Night Watchmen

Vickie Keck Nowlin, Class of 1970, wrote:

It is interesting reading about the police issue in Temple. I, too, don't remember having more than a night watchman around town when I grew up there in the 1950's and 1960's. I remember Dee Foster and others who sat all night in a car or in the laundromat watching the town overnight. And for a time there was an office for Woody Wilson when he was County Sheriff there on Commercial downtown.

As a teenager, I joined other kids downtown on Halloween riding around and having fun. One year, Pam Hayes Parrish and I rode around with Guerry Douglass and Glendell Cole for awhile. An older boy (who will remain anonymous) flashed his lights at us to stop and asked us to go with him to "egg" a house for a trick instead of a treat. We were scared, but we all got in his car with him and another older boy and went along for the ride. We drove by and he threw the eggs out the window at the targeted house. He drove us right back to our car...which was parked in the middle of the street just across from... you guessed it... the Sheriff's office. He was standing outside and motioned for us all to come in.

I remember being terrified as Pam and I sat down in ONE office chair... holding on to one another, shaking in our boots. (Oh, to be skinny enough to do that again.) Sheriff Wilson made us sit there as he asked the older boy what we was going on. He already knew that eggs had been thrown at the house we drove by! We didn't even drive around any with the older boys.... We drove to the house, watched one of them throw the eggs, and we drove straight back to our car, and the Sheriff already knew what had been done!! I don't remember saying a word. I just sat there with my eyes bugged out and held hands with Pam, terrified.

He knew we were just along for the ride without us saying anything at all. He just talked to the older boys and then turned to us younger ones and gave us a good lecture. I remember he tried to keep a straight face as he talked sternly to Pam and me about not getting involved with such shenanigans ever again. We just shook our heads and agreed to never do that again and started to cry. Then he started smiling and told us to go home. Man, did we ever move fast!

I don't even remember getting up out of the chair, but I do remember being glad to get back home in the safety of my own living room and telling my parents what happened. Of course, I didn't get much sympathy from them...all they could say was, "Good for Sheriff Wilson!" And that I had learned a good lesson, which I have to say, I certainly did! I learned that I had outgrown Halloween "treat or treating" for good!!