Ridgewood Park

Ridgewood Park

Ridgewood Park

Ridgewood Park looked much different in 1953 when Hal McGraw of McGraw Investments began to develop the area. The blocks bordered by Northwest Highway, Skillman, Lovers
Lane and Abrams were then the now defunct Mustang Airport. On the northwest corner of Northwest Highway and Abrams Road, one could enjoy pony rides at the horse farm there.
Abrams was a two-lane, unlit road much like Fisher Road, and since the railroad bridge over Abrams was not built until the early 1960s, one had to take their chances crossing the tracks
on Abrams. The houses along Trammel (FHA homes built just after World War II) were the only development nearby.

Longtime Ridgewood Park resident and Dallas native Bob Darrah reports that some of the land that is now Ridgewood Park was once comprised of dairy farms and ball fields.
Neighborhood legend has it that the development of Ridgewood Park was at least partially funded by horse racing winnings. This might explain why some streets in the
neighborhood (Santa Anita, Hialeah) are named after California horse racing tracks!

Original Ridgewood Park resident Fred Herold recalls his father's dairy farm that operated on what is now the corner of Hialeah and Fisher. Herold's parents lived in the white frame
house that still stands at the corner. The Herold's cows grazed on 30 acres and drank out of Rush Creek until 1945. After that, the Herolds were forced to close the dairy because
of the prohibitive expense of pasteurization equipment required by the City of Dallas.

Ridgewood Park developers gave the area a solid start by building high-quality brick homes on pier and beam foundations. Mostly ranch-style designs, the homes of Ridgewood Park are pristine examples of mid-1950s residential architecture. The layout of streets and alleys
insured that Ridgewood Park would have many unusually shaped lots. In some parts of the neighborhood developers planned for some residents to enjoy the coziness of not having alleys between lots, while others would be separated by a creek almost 50 feet wide.