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This commercial structure, built circa 1920, is surrounded by residences and located near the old Dallas Streetcar Line 46, which cut diagonally through the Trinity Heights. Trinity Heights was a subdivision, annexed by the City of Dallas in the 1920’s, with it’s own school system, post office and water facilities.
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Henry Braley purchased the Ramsey property in 1918, and it is believed that the building was constructed soon after, based on the 1922 Sanborn Maps. Braley was one of the founders of the Texas Kennel Club in 1898, and he and his wife were active with breeding and showing dogs while living at the Ramsey address.
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George T. Reynolds was the President of the First National Bank of Albany, Texas when he began making frequent trips to Ft. Worth in the late 1800’s. He had interests in cattle and was president of Texas Presbyterian University. He later moved to Dallas in the early 1900’s where he went on to become a member of the Dallas Board of Education. It was then that he built his home on N. Ewing and Sabine.
Built in 1911, the home was Mission in style, ten rooms and built of brick. N. Ewing offered a prime location particularly after the completion of the Houston St. Viaduct in 1912 blocks away. At one time the area was lined with many such mansions. Some remain interspersed throughout the area. A few are in the Lake Cliff Historic District along Marsalis but a few, like this one, rest outside the district and away from its protection.
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| 8. T.P. Coal & Oil Co. Station - 247 E. Davis |
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Davis Street was the first paved road to Ft. Worth. It was part of the larger Bankhead Hwy. system. The Bankhead Hwy. was one of the first paved trans-continental highways in the United States stretching from Washington DC to San Diego and connecting Dallas to the rest of the country by automobile. Several other routes were lobied for including one through Oklahoma. The decision to take the highway through Dallas and Oak Cliff rather than some other city or state is arguably one of the single most important decisions affecting the prosperity of our area. Growth was unprecedented after we were connected and this is the sole reason that so many garages line Davis Street today.
Bankhead Marker
In 1932, the Texas Pacific Coal & Oil Company built Station Number 1343 at the northeast corner of Davis and Madison. In 1954 the "nice independent service station" in a "good neighborhood" was for sale for a mere $900.
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| 10. Oak Cliff Googie Architecture |
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Astro Drive-In / Demolished example of Oak Cliff Googie Architecture
Googie architecture is a futuristic style with origins in Southern California, dating back to the emergence of mid-century modern. In the 1950’s and 60’s, automobiles were quickly becoming popular forms of transportation; consequently, buildings and signage supporting America’s Car Culture were designed to be noticed at higher speeds along highways. A fascination with spaceflight and nuclear power was also celebrated during the optimistic 1950s, with unique Googie elements to symbolize speed and energy. Googie signage displays bold angles, suggesting aerodynamic features with references to the Atomic Age.
  
Characteristics of Googie architecture include upward sloping roofs, cantilevered structures, large angled windows, illuminated plastic, bold use of neon, boomerangs, parabolas, atomic bursts and other freeform shapes. Many coffee shops, car washes and auto service stations exhibited Googie style. Googie was a family nickname of a West Hollywood business owner with a coffee shop named Googie’s (built in 1949, demolished in 1989), designed by John Lautner.
After WWII, Oak Cliff experienced it’s own growth from a business and housing boom. Convenience stores were built along Jefferson Boulevard to support the growing neighborhood. Hotels and auto service businesses lined Fort Worth Avenue and Highway 80 (Davis St.). Lancaster Road was developed as a major vehicular thoroughfare, where many old service stations have been re-purposed and are still standing. Signage played an important role and Oak Cliff has a few remaining examples of Googie style, many of which can be seen through signage. Here, we include a few beloved Oak Cliff buildings or structures as examples of Googie architecture. Some have already been lost, such as Astro Drive-in. Many mid-century buildings are at risk of decline due to the experimental nature of their design and materials.
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W. C. Lattimore was one of the earliest residents of 400 W. Page. He started his religious career in Denton in the late 1800’s as a popular Baptist minister while also serving on several boards and committees at Baylor University in Waco. In 1909, he moved to Oak Cliff where he became the pastor at Memorial Baptist Church at Tenth and Beckley. Memorial would go on to merge with Central Baptist Church and become Cliff Temple, which is still located at that corner. Lattimore would go on to remain Associate Pastor until his death in 1940.
Records aren't clear as to when the home was built. They show Lattimore as the first resident in 1917 but actual building permits are elusive. Victorian architecture can date back to the late 1800's so it is unclear. In the 1940’s the house was converted to a duplex and the porch was enclosed.
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| 9. Alamo Plaza Hotel Courts Signage |
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Early 1930’s motel developer, Edgar Lee Torrance built the first Alamo Plaza Hotel Courts in Waco, Texas, featuring a modified white stucco facade of The Alamo in San Antonio. Within a few years, the vast chain of motels expanded along side the highway system through various Southern States.
A piece of roadside history is still in tact on Fort Worth Avenue, yet it’s future is uncertain. The developers of Sylvan Thirty demolished Alamo Plaza Hotel and promised Preservation Dallas that the sign would remain and become part of the new development, perhaps moving it’s location. To our knowledge, the Sylvan Thirty design drawings do not indicate the location of the Alamo sign on the property. Cox Grocers is shown to be where the sign now rests.
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| 2011 Architecture at Risk Status |
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1. Tenth St. Historic District - Since last year’s Risk List, the outlook for Tenth Street Historic District has improved.
A Neighborhood Association is beginning to form with the aide of Council Member Carolyn Davis, Meadows Foundation and other non-profit organizations.
2000 Roses Foundation has been working with the City of Dallas to acquire vacant properties with goals for rehabilitation instead of demolition. In May, the Texas National Guard assisted the City with demolition for selected properties in South Dallas, one being in the Tenth Street Historic District. The removal of this burned structure set wheels in motion for new development.
CityDesign Studio has included the Tenth Street Historic District in a new planning effort named LINC Dallas (Leveraging & Improving Neighborhood Connections). For more info, visit: http://www.dallascityhall.com/citydesign_studio/LINC.html
2. Jefferson Blvd. - Last year, Councilmember Delia Jasso assembled a group of people to discuss the future of Jefferson Blvd. Mayor Mike Rawlings has identified Jefferson Blvd. in his Grow South initiative to re-identify the street as a "Main Street" for Southern Dallas and Oak Cliff. When speaking about Jefferson, the Mayor always mentions the history of the street in a very positive light and has discussed it in private meetings about Jefferson. With the Boulevard's history being part of the dialougue about it's future, we feel very positive indeed.
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3. Annabelle Clopton Bldg - Two new businesses have gone into the Annabelle Clopton Building since last year and both have done improvements to both the interior and exterior. While some of the renovations haven't been sensitive, the structure is in such disrepair that they are certainly better than the situation was before.
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