Picture A Day - July 2, 2009
Benton City Normal Institute

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At one time, Benton City was predicted to be the next big city in south Texas, but like many potential metropolises, its future was cut short when it was bypassed by the railroad. The community, located in north Atascosa County just south of San Antonio, quickly faded away, now all that is left is the remains of the school (above) and the cemetery. The Benton City Normal Institute was founded in 1876, the bottom half of the building was the community masonic lodge, the upper floor was the school. In 1919, the school was abandoned, and the stone ruins rest just off FM 3175 near the Atascosa River, Google Maps Streetview Here.

Picture A Day - July 3, 2009
Butterfly at Fort Lancaster

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While south and central Texas bake in the summer heat with nary a raindrop in sight, just a couple hundred miles to the west the deserts of Texas have been drenched by a steady stream of monsoon moisture. In the sparsely-populated Trans-Pecos region sits Fort Lancaster, formed in the mid-1800's to protect the San Antonio-El Paso Road. These days it is little more than a collection of stone ruins that are visited by a handful of visitors each week, several miles off Interstate 10 near the Pecos River crossing.

When I visited on June 20th, the area had just been soaked by several inches of rain -- enough that pools of water still remained dangerously on the roadways. The desert had turned all green, with flowers unfurling, birds chirping, crickets clicking, and insects buzzing all over the place. Small armies of butterflies, battered by the rains, came out to feast on the blooming flowers. This little critter was found from the highway rest stop overlooking the Pecos River valley, roughly a mile east of Fort Lancaster. Google Maps Streetview of the location Here.