Historical Commission Board
Sandra Neeley - Chair
Dale Dexheimer - Vice Chair
Sandra Neeley - Chair
Dale Dexheimer - Vice Chair
Amy Nichols - Secretary
Andy Asberry - Treasurer
Nita Redmon - Johnson County Historical Paque/Texas Historical Marker Chair
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Sandra Harris Neeley - Chair
Sandra's Harris family came to Johnson County in 1893 from Arkansas after her grandfather Larkin L. Harris, MD finished medical school. He and wife Nellie Goldman (daughter of a Georgia CSA soldier) lived near his office at Cuba (now called Sand Flat) where 9 of their 11 children were born, including Sandra's father Lowell. The family moved into Cleburne in approx. 1910 where Dr. Harris and his brother Robert Lee Harris, MD shared a medical office and their hospital (Cleburne Sanitarium).
Sandra Harris attended Cleburne schools, graduated from Cleburne High School in 1967 and attended Hill College. She then began a 40+ year career in the materials handling industry from which she retired in 2013. She designed screw conveyors, bucket elevators and related materials handling equipment for distributors in 10 states. Sandra remains one of only a very few women to do this type of work.
Married to retired railroader and Johnson Co. deputy S.W. "Dub" Osborne for over 32 years, the couple raised, trained and showed spotted donkeys and mules from a bloodline still famous today. They were officers in Southwestern Donkey & Mule Society and registry inspectors for the American Donkey & Mule Society. Dub Osborne died in 2005 and in 2012 Sandra married James Neeley, a retired cotton farmer from Lamesa, Texas.
A longtime member and 2-time president of the Johnson Co. Genealogical Society, other organizations include the United Daughters of the Confederacy (as a real great-granddaughter) and founding member of Neeley's Roughnecks Cannon Battery - serving as a cannoneer at living history events from Virginia to Arizona and as far north as Illinois. She also speaks at school days and to civic organizations about women who served as soldiers in the War Between the States. Sandra wrote a soon-to-be-published article about her Georgia CSA ancestors which will appear in a national magazine.
She coordinates and submits items from JCHC to The Portal to Texas History and frequently speaks to clubs and libraries about using the site.
The Neeley's enjoy travel and toured South Vietnam in 2018 visiting sites where James Neeley served with the 1st Cavalry and was wounded twice. They attend his Army reunions whenever possible.
Appointed to Johnson County Historical Commission in 1998, Sandra Osborne Neeley has served as the Commission's secretary, vice-chair and now is Chair as of February 2022. She is currently the longest tenured appointee to JCHC.
Nita Redmon - Johnson County Historical Plaque/Texas Historical Marker Chair
During the Johnson County Courthouse Centennial Celebration (1913-2013) I met the members of the Johnson County Historical Commission. I was serving as a volunteer to represent Grandview. Their dedication to historical preservation and identification of historical sites in Johnson County was greatly respected by me.
Background: Thirty plus years teaching physics and Environmental Science at Plano Senior High School in Plano, Texas. Ten years working in the Curricular Department of KERA.
Hobbies: Vegetable gardening, trail rides, ranch rodeos and various other rodeo events.
Retiring to Grandview and National Bank/purchasing the Farmers and Merchants Bank in downtown Grandview. Establishing Pop and Gran's Antiques and More in 1999. Selling antiques, wire art, collectibles, fresh egg and garden vegetables and MORE.
I was lucky to purchase a Quarter Horse Ranch/Farm where I have horses, cows, chickens and gardens. Coastal hay meadows in the future.
I am very proud and honored to have been appointed to the Johnson County Historical Commission.