination for historical sightseeing along El Camino Real de los Tejas National Trail, which was established to connect a series of centuries-old Native American trading posts and Spanish missionary sites.
The Milam County Historical Commission has collected $24,000 from grants and individual donations but is still trying to collect a little more in order to pay for and place 72 new signs on county roads and identification markers at six historical places, including missionary sites, river crossings and a presidio, or fort.
One site, which will have its own marker is Apache Pass, northwest of Rockdale, where the visitors are very scarce, but local leaders hope that will change will proper signage.
"It was from the 1500's, when the Apache Indians used that site to cross the river. They crossed there because the banks were too high in other places," says Rockdale historian and fourth generation resident, Dr. Lucile Estell, about the historical site. "The trail ties us to our Texas Colonial history and we've really never been tied to that."
Milam County historian and sixth generation resident, Joy Graham, pushed for the new signs along with Dr. Estell.
"Out the street from us here you're going to see a big sign that says 'El Camino Real de los Tejas National Trail' and an arrow that points out to Apache Pass," says Graham who worked for Alcoa for 30 years until retirement before the closure of most of the company's local operations.
"It's a time of change. We've had the best, and now we're down. And, you know, our unemployment is still high," Graham says, "and yet people who travel parallel to I-10 or 290 or 21 going east come through this town, and I keep saying we need them to stop here."
Deedra Jacob, president of the Rockdale Chamber of Commerce, is hoping new visitors will drop into stores and restaurants in the wake of Alcoa's decline and resurrect the local economy.
"We did several, you know, sit-down sessions to see what do we have to offer and what can we do to help stir our economy here," Jacob says, "and in every single one of those studies travel and tourism was at the top of the list."
Milam County will be the first to put up the signs among dozens of counties that the trail crosses from Mexico to Louisiana.
"We just have so much to offer people, and us getting to be the first to sign the trail, it's just a wonderful, wonderful feeling," Graham says.
Milam County Judge Dave Barkemeyer says events and activities are being planned not just in Rockdale but in other nearby areas along the trail and he expects that more of them could help the economy.
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison is scheduled to visit Milam County for the unveiling of the signs on Oct. 8.
