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Saint Mary of the Assumption Roman
Catholic Church
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Located at 509 W. Magnolia Ave., Fort Worth.
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The first Mass for this Roman Catholic parish was held
in 1909 in a small wooden church which burned in 1922.
This Romanesque Revival structure was designed by the
well-known firm of Sanguinet, Staats and Hedrick. It
was dedicated July 20, 1924, by the most Rev. Joseph
P. Lynch, Bishop of Dallas. The bells were installed
in 1956. This parish has been guided by the
Vincentian, Benedictine, and Salvatorian religious
orders.
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Saint Patrick's Cathedral
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Located at 1206 Throckmorton, Fort Worth.
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Erected 1888-1892 under the direction of the parish
priest, the Rev. Jean M. Guyot, a native of France.
Stone for walls was quarried locally. Improvised,
horse-powered lathes were used to turn and polish the
eighteen interior pillars. Ceilings and window frames
are wood grained. Stained glass windows were imported
from Munich, Germany. Bell, cast in Troy, New York,
has been in use since 1888.
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Saint Paul Lutheran Church
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Located at 1800 West Freeway, Fort Worth.
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In 1892 the Rev. Johann Christian Schulenburg
(1840-1922), a Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod
missionary, conducted services in German at the
Knights of Honor Hall in downtown Fort Worth. In 1896
the Mission was chartered as the Evangelisch
Lutherische St. Paulus Gemeinde, and a chapel was
erected on Hemphill and Railroad (now Vickery)
avenues. In 1919 the congregation erected a new church
building on May Street. With continued growth of
membership a larger facility became necessary, and the
church relocated on the West Freeway in 1954.
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Site of Saint Stanislaus Kostka
Catholic Church
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Located at 1206 Throckmorton, Fort Worth.
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Catholics in Fort Worth began meeting together for
regular worship services by 1875. They met in private
homes, and were served by traveling priests. In 1876
Bishop Claude Dubuis of the Diocese of Galveston
assigned a young Irish priest, Farther Thomas
Loughrey, to establish a parish in Fort Worth. In July
1876 the Diocese purchased two lots at this site for a
church to be named for Polish Jesuit Saint Stanislaus
Kostka. Within three months, on October 29, 1876,
Father Laughry said the first High Mass in the frame
structure. He continued to serve the church until
1884, when Father Jean Marie Guyot was assigned as
Pastor. The church opened a Catholic School in the
parish. Classes initially were taught by Father
Loughrey and the Sisters of Mercy. After 1885 the
school was operated by the Sisters of St. Mary. By
1885 plans were underway for a new church structure.
Completed in 1892, it was named for Saint Patrick. The
original Saint Stanislaus building became part of the
school. After serving the parish for over three
decades, it was removed between 1908 and 1909 to make
way for a new parish rectory.
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Smithfield Baptist Church
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Located at 7912 Main St., North Richland Hills.
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This church was organized by 12 charter members in
1895; the Rev. G.W. Green served as first Pastor. A
sanctuary was built here in 1902 on town lots donated
by G.W. Gunter. The church supported area missions and
organized a Youth Union, Sunday School, and Woman's
Missionary Union. The congregation established Shady
Grove Baptist Church in 1954. The church was renamed
First Baptist Church of Smithfield in 1958. A new
sanctuary was built in 1962 and several facilities
were added over the years. The church serves the area
with a variety of programs.
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Smithfield Methodist Church
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Located at 6701 Smithfield Road, North Richland Hills.
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William and Mary Turner moved from Dallas County to a
300-acre farm near here in 1856. According to local
tradition William soon built split log benches at his
home for his neighbors' use as a site for study and
worship. By year's end they had formed a Methodist
Society called the Willow Springs Class. By 1861 the
Rev. S.D. Sansom was serving as local elder. The
community took the name Zion about 1873 and the church
changed its name to Zion Methodist Church. In 1887,
after Eli Smith and J.C. Brownfield gave land for a
townsite named Smithfield, the church became
Smithfield Methodist Episcopal Church, South. The
congregation's first sanctuary, erected on land
donated by Eli and Sally Smith in 1912, was replaced
in 1935 with a structure built of masonry donated by
descendants of William and Mary Turner. The
congregation changed its name to Smithfield Methodist
Church in 1939 and achieved sufficient membership by
1945 to retain its first full-time minister. The
congregation, renamed Smithfield United Methodist
Church in 1968, erected a new sanctuary here in 1974.
The church continues to offer worship and outreach
programs to the community and remains an important
institution in northeast Tarrant County.
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Southside Church of Christ
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Located at 2101 Hemphill, Fort Worth.
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This congregation, initially led by Dr. I.L. Van Zandt
and other elders, was established in a fast growing
southern area of Fort Worth in 1892. Named Southside
Church of Christ, the new congregation experienced
several decades of steady growth before purchasing a
church building and merging with another congregation
known as the Central Church of Christ in 1916. The
congregation incorporated in 1917 under the name
Southside Central Church Christ. The congregation
relocated to this site in 1959. The church sponsors
community outreach and missionary programs.
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St. Jude Catholic Church
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Located at 500 E. Dallas Street, Mansfield.
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In the late nineteenth century, Father Thomas Hagerty,
pastor of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Waxahachie,
traveled by train once each month to celebrate Mass
with the six Catholic families in this area. In 1898,
a small frame church was erected on land donated by
local merchant J. W. Wright. By 1928, the parish had
grown to twenty-eight families. They began to meet in
a red brick church erected on this site and dedicated
as St. James Catholic Church in November of that year
by Bishop Joseph Lynch. The pastoral needs of the
parish were met by priests from Waxahachie through the
1930s. In the 1940s and early 1950s the parish fell
under the jurisdiction of St. Patrick Catholic Church
in Fort Worth. The women of the church formally
established the St. James Altar Society. By 1954 a
weekly Mass was held in St. James, with St. Joseph
priests again administering the rites. An influx of
Czech and German families in the late 1950s
contributed significantly to the growth of the parish
in the mid to late 20th century. Land for a new
structure was donated in 1969; the first Mass was held
in St. Jude, the new church building which seated
three hundred people, in 1971. Growth in the 1970s was
a result of a rise in the area's population and an
increase in the number of Mexican American
parishioners. The parish boasted 350 registered
families in the 1980s; by 1998 that number had grown
to 700 families who continue to uphold the traditions
of the church's founders. (1998)
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Tate Springs Baptist Church
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Located at Pleasant Ridge Road and Little Road,
Arlington.
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Prior to the formation of area churches, worship
services were conducted at camp meetings on Village
Creek. On Feb. 5, 1882, ten local residents met to
organize the Tate Springs Baptist Church. Presiding
over the meeting were elders M.T. Walker and D.B.
Brown. The Joplin Schoolhouse (1 mi. E), located on
land donated by E.C. Tate, served as the first chapel.
The church moved to this site in 1895 and became the
center of the rural settlement. A leader in community
activities, Tate Springs Baptist Church experienced
rapid growth in the 1970s as a result of nearby urban
development.
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The Sanctuary - Gustavaus Adolphus
Church
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Located at 400 Hemphill, Fort Worth.
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The Swedish Evangelical Lutheran Church of Gustavus
Adolphus Synod was organized in 1905 to serve Swedish
settlers in the City of Fort Worth. In 1912 the
congregation, which later became known as Grace
Lutheran, constructed this sanctuary and held worship
services here until it moved to another site in 1957.
The Lombard Romanesque style building features fine
brickwork in the tower and over the arches.
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Travis Avenue Baptist Church
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Located at 700 block W. Berry, Fort Worth.
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A Sunday school was started in 1908 in this
development outside the city limits. The group became
a Mission of the College Avenue Baptist Church,
established in 1905 (about 3 Mi. N). By 1910 72
Mission participants were meeting in the Prairie
Chapel School. In 1911 18 members formed the Southside
Baptist Church and moved a building here in 1913. By
1915 the membership had grown to 231. The Church name
changed to Travis Avenue Baptist in 1920 and a new
sanctuary was completed in 1925. The church now serves
a large area of Fort Worth, and sponsors several
outreach ministries. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986.
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Watauga Presbyterian Church
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Located at 6209 Rusk St., Haltom City.
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Founded as Willow Springs Cumberland Presbyterian
Church, 1850s; reorganized 1867 by William, Mary, and
Julia Carlton; M.B. Donald; William, Marthia,
Samuel,and Nancy Evans; Syrena Stowel; Sarah
Henderson; Margaret, Cornelia, James, and Drue Walker.
Renamed in 1885.
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West Fork Baptist Association
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Located at 3145 Carson St., Haltom City.
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On Oct. 12-13, 1855, representatives of 12 frontier
churches met in the Birdville Baptist Church to form
the West Fork Association of United Baptists. Created
to serve area congregations, the association provided
a vital link in the early efforts of the Baptist
Church in North Central Texas. Membership increased as
more settlers entered the area and new churches were
established. The association held its last meeting in
1886 when leaders realized the need to form smaller,
more localized bodies. Many of the groups created
after 1886 are still active today.
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West Fork United Presbyterian Church
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Located at 602 Santerre Rd., Grand Prairie.
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In 1870 the Rev. Andrew Shannon Hayter organized the
Good Hope Cumberland Sabbath School to serve the early
settlers of the surrounding area. The first church
building, which was also used as a schoolhouse, was
located in the vicinity of the Watson Cemetery (2 mi.
SW) on property donated by P.A. Watson. In 1872 the
congregation adopted the name West Fork. The Church's
third sanctuary, built two years after a destructive
1924 fire, was moved to this location in 1955 during
construction of the Dallas-Fort Worth Turnpike.
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White's Chapel United Methodist Church
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Located at 185 S. White Chapel Road, Southlake.
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Founded by settlers who came by wagon train from Dade
County, Ga., 1871. Early services were in home of S.
B. Austin, the leader. Austin gave land for a cemetery
and church. A log meetinghouse was built and in use in
Feb. 1872. This was the first Methodist church in this
vicinity. Circuit rider preachers drew crowds here
from as far away as 20 miles. At first called "Oak
Hill," for home church in Georgia, this was soon
renamed for a permanent pastor, the Rev. Mr. White.
The community school was held in successive church
buildings until 1916. Many settlers rest in nearby
cemetery.
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Woods Chapel Baptist Church
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Located at 2424 California Ln., Arlington.
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On April 28, 1901, a group of worshippers gathered
together in a brush arbor to organize a church
congregation. Led by the Rev. Washington Lafayette
Wood, a missionary who had arrived in Tarrant County
from Alabama in 1891, the members immediately began
the task of building a sanctuary on land donated by
Sam McMurray. A small white frame structure was
dedicated at this site in November 1901 and the church
was named for the Rev. Mr. Wood. Worship services were
conducted on both Saturdays and Sundays until 1910.
Baptismal services were held in the nearby Rush and
Village Creeks until 1912, when the congregation began
to use a stock tank on the property of church member
Will Moore. In 1928 the congregation called its first
full-time Pastor, the Rev. C.W. Walton. Additional
property was purchased in 1937, and an educational
building was erected. The Rev. Mr. Walton continued to
lead the congregation through the difficult years of
the Depression, serving as Pastor until his death in
1941. The church continued to grow over the years. A
new sanctuary, built in 1948, is still in use as a
chapel for special services.
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Cattle Brands
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Located on East Exchange St. in the Stockyards, Fort
Worth.
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Proof of ownership since 600 B.C.; in Texas since
1821. Registered in counties and burned on hides of
cattle. Every owner has individual brand. In Texas
these aggregate several thousand. History of Texas is
displayed here in brands of leaders: patriots,
soldiers, bankers, rangers, industrialists. (1966)
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The 1865 Indian Creek Raid
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From Fort Worth take US 81/287 northwest about 12
miles. Head northwest on FM 718 about 3.3 miles to
Morris-Dido-Newark Road. Head South about 1.7 miles to
marker.
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During the late 1850s Indians on the north Texas
frontier became increasingly restive about continued
white settlement on their lands. As a result, numerous
attacks on Anglos occurred during the years form 1859
to 1875. One such incident took place in Sept. 1865
near this site when 15 mounted Indians attacked two
Denton County residents by the names of Smith and
Wright. Wright was killed, and Smith, wounded by an
arrow, rode to Denton for help. Within a short time,
Smith died from blood poisoning caused by his wound.
(1983)
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Kiowa Raid on Walnut Creek
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FM 730 R.O.W. East side, about .75 W. of intersection
of FM 730 & SH 199, Azle.
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In April 1867 a band of about sixty Kiowa Indians, led
by Chiefs Satank and Satanta, raided the home of
William Hamleton on Walnut Creek. Hamleton was away
when the Kiowas killed his wife, Sally, and captured
two children, Lavina and Mary. Lavina was released
from captivity after six months, but Mary was given to
an Indian family and grew to adulthood among the
Kiowas. Called To-Goam-Gat-Ty, she became an accepted
tribal member and married another captive, Calisay.
The site of the 1867 Kiowa Raid is now under the
waters of Eagle Mountain Reservior (1.4 mi. E) (1983)
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Sloan-Journey Expedition of 1838
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Located at the intersection of Mosier Valley & FM
157, Arlington.
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In the spring of 1838, Captains Robert Sloan and
Nathaniel T. Journey led a group of about 90 northeast
Texas frontiersmen on a punitive expedition against
the Indians who had raided their homes in present-day
Fannin County. The trail led them to the vicinity of
present-day Euless and Arlington, where they attacked
a small Indian village, killed several Indians, and
recovered a few horses. The Sloan-Journey expedition
is among the first known Anglo-American activities in
what is now Tarrant County that helped to open north
Texas to white settlement.
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Southwestern Exposition and Livestock
Show
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Located at the Will Rogers Center, Cattle Barn 4, 3300
Crestline Rd., Fort Worth.
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Fort Worth Stock Yards Company publicist Charles C.
French and local cattleman Charles C. McFarland
oranized the first livestock show in north Fort Worth
in 1896. Members of the Texas Cattle Raisers
Association (TCRA) participated in the initial show.
The Fort Worth Stock Yards Company built a new
coliseum in north Fort Worth in 1908 with the help of
TCRA members. That year the National Feeders and
Breeders Show opened with various events including a
cutting horse competition and a horse show. The event,
renamed the Southwestern Exposition and Fat Stock Show
in 1918, included an indoor rodeo competition, youth
activities, and a debutante social pagent popularized
by the City's more prominent citizens. In 1943 the
show's facilities were converted for U.S. military
purposes and the show was canceled. In 1944 the show
relocated to this site which included a coliseum,
auditorium,and a memorial Tower erected in 1936 as
part of the Texas Centennial celebration. The show was
renamed the Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show
in 1988. By 1995 the Show had become a 17-day
multimillion-dollar premier rodeo, equine, livestock,
and exhibition event with an annual draw of about
800,000 people. Sesquicentennial of Texas Statehood
1845-1995.
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Early Site of Southwestern Exposition
and Livestock Show
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Located at Stockyards Blvd. & Rodeo Plaza, Fort
Worth.
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Fort Worth became an important trading and supply
depot in the 1870s for Texas cattlemen driving herds
to Northern markets. With the convergence of several
railroads here in the 1870s and 1880s stockyard
facilities began to appear along the railroad lines.
In 1893 Boston investors purchased the Stockyards and
organized the Fort Worth Stock Yards Company. The
Company held the first livestock show at nearby Marine
Creek in March 1896. The show's initial sucess was due
mainly to the participation of members of the Texas
Cattle Raisers Association (TCRA) whose Annual Meeting
in Fort Worth coincided with the Show. The Fort Worth
Stock Yards Company built an impressive livestock
exchange building in 1903. In 1908, with the help of
Armour & Co., Swift & Co., and TCRA members,
the National Feeders and Breeders Show opened here in
new Coliseum facilities. The show offered a variety of
events including a cutting horse competition and a
horse show. A Wild West show was added in 1916. The
show, renamed Southwestern Exposition and Fat Stock
Show in 1918, developed into a premier rodeo,
livestock, and exhibition event. In 1943 the
facilities were converted for U.S. military purposes
and in 1944 the Show relocated to a site in west Fort
Worth. Sesquicentennial of Texas Statehood 1845-1995.
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