Tag Archives: dfw

Fort Worth Heritage

Yellowstone’s prequel “1883” brings to life American History…Fort Worth History

Billy Bob Thornton portraying Jim Longhaired Courtright in “1883”.

So much excitement in Fort Worth since the filming of Paramount’s “1883” a prequel series to “Yellowstone” the ancestors of the Duttons. If you’re like us, you are thrilled to see any snippet of Fort Worth Stockyards cross your screen. In “1883,” Billy Bob Thornton plays Marshal Jim Courtright, a very real gunman from American history…from Fort Worth history! Born Timothy Isaiah Courtwright, the Illinois native after serving in the Civil War, went on to become the marshal in Fort Worth. Know for his long locks he carried the nickname Longhaired Jim.

Luke Short (L) Old-West gunfighter, cowboy, U.S. Army scout, dispatch rider, gambler, boxing promoter, & saloon owner. Jim Courtright (R) Old-West lawman, outlaw, & gunfighter, City Marshal of Fort Worth from 1876 to 1879.

You may have heard the story of bad blood between Luke Short and Longhaired Jim that ended in a shootout. No?! Well, here goes!

The original White Elephant Saloon – The Morris & Conn Building 308-310 Main St. In downtown Fort Worth. Also pictured Jim Courtright’s Six Shooter

The two men met on the evening of Feb. 8, 1887 at about 8pm and a challenge was issued by Courtright. Luke Short was called out of the White Elephant Saloon on Fort Worth’s downtown Main Street. They stood facing each other just a few feet apart. Short assured Courtright he had no gun and moved to show him by lifting his vest. It was dark, Courtright had been drinking and he mistook it as a go for his gun. Courtright yelled, “Don’t you pull a gun on me.” Courtright went for one of his two 45’s on his hips. Courtright outdrew Short, in the process his 45’s hammer caught on his watch chain. Luke drew his pistol and got off the first shot. Short then fired four more shots and Courtright fell to the ground on his back dying in bloodshed.

Luke Short was released from prison after a short examination trial with $2,000. bond, it was a clear case of self-defense with the only witness noting Courtright pulled his trigger first. Short ended up paying for Courtright’s funeral, $20. His funeral procession was one of the largest Fort Worth had ever seen.

Jim Courtright’s Grave at Oakwood Cemetery
Luke Short’s Grave at Oakwood Cemetery

We are hoping to see “1883” at the White Elephant Saloon portray this event…we’ll see!

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Leonard’s department store

On this day, December 14, 1918, Leonard Brothers Department Store opened in downtown Fort Worth, Texas. This video was made for our friends who love and remember the iconic department store that serviced a greater community on Leonard’s 100th Anniversary in 2018. Thank you to the many participants of Fort Worth who added pictures and shared how their lives were touched through this pictorial treasure. We hope you enjoy this look into the world of Obie & Marvin Leonard. Thanks for the memories Leonard’s Department Store!


Made for Leonard’s 100th Anniversary in 2018.

*Special thanks for photo courtesy: Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collections, UTA Library Special Collection, and numerous people who donated their Santa pics.

Share a Leonard’s memory with us!

#Leonards #departmentstore #otd #Christmas #nostalgia #obieleonard #marvinleonard #fortworth #Texashistory #fortworthhistory

Fort Worth Heritage

Haunting Fort Worth Tales

A very well-known haunted cabin lies in Fort Worth at a place called the Log Cabin Village. Among the various historic log cabins in the area dating from between 1843 and the 1880s the most infamous is the one called the Foster Cabin, once owned by a man named Harry Foster and his family and now the location of the village staff’s offices and the gift shop. Built in 1853 near Port Sullivan, Texas the Foster Cabin is one of the few surviving plantation homes in Texas and one of the largest log houses dating to the mid-nineteenth century.

Photo Courtesy: Log Cabin Village of Fort Worth, TX.

According to the lore, Harry Foster’s wife died here in childbirth, after which he went on to marry the nanny, a woman named Jane Holt, who would also die in later years. It is Holt that is said to still remain in the cabin, and one of the biggest signs of her presence is the heavy smell of lilac perfume, which she had been rather fond of in life, which appears from nowhere and dissipates just as quickly. There are also reported mysterious roving cold spots, objects that disappear to turn up in strange places, and anomalous footsteps often heard, especially emanating from the attic above the second floor.

Sweet smells of lilac sweep through the cabin.

It is unknown why this ghost should be the one to remain tethered to this place, but she has become a rather popular curiosity for people visiting @logcabinvillage off University Drive.

The downstairs living area of the Foster Cabin.
The fireplace would have been used for warming and cooking in the Foster Cabin.

Do you have a haunting Fort Worth story you’d like to share? Send us a message, we’d love to hear.

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Neil P. Anderson Building

1921 Neil P. Anderson Building

Neil P. Anderson building then & now split image. This building has held it’s spot on 7th Street since 1921. The “Cotton Exchange” was built by Sanguinet & Staats after the late Anderson had passed away in 1912, his son’s honor his memory with this namesake. Anderson was a talented broker, putting Fort Worth on the map in setting the pace for cotton trading in the Southwest markets. With cotton bas-reliefs on the outside and adorned with urns on top, this building housed some of the city’s leading businesses. The Exchange closed in 1939, but the Anderson interest owned the building until 1963. A recorded Texas Historic Landmark -1978.

Parades

Mugg & Dryden Ice, Coal and Wood Company with their Labor Day parade entry (1897)

1897 Photo Credits: Fort Worth Library and Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection, Special Collections University of Texas at Arlington

The parade route lines up in front of the old Fort Worth jail (built 1884) that was located behind the Tarrant County Courthouse. The Labor Day parade is headed east down the 100 block of Belknap Street past the Tarrant County Jail. “John A. Mugg, Jr. is seated on the left in the 1st buggy; his son M.E. Mugg is the small boy in the wagon. John A. Mugg, Jr. was grandson of Archibald Franklin Leonard and Mary Ann Foster Leonard.”

Two interesting points about this photo. One is that the Mugg family pictured here (my third cousins 3x removed) are the grandchildren of Archibald Franklin Leonard. In 1849 Leonard and Henry Clay Daggett (1 of 3 Fort Worth Daggett brothers) became partners in a business of great historical significance. They built a log cabin under a big live oak tree a mile northeast of the original fort (Fort Worth) and opened Fort Worth’s first business: a trading post. That big live oak lives on today in Traders Oak Park on Samuels Avenue.

Trader Oak Park on Samuel Avenue

Second interesting point: We see the first Tarrant County Jail pictured at 100 Belknap. This first permanent jail was built in 1884, directly behind the County Courthouse on Belknap Street (north of the Courthouse). The new County Jail was a magnificent structure, the building was three stories high plus a basement, constructed of brick in a “Victorian” style. The interior doors of the building were steel, the windows and cells had steel bars. The wooden exterior doors had large steel plate coverings. An underground tunnel connected the County Jail and the Courthouse basements, and was used to take prisoners to trial without exposing them to the public or an unsecured area.

Tarrant County Courthouse (right) with old city Jail located behind it off the then Belknap Street.

Take some time out today to step into the past. Visit Turner Oaks Park on Samuels Ave. Sit a spell under the old oak tree and imagine the conversations of sell or trade with the boys at the Fort. Then enjoy a drive behind the courthouse and picture the old jail sitting there and the Mugg family lined up for the 1897 Labor Day parade.

#fortworth #laborday #tarrantcounty #jail #texas #historicalbuildings #tunnel #instafw #lockup #turneroaks #mugg #leonard #daggett #oldwest #fortworthyhistory #eugenetheiner #tarrantcounty #1800s #vintagepicture #ancestry

Fort Worth Music

Crystal Springs Dancing & Swimming

Crystal Springs Dance Hall – The Birthplace of Western Swing (5653 White Settlement Rd) credited as the pre-honky-tonk birthplace of Western Swing. With the help of such Western Swing pioneers as Bob Wills and Milton Brown, the huge old time dance hall became the most popular night spot in the state of Texas for dancing, drinking, and listening to a new music genre that fused West Texas Fiddle with Hillbilly Hokum, New Orleans Jazz, Mississippi Blues and even Mariachi.

The pavilion got its start as a Trinity Riverfront swimming hole in March 1916 under the proprietorship of “Papa” Sam Cunningham and continued to remain under family control until fire consumed it in December 1966. It was named for the natural springs at the site. The dance hall was set up from a discarded building moved from nearby military Camp Bowie. In 1930, the Lightcrust Doughboys featuring Bob Wills with his amazing fiddle breakdowns and Milton Brown’s melodic vocals, attracted thousands of dancers and their families who came to swim in the clear crystal springs and hear this awesome new fusion of hot dance music.

The music venue grew and in 1932 moved into a new building constructed on the premises. This structure had a capacity of about 1,000 persons and could accommodate approximately 800 on its dance floor. By 1933, people at the Crystal Springs Dance Hall could hear Milton Brown singing popular tunes of the day after he formed his own band, the Musical Brownies, they became the featured performers there. People walked, drove, and even took the Crystal Springs shuttle bus from downtown Fort Worth to hear Milton Brown and His Musical Brownies play a totally new kind of dance music called cowboy string jazz, where Milton’s innovative steel guitarist (Bob Dunn) literally invented the world’s first amplified electric guitar. In addition to Brown’s famous group, the hall had a modestly successful house band called the Crystal Springs Ramblers. Look up these groups on YouTube for a step into the past!

#fortworth #texas #crystalspringsdancehall #westernswing #dfw #miltonbrown #BobWills #fortworthhistory

Fort Worth Businesses, Stock Show and Rodeo, Street Photographers

Fort Worth Street Photographers/Nobby Harness Co.

Finding old photos taken by Fort Worth street photographers capturing everyday life experiences downtown are fascinating. A photographer would grab a candid shot of you, give you a ticket that you could later take to their shop to buy your picture. These street photos give a great glimpse of the way things were, from the way folks dressed, the family or friends they traveled with to shop, or the great storefronts of the time. However, it can leave one wondering about stores gone by that are captured in the background. We posted this shot a few years ago but it only recently did our friend Mary give us details on her memories of the Nobby Harness shop at the 300 block of Main St. and it’s worthy of a share.
“I remember Nobby Harness Company in downtown Fort Worth. I loved and rode horses in the 50s and 60s. My Papa would take me to Nobby Harness to buy a bridle or to repair a saddle. The wonderful smell of leather permeated the place. I remember an old cast iron stove for warmth in the winter. There was also a taxidermy display of a two-headed calf. Going to Nobby Harness shop is a fond memory for me.”
Wow! How well do you think a saddle shop would do downtown today? Before you answer, I happen to know Fort Worth holds the largest all-horse parade downtown yearly, going on 130 years now, as they welcome the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo to town. The streets fill with over 2,000 horses!
Hmm? I get it now! Giddy up!