Announcements/News/PSAs | Flashback : Dallas

July 31, 2025

Looking for the Historical Dallas Morning News Archive at the New Dallas Public Library Website?

By Paula Bosse

You’re not alone!

The Dallas Public Library has unveiled an updated and redesigned website this week, and it’s taking a while for the dust to settle. I work in the Dallas History archives (7th floor of the downtown DPL), and even I am having a hard time finding things! But it’s only been a couple of days — the kinks will be worked out, and it’ll get easier.

We’ve had several calls and emails about the inability to access/find the 1885-1984 Historical DMN Database, via NewsBank. Let me see if I can help. I’ll try to simplify this as much as possible. (See the last paragraph of this post to find out about the POST-1984 database.)

First, there is a new website URL: it is now DALLASLIBRARY.ORG — go here.

In order to access the DMN archives, you have to log into your account (you must have a DPL library card to do this — library cards are free to residents of the city of Dallas).

Click on “MY ACCOUNT” at the top right of the home page.
Enter your username or library card number; enter your password.
You’ve landed on a page with your account information. At the top of that page, click on “DATABASES.”
Scroll down. Click on “MAGAZINES, NEWSPAPERS & JOURNALS.”
Click on whichever of the options you’d like — the most popular are The Dallas Morning News and The Fort Worth Star-Telegram (also available are Austin and El Paso papers).
For our purposes, click on “NEWSBANK – HISTORICAL DMN AND STAR-TELEGRAM.”
Click on “AMERICA’S HISTORICAL NEWSPAPERS.”

And now you can begin your searches. I tend to use the search option that includes both papers, but you can narrow your preference by choosing DMN (1885-1984) or FWST (1897-1990). [There is an ongoing glitch which requires logging in a second time for access. Don’t know what’s going on, but it happens to me about 50% of the time.]

Or, more concisely:

MY ACCOUNT–>
DATABASES–>
MAGAZINES, NEWSPAPERS & JOURNALS–>
NEWSBANK – HISTORICAL DMN AND STAR-TELEGRAM –>
AMERICA’S HISTORICAL NEWSPAPERS –>
database of your choice

You can also access stripped-down Texas-only versions of Newspapers.com and NewspaperArchive.com (I’m not sure why they’re not all in the same place), by doing this after logging into your account:

DATABASES–> GENEALOGY–> choose database and proceed as above

(The Dallas Morning News is not available through Newspapers.com or NewspaperArchive.com, but the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and many other Texas newspapers are.)

And that’s it. If you are having trouble with any database on the website, keep checking back because there’s still a lot of tinkering going on.

But WHAT HAPPENED TO THE POST-1984 DALLAS MORNING NEWS DATABASE? As I understand it, this very useful part of NewsBank is currently unavailable during contract negotiations. The hope is that it will be back soon. Keep checking back!

***

Sources & Notes

Photo from a post featured on the Flashback Dallas Patreon page: “Bill Fife, News Carrier — 1947; photo is from the Portal to Texas History, here.

3 Comments

June 8, 2025

Good News! New Newspaper Access via the Dallas Public Library!

by Paula Bosse

Good news! The Dallas Public Library now offers to those with DPL library cards free access to the “Texas Edition” of Newspapers.com! You can browse/search a large variety of Texas newspapers that the site has in its database — I think it’s over 200. I’ve only just started playing with this “Texas Edition” to see how it differs from the full Newspapers.com site, and I’ve found that it does not offer all the newspapers that the full site does (for instance, it does not offer the very useful “Evening Edition” of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram), but there are a LOT of papers there. (For access to the full site, which contains US (beyond Texas) and select international newspapers — you must purchase your own subscription.) This is very exciting!

This joins the continuing DPL access to NewspaperArchive.com (provided by the Dallas Genealogical Society — thank you, DGS!). Newspapers.com and NewspaperArchive have some overlap in their content, but they also each have exclusives. Both are great resources.

So how do you get to them on the DPL website? You must have your library card number (or login info). Dallas Public Library cards are free, but they are available only to residents of the City of Dallas. (More specific info on that — including some exceptions — is at the DPL website, here.) (You are always welcome to visit the library in person to access these databases without needing a library card.)

Enter your login info.

Click on “DATABASES” (at top of page).

Click on “GENEALOGY.”

Click on (for instance) “NEWSPAPER ARCHIVE” or “NEWSPAPERS.COM (TEXAS EDITION)” or whatever else you want to explore.

And you’re there.

These databases complement the essential Dallas Morning News and Fort Worth Star-Telegram archives, which have been available for years on the library website, via NewsBank. They can be accessed on the same “Genealogy” tab, or, you can get to the DMN and FWST (and other publications not found on the “Genealogy” tab) by navigating this way:

These are all incredible resources for everyone interested in historical and genealogical research. Thank you, Dallas Public Library! (And don’t forget the huge scanned newspaper collection at the Portal to Texas History!)

***

Sources & Notes

The three images in this post are screenshots from the Dallas Public Library website.

1 Comment

March 3, 2025

Still Here…

by Paula Bosse

Hello. Remember me? I used to post here a lot.

I’ve been dealing with continuing serious medical issues of a family member, and it has all but consumed every part of my life for the past few months. I hope to eventually get back to some sort of regular schedule. There’s still so much to write about!

Thank you to everyone who continues to check in or click through old posts.

–Paula

10 Comments

September 18, 2024

Flashback Newsflash: Working at the Library

“Central Research Library”

by Paula Bosse

I have news: I am now working on the Dallas History and Archives floor at the downtown Dallas Public Library! I am surrounded by so many interesting things every day that it’s hard not to be distracted by all the photos, maps, books, manuscript collections, etc. Cool stuff everywhere. And great co-workers!

I might as well take this opportunity to share a few tidbits about the building (at 1515 Young Street, facing City Hall).

As you can see from the 3-D architectural model above (the model is on permanent display on the 7th floor), the library was originally referred to as “Central Research Library” when it opened in April 1982 (it was later renamed the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library, in honor of the former mayor). I’m not sure I knew that. Here’s another photo, showing the Wood Street side of the model:

When this library opened, it was the only major library (in the world, I think) that had its entire collection cataloged electronically. Bye-bye to card catalog files and their cute little drawers and hello to desktop computers, 50 of which were donated by Texas Instruments (Erik Jonsson was a founder of T.I.). These were for use by patrons, and, for many of them, these computers were their first experience with a personal computer.

Here is another interesting factoid from a Dallas Morning News article touting the new library’s innovations:

Special exhibits are housed in rooms protected by halon gas, an oxygen-consuming gas that will be released if a fire breaks out, removing all the oxygen and starving the fire. (DMN, April 18, 1982)

The architects were Fisher & Spillman, and they designed the building to be something of a stylistically sympathetic companion to I. M. Pei’s City Hall right across the street. This is the view of it I see every day (and, yes, I think of RoboCop every day):

I can’t believe this building — which I still think of being fairly “new” — is 42 years old. Time flies. Read about the journey of this library, from bond proposal to dedication, in a D Magazine article by my co-worker Brandon Murray, here (check out the slideshow).

I’m very excited about my new job, surrounded by Dallas and Texas history. Much of my childhood was spent in my local library (the Lakewood Branch), and the occasional trip to the downtown library on Commerce Street, which predated the one I now work in, was always something of a magical experience. And now I’m back, just on the other side of the desk.

If you’re ever in the neighborhood, stop by and say hi!

***

Sources & Notes

All photos by me, taken in the summer of 2024.

The architectural rendering by Fisher & Spillman is from the Dallas Public Library Archives.

A version of this post appeared on the Flashback Dallas Patreon page.

28 Comments

August 23, 2023

Hometown by Handlebar

hometown-by-handlebar_header

by Paula Bosse

I’m ashamed to say I’ve only just learned of the death of Mike Nichols, the man behind the fantastic Fort Worth-history blog “Hometown by Handlebar.” Mike, a former columnist for The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, died on March 5, 2023. He was 73.

His last blog post was on March 4, 2023 — a version of the piece also appeared in the pages of the FWST on the following day, the day he died after a long battle with cancer.

I am so sad to hear this. I never met Mike, but we exchanged pithy fan letters over the years. I discovered his blog in 2014 — the first year I started blogging about my hometown — and when I first saw it, I was shocked. His “Hometown by Handlebar” was a Fort Worth version of “Flashback Dallas” (or, I should probably say that Flashback Dallas was a Dallas version of Hometown by Handlebar). They were really, really similar. I either commented on a post of his I had stumbled across or sent him a personal message via Facebook, and that began several years of a sporadic, not-so-long-distance mutual admiration society. He frequently referred to us as “twins.”

When I was celebrating my first Flashback Dallas anniversary on Facebook in February 2015, Mike wrote, “Happy historying to you, Sis, from upstream.”

I responded with a link to his blog so that my friends would understand what he was referring to and wrote, “People who find Dallas dullsville and Fort Worth where it’s AT need to check out Mike’s blog, Hometown by Handlebar. He and I were apparently separated at birth — our blogs are surprisingly similar. I mean … it’s WEIRD!”

And then he responded, “Thanks, Paula. The first time I saw Flashback Dallas, at first glance its content and appearance — text mixed with vintage images, old newspaper clips — were so similar to my blog that I got a bit dizzy. It was as though I was looking at my own blog, but when I looked closer I saw that everywhere the text should say ‘Fort Worth,’ it said “Dallas.” I briefly wondered if I had died and gone to Oak Cliff.”

I couldn’t have asked for a more flattering (or amusing) comparison.

I’ve wondered about what might happen to my own blog when I’m no longer around to renew domain names and URLs, pay for web hosting, and do all the mundane administrative things one needs to do just to keep a website alive on the internet. I hope someone will keep Mike’s unbelievably vast and wide-ranging blog online as long as possible. There’s too much entertaining and informative Fort Worth history there for it to just disappear.

I always hoped we would meet one day. We never did. We would have had a lot to talk about. He seems like a lovely man. Rest in peace, Mike. Cowtown — and your readers — will miss you.

nichols-mike_obit

***

Sources & Notes

Top image is the header from Mike Nichols’ blog, Hometown by Handlebar.

The color photo is from his obituary, which you can read here.

Read a profile of Mike in Fort Worth Magazine — “A Fond Farewell to Mike Nichols: Local writer, historian, and bicycle archaeologist Mike Nichols leaves an indelible legacy behind” — here.

hometown-by-handlebar_header_sm

8 Comments

July 27, 2023

I Am Looking for a Job!

“Careers” by Parker Brothers, 1950s

by Paula Bosse

Hello everybody!

I am looking for a job, and since I have this blog as a platform which attracts like-minded people, I will just post this here, hoping it’s not too obnoxious.

It would be wonderful if I could find something in the world of Dallas history – especially in the area of writing and/or researching – but I know those jobs are somewhat limited.

I started this Flashback Dallas blog in Feb. 2014 – I’m 6 months away from my 10th anniversary! Unbelievably, I’ve written more than 1,300 posts. I know that many of you have been reading for several years (thank you!), and I hope you’ve been able to get a feel for my personality through my writing and can tell that I possess many traits a Boy Scout would be proud to have.

If you know of a job opportunity requiring someone who is intelligent, diligent, responsible, courteous, amusing, and detail-oriented – and who can write/edit/proofread/research – please think of me.

If you are looking to hire someone like me – or if you know of someone who is – please let me know! If you would like me to send you a resume, please contact me at FlashbackDallas214@gmail.com.

I had a LinkedIn page years ago, but I never reaped any benefits from it, so I closed it. I’ve started another one, but there’s a lot to navigate, and I’m not sure it’s worth it. But if you want to check out what I’ve managed to get up there, check me out here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paula-bosse-214-dallas/.

(I’ve had mixed results getting that direct link to work for people who don’t have LinkedIn accounts. You may land on a page that looks like you have to enter a username and password — try clicking the “X” in the top corner and see if that works to bypass entering anything. If the link above doesn’t work, try putting “paula bosse” and “linkedin” in Google, and you should be able to see my public page.)

Thank you for reading. Any leads would be welcome.

–Paula

***

Sources & Notes

Image of the “Careers” board game is from Etsy. I kind of want to play this game. One of the occupations is Uranium Prospecting in Peru. I’m down for that.

careers_parker-brothers_board-game_1950s_sm

5 Comments

July 15, 2023

Walking on the Wild Side at Commerce & Akard (Crowdsourcing)

by Paula Bosse

Occasionally on the Flashback Dallas Facebook page I ask questions, hoping to crowdsource answers — and people on that page know a lot of obscure stuff! I attempted to post the question(s) below on F*cebook, but I apparently crossed some sort of line. I think I used too many “forbidden” words. When I tried to post, the screen froze and ultimately ate my (lengthy) question. *Poof*! So I shall bypass F*cebook and just post it here.

I am looking for anyone who might have first-hand knowledge about the illicit side of downtown Dallas nightlife in the early 1960s. I am particularly interested in the seedier activities which might have been going on in the Baker Hotel. Namely, gambling and prostitution. Please contact me if you worked at the Baker (or the Adolphus) between, say, 1960 and 1964.

I know these activities were going on all around Dallas, but was it common to find illegal card games and prostitution going on inside the swanky hotels? If so, managers – and cops – must have known. Would they have turned a blind eye? Would they have been aware and on the take? Would they have just accepted it as part of the hotel business? I mean, Dallas was/is a huge convention city – this sort of thing must have been everywhere!

Would dancers who performed at the Colony Club have stayed at the Baker or Adolphus? They seem kind of ritzy for people in that line of work. Would management have cared if strippers stayed in their hotels? Would there have been a higher tolerance for more discreet “call girls” than your average run-of-the-mill prostitute? (I don’t mean to suggest that dancers were prostitutes, but, since I’m typing this, was it known that prostitution connected with the Colony Club or Carousel Club was going on?)

There is an amusing Dallas Morning News article titled “Officer Says Syndicated Crime Doubtful in Dallas” (DMN, Oct. 8, 1963) in which a vice cop proudly proclaims organized crime just doesn’t really exist in Big D. That seems highly unlikely, but I’m not even talking about big-time crime – more like high-stakes poker games with local high-rollers and pimping done by small-time operators. How common would it have been for this sort of thing to be going on in Dallas’ two most upscale hotels?

If you worked at the Baker Hotel in the early ’60s — or if you were employed by the Dallas Police Department at that time – or if you, yourself, were a participant in the seedier side of Dallas nightlife and spent significant time hanging around Commerce & Akard doing naughty things! – please comment below or send me an email at FlashbackDallas214@gmail.com.

This has nothing to do with the assassination, even though it’s the same time-period and there is undoubtedly a lot of overlap. But, seriously: NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU-KNOW-WHAT.

Thanks!

–Paula

***

Sources & Notes

Poster of “Naughty Dallas” (directed by cult Dallas director Larry Buchanan) found somewhere on the internet.

naughty-dallas_poster_sm

5 Comments

April 3, 2023

Asking For Your Support…

Lo, the “Money Tree” at First National Bank

by Paula Bosse

Hello! I’m writing a different sort of post today, one in which I am asking for your financial support, which should be an empowering career move but which is actually a little intimidating.

I created Flashback Dallas in February 2014 and have recently embarked on Year Ten (!). I’ve written over 1,300 posts, which amazes me. Along the way, I had hoped someone would “discover” me and offer me a Dallas-history-related job with a salary which I could live on, but that hasn’t panned out so far. I still hold out hope, but “Dallas-history-related jobs” are few and far between. There have been a few fantasies of a Dallas-history-loving person with loads of cash emerging from the ether, wallet in hand, wanting nothing more than to fund the writing of this blog and handing over wads of cash. But that hasn’t happened either. (If you are an employer or a wealthy investor with wads of cash, you know where to find me!)

I’ve plugged away on this blog for more than 9 years, and I’ve loved it all. Loved it. My first passion is writing, and I feel pretty lucky that I’ve been able to combine that with learning about the history of my hometown! It’s been both fun and gratifying. But I’ve made no money doing this. No advertising, no sponsorships, no “partnerships.” The amount of time I’ve put into this blog is pretty staggering — and, again, I’ve loved it, but I’d really like to be able to make some money for my efforts.

For years, people have suggested I start a Patreon page. And now I have. (Click the logo below to check out my Patreon page.)

Patreon is a “membership platform” which offers a way for people like me to have subscribers who pay a monthly contribution to support an ongoing project, sometimes offering special incentives to followers. The way I have set up my Patreon account is to offer the same content to whomever chooses to support me. Things may change in the future, but for now, if you pledge $5, $10, or $15 a month, you’ll have access to “exclusive” content which will not be crossposted here. These will usually be short posts — photos, ads, clippings, etc. — which might later become a longer post here on the blog, but a lot of it will be things that don’t fit anywhere else or are about subjects I simply don’t have time to write a full blog post about. As I become more comfortable with the site, I may try other types of “content.” I will most certainly be posting WAY more frequently there.

I am also on Patreon as a patron, supporting a person whose work I really enjoy, and I’ve found the platform very easy to use. There are no strings attached. You can change the amount of your pledge — up or down — very easily. And you can also CANCEL at any time. (You won’t hurt my feelings!) Your credit card will be charged monthly on the same day of the month that you initially subscribe. Patreon has been around for 10 years, so, as the kids say, it’s legit.

There will be occasional “public” posts on the site, and you are welcome to pop over there at any time to see what’s there. You can check the page out HERE. (I hope not to spam people incessantly with this, but — fair warning — this Patreon-mentioning will be popping up from time to time.)

I hope to use some of these proceeds to eventually upgrade this blog. It’s a long story, but I am not unaware of the failings of my present website. I need to do a major, scary migration. For several years I’ve been a caregiver dealing with health issues of elderly relatives, and it’s definitely held me back on things I’ve wanted to do with this site and with my writing.

So — if you’re still reading! — I am asking in a no-pressure way that you consider supporting me monetarily if you are a fan of my work and appreciate the time and effort it takes to create it. If you are unable to or just don’t feel like it, no problem. I am so happy to have all of you reading. It’s been so much fun doing this — and, in the process, getting to know many of you. As I said above, I have no plans to stop Flashback Dallas anytime soon — things here should continue as usual. Thank you so much for reading!

–Paula

patreon_flashback-dallas_photo_250

***

Sources & Notes

Image at the top is a 20-foot bas-relief mural by Alma Shon, the “Money Tree,” which was located on the second floor of the First National Bank building. It was made from 7,819 coins and carved walnut wood. Read the complete description here.

And… in case you missed it, that Patreon page is here.

money-tree_first-national-bank_postcard_front_sm

7 Comments

December 19, 2021

Dallas History, New Books — 2021

by Paula Bosse

There are a few more gift-buying days left until Christmas. Here a few ideas of recently published books about Dallas that might be of interest. These are not paid links — not even a review copy has been received (which I am not averse to, by the way…). I’d prefer if you headed over to your friendly neighborhood independent bookseller, but, yeah, I’m mostly linking to Am*z*n.

Above, Metro Music: Celebrating a Century of the Trinity River Groove by Gene Fowler and William Williams (TCU Press — oversized paperback). This is an exhaustive look at Dallas music, with over 500 photos (!). This is great. Again, over 500 photos! Be still my heart. More info here.

Deadly Dallas: A History of Unfortunate Incidents & Grisly Fatalities by Rusty Williams (History Press — paperback). Among the “unfortunate incidents” Rusty has written about, one is a story I’ve been meaning to write about for YEARS — I may never get to it, so I’m glad someone’s written about it. And doesn’t everyone need a book with the words “grisly fatalities” in the title? They do. More info is here.

A Girl Named Carrie: The Visionary Who Created Neiman Marcus and Set the Standard for Fashion by Jerrie Marcus Smith (UNT Press — hardcover). A biography of Carrie Marcus Neiman by her great niece. You can’t get much more “Dallas” than Neiman Marcus — the history of Neiman’s is the history of Dallas, and vice-versa. I’m not completely sure this is out yet, but go ahead and mosey over here to find more info. EDIT: Signed copies are available from the Barry Whistler Gallery in the Design District — their contact info is here.

The Family Roe: An American Story by Joshua Prager (W. W. Norton & Co. — hardcover). The definitive book on Roe v. Wade, the case that began in Dallas, with lots on Dallas and lots on Texas. Sadly, this subject is newsworthy again. More info here.

Preston Hollow: A Brief History by Jack Walker Drake (History Press — hardcover and paperback). If you’re interested in Preston Hollow — especially in its houses — you probably need this book, which is packed with photos. The author is, I think, 16. I don’t know what you were doing when you were 16, but you probably weren’t writing a book and doing book-signings! Congrats, Jack! More info here.

The Accommodation: The Politics of Race in an American City by Jim Schutze (La Reunion Publishing — hardcover). Long out of print, this important book on the sad and sordid history of racism in Big D has been reprinted by the fine folks at Deep Vellum Books in Deep Ellum. I will not link anywhere but to their own site, here.

Stomp and Shout: The All-Too-Real Story of Kenny and the Kasuals and the Garage Band Revolution of the Sixties by Kenny Daniels and Richard Parker (Oomph Media — Revised Edition — paperback). And, lastly, a book that isn’t new, but I became aware of it only fairly recently. Along with classic country music, my favorite type of music is 1960s garage rock, and this is a great look at the North Texas garage scene of the 1960s, written by someone who was there — the recently departed Kenny Daniel of the legendary Dallas band Kenny & The Kasuals. More info is here.

Hie thee to a bookstore!

***

9 Comments

August 28, 2019

Have You Emailed Me Recently?

nancy_anxiety-x-4

by Paula Bosse

Oh no! I just discovered that my Flashback Dallas emails have not been auto-forwarding to my main email account!! There are MONTHS of emails I never received. I will start going back through the eye-wateringly large number of what I’m sure are very nice emails which are sitting unopened in their dark little Gmail dungeon. If you have written to me in the past I-don’t-know-how-many-months (!!) and have wondered why I never deigned to respond, now you know why. I apologize for this oversight. And, yes, like Nancy, there is anxiety-perspiration shooting off my fevered brow with great force. Argh.

6 Comments

Category: Announcements/News/PSAs

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