By Anthony Collins

LPR Editor                             

    Looking back to the top stories that made the news in the Lockhart Post-Register. 

January 2                               

 Christmas is over, but that doesn’t mean scammers have taken a holiday. Officials with the U.S. Postal Service are warning about a scam being sent by text messages, The Dallas Morning News reported.

January 7                               

 With the seemingly endless number of musicians in Lockhart and others performing here, it was only natural the city became the latest to be designated Music Friendly by the State of Texas.

 January 16                            

 Less than 100 miles from Lockhart, Megan Carvajal was originally from Victoria. She was even closer to the Barbecue Capital of Texas after taking a job in Austin. 

January 23                           

 It’s a new day at Old Settler’s Music Festival. The 38th annual gathering of music, camping and picking circles, will take place April 24-27, just 45 minutes south of Austin, and 12 miles southeast of Lockhart. 

January 30                              

 The Ziegenfelder Company held a highly successful hiring event from Jan. 21-23, in Lockhart, to support the staffing and opening of its new production facility. 

February 6                             

 About three months after voters elected to join the Austin Community College District (ACC), the college will begin offering classes in Lockhart. Evening and weekend classes start Monday, Feb. 17, at Lockhart High School. Registration is now open.

February 13                           

   At Monday night’s meeting, the Lockhart ISD Board of Trustees unanimously approved a $93.5 million bond proposal for the May 3 election.

February 20                          

  Originally getting pushed by friends to show animals at the Caldwell County Junior Livestock Show, Clarke Jakel will now be appearing as a participant at the show for the final time Feb. 27-March 1 after having a variety of animals entered over the years.

February 27                          

  Rakaia Walker was a highly sought basketball recruit, garnering such attention as the Southeastern Conference’s Oklahoma University.

March 6                                 

  A news sports bar and a local wrestling group combined to help raise money for a local group of aspiring athletes. Friday’s turnout, for the Austin Wrestling Federation (AWR) wrestling matches at Game Day Sports Bar in Lockhart, was a success in helping raise needed funds for the Lockhart Warriors.

March 13                               

  At Tuesday’s meeting Caldwell County Commissioners chose to table an item where the Lockhart Animal Shelter was wanting to raise the cost of intakes on dogs and cats — whether from animal control officers or citizens — to an estimated total of about $26,000 monthly.

March 20                               

   Saturday’s annual KidFish event at the Lockhart City Park pond had 230 kids register, as the edges of the pond were lined with young anglers and their parents. 

March 27                                

  At last week’s meeting, Lockhart City Council agreed to purchase the building, which was the former home of Hometown Cinemas at 120 W. MLK Boulevard, with plans to renovate the property and convert it into a multi-use indoor recreation center.

April 3                                    

  Carlton Carl, a multi-faceted individual known for his roles as a journalist, politician, landlord, and a cherished friend to many, sadly passed away on Tuesday, March 25.

April 10                                  

  Last week, the Lockhart Lions held a track meet for Special Olympics athletes for the second consecutive year. The games started off with teams entering onto the track to the cheers of the crowd, the marching band playing the Lions’ cheerleaders giving them words of encouragement.

April 17                                 

  This beloved community concert series was dreamt up back in 2021 by Will Rhodes and Rachel Lingvai and is still going strong. Will and Rachel sat down to chat more about how it all began and what we have to look forward to this season. 

April 24                                 

   After more than four decades of service as a City Manager, Steve Lewis has announced his retirement, effective September 5, 2025. Lewis has served as the City of Lockhart’s City Manager since October 2018. 

May 1                                      

If you have never been to 50 Lions Who Can Cook just picture three huge white tents, hundreds of people laughing, eating and some loud music. Some may say that sounds just like a big old party, and well it really is just that but with a great cause bringing it altogether.

May 8                                      

   Bryan Robert Haynes was found guilty in the Capital Murder trial brought against him stemming from the June 2020 shooting deaths of 18-year-old Klayton Manning and 16-year-old Landin Robinson. 

May 15                                   

  On Saturday, May 9, the heart of Texas barbecue beat louder than ever as Lockhart’s Mill Scale Metalworks hosted the second annual Lockhart Rising festival.

May 22                                    

   The scent of smoked brisket may soon share the air with the low hum of high-powered servers in Caldwell County. In a move that promises to redefine the region’s future, Colorado-based data infrastructure developer Tract has secured a sprawling 1,515-acre site just outside Lockhart, near the small town of Uhland, with plans to build one of Texas’ most ambitious data center campuses.

May 29                                     

    If you’ve ever had the smoky pleasure of eating at Kreuz Market in Lockhart, there’s a good chance you’ve tasted the work of Roy Perez, the man behind the pit for nearly 40 years. And now, Roy’s getting some serious and much deserved recognition. Roy Perez is being inducted into the American Royal’s Barbecue Hall of Fame this November.

June 5                                      

 In last week’s meeting, the Caldwell County Commissioners approved a new ordinance banning individuals from jumping off bridges in Caldwell County.     

June 12                                     

    What began over 50 years ago as a hometown celebration inspired by the wild and raucous history of a cattle town along the historic Chisholm Trail, has evolved into the quintessential expression of everything there is to love about Lockhart, Texas. Held the second full weekend in June at Lockhart City Park, CTR is the largest three-day celebration in Lockhart.

June 19                                   

   The 52nd Annual Chisholm Trail Roundup is officially in the books. There are many thank yous that need to be given but the first needs to go to Mother Nature. 

June 26                                   

The Lockhart City Council covered a full slate of civic matters during its June 17 meeting, ranging from community support funding to water supply projections and public safety upgrades.

July 3                                      

    After hearing from educators that cell phones are distractions in the classroom, Texas banned the devices in K-12 schools. 

July 10                                     

   “Today will be a hard day. It… will ….be…. a hard day,” said an emotional Kerrville Mayor Joe Herring, Jr. on Saturday, July 5, the day after one of the most devastating events in recent Texas history. 

July 17                                    

   The City of Lockhart’s Downtown Revitalization Project is nearing a major milestone as work continues in the nine-block area surrounding the historic Caldwell County Courthouse. 

July 24                                    

   The City of Lockhart has appointed Joseph Resendez as its next City Manager, effective September 5, 2025, following the retirement of current City Manager, Steve Lewis. The decision was made following a unanimous vote by City Council on July 15. 

July 31                                     

   The season was nothing short of extraordinary for the Lockhart Little League Senior Girls Softball team. In an inspiring postseason campaign, the girls won the Texas East State Championship, earning a spot in the Southwest Regional Tournament held in Pineville, Louisiana.

August 7                                 

    On Saturday, August 2, 2025, Lockhart ISD officials welcomed the public as they hosted a ribbon cutting for LISD’s newest elementary school, Borchert Loop. 

August 14                               

    What an incredible night at Lions Stadium for Midnight Madness.  The stands were alive with cheers as the high school football teams took the field, giving fans a first look at the hard work they’ve been putting in all summer.

August 21                              

    Monday marked the last day for candidates to get their name on the ballot for the November 4, 2025, election. Lockhart City Council has several positions that will be up to the voters to decide. 

August 28                               

  The ribbon was cut on AirLIFE TEXAS’ newest emergency air medical helicopter during a ceremony on Wednesday, Aug. 20 at Henry T. Rainey American Legion Post 41 in Lockhart. AirLIFE TEXAS 1 is based nearby at 145 Old Lockhart Road and is the only air medical base permanently located in Caldwell County.

September 4                          

   Texas classrooms are preparing for a significant change this fall as Senate Bill 10 (SB 10), which requires the display of the Ten Commandments in every public-school classroom, moves forward despite ongoing legal challenges. 

September 11                      

 Beginning in 2026, the Chamber will no longer produce the rodeo portion of CTR.

September 18                       

    Lockhart ISD Superintendent Mark Estrada has been honored as the Region 13 Superintendent of the Year, a prestigious recognition announced during the annual TASA/TASB TxEDCON conference.

September 25                        

    A Lockhart woman was sentenced in a federal court in Del Rio to 60 months in prison for her role in a conspiracy to transport illegal aliens from Eagle Pass to San Antonio.

October 2                               

     For the first time in nearly a decade, seniors in parts of rural Texas are being placed on waiting lists for home-delivered meals, a sign of the growing strain on the Meals on Wheels network following significant funding cuts at the federal level.

October 9                               

     Camera technology in Caldwell County is already proving to be a powerful new tool for law enforcement. The Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office recently rolled out Flock Safety cameras throughout the county and says they’re already making a difference.

October 16                            

    The Lockhart City Council said “no thanks” to a proposal to bring license plate cameras to town.

October 23                            

  It’s hard to believe it’s been 19 years since the first Toy Run rolled through town and it all started when Lydia Serna asked Chuckie Keplar to help bring the idea to life.

October 30                            

    The Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office responded at approximately 1 p.m. Monday, October 20, to a report of a deceased person found at 1576 Highway 183 South, just south of Lockhart.

November 6                           

 After four hours of deliberation, a jury composed of eight women and four men found Joseph Anderson III, of Luling, not guilty in the April 2022 stabbing death of William “Tommy” Chesser.

November 13                        

     Caldwell County is quickly becoming a hub for cutting-edge innovation, thanks to a bold new venture called Proto-Town, a campus designed to help hardware startups prototype, test, and scale technologies that tackle real-world challenges.

November 20                        

     The City of Lockhart and the Lockhart Economic Development Corporation (LEDC) are launching an exciting new initiative to guide the redevelopment of several key blocks near Lockhart’s historic downtown district.

November 27                         

     The Lockhart Victim Assistance team would like to invite the public to join them for their 23rd annual Caldwell County Tree of Angels.   

December 4                           

    In Lockhart, kindness doesn’t just show up with a smile, sometimes, it shows up in the form of a warm winter coat. For the past 35 years, the Coats for Kids program has been making sure that no child in Lockhart faces the cold without one.

December 11                         

    The mayor of Uhland, Lacee Duke, was arrested Wednesday, December 3, 2025, after a Caldwell County grand jury indicted her on a felony charge of misapplication of fiduciary property, according to state records, county officials, and multiple sources familiar with the case.

December 18                        

   On Wednesday, December 10, a heavy law enforcement presence could be found in the Clearfork neighborhood in Lockhart. At approximately 11:30 am law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, DEA, Texas State Troopers, various police and sheriff personnel and a canine unit converged on a residence on Shelly’s Cove conducting what FBI San Antonio spokesperson, Carmen Portillo called a “court-authorized activity”. 

December 25                         

   The Lift Fund Buy-Down Interest Program, approved by the Lockhart Economic Development Corporation (LEDC), sets aside $50,000 to help lower interest rates on small-business loans. That funding will allow Lift Fund to leverage roughly $200,000 in total lending for local entrepreneurs.