Swen Beryman managed the store and the local folks he dealt with unanimously agreed that he was a fair man. He was also ready and willing to protect his property at any cost. He demonstrated that resolve in 1880 when confronting a desperado.
Brack Hendericks made a stop at Swen’s to pick up the tobacco he would need while hiding out in the hills west of the city. On the run and in an aggravated mood, Hendricks barged into the little store as Swen was scrubbing the counters and he took the liberty of helping himself to the smoke and chew in the glass display case. Brack didn’t believe the immigrant with no legs was any match for him. As the outlaw hastily grabbed tobacco and stuffed as much as he could into his pockets, the outraged Swen demanded that he stop.
Ignoring Swen, Hendricks looked around the mercantile to see if there was anything else he might need while on the lam. Before Brack knew what was happening. A quick-thinking Swen threw a can of scouring powder into the thief’s eyes. Swen then proceeded to hop onto the counter, reach over and pull Brack’s gun from its holster. After taking out the bullets, he turned the gun around and hit Hendricks in the forehead. Stunned and blinded from the powder, Brack began choking on the chew he had stuffed in his mouth, and fell unconscious onto the floor just as a Texas Ranger and Sheriff’s Deputy came through the door. They had seen the brand on the horse tied to the hitching post in front of the store and recognized it as the one stolen by the man they were tracking. They thanked Swen for slowing the criminal down and offered him the reward money for his capture. Swen refused the reward money. He did, though, take his tobacco back.
Swen’s general store still sees a brisk business today as the Austin Pizza Garden. The old stone structure stands out amid the more modern shopping plazas, and accompanying the steady flow of customers, there are the consistent reports of odd occurrences.
There was the time when the owner was the last to leave Austin Pizza Garden for the night. He had prepared a pizza to take home to his family beforehand. Just before locking up the restaurant, he took the pizza out of the oven and sliced it. Stepping away for a few moments to retrieve a box, he was astonished to find upon returning that the pizza was once again whole and uncut, crust, toppings and all – even though the roller with remnants of steaming toppings was still in his hand.
Ghosts
Occupants of the party room upstairs often hear the sound of footsteps walking past even when everyone is seated. Sometimes when the restaurant is quiet, near or past closing time, the footfalls can be heard from downstairs, although the staff knows the party room to be empty.
An old woman was often seen on the second story, particularly near the stairwell. She would scowl at staff members as though they were intruding, and then disappear. Interestingly, an elderly woman who had lived in the building before it became Austin Pizza Garden at 6266 W. Highway 290 in Oak Hill, once stopped by and asked to look around her old residence. When she led staffers upstairs to the front room on the second floor, she reported, “Oh, and here is where I used to see that mean old ghost woman!”
It is believed that one of the spirits lingering in the Old Stone Storehouse is that of the indomitable Swen Beryman.
Written by Jeanine Plumer
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