Albany ISD officials took their message directly to the community last week, with 58 residents attending the first town hall meeting on the proposed $26 million school bond held March 25 at the high school auditorium.

The meeting provided the clearest picture yet of both the condition of the district’s current facilities and the growing urgency behind the proposal to construct a new consolidated Pre-K through 12 campus.

Superintendent Daryl Stuard opened the meeting by pointing to a gap between the community’s support for students and the environment they are learning in.

Oncor will host a public meeting in Albany today regarding the proposed Dinosaur–Longshore 765-kilovolt transmission line, following concerns raised by Shackelford County landowners, local officials and recent reporting on the project.

The Technical Conference and Informational Meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 2 from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. at Albany Junior/Senior High School.

When a devastating accident happened along Albany’s Main Street in March of 2000, it made headlines and left a lasting impression on the community.

At the time, The Albany News covered the details, the chaos, the injuries, and the immediate aftermath. But like many small-town stories, once the sirens faded and the headlines moved on, there was never a full follow-up.

What happened after?

Twenty-six years later, that question finally has an answer.

Living in the DFW area for more than 10 years, I was an avid listener of The Ticket. If you have lived there and you are any kind of sports fan at all, you probably were too. It was one of those things that became part of the daily routine. You got in the car, headed to work, and The Ticket was already on. My favorite show was always The Musers with Craig Miller, George Dunham and Gordon Keith.

Last week marked 100 years since a moment that forever changed the course of Shackelford County history.

On Feb. 18, 1926, an oil well drilled on the Cook Ranch five miles northwest  of Albany erupted with a gusher that would soon become known around the world. What followed was not only an economic transformation that reshaped Albany and the surrounding region, but a legacy that would extend far beyond oil production — one that continues to impact lives today.

What began as a routine Shackelford County Commissioners Court meeting Monday morning quickly shifted into an extended and increasingly uneasy discussion about the Frontier data center projects and their growing effects on residents, infrastructure, and public safety.

Local ranchers and businesses came together this week to support livestock producers in Oklahoma whose grazing land has been destroyed by widespread wildfires across the region.

The fires, which began earlier this month in the Oklahoma Panhandle, have burned more than 300,000 acres and prompted evacuations, emergency declarations, and damage to ranchland across several counties. The largest blaze, known as the Ranger Road Fire, alone scorched more than 280,000 acres across Beaver and Harper counties.

In honor of Larry, we are republishing one of his beloved columns from January 3, 2003, a story that reflects the humor and storytelling that made his writing so special to our community.

This is the story of a Noble(s) adventure. It is a true story. No names have been changed to protect the innocent…or the guilty.

More than 100 Shackelford County youth showcased their livestock projects last week as the 2026 Shackelford County Livestock Show concluded with a solid premium sale and add-on contributions still coming in.

A total of 116 students from the Albany and Moran FFA chapters and Shackelford County 4-H entered 219 animal projects. Each exhibitor was eligible to sell one project in Saturday’s premium sale. The annual show is presented by the Shackelford County Youth and Livestock Association (SCYLA).

Albany ISD will decide next month whether to call a $26 million school bond election, following months of work by the district’s Long Range Facility Planning Committee, which members say has revealed that the district’s facilities are no longer safe, functional, or financially sustainable.

The committee presented its findings to the school board during the Jan. 12 meeting, and trustees are expected to vote at the February meeting on whether to place the bond on the May ballot.