Ellis County's Star Spangled Bondsman
The Fourth of July is one of our country’s most important holidays. It signifies our country’s independence from England. It also serves as a day where all Americans of all backgrounds and ages come together as one to celebrate our country. Whether it is a barbecue with close friends or festival with thousands of strangers, there is nothing better than standing hand in hand with your community, staring up into the night sky, watching a miraculous and beautiful fireworks display. It is 100% American.
In Waxahachie, Ellis County, Texas those sentiments ring especially true as the result of the hard work of local bail bondsman Dusty Autrey and his team.
Waxahachie is located just south of Dallas, Texas off of I-35. Waxahachie was founded in August 1850 as the count seat of the newly established Ellis County on a tract of land donated by early settler Emory W. Rogers, a native of Lawrence County, Alabama, who migrated to Texas in 1839. It was incorporated on April 28, 1871, and in 1875, the state legislature granted investors the right to operate a rail line from Waxahachie Tap Railroad to Garrett, Texas, which greatly increased the population of Waxahachie.
From 1902 to 1942, Waxahachie was the second home of Trinity University, which was a Presbyterian-affiliated institution founded in 1869. Then-Trinity's main administration and classroom building is today the Farmer Administration Building of Southwestern Assemblies of God University. Trinity's present-day location is San Antonio.
The town is the namesake of the former United States Naval Ship Waxahachie. Some sources state that the name means "cow" or "buffalo" in an unspecified Native American language. One possible Native American origin is the Alabama language, originally spoken in the area of Alabama around Waxahatchee Creek by the Alabama-Coushatta people, who had migrated by the 1850s to eastern Texas. In the Alabama language, waakasi hachi means "calf's tail."
In 1988, the area around Waxahachie was chosen as the site for the Superconducting Super Collider, which was to be the world's largest and most energetic particle accelerator, with a planned ring circumference of 54.1 miles (87.1 km). Seventeen shafts were sunk and 14.6 miles (23.5 km) of tunnel were bored before the project was cancelled by Congress in 1993.
In 2020, County Judge Todd Little came into the national spotlight when the county's only elected African-American, Constable Curtis Polk, Jr., protested having his office located in the basement of the courthouse next to a segregation-era sign that read "Negroes." The controversy was resolved amicably when Little worked with Polk to relocate him to another office.
Dusty Autrey is a long time resident of Waxahachie. He has several businesses along with his bail bond business and he serves on the local school board and is the current President of the Board. Since Dusty was a small boy, he has always had an interest in and love of fireworks on the Fourth of July. Something about the music, the explosions, the lights, really resonated with him. Fast forward a few decades and Dusty is now the architect and creative genius behind what many call, the best fireworks display around. Not an easy feat by any stretch of the imagination.
Dusty often remembers back to how it all started. It was just him and a couple friends having some fun. They would each spend a couple hundred dollars on fireworks each year and set them off for their enjoyment. But slowly yet surely, year after year, more and more people began paying attention to Dusty and his friends’ fireworks. More neighbors began opening their doors, more lawn chairs were put out on porches and in the streets and over time, Dusty’s audience grew.
And then it happened. Dusty discovered “wholesale” fireworks. From this point forward, things got bigger. Everything got bigger. The number of fireworks grew. The length of the fireworks show grew. And the crowds grew…and they grew, and they grew. If you ask Dusty how many people saw his last show, he probably would not be able to give you an exact number. Why, because no one really knows. People come in from all over the county to see and experience what some people call the best fireworks display in the county. Dusty threw out a guess after we pushed him a bit… “On the low side,” he said, “probably a couple thousand.” But honestly, he thinks it is probably more.
Today, the fireworks show has become a community-wide event. Dusty’s Home Owners Association works closely with him and the local government to make sure that the show goes on. And going on is what it has done. Dusty puts on a furious 20-minute show of color, sound, and fury, where every single firework is lit by hand with no electronics used at all. It is no feat for mere mortals, but Dusty and his team are not mere mortals when it comes to fireworks shows.
When asked about why the show has become so successful, Dusty does not seem to know or think about it. He is just having fun. In fact, that is how this whole thing started. He just wanted to have some fun with his buddies. And now, his fun has become everyone’s fun. So, thank you Dusty for all your passion and hard work. And if you happen to be driving by Ellis County this 4th of July, swing on by and you might get to join Dusty and his community as they enjoy some great music, food, and fun. And if you cannot make it, just look up in the night sky and catch a glimpse of Dusty’s tribute to our freedom and America. Happy 4th!
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