White Rock Valley Neighborhood Association

The History of Lake Highlands — First Half of the 20th Century

Aug 08, 2008

When you focus on one small area of place and time, you see all the details. And, there was much to see and admire in the fast growth of Dallas, Texas. With the railroad came industry, and prosperity. All of this attracted even more growth, and the cycle was perpetuated.
When we focus on a broader view of events around the world, we can see more in perspective, the growth of Texas, and we can understand the effect world-wide events had on current and future times. A look at the time line of events taking place at the beginning to the 20th century was awe inspiring.
In 1901, Paris, France hosted a world fair and the newly completed Eiffel Tower was the gateway to the event. Inventions and new products were on display to celebrate the achievements of the past century and to accelerate development into the next. Twenty-eight million visitors attended in the six months. There were wars, and isolated battles around the world in varying degrees of intensity. Queen Victoria of Great Brittan died at the time the UK was at its zenith; Victoria's reign was marked by a great expansion of the British Empire; during this period it reached its zenith, becoming the foremost global power of the time. It was said that the sun never set on the British Empire.
While history-making events occurred around the globe, Texas hosted one that was tragic in nature. Dallas?’ neighboring city located on the Gulf of Mexico, Galveston, was devastated by a hurricane on September 8, 1900. At the end of the 19th century, the city of Galveston was a wealthy booming metropolis with a population of 37,000. Its position on the natural harbor of Galveston Bay along the Gulf of Mexico made it the center of trade in Texas, and one of the largest cotton ports in the nation, in competition with New Orleans. The loss of life was measured between 6,000 and 8,000. Even today, this event holds the record as the United States' deadliest natural disaster.
In 1908, Dallas experienced a major flood. The Trinity River reached a depth of 52.6? feet and a width of 1.5? miles. Five people died, 4,000 were left homeless, and property damages were estimated at 2.5 million dollars. After the flood, the city began efforts to find a way to control the reckless Trinity and to build a bridge linking Oak Cliff and Dallas.
At the turn of the century, developer R.S. Munger began his dream of creating the most prestigious residential area in the Southwest. The result is Munger Place, a 140 acre community built between 1905 and the mid 1920's. It was to become a showcase for the nation's finest architects - a spectacular neighborhood where the city's affluent could entertain dignitaries from around the world. Here, Mr. Munger succeeded in capturing the magical spirit of this important time.
The Great Depression and World War II had dramatic impact on Munger Place, as the once stately neighborhood was transformed to meet the needs of a new era. Urbanization caused many homes to be abandoned to absentee landlords, who turned mansions into apartment houses, half-way house, brothels and even dog kennels.
In 1973, through the efforts of residents, the Historic Preservation League and the Design Division of the City Planning Department, a portion of Munger Place was designated as the first residential historic district. Bound by portions of LaVista, Swiss, Fitzhugh, Live Oak, Bryan Parkway and Bryan, the Swiss Avenue Historic District was now protected through rezoning and restrictive land-use ordinances.
During the first years of the century, events transpired in the transportation (continued on page 5)
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industry that set the direction for the future; the Wright brothers invented the airplane, and Henry Ford produces his first Model T that sold for $850. Texan?’s love affair with cars began.
Construction on White Rock Lake began in 1910 due to a city-wide water shortage, and was completed in 1911. The estimated cost of the dam and spillway project was $260,000. White Rock Lake is a man made reservoir and freshwater lake located in east Dallas, Texas and was used for a small portion of Dallas' drinking water and for condenser cooling at a steam-electric generating plant. The lake was formed by damming White Rock Creek, which today widens into the lake before continuing south out of the spillway and emptying into the Trinity River. The lake covers 1,254 acres in the east Dallas community. In 1929, its role as the main water supplier for the area was supplanted by Lake Dallas (now Lake Lewisville).
World War I, between the years 1914 and 1918 took place in Europe with the US maintaining a position of isolationism, until German U-boat sank the British liner Lusitania in 1915, with 128 Americans aboard. The United States declared war on Germany on April 6, 1917.
In 1930, Columbus Marion "Dad" Joiner struck oil 100? miles east of Dallas in Kilgore, spawning the East Texas oil boom. Dallas quickly became the financial center for the oil industry in Texas and Oklahoma. In the first months of 1931, 28 businesses either moved to or formed in Dallas for the oil. Banks made loans to develop the oil fields, and Dallas became the financial center for all oil fields in the Texas Panhandle, the Permian Basin, East Texas, Gulf Coast, and Oklahoma. This put off most thoughts of depression until the middle of 1931, when falling prices and overproduction affected the city economy negatively. By then, more than 18,000 people in the city were unemployed. Before the New Deal policy began, the city had a work-for-food program that helped many.
As the citizens of Dallas worked and prospered, the city continued to attract new residents to the community. As the twenty century reached toward the half-way mark, Dallas counted a population of 294,734 in 1940.

Note: Most of the information for this article was found on-line. I invite you to continue your research to learn more about your neighborhood.
Dana Kimbrough, Editor