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
