Neighborhoods | Flashback : Dallas

April 20, 2015

Aerial View of the Centennial Fairgrounds — 1936

The Texas Centennial: a “World’s Fair” for Dallas

by Paula Bosse

This fantastic photo (by one of Dallas’ top aerial photographers, Lloyd M. Long) shows the impressive expanse of Fair Park’s new Art Deco splendor — most of the buildings seen here were built especially for the 1936 Texas Centennial Exposition, and most of those are, thankfully, still standing.

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Sources & Notes

Lloyd M. Long photo, found on Red Oak Kid’s Flickr stream, here.

To see this photo REALLY big, click here.

5 Comments

April 13, 2015

The Elegant Municipal Building — 1914

A very un-Dallas-looking building … and one of its finest

by Paula Bosse

Appearing in the May 7, 1914 issue of Municipal Journal was a short article on Dallas’ then-under-construction Municipal Building and a drawing of what it would look like when completed.

Dallas Will Have Modern Municipal Building
Dallas, Tex. – The new municipal building of the city of Dallas is nearing completion and will be ready for occupancy in a few months. It will house all of the city departments and in addition will have a modern emergency hospital in the basement and public rest rooms for both men and women. The building is said to be a radical departure in architectural design from the usual type of public buildings in the South; it is constructed along simple but dignified lines. The structure will be of steel construction covered with blue Bedford stone, the five stories, basement and sub-basement will be a home worthy of the city of the hour, as Dallas people like to call their town. Ventilating and heating systems are being installed together with vacuum cleaners. The building, without furnishings, will cost about $550,000. C. D. Hill and Company are the architects. The structure was started by the Fred A. Jones Building Company, which failed just as the steel was up, and it is being finished within the estimates by the city under the supervision of the architects.

This new City Hall, located at Main, Harwood, and Commerce, was designed by Dallas architect C. D. Hill. Construction began in late 1913 — by January of 1914, its steel frame was in place.

Dallas Morning News, Jan. 1, 1914

The cornerstone was laid in a Masonic ceremony on Valentine’s Day, 1914.

municipal- bldg_FWST_021514-cornerstone Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Feb. 15, 1914

As the construction was winding down, workmen complained of an “intolerable” swarm of mosquitoes flying around the site. Apparently an underground spring was flooding the sub-basement and providing palatial digs for endless cycles of constantly-hatching mosquitoes. (I wonder if the basement still floods on occasion?)

municipal-bldg_dmn_091014-mosquitoes DMN, Sept. 10, 1914

The building was officially opened on October 17, 1914. Here’s a grainy photo that absolutely does not do that beautiful building justice.

DMN, Oct. 17, 1914

When the doors were finally opened to the public, it was expected that a few thousand people would show up to tour their new municipal building — in actuality, the much-larger-than-anticipated crowd numbered somewhere between 12,000 and 15,000 curious Dallasites.

DMN, Oct. 18, 1914 (click for larger image)

The beautiful exterior was faced with granite and stone, and the interior boasted marble, mosaic tilework, and wood paneling. All of the furniture used in the building was made in Dallas. In addition to the mayor’s office, fire, police, and other municipal departments, the building also housed an emergency hospital, a sub-basement shooting range (!), and, on the 3rd floor, an 1,100-seat auditorium, with a 4th-floor gallery. (The auditorium was designed so that if, in the future, it was determined that it was not needed, it could easily be converted to office space by adding a few columns and beams — a renovation which obviously happened at some point.) Interestingly, the northern half of the top floor was left unfinished as the space was not needed at the time.

ALSO included in the new building’s amenities were much-needed public restrooms (or as they were euphemistically referred to back then, “comfort stations”). A men’s restroom and a women’s restroom (“positively divided with heavy walls”) were located under the Main Street sidewalk, accessible down stairs on either side of the building’s entrance. Up until this point, there was only ONE public “comfort station” in the city (for women and children) — at Fair Park. So for most downtown visitors, this might well have been the most exciting aspect of Dallas’ newest landmark.

The building referred to as both “City Hall” and “the Municipal Building” was considered to be one of the city’s finest and most elegantly imposing. But there are always a few people who just don’t like nice things, and there was a surprising amount of vandalism to the building in its first few weeks.

municipal-bldg_dmn_111014-vandalism DMN, Nov. 10, 1914

This is one of the truly great buildings in Dallas, and it just recently celebrated its 100th birthday. It is a Dallas Landmark and a Texas Recorded Historic Landmark. No longer a city property, it is now part of the University of North Texas Dallas College of Law campus (along with the old Titche’s building). UNT is currently working to restore and renovate this beautiful historic building. Thank you, UNT!

A few images of the building over the years. Here it is in its pristine early days:

Then there was a weird middle-age-crazy period when someone thought that the addition of awnings would be a good idea (that person was incorrect).

And, today, it’s back to looking distinguished and lovely. Thanks to the wonderful new open park in front of it, it has been given the stately space it deserves — what may be Dallas’ most beautiful building is finally able to be fully admired from a respectful distance.

Joe Mabel, Wikipedia

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Sources & Notes

Top photo from the book Historic Photos of Dallas by Michael V. Hazel (Nashville: Turner Publishing Co., 2006).

Quote from Municipal Journal, Vol. XXXVI, No. 19 — May 7, 1914.

Photo of the old Municipal Building today by Joe Mabel, from Wikipedia. (And, yes, the parking garage of the Dallas Municipal Building is where Ruby shot Oswald.)

Newspaper photos and clippings as noted.

For a detailed description of the architectural details, design elements, and description of office and department locations within the building, see the article “Municipal Building Handsome Structure” (DMN, Oct. 4, 1914), here.

I’d love to know more about the little “aluminum trays, bearing a picture of the building” mentioned as being given away on opening day in an article above. There were FIVE THOUSAND of them given away. Surely there are some still around. Has anyone seen one of the these?

municipal-bldg_dmn_101814_aluminum-trays DMN, Oct. 18, 1914

1914 Texas Almanac ad for C. D. Hill & Co.

17 Comments

April 9, 2015

Iola Bridge

“Looks like California…” — City Park, ca. 1908

by Paula Bosse

Old postcards of (Old) City Park always seem kind of mysterious to me. I’m fascinated by photos of what was, for many years, Dallas’ only park. It was very big and beautifully landscaped — and it was one of the things about the city that those of earlier generations were most proud of. The postcard views above and below are from the early days of the twentieth century, and, sadly, those views don’t exist anymore — it’s hard to believe they EVER existed here. Even though there’s a hint of what you might see at Reverchon Park, there’s little else about these images that looks like the Dallas of today. What a shame!

But what’s the story behind the attractive little “Iola” bridge? Built in 1905, it was, apparently, Dallas’ first (or possibly second) concrete bridge. The Iola bridge was far sturdier than the wooden bridges around Dallas, and a concrete bridge also required very little upkeep. In fact, this little bridge “of ornamental design” is actually kind of important — it was often cited by city planners and commissioners when discussing the construction of future bridges around the city.

Dallas Morning News, Aug. 10, 1905

It seems wooden bridges were being washed away almost as often as Dallas courthouses were burning down. In a letter that appeared in The News on Feb. 21, 1911, it was noted that, while wooden bridges were “under constant repair,” the concrete Iola bridge “has not required one dollar of outlay […] during its six years of existence.” So … cheaper and sturdier. Bye-bye, wooden bridges!

But “Iola”… where did that name come from? I thought it might have been the name of a wife or mother of a mayor or planner, but I suspect it was merely the name of the company that donated the cement for the bridge’s construction, the Iola Portland Cement Company. The company’s canny “civic donation” ultimately paid off BIG for them in the end. Not only did they supply the cement to build that first very pretty little bridge in a very pretty park, they also, ultimately, got whopping new orders from the city for all those new concrete bridges that began to be built — including, less than ten years later (when the Iola company’s West Dallas plant had been sold to the TEXAS Portland Cement Co.), the Trinity River-spanning Oak Cliff/Houston Street viaduct, which, when it opened in 1912, was the longest concrete bridge in the WORLD! And it all began with that unassuming bridge in scenic City Park, just south of the central business district.

DMN, 1921

Below, a couple of views showing the charming and rather more rustic wooden bridges in the park.

Ad from the 1905 Dallas directory

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Sources & Notes

Top postcard found somewhere on the internet. All other postcards from The Watermelon Kid — here.

Black and white photo by Victor H. Schoffelmayer appeared in The Dallas Morning News on Oct. 9, 1921; it was one of several photographs of the Iola bridge, taken by members of the Dallas Camera Club.

A Dallas Morning News article from July 14, 1905 detailing the new improvements to City Park (including the concrete bridge) can be read here. (I don’t think the really wonderful-sounding “cascade” was ever built — and that’s a pity, because it sounds like it would have been beautiful!)

4 Comments

March 31, 2015

Teenagers, Hot-Rods — 1960s

A cool cat and his kittens… (via DMAHL)

by Paula Bosse

Teenagers and hot-rods, man. These kids are cool.

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Sources & Notes

Photo from the book Dallas’s Little Mexico by Sol Villasana (Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2011); photo is credited to Dallas Mexican American Historical League (DMAHL). Caption reads: “These Little Mexico teenagers show off their hot-rod in this 1960s picture. Shown are, from left to right, ? Santos, Rudy Trevino, and Maria Rodriguez.”

2 Comments

March 30, 2015

Highland Park’s Snazzy New Fire Engine — 1914

Chief McGoldrick behind the wheel of HP’s new fire engine…

by Paula Bosse

Above, Ed McGoldrick — who was both police chief and fire chief for Highland Park — sits behind the wheel of HP’s new fire engine. It even had a name — “W. O. O’Connor,” after the mayor. Seated next to Chief McGoldrick is most likely Capt. Scott Hughes of the Oak Lawn fire station. The engine was tested, deemed satisfactory, and accepted into service on June 4, 1914 on the day the new Highland Park City Hall was officially opened. (Click article below to see larger image.)

Dallas Morning News, June 5, 1914

J. E. McGoldrick was apparently something of a peace officer renaissance man. He was an officer on the Dallas Police force from about 1902 to 1912, and then became head police and fire honcho in Highland Park from 1912 to 1917 (where he was also the Street Superintendent). At the same time he was serving as HP Chief Peace Officer, he was also appointed to head the Game Commission of Dallas County. In 1917, he resigned his position in HP to accept a job at SMU where he “would have charge of buildings and grounds” (DMN, June 6, 1917). In 1924, he was appointed Chief Peace Officer of University Park.

That SMU move seems like a bit of a weird detour for a career policeman, but even weirder is the following sentence, which appeared in the blurb about his University Park appointment:

[McGoldrick served as the chief peace officer of Highland Park] until 1917 and then undertook confidential duties for the United States Government. During the past two years he has been connected with Sanger Bros. (DMN, Oct. 5, 1924)

James E. McGoldrick died in October 1927 when he suffered a heart attack while eating his lunch in a drugstore at Main and Lamar. He was 54. His obituary mentioned that he had been “connected with a meat market” in his post-public-service life.

But back to the photo. It’s great. There’s nothing quite like the smell of a new fire engine. And Chief McGoldrick looks very proud.

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Sources & Notes

Photo from a postcard issued as part of the Park Cities Bank “Heritage Series” in the 1970s; the credit line on the postcard reads “Donated by the Town of Highland Park.” Thanks to the Lone Star Library Annex Facebook group for use of the image.

Newspaper clipping as noted.

8 Comments

March 27, 2015

City Park Construction Work — 1941

“City Park, 1941” / Collection of David Roberts

by Paula Bosse

This great family photo was sent in by reader David Roberts. It shows his grandfather, David Crockett (D.C.) McKay working on a construction crew. The reverse of the photo reads “City Park, 1941.” David has identified his grandfather as the man standing on the makeshift wooden bridge, just to the right of the cement mixer. I love this photograph!

City Park (now “Old” City Park), was Dallas’ first park, acquired in 1876. It became a popular (and beautiful) recreation area, and the adjacent Browder Springs was home to the city’s first waterworks. In 1936, City Park was briefly re-named “Sullivan Park” in honor of Dan F. Sullivan, the city’s first highly accomplished Water Commissioner. But it was officially UN-re-named (or RE-re-named) and went back to being “City Park” again in May 1941, because after 60 years of being known as City Park, the “Sullivan” thing just never caught on, and the two names were causing confusion. So the name was changed back.

So what construction was going on around City Park at the time this photo was taken? In 1941, there were major improvements going on throughout the city’s park system, and City Park was one of the beneficiaries of an $800,000 city-wide improvements package. ALSO happening in 1941 was some Mill Creek storm sewer work — Mill Creek ran through the park and there had been ongoing work to its sewers since the ’30s. In January 1941, The Dallas Morning News reported that a large construction contract was pending on a Mill Creek storm sewer “from Browder to Beaumont” — this may have been a bit beyond the actual park, though. I mention this only because the photo above appears to show construction of a large sewer in the City Park area.

On April 16, 1941 a short article ran in The Dallas Morning News about a fatal accident at a City Park construction site, perhaps the same site that DC McKay was working on — a construction worker named Henry Pilgrim was crushed when a bridge collapsed on him: “The accident was blamed on the weakened condition of the bridge due to rains and the weight of the workmen on it.”

Construction work is hard, sweaty, and dangerous. Mr. Roberts says his grandfather worked for the J. W. Slaughter Construction company, often on concrete culvert and drain projects.

“Some of my earliest memories of visiting his house in the evenings (early ’60s) was that you had to be quiet during the weather, because that forecast was how he knew if he had to work the next day.”

Mr. McKay, who was born in 1903, would have been in his 60s then! But hard construction work must have agreed with him, because DC McKay lived until the ripe age of 84.

Thank you so much for sharing your photo, David! It’s great to see Dallas infrastructure in the making!

***

Sources & Notes

Photograph from the personal collection of David Roberts, used with permission.

Sullivan Park postcard found on eBay.

A photo of D. C. McKay (1903-1987) and his wife, Opal McKay, is here.

Two pertinent articles from the Handbook of Texas: the history of Old City Park is here; the history of Browder Springs is here.

4 Comments

March 26, 2015

Lively Street Life Outside the Dallas Morning News Building — ca. 1900

Commerce & Lamar (click for larger image) (DeGolyer Library, SMU)

by Paula Bosse

A photo showing the bustling streets surrounding the newly-expanded Dallas Morning News building, back when it was located at Commerce and Lamar streets. Below, a closer look at turn-of-the-century pedestrian traffic. Click pictures for larger images.

I love the man on the far left … contemplating posting a few illicit bills?

Those curbs!

Journos.

A woman either stooped by age or bending over to pick something up, a woman with a carpet bag, and a high-off-the-ground buggy which illustrates one reason those curbs needed to be so high.

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Photo titled “The Dallas Morning News building, Commerce & Lamar” from the Belo Records 1842-2007 collection, DeGolyer Library, Central University Libraries, Southern Methodist University; it can be viewed here.

Other views of the building from 1900 can be seen in these posts:

“Loitering In Front of The Dallas Morning News Building — ca. 1900, here
“The Dallas Morning News Building, Inside and Out — ca. 1900,” here

More posts where I’ve zoomed in on historic Dallas photos can be found here.

Click pictures for larger images.

4 Comments

March 25, 2015

2222 Ross Avenue: From Packard Dealership to “War School” to Landmark Skyscraper

Packard automobile showplace, 1940

by Paula Bosse

In late summer of 1939, a new 60,000-square-foot. $250,000 home for Packard-Dallas, Inc. featuring a “luxurious showroom” was announced. The first Packard automobile dealership had opened in 1933 at Pacific and Olive, and in the intervening six years, their growth had been tremendous, necessitating several moves and expansions.

The attractive art deco building, faced with Cordova limestone and decorated with glass bricks, cast aluminum letters, and neon, was designed by J. A. Pitzinger and Roy E. Lane Associates, and was constructed at 2222 Ross Avenue in a mere three months. The large building was right across the street from the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, in the block bounded by Ross, Crockett, San Jacinto, and N. Pearl. The president of Packard-Dallas was J. A. Eisele and the secretary-treasurer was his son, Horace. The grand opening on Dec. 16, 1939 was a big enough deal that the home-office Detroit honchos flew in, and there was even a 15-minute radio program devoted to it on KRLD.

Under the headline “Growing With Dallas,” the opening-day ad featured a photograph of Joe and Horace Eisele and “A Message of Appreciation and an Invitation”:

Ad, Dec. 16, 1939 (click for larger image)

“It’s Texanic!”

And another ad featured this nifty little line drawing of the cool building:

Dec. 16, 1939 (ad detail)

One of the stories about the opening of Dallas’ new auto showroom palace boasted that this big, beautiful, brash building was here to stay — Packard-Dallas had a 15-year lease on the place. …Which is why it was surprising to read that the building was sold less than two years later.

The U.S. was on the inevitable brink of involvement in the European war, and the National Defense School had begun operation in Dallas in July 1940. After a year of classes in which young men were taught “to do the technical and mechanical work necessary to warfare” (DMN, March 20, 1941), classrooms at the Technical high school and at Fair Park were bursting at the seams, and a larger facility was necessary. The Dallas Board of Education (which oversaw the program, often called “the War School”), was given the go-ahead to purchase the building (and, presumably, the property) for $125,000 in August 1941.

I’m not sure why J. A. Eisele sold the building (his name was listed as owner, rather than the Packard Company) — it wasn’t even two years old, and he got only half of what it cost to build. Patriotism? His son Horace had been drafted in April, so … maybe. Eisele seems to have left the auto sales business, which he had been in for decades, and had moved out of Texas by 1945.

After the U.S. officially entered the war and it became obvious that “defense schools” around the country would have to admit women in order to maintain manufacturing quotas, women began to work beside men at the Ross Avenue school in January 1942.

Eighty women Saturday pulled their fingers against the triggers of aircraft rivet guns as the Dallas National Defense School, 2222 Ross Avenue, started the state’s first major training course designed to place women side by side with men in Texas war materials plants. (DMN, Jan. 4, 1942)

1942

This “War School” was a training school for war-time jobs at places like North American Aviation.

defense-school_dmn_090643 Sept. 1943

Thousands of men and women trained at the Ross Avenue facility until the war ended in 1945. The school continued, but no longer as a Defense School — it became Dallas Vocational School, and its first students were veterans.

In 1976, the school was designated as one of the Dallas Independent School District’s magnet schools — it became the Transportation Institute, where “students interested in owning their own dealership, becoming a technician-mechanic or an auto body specialist will receive on the spot training in a laboratory consisting of a new car showroom, a modernly equipped repair center and a complete auto rebuilding facility” (DMN, Aug. 22, 1976). Back to its roots! And it only took 37 years.

The school continued for a while but, inevitably, the property became more and more attractive to developers. In 1981, as the developers were circling, a City Landmark Designation Eligibility List was issued. It contained buildings which had “particular architectural, historical, cultural and/or other significance to the City of Dallas,” and, if approved, were eligible to receive historic landmark designation. I’m guessing 2222 Ross Avenue didn’t make the cut, because Trammell Crow bought the building in 1983 and tore it down the next year.

via Lost Dallas by Mark Doty

But … Crow sold the facade to real estate developer and investor Lou Reese, who said that he would reassemble the limestone facade and incorporate it into a restaurant he planned to build in Deep Ellum. That was an interesting plan. (Incidentally, in the same city council meeting in which the demolition/disassembling of the building’s facade was discussed, the council also considered “a request for more than $7 million in federal funds for a project to renovate the Adams Hat Co building into apartments” (DMN, Aug. 8, 1984). …Lou Reese owned the Adams Hat building. What a coincidence!)

The city council’s decision?

The council authorized developer Trammell Crow to disassemble the art deco facade of the former Transportation Institute Magnet High School on the condition that the facade be reconstructed in Deep Ellum…. The company [has] demolished all but the building’s limestone facade, which was determined to be eligible for designation as an historic landmark. (DMN, Aug. 9, 1984)

So? Where’s that facade? There was no mention of it for three years, until an article in the Morning News about another developer who had big plans for a major Deep Ellum complex called “Near Ellum,” which would be bounded by Commerce, Crowdus, Taylor, and Henry streets.

Highlighting Near Ellum will be a 40-foot art deco facade, formerly on the front of the Transportation Institute on Ross Avenue, in the main parking plaza. The plaza will also include an outdoor stage for concerts and special events. (“Developer Plans Deep Ellum Project,” DMN, June 25, 1987)

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand … that never happened. I wonder if that 76-year-old disassembled limestone facade is still crated up somewhere around town. Somehow I doubt it.

So, 2222 Ross Avenue. What’s there now? None other than the 55-story skyscraper, Chase Tower, also known as “The Keyhole Building.”

You could get a lotta Packards in there.

***

Sources & Notes

Top photo from the Detroit Public Library’s Packard Collection in the National Automotive History Collection, viewable here; I’ve straightened and cropped it. The reverse has this notation: “Packard Motor Car Co., branches/dealerships/agencies, 2300 [sic] Ross Avenue Dallas, Texas, exterior, show windows left to right; 1940 Packard 110 or 120, eighteenth series, model 1800 or 1801, 6/8-cylinder, 100-120-horsepower, 122/127-inch wheelbase, convertible coupe (body type #1389/1399), special furniture display.”

1942 photo of the building is from a publication called “Young America in Dallas,” Dallas History and Archives, Dallas Public Library.

The developer who apparently came into possession of the facade after Lou Reese was Ed Sherrill. Perhaps someone associated with the Near Ellum project might know what became of the “saved” facade.

Chase Tower info on Wikipedia here; photo of it here. Imagine a teeny-tiny car dealership at its base.

Packard automobiles? Some of them were pretty cool. Check ’em out here.

A lengthy article on the notorious developer Lou Reese — “Hide and Seek” by Thomas Korosec (Dallas Observer, June 8, 2000) — is here.

14 Comments

March 23, 2015

The Periphery of the Texas State Fair Never Looked Better

Approaching the Fair Grounds…

by Paula Bosse

A couple of pretty, but unusual views of the fairgrounds, turn-of-the-century-ish. The message on the postcard at the top: “Carrie the fair was real good this year better than it has been for years. Edna”

And then there’s this view, “Fair Park Scenery.” Same period as the top one? Later? It shows the “Vehicle Exit.” “Vehicles” meaning buggies and wagons?

Leaving the Fair Grounds…

I think the top postcard shows the entrance — I have another view of the entrance that looks like this, from around 1900 (see it here). And the bottom card? “Scenery” near the Vehicle Exit. So … a parking lot? Or a road leading to the exit? Whatever it is, it’s not really all that “scenic.” Both postcards are fairly odd choices for picture postcards of the Texas State Fair, as neither one shows anything of the actual fair! But if people had fond memories of driving into or out of the State Fair, these were the postcards to buy!

***

Sources & Notes

Postcards from eBay. The second one is a photo by Clogenson.

Top postcard’s 2-cent stamp was issued in Nov. 1903, per Wikipedia.

2 Comments

March 21, 2015

MORE Random Still-Standing Buildings Featured in Ads From 1929

Soda fountains came from here…

by Paula Bosse

A few more photos of buildings that are still standing, from the ad-pages of the 1929 city directory.

First up is the Southern Fountain & Fixture Mfg. Co. at 1900 Cedar Springs.

ad-southern-fountain-fixture_directory_1929

The Southern Fountain & Fixture plant was built in 1925 at the corner of Cedar Springs and N. Akard. They manufactured and sold soda fountains, showcases, and fixtures.

A major new residential high-rise is going up in the 1900 block of Cedar Springs (or has gone up — it’s been a while since I’ve been over there), but I think it’s going up at the other end of the block. (But somehow its address is 1900 Cedar Springs….) So, I’m not absolutely sure this building IS still there. Here’s a 2014 image from Google Street View. It’s a cool building — hope you’re still there, cool building!

Google Street View

Next, the Loudermilk-Sparkman Funeral Home at 2115 Ross Avenue.

(click for larger image of house)

The “home-like” Loudermilk-Sparkman funeral home moved into the former home of Col. A. H. Belo in June 1926 and settled in for a 50-year lease. (An article titled “Morticians In New Quarters” appeared on June 27, 1926 in The Dallas Morning News, complete with descriptions of interior decoration and architectural details.)

That place was a funeral home for 50 years — longer than it’s been anything else. That’s a lot of dearly departeds. (Clyde Barrow is probably the most famous cadaver to be wheeled through its portals.) In the ’70s, the granddaughter of Col. A. H. Belo sold the house — which was built in 1899/1900 — to the Dallas Bar Association, and today it is a swanky place to get married or eat canapés. And, thankfully, it’s still beautiful.

Google Street View

The Evangelical Theological College, 3909 Swiss Avenue, in Old East Dallas.

(click for larger image)

This “denominationally unrelated” seminary — where tuition and rooms were free, and board was at cost — was built in 1927 for $65,000. When the three-story-plus-basement building was finished, the college was in its fourth year, having moved from its previous location in The Cedars. “The college now has forty-five students representing fifteen states of the United States, three Canadian provinces and Ireland…. The faculty is composed of thirteen men…” (DMN, Dec. 25, 1927).

ad-evangelical-theological-college_directory_1929-det

The college has grown by leaps and bounds and is now the Dallas Theological Seminary, and the original building is still there.

dallas-theological-seminary_now_google Google Street View

Lastly, the Melrose Court Apartments and Hotel, 3015 Oak Lawn.

The Melrose, designed by architect C. D. Hill, was built in 1924, and as it was about to throw open the doors of its bachelor apartments to eager Dallas bachelors (and whomever), it advertised itself thusly: “Of palatial splendor, rivaling in dimensions the best appointed apartment hotel buildings of this modern day, it is equal to the best of any of America’s cities of a million.” (DMN, Aug. 31, 1924) Well, of course it is!

It’s been a landmark in Oak Lawn for over 90 years. I know it’s officially now the Warwick Melrose Hotel, but I’ve never heard anyone call it anything but The Melrose.

melrose-today

***

Sources & Notes

All ads from the 1929 city directory.

My previous post “Random Still-Standing Buildings Featured in Ads From 1927” is here.

7 Comments

Category: Neighborhoods

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