This photograph is part of my mother's collection. The woman is my late Aunt Mamie, so you probably don't know her. What is neat about this picture, in my opinion, is the background. Look at that motorcycle. It's an old one, just how old I haven't a clue. Maybe some of you who are into motorcycles can tell us. Also, see the trolly on the right.
Next, look at the building. I don't remember it, but I've heard my parents mention it. Also, my husband recalls his mother and father going there on occasion to dance. The kids would play and have a good time while their parents socialized.
By now, you've probably figured out, unless you're a "young thing," that this picture was taken at Lake Wichita, year unknown. The building was called the Pavilion.
Curious to learn more about the history of he Pavilion, I looked it up and found the following:
"Lake Wichita, completed in 1901 at a cost of $175,000, has a surface area of 2,200 acres, a capacity of 14,000 acre-feet, and a drainage area of 143 square miles. In 1909 a trolley line connected the city of Wichita Falls with the lake, which featured a recreational area including the three-story colonnade pavilion. On August 2, 1912, at Dallas the Wichita Falls Water and Power Plant property, including the lake, was sold to a private business interest. Wichita Falls acquired the property by a bond issue on November 21, 1920. In 1921 the dirt dam was replaced by concrete.
"Although the Lakeside Hotel burned in 1918 and was not rebuilt, the resort was popular for twenty years. Large crowds came on special days, and trains were run from towns including Fort Worth. In 1928 and 1929 the chamber of commerce sponsored carnivals. The lake subsequently declined as a resort, and the abandoned pavilion remained standing until 1955. In 1966 the city began selling some of the lake water to a nearby generating plant. The lake continues to serve as a source of water for residents of Wichita Falls. "
BIBLIOGRAPHY: Louise Kelly,
WichitaCounty Beginnings (Burnet, Texas: Eakin Press, 1982). Wichita Falls
Times, May 15, 1957.
The following, adapted from the
Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this article.
Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. ","
http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/LL/rol85.html (accessed July 16, 2007).
(NOTE: "s.v." stands for sub verbo, "under the word.")
My notes:
What we can learn from one picture and a little research is amazing.