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In the late
1800s, Sam Scott's great-granddaddy traveled through north Texas
building church houses using the tools he kept in the back of his
wagon.
Centuries
later, in the fast-paced world of computers and robotics, the
potential of those antique tools and the art of hands-on
craftsmanship practiced by many a great-granddaddy have been lost.
Sam
Scott, a retired industrial arts teacher with a master's degree in
industrial technology from Texas A&M at Commerce, watched it
all happen. As a student, Scott took industrial arts class at
Southwest Texas in San Marcos and learned how to cast bronze and
brass. As a teacher in the late '60s and '70s, he taught students
basic drafting skills, architectural drafting and advanced
woodworking.
And then
budgets were cut and computers carne on-line. Most of the schools
in the Lone Star State quit offering their pupils the manual
training and craftsmanship classes that once constituted
industrial arts programs. Instead, youngsters were given keyboards
and taught computer-aided design.
Rest
assured, Scott doesn't blame technology. After all, his own
company is an Internet business. Rather, Scott believes technology
does not have to displace artistry.
In an
effort to give the craftsmen of Texas an outlet to practice their
trade, Scott launched Just Texas Products Inc. four years ago.
Every one of his products is produced by Texas craftsman and is
made, whenever possible, from Texas raw materials.
Take,
for instance, the pen and pencil sets Scott sent to President
George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney upon their election.
The pen and pencil are fashioned out of Texas mesquite.
The
election of a Texan as president has had a substantial effect on
Just Texas Products, as Bush enthusiasts have taken to the World
Wide Web in search of anything Texas.
Just
Texas is located at www.justtexas.com. "I'm getting requests
from people on islands I didn't even know existed in the South
Pacific," Scott said.
The Just
Texas prototype shop is located in Irving, where Scott has
150-year-old tool |
designs in several thousand styles
including moldings used to build the earliest Texas courthouses.
"We have the capability, with the
people, to build a court- house from the ground up," he said.
Scott
designs about 80 percent of the products. If he considers them
"doable," he ships the design prototypes and materials
to fellow Texas artisans.
Products include:
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Wagon Wheels
Close to 100 wagon wheels have been purchased for placement in
historical theme parks.
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Mesquite furniture
and floors for commercial buildings
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Pottery
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Dream catchers by
native Texas Indians
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Jewelry based on the
Texas star
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Handmade wooden
rocking horses made of mesquite and oak
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Plaques including
"Remember the Alamo"
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Photographs
including Texas Hill Country Bluebonnets and Indian Paintbrush
Flowers
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Mesquite wood
barometers and thermometers
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Oak wall candelabras
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Mesquite boot jacks
Many of Scott's designs can be used in Texas courthouses, the most
popular being courthouse benches made of cast aluminum with a
baked-on finish of any color.
Other
products that could complement a courthouse include framed
historical maps, prints, flooring and doors. More and more
customers are requesting mesquite furniture, as it is harder than
oak, Scott said.
Just
Texas Products will have another 500 items coming on-line within
the next few months.
Scott is
currently working on an entire line teaching the history of Texas.
The project involves carving images of Texas courthouses into
leather surfaces or embossing the images onto brass, copper and
cast bronze.
--By Julie Anderson |
