Grand Prairie Historical www GPHistorical.com Organization · 2015-09-18 · RSVP to Angela Giessner (972-262-5151) no later than 5 ... Alice Stanfield Ernst, Paul Wayne Ernst, Olive

1

May 2011

Volume XXV

Grand Prairie Historical

Organization

www.GPHistorical.com

MEETING LOCATION

Our next meeting will be May 19th from 11:30—1pm, and will be held at the GPHO Museum,

which is located at 1516 W. Main St., GP, 75050. Please get there early as we will start

promptly at 11:30. Or speaker is on a tight schedule that day.

Lunch will be available for $10 each. The Brass Bean will be furnishing the lunch. Please

RSVP to Angela Giessner (972-262-5151) no later than 5/17 if you want lunch.

Check out our new Web Site!

Thank you so much to Kath-

leen Andrews for making this

happen. Kathleen did an ex-

ceptional job with this site and

volunteered hours of her time

to make it look fantastic.

As our Museum takes shape, we are

looking for donors to help finance

some or all of the initial costs.

The building has just been painted

which presents an opportunity for

someone that would like to have the museum

named after their family. We also have rooms

within the Museum that can be designated. Let

us know if you are interested.

The first Graduating Class of Grand

Prairie High School was in 1911.

That graduating class was:

Viola King, Florence Cox, Flora

King, and Ruben Tollivar.

Viola King was valedictorian

Does Grand Prairie Really Need Another History Book? Journalist and historian Kathy Goolsby will tackle that question when she discusses her second book covering

Grand Prairie’s history. She’ll compare the two books, read an excerpt from the new one and answer questions.

Ms. Goolsby is the author of Historic Grand Prairie: An Illustrated History, which was commissioned by the Grand

Prairie Historical Organization and published in June 2008. She has a degree in journalism with a minor in history;

is a former reporter for The Dallas Morning News; is a former reporter/editor for the Arlington Morning News and the Grand Prairie

News. One of her favorite pastimes is stomping around old cemeteries trying to connect the families through the chiseled words

www. GPhistorical.com

THANK YOU ! To Neva McLeroy Bridges Wetmore for donating

her GPHS 1943 class annual to the Grand

Prairie Historical Organization which was

GPHS’s first annual. She also donated several

copies of the “Prairie Dog” newspaper.

Thank you Mrs. Wetmore for allowing your

annual to be available for future generations

to enjoy.

2

Page 2 Volume XXV

Grand Prairie Historical Organization — Life Members

Robert H Archer, Judy Armstrong, Billy Joe Armstrong, Greta Berry Beckler, Carol Bell, Grant Bell, Bebe

Bingham, Brian W. Bingham, Joan Zuspann Bronstad, Verna Brown, Lisa Chennault, Thomas Chennault *, Jo

Robertson Campbell, L.R. Cannon, Pat Watson Capps, Sharon Chaparas, Helen Chennault, Thomas B Chen-

nault, City of Grand Prairie Marketing, Bill Claybourn, Joan Longorio Claybourn,Jorja Jackson Clemson, Joe

W. Colwell, Kay Conelly, Marge Copeland, H. Victor Copeland *, Doranna Corley, Jerry Corley, Reggie

Crump, Rochelle Crump, Bobby Donaldson, Scott Donaldson, Cheryl Friman Dover, Karen Eddlemon, Rich-

ard and Annette Edmonson, Charles and Janice England, Kirk and Marcy England, Alice Stanfield Ernst, Paul

Wayne Ernst, Olive Galloway, Angela Sutton Giessner, Don Goldsmith, Norma Robertson Hale, Loni Haran,

Marvin J (Jack) Hays, Lee D. Herring, Thomas Hight Sr., Gary Hill, Betty Bell Hulse, Ruthe Thompson Jackson,

Vera Jinks, Laurie Hulse Johnson, Blythe Kizziar, Ouida Chapman Lewis, Duane McGuffey, Linda McNeff,

Kenneth R. Miller, Lynn Motley, Betty Phillips, Laura Thompson Potter, Mickey Powell, Charles Powers,

Kathy Ritterhouse, Bob Roberts, Kathy Kaderka Sherrill, Susan Shuffler, Fynlon and Eugenia Simpson, Janette

Skrasek, Ouida Daugherty Smith, Amy Sprinkles, Donald Stanfield, Joyce Colwell Stanfield, Marie Kerr Stuf-

flebeme*, Marshall Sutton, Donald Taylor*, Kenny Tyler, Paul and Madie Vernon, Sammie Ausmus Walker,

Sarah Wellis, John Wright * Deceased

Grand Prairie Historical Organization—Corporate Sponsors

Thorne and Skinner, Attorneys at Law Eddlemon Brothers Catering

First Football Team—Grand Prairie High School Grand Prairie High School

1949—Rita Butler, Gwynn Sims, Sherry Smith, Estelle Pedneau, Doriscelle

3

A Country Club in Grand Prairie? By Kathy A. Goolsby

With its cornucopia of new homes and about 20,000 residents with an increasing amount of leisure time on their hands, Grand Prairie in the 1950s seemed ripe for a country club. At least two efforts to bring that idea to fruition occurred during the decade.

The first actually began in January 1949 and was led by homebuilder M.C. Andrews Jr. He and other businessmen looked to 100 leading citi-zens for $1,000 pledges. The $100,000 start-up money would be used to build a 5,200-square-foot clubhouse already drawn by an architect.

In addition to the $35,000 clubhouse, the proposed project included a 3-acre lake, a 9-hole golf course, a driving range, tennis courts and a swimming pool, with the golf course later to be dou-bled in size. Dairy farmer Edmund Keith agreed to sell the group his 143 acres that adjoined Grand Prairie’s city limits northwest of downtown.

In September, a five-member committee was formed to oversee the country club’s construc-tion. Apparently unable to find 100 people willing to part with $1,000 for the club, the committee an-nounced a new plan for obtaining start-up money. They set the annual membership fees at $200 and limited the membership to 150.

They hoped to sign 75 charter members quickly and apply the $15,000 generated by the founding members to the purchase of 110 acres. The group also had an option to buy another 50 from Mr. Keith.

That plan also failed and the first country club idea was shelved. Mr. Keith’s farm was sold in 1956 to builder R.W. Baxter to add to his 255-homesite International Estates development.

In 1958, the Inglewood Civic Club took an option on 85 acres south of town with plans to once again develop a country club. The site was bounded on the east by Carrier Parkway, on the south by the proposed Marshall Street extension, Dickey Road to the north, and Robinson Road to the west.

The backers opened an office at 124 E. Main St. and encouraged people to come by and purchase a membership to the planned 450-member club. To

jump-start the sign-up drive, honorary memberships were given to Mayor C.R. Sargent, former mayors G.H. Turner and E. Carlyle Smith, and several prominent businessmen.

The group promised swimming by August and golf by the next spring. Charles Lewis, editor of the Grand Prairie Texan, was elected chairman of an advi-sory committee to oversee the project.

In July 1958, the property owners signed a con-tract to “guarantee construction of the main club facili-ties as soon as 200 members are obtained.” A week later, construction began on an Olympic-sized swim-ming pool , with cabanas and the clubhouse next on the agenda.

In September, Mr. Lewis announced that con-struction on the clubhouse would begin that month, and would include a bar-grill, kitchen and golf locker rooms. It would be expanded the following year, he said, along with completion of two swimming pools and the golf course.

But the project stalled and by December, there were only 97 charter members – less than half the 200 organizers had hoped for to keep the project afloat. In mid-December, Mr. Lewis announced the project had been abandoned.

Grand Prairie would have to wait a few more years for its own country club.

Source:

The Dallas Morning News archives, 1949-1958

Help support a Grand Prairie Organization that does so much for the kids within the GPISD

Freedom Luncheon June 16 Ruthe Jackson Center, Grand Prairie

For more information and sponsorship

call: Jorja Clemson 972-647-2425

or visit

www.LifeLineShelter.org

4

Grand Prairie Historical Organization

P.O. Box 532173

Grand Prairie, Texas 75053-2173

214-808-1913 or [email protected]

Brian W. Bingham, President

Volume XXV

NEXT MEETING

In August, our speaker will be

Dan Smith with the Bankhead

Highway Association. Dan is

writing a book on the part of

the Bankhead Highway that

went through Texas. In particular he will

talk about the part of the Highway that

went through Grand Prairie (most of which

is now Main St). The GPHO recently

loaned Mr. Smith some microfilm (donated

by Charles Powers) that was extremely

valuable to his research.

The graduating class of 1943 had their 68th year

class reunion on 4/23/2011 at Eddlemon’s. Pic-tured above are David Lacey, Neva Bridges Wet-

more, Dot McLelland Casey, Zelma Black Adkins, Robert Archer, LaVera Knox Kimbrel, and

Norma Robertson Hale.

The GPHS Graduating class of 1936 recently had their reunion. Pictured above are Joyce Smith Johnston and

William Bean., who sponsored the event.

One of the projects the GPHO is

working on will be to videotape our

members discussing their family heri-

tage in Grand Prairie for future genera-

tions. This video can be an interview

style, or just a single person talking

about their family history.

These videos will be $100

each. This will be a donation

to the GPHO.

Let us know if you are

interested.