In the late 1800s, Sam Scott's great-granddaddy traveled through north Texas building church houses using the tools he kept in the back of his wagon. Centuries later, in the fast-paced world of computers and robotics, the potential of those antique tools and the art of hands-on craftsmanship practiced by many a great-granddaddy have been lost. Sam Scott, a retired industrial arts teacher with a master's degree in industrial technology from Texas A&M at Commerce, watched it all happen. As a student, Scott took industrial arts class at Southwest Texas in San Marcos and learned how to cast bronze and brass. As a teacher in the late '60s and '70s, he taught students basic drafting skills, architectural drafting and advanced woodworking. And then budgets were cut and computers carne on-line. Most of the schools in the Lone Star State quit offering their pupils the manual training and craftsmanship classes that once constituted industrial arts programs. Instead, youngsters were given keyboards and taught computer-aided design. Rest assured, Scott doesn't blame technology. After all, his own company is an Internet business. Rather, Scott believes technology does not have to displace artistry. In an effort to give the craftsmen of Texas an outlet to practice their trade, Scott launched Just Texas Products Inc. four years ago. Every one of his products is produced by Texas craftsman and is made, whenever possible, from Texas raw materials. Take, for instance, the pen and pencil sets Scott sent to President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney upon their election. The pen and pencil are fashioned out of Texas mesquite. The election of a Texan as president has had a substantial effect on Just Texas Products, as Bush enthusiasts have taken to the World Wide Web in search of anything Texas. Just Texas is located at www.justtexas.com. "I'm getting requests from people on islands I didn't even know existed in the South Pacific," Scott said. The Just Texas prototype shop is located in Irving, where Scott has 150-year-old tool designs in several thousand styles including moldings used to build the earliest Texas courthouses. "We have the capability, with the people, to build a court- house from the ground up," he said. Scott designs about 80 percent of the products. If he considers them "doable," he ships the design prototypes and materials to fellow Texas artisans.Products include: Wagon Wheels Close to 100 wagon wheels have been purchased for placement in historical theme parks. Mesquite furniture and floors for commercial buildings Pottery Dream catchers by native Texas Indians Jewelry based on the Texas star Handmade wooden rocking horses made of mesquite and oak Plaques including "Remember the Alamo" Photographs including Texas Hill Country Bluebonnets and Indian Paintbrush Flowers Mesquite wood barometers and thermometers Oak wall candelabras Mesquite boot jacks Many of Scott's designs can be used in Texas courthouses, the most popular being courthouse benches made of cast aluminum with a baked-on finish of any color. Other products that could complement a courthouse include framed historical maps,
