Arlington Archives - Arlington Historical Society

1616 W. Abram St.
(at the Historic Fielder House)
Arlington, TX 76013-1709
817-460-4001
Geraldine Mills, Director
[email protected]
Web — www.historicalarlington.org
Facebook — “Fielder House Museum”
Hours: Fielder House: Tues. through
Sat. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (or by appointment)
Knapp Heritage Park: Sat. & Sun. 1-4 p.m.
In this Issue
Arlington Archives - A Brief History of the
Town of Pantego
Newsletter — AUG/SEPT 2016
Stories from the
1
How well do you know Top O’ Hill Terrace?
Arlington Archives !
1
Come with us on a Sentimental Journey—
Downtown Arlington in the 1940s
2
Arlington on Tap returns September 14 with
an eclectic speaker assembly
3
(from the town's website [with permission], with some additions from the Arlington Daily News, June 13-20, 1983)
We Need You !!
5
The Town of Pantego was incorporated in its present form with
minor later adjustments, on
May 22, 1952,
after a previous incorporation in June
1949 and a dis
-incorporation
in
February
1952.
Butterfly Workshop continues !!
5
Photos from Arlington in the 1930s
6
Arlington Garden Club
6
A Brief
History of the Town of Pantego
The first incorporation
in
1949 came about to prevent threatened complete
annexation by Arlington. However, in January
1952, Pantego citizens defeated a bond issue for
a city water and sewer system, with an accompanying levy of taxes to retire the bonds. Almost
immediately, a petition for an election to disincorporate was successful, and on February 23,
the vote was 158 to 109 to dissolve the town. Almost immediately, the women of the town were
able to prove that many of those who voted in the
election to dis-incorporate were not eligible to
vote. So now the citizens of Pantego were ready
to battle one more time. In the meantime, Arlington had called a special meeting and thrown an
annexation ring around Pantego. But Pantego
leaders convinced Arlington to release at least
one square mile with 200 residents so that
Pantego could re-incorporate. An election to form
(continued on page 4)
How well do you know Top O’ Hill Terrace?
(this was the illegal casino on the Bankhead Highway west of
Arlington in the 1930s and 40s—answers on page 6)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
The hill-top property was purchased by this Dallas couple in the
early 1920s, to build and operate a tearoom and dining room
along the relatively new cross-country Bankhead Highway
(Washington D.C. to San Diego; in Arlington, what is now W.
Division Street—Texas Highway # 180 ).
In 1926, this man purchased the property and promptly began
holding illegal gambling sessions. Later, he moved the house and
had an extensive basement (complete with escape tunnels) built
for gambling. He then replaced the house, which was still used
for dining purposes.
In 1930, the new owner purchased a prized stud racehorse from
oilman and Arlington Downs owner W. T. Waggoner. What was
the name of this horse?
What was the name of the Fort Worth preacher who vowed to
close the place of illegal gambling, liquor (illegal from 1920-33),
and prostitution.
Name three of the famous people who visited the place.
In this year, a final raid led by Texas Ranger Captain M.T. “Lone
Wolf” Gonzaullas took place. The owner never recovered from
this raid.
In this year, Bible Baptist Seminary (founded by the preacher
mentioned in question # 4 above, and now called Arlington Baptist College) purchased the property.
News from Arlington Historical Society AUG/SEPT 2016
P. 2
Come with us on a Sentimental Journey
This summer we have filled the Fielder House Museum with special mementoes, photos, and
artifacts from Arlington in the 1940's. You need to come by and see these exhibits ! Following
are some hometown memories by Beverly Bohannon Reynolds, a supporting member of the Arlington
Historical Society, taking you on a delightful literary tour of a place called home.
Beverly wrote remembrances of old Arlington for her 1948 Arlington High School graduating
class and many of the stories are in her book Arlington in World War II, which is available at the
Fielder House. Following are three of her remembrances.
In 1936, the last high-sided cotton wagon, pulled by a
large team of mules, was seen in downtown Arlington.
The empty, red-painted wagon was being driven by
owner N.E. Stalcup, from the cotton gin, located at the corner of South Center and Border Streets, north on Center
Street to Terry's Drug Store. There the owner dropped
the traces and crossed the street to deposit his cotton
crop money in the bank. Today, First Baptist Church occupies the former gin site.
Mineral Well
1944
100 Block of South Center, looking
north toward the well house— 1938
In the 1940's, Arlington citizens counted time as "before the War"
and "after the War." Before the War , outsiders viewed Arlington
as a sleepy community of approximately 4,000 people, nicely situated between Dallas and Fort Worth. Arlington fanned out from
the iconic downtown Arlington Mineral Well in all directions:
north, east, south, and west. The well served as a traffic circle, a
place to buy mineral water, a platform for politicians, and a place
for Arlington High and N.T.C.A students to gather for pep rallies.
Barney Lowery celebrated his seventh year as " Keeper of the
Well."
Downtown businesses included Rose and Yates Real Estate, Aton's
Variety Store, Purvis Five and Dime, Bird's Variety, Highway
Drug, and Johnstons (later Workman's) Drug Store. Citizens could
dine at several
eateries including the Arlington Coffee Shop, the
White Spot Cafe, and Rockyfeller's Hamburger
Stand. Also in operation were Mickey McGuires
Jewelry Store , Western Auto, and Carters, that
sold a variety of goods and school supplies and
even coined the "Carters Half-Cent" which could
be redeemed only at their store. At Luttrell's Grocery Store asparagus was high -- 29 cents a pound,
but radishes sold for three bunches for a nickel. In
early 1940, Altman's Dry Goods Store advertised
men's suits for $10.50 to $23.75 and Easter
Dresses for $4.95 and $5.95. I did not know anyone who got a store-bought dress; most of our
mothers sewed.
News from Arlington Historical Society AUG/SEPT 2016
P. 3
Arlington on Tap Returns with Eclectic Speaker Assembly
by O. K. Carter
The popular, very casual – and free – happy hour lecture series
Arlington on Tap returns to downtown Arlington bars and bistros with
a 2016-17 lineup that opens September 13 with Mayor Jeff Williams
and his vision for Arlington.
Other speakers will be Star-Telegram “Eats Beat” dining guru
Bud Kennedy, UTA Athletic Director Jim Baker, humor writer Donna
Darovich, and one of the creators of Arlington on Tap, long-time newspaper scribe O.K. Carter.
Arlington Proud, the Arlington Historical Society, and Arlington Today Magazine sponsor Arlington on Tap.
“We wanted the speakers to be loose, intensely local and to take
unusual but informative slants on their areas of expertise that form part of the community fabric,” said Mark
Joeckel, CEO of Arlington Proud. “And we wanted to re-acquaint residents with a booming downtown that
we think of as everybody’s neighborhood. Nobody leaves an Arlington on
Tap session without learning some new and fascinating things.”
Carter, who created Arlington on Tap with Joeckel, said the reception for the events had been so enthusiastic that what had been something of
an experimental effort was extended for a second season.
“It’s a casual world and we wanted Arlington on Tap to reflect that –
no RSVPs, no ties and a bar stool philosophers setting,” Carter said. “But
we also feared that no one would show up.” What happened instead was
that every session was well attended to the point of maximum capacity –
sometimes more than capacity. “We had to borrow more than 50 folding
chairs for one event,” Carter noted.
Here’s the schedule for 2016-17. All Arlington on Taps begin at 6 p.m. and wrap at 8 p.m.
Sept. 14 – “A Mayor’s Vision for Arlington,” Mayor Jeff Williams (photo above), at Legal Draft, 500
E. Division Street.
Oct 11 – “Research at UTA from Nano to Miraculous,” Vice President of Research Duane Dimos, at J.R. Bentley’s, 406 W. Abram St.
Nov. 8 – “Football is Long Gone but Athletics Remains Big at UTA,” UTA
Athletic Director Jim Baker, at Maverick’s Bar and Grill, 601 E. Main St.
Jan. 10 – “Things I Wished I Hadn’t Learned about the Texas Legislature,”
former state Rep. Diane Patrick (photo to the right), at J. Gilligan’s, 400 E. Abram.
Feb. 13 – “Great Women of Arlington, a Valentine’s
Salute,” writer/historian O.K. Carter, at Hooligan’s, 310 E.
Abram.
March 14 – “My Spin on the Universe,” humorist and
cartoonist David Hopkins, at J.R. Bentley’s, 406 W. Abram
St.
April 11 – “I’ll Take a Second Order,” Star-Telegram
"Eats Beat" columnist Bud Kennedy reflects on dining out in
Tarrant County – at more than a thousand restaurants, at Legal Draft, 500 E. Division
St.
May 9 – “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Pressroom, a humorous
look at how the Arlington Citizen-Journal Disappeared in the Digital Age,” former C-J
City Editor/Columnist Donna Darovich (photo to the left), at Mavericks’ Bar and
Grill, 601 E. Main St.
News from Arlington Historical Society AUG/SEPT 2016
Stories from the
Arlington Archives !
(continued from page 1)
The town of Pantego (from page 1)
the town again was successful, and the town of
Pantego was here to stay.
Pantego had its origins in the area bounded on
the west by present day Handley, on the south by
Arkansas Lane,
on the east by
Jones Drive and
Fielder
Road,
formerly Henry
Road, and on the
north
by
the
Texas and Pacific
Railroad.
Two creeks run
from south to
Sculpture in Pantego City Park
north through this
original area, viz. Rush Creek and Village Creek,
formerly Caddo Creek, the latter believed to be
named for Indian villages in the area.
The earliest historical reference to the area was
the year 1542 when the ill-fated Spanish DeSoto
Expedition, now under Luis de Moscoso Alvarado,
is believed to have camped in what is now the Village Creek area. Members of this group were the
first white visitors to the area. The explorers got
along fairly well with the Caddo Indians in the
area. In the 1770s, hostile Indians in the Midwest
forced Witchita and Kiowa tribes into the Pantego
area. The Caddos, known for taking in other Indians, admitted the Witchitas and Kiowas. By 1830,
though, the largest group of inhabitants in the
present state of Texas were newly-arriving pioneers. This migration caused additional tribes,
forced out of their own territory , to band together with the Indians around Pantego.
After Texas won its independence from Mexico in
1836, and particularly after President Mirabeau B.
Lamar become President of the Republic of Texas
(1838-1841), friction began, or was accelerated,
between the Indians and the white settlers. "On
May 24, 1841, General Edward H. Tarrant with 70
men attacked several Indian villages situated
along a creek (now called Village Creek) and recovered many horses and much stolen plunder.
Twelve Indians were killed and many wounded.
Of the Texans, Captain John B. Denton was killed.
Captain
Henry
Stout
and
Griffin
were
wounded" (from the State monument on Spur
303, erected in 1936).
In 1841, settlement of what later became Tarrant
County began under the provisions of the Peters
Colony grant. New settlers began to arrive and
P. 4
settle in the area about 1843-44. On September
29, 1843, Sam Houston and Chiefs of the Indian
tribes signed the Treaty of Bird's Fort stating
that the Indians were to remain west of a line
that passed through the present City of Fort
Worth.
After the war with Mexico, 1846-1848, many veterans were granted land in Tarrant County, notably Colonel Middleton Tate Johnson from South
Carolina who founded Johnson's Station, southeast of the Pantego area. His holdings were vast
and may have included the Pantego area. He is
sometimes called the father of Tarrant County.
Another prominent early settler was Frederick
Forney Foscue, a native of North Carolina, who
was a state representative (1849-1851) and lawyer in Alabama. In 1853, Foscue settled in Smith
County, Texas. He was elected to the Texas Legislature serving as a state representative and
state senator intermittently from 1859-1866. He
supported the Ordinance of Secession, served in
the Confederacy and was referred to as Colonel
Foscue.
Serving records of the
Confederacy
list
F.
F.
Foscue as a
Captain who
served
as
Enrolling Officer in one
of the ConSculpture in Pantego City Park
federate Congressional Districts in East Texas. He could have
been promoted to a higher rank. Records of the
Trans-Mississippi
Region
headquartered
in
Shreveport, Louisiana, were burned in 1865 and
the last 1 1/2 years of records were destroyed.
There was a custom also that anyone from second lieutenant and up was called "Colonel."
There are some notable exceptions to this practice in which those who served as privates in the
War were called "Colonel" afterward. There was
also the possibility that Foscue was a member of
a veterans group which perpetuated military titles in the hierachy of the organization. In any
event, Foscue was known as Colonel Foscue.
On a visit back home to Alabama, Foscue married
his first cousin Mary Jane Foscue. She did not
like Texas and returned to Alabama. She obtained a divorce from Colonel Foscue and died
February 5, 1896, in Alabama. Colonel Foscue
married twice after he and Mary Jane divorced.
His surviving widow was Mary Ann Floyd Foscue.
It is uncertain when Colonel Foscue came to Tarrant County, but after the Civil War, he began
acquiring land in the Pantego area - perhaps
from Colonel Middleton Tate Johnson. (All records
(continued on page 5)
News from Arlington Historical Society AUG/SEPT 2016
P. 5
The town of Pantego (from page 4)
of Tarrant County were destroyed in a fire in March 1876.) Colonel Foscue accumulated some 3,360
acres of land. He also sold land and rented some on shares. Foscue was a dominant figure in the settlement of the Pantego area and should be regarded as the first Pantego land developer.
Tradition holds that Colonel Foscue had a loyal and trusted Indian friend named Pantego. When fellow
tribesmen were moving to Indian Territory (present day Oklahoma), Indians stopped at the Foscue
plantation and demanded that Pantego accompany them. Pantego refused and was murdered on the
spot, supposedly by hanging. He and his wife and family were supposedly buried on Briarwood Hill or
in the Westbury Square area. The last of the Caddo Indian and other tribes left the Pantego area in
1859.
Colonel Foscue continued his strong support of the community. On December 20, 1883, Frederick Forney Foscue donated one acre of his land in trust for school purposes. The $1.00 nominal consideration
was paid by the Trustees of the school community. The Pantego Common School was built in 1884,
named in honor of Colonel Foscue's loyal and trusted Indian friend. From this point the official designation of the surrounding community was Pantego.
Colonel Foscue died March 3, 1905, and for the next 50 years, the settling of his large estate affected
Pantego, with his three grandchildren inheriting 3,360 acres in the town. Electricity came to Pantego in
the 1930s. The end of World War II brought development to Pantego. Natural gas lines were run from
U.S. Highway 80 (now Texas 180) to Pantego Road (now Park Row), and two and four-party telephone
lines were installed. Developers were buying up Pantego land and building homes. Because Pantego
had not incorporated at that time, these new subdivisions would become part of Arlington.
The stagecoach that stopped at Johnson’s Station came through Pantego (from 1858), running diagonally through the area, from the southeast to the northwest corners. It crossed just west of the modern intersection of Pioneer Parkway and Bowen Rd. Several streets, locations, and sections of the
Pantego area were named for the old stagecoach route, including Stagecoach Drive and the Stagecoach
Addition. Ruts from the old stagecoaches could be seen in the land for decades after it went out of existence after the T&P railroad came through in 1876. At the turn of the century, and until the end of
1934, a new innovation in travel came to the area - the interurban electric rail car, running between
Fort Worth and Dallas. The interurban stop in Pantego was called the Bowen Stop, from which one
could ride to Arlington for seven cents.
"Small town charm...big city opportunities" is proudly proclaimed on the Town of Pantego's website
(townofpantego.com). In the 2010 Census, Pantego had a population of 2,394. The town is now totally surrounded by Arlington and (on the south) Dalworthington Gardens. It is within the Arlington
Independent School District.
We Need You !!
Why not become a supporting member of the Arlington Historical Society, whose mission is to preserve and
present Arlington’s rich history?
Just go to the Society’s website—www.historicalarlingon.org. Click on “about us” and then click on
“printable copy of an application for supporting membership,” fill it out, and mail it in to us. THANKS !!
Josephine Keeney, Jane Oosterhuis, and Charley
Amos are conducting a Monarch Butterfly workshop the 3rd Thursday of each month in June, July,
August, and September. The tour of the gardens
begins at 6:30 pm and the Presentation is inside the
Fielder House at 7:00 pm. Each month the presentations are different. The Butterfly Garden on the
Fielder House grounds is maintained by the Arlington Organic Garden Club and Master Naturalist.
News from Arlington Historical Society AUG/SEPT 2016
P. 6
s
Ran between Dallas & Fort Worth
Constable Albert Austin downtown
with confiscated illegal still—1932
On the Bankhead Highway
(W. Division) — 1930s
Cannon’s Nursery -Art
Deco Building—1938
Arlington Garden Club Schedules
Go to their website - http://arlingtontxgardenclu.wix.com/gardenclubarlington
Also see their Facebook page - “Garden Club-Arlington TX “
Thanks, Arlington Garden Club, for your contribution to the
upkeep and beautification of the grounds of the historic Fielder House!!
Answers to “How well do you know Top O’ Hill Terrace”
Note: This material is from Images of America—Top O’ Hill Terrace, by Vickie Bryant and Camille
Hess, published in 2012. It is for sale at the Fielder House. Vickie Bryant is founder and curator of
the Top O’ Hill Collection at Arlington Baptist College. She conducts very informative and entertaining group tours of the property.
1. The property was purchased in the early 1920s by T. P. and Beulah Marshall.
2. In 1926, Fred Browning purchased the property from the Marshalls.
3. Fred Browning was very proud of his stud racehorse, Royal Ford, purchased for $110,000. He built
a stable especially for Royal Ford, which is still on the grounds of the College.
4. The preacher was Dr. J. Frank Norris. Dr. Norris was Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Fort
Worth from 1909 until his death in 1952.
5. Following is a partial list of famous people who were at the Top O’ Hill Casino: Howard Hughes,
Sally Rand, Gene Autry, Buster Keaton, Bonnie and Clyde, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Lana
Turner, “Benny” Binion, Bugsy Siegel, W. C. Fields, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, Mae West, Heddy
Lamarr, “Ginger” Rogers, Ben Hogan, and Marlene Dietrich.
6. The final raid was in 1947. $25,000 of gambling equipment (a fortune in 1947) was seized.
7. In 1956, Bible Baptist Seminary of Fort Worth purchased the property. Previously the name was
Fundamental Baptist Bible Institute, chartered March 15, 1939. Today the name is Arlington Baptist College. At a tent meeting held in Arlington in the mid-1930s, Dr. Norris proclaimed, “Top O’
Hill Terrace is a blight on Tarrant County. One of these days we are going to own the place.” His
prediction came true in 1956, but Dr. Norris did not live to see it; he died in 1952.