{ "name": "Tyler, Then and Now: timeline", "factsCheckedOn": "2026-09-29", "range": { "from": 1847, "to": 2028, "today": 2026 }, "notes": [ "`when` is the date as the source gives it. `rulerYear` is only where the entry sits on the ruler (1847 to 2028): an entry dated before 1847, such as the April 11, 1846 authorization, sits at 1847.", "Entries with expected: true are dated after the day the facts were checked and are expectations, not records." ], "stops": [ { "year": 1847, "to": 1850, "title": "Twenty-eight blocks around a square", "dek": "A 100-acre site bought for $150 and laid out as a town.", "entries": [ { "when": "April 11, 1846", "rulerYear": 1847, "text": "Tyler is authorized. The Texas Legislature creates Smith County and its county seat, and the town is named for President John Tyler, for his support of admitting Texas to the Union.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-authorized-1846", "claim": "Tyler was authorized on April 11, 1846, when the Texas Legislature created Smith County and its county seat, and it was named for President John Tyler for his support of admitting Texas to the Union.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "National Register of Historic Places nomination, Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District (Texas Historical Commission Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000379/04000379.pdf" } ] } ] }, { "when": "February 6, 1847", "rulerYear": 1847, "text": "Commissioners buy a 100-acre site from Edgar Pollett (the downtown nomination spells it Pollitt) for $150 and lay out the town in 28 blocks around a central square.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-site-bought-1847", "claim": "On February 6, 1847, commissioners bought a 100-acre site from Edgar Pollett for $150 and laid out the town in 28 blocks around a central square.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" } ] }, { "id": "original-plat-street-names", "claim": "The 1847 townsite had five north-south avenues (Bois D'Arc, College, Broadway, Fannin and Spring) and four east-west streets (Locust, Ferguson, Erwin and Elm); College, Fannin, Ferguson and Erwin got those names later.", "caveat": "The nomination spells the seller 'Edgar Pollitt' and places the townsite in the Isaac Lollar survey; the Handbook spells him 'Edgar Pollett'.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The townsite included five streets—Bois D’Arc, College, Broadway, Fannin, and Spring Avenues— ... running north-south and four streets—Locust, Ferguson, Erwin, Elm—running east-west." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The original street names did not include College, Fannin, Ferguson, or Erwin. They were renamed later" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1847", "rulerYear": 1847, "text": "The townsite has five north-south avenues (Bois D’Arc, College, Broadway, Fannin and Spring) and four east-west streets (Locust, Ferguson, Erwin and Elm); College, Fannin, Ferguson and Erwin got those names later.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "original-plat-street-names", "claim": "The 1847 townsite had five north-south avenues (Bois D'Arc, College, Broadway, Fannin and Spring) and four east-west streets (Locust, Ferguson, Erwin and Elm); College, Fannin, Ferguson and Erwin got those names later.", "caveat": "The nomination spells the seller 'Edgar Pollitt' and places the townsite in the Isaac Lollar survey; the Handbook spells him 'Edgar Pollett'.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The townsite included five streets—Bois D’Arc, College, Broadway, Fannin, and Spring Avenues— ... running north-south and four streets—Locust, Ferguson, Erwin, Elm—running east-west." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The original street names did not include College, Fannin, Ferguson, or Erwin. They were renamed later" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1847", "rulerYear": 1847, "text": "The founders name the north-south roads avenues and the east-west roads streets. Downtown, the avenues measure 50 feet wide and the streets 35 feet.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "avenues-and-streets-widths", "claim": "Tyler's founders named its north-south roads avenues and its east-west roads streets; downtown, the avenues measure 50 feet wide and the streets 35 feet.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Tyler’s founders conceived of the north-south oriented roads as avenues and the east-west oriented roads as streets." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The north-south running avenues measure 50 feet wide, and the east-west running streets in the district measure 35 feet wide." } ] } ] }, { "when": "January 29, 1850", "rulerYear": 1850, "text": "Tyler is incorporated. It is the county seat of Smith County.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-incorporated-1850", "claim": "Tyler was incorporated on January 29, 1850, and is the county seat of Smith County.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The sources give the plat’s 100 acres, its 28 blocks, its central square and the names of its first streets, not a drawing of it. The map shows a schematic: a circle with the area of 100 acres and 28 numbered tiles around the square. The arrangement is ours." ] }, { "year": 1852, "to": 1858, "title": "The brick courthouse", "dek": "Log courthouses, then one of brick in the middle of the square, in use until 1908.", "entries": [ { "when": "1846 to 1848", "rulerYear": 1847, "text": "Smith County’s own history says its first courthouse was a log cabin on West Erwin Street in 1846, followed by a log courthouse on East Ferguson in 1847 and a 520-square-foot log courthouse on the square in 1848. The Handbook of Texas puts the first one on the north side of the square, and another in its center in 1847.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouses-county-sequence-1846-1848", "claim": "Smith County's own courthouse history says its first courthouse was a log cabin on West Erwin Street in 1846, followed by a log courthouse on East Ferguson in 1847 and a 520-square-foot log courthouse on the square in 1848; the Handbook and the downtown nomination place the first log courthouse on or north of the square.", "caveat": "Smith County's own history lists a log cabin on West Erwin Street (1846), a log courthouse on East Ferguson (1847) and a 520-square-foot log courthouse on the square (1848); the Handbook says the first log courthouse stood on the north side of the square and another was built in the center of the square in 1847.", "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "The first Smith County Courthouse was a log cabin on West Erwin Street in 1846. A year later, a new courthouse was constructed of logs on East Ferguson." }, { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "In 1848, a 520-square-foot log courthouse was built on the square." } ] }, { "id": "courthouse-log-to-brick-1852", "claim": "The Handbook of Texas says a log courthouse on the north side of the square served as meeting hall and church and another log courthouse was built in the center of the square in 1847; in 1852 the county built a two-story brick courthouse, 40 by 60 feet, in the middle of the square. Smith County's own history gives a different early sequence.", "caveat": "The downtown nomination says the brick courthouse came 'after two log building replacements'; the Handbook describes one log courthouse on the north side and another built in 1847 in the center.", "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "A log courthouse on the north side of the square served as the meeting hall and church." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "Another log courthouse was built in 1847 on the center of the Tyler square" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "it was replaced in 1852, when a new, larger brick courthouse was constructed on the same site." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The two-story edifice, which measured 40 feet by 60 feet, was situated in the middle of the square." } ] } ] }, { "when": "From 1848", "rulerYear": 1848, "text": "Marvin Methodist’s congregation, which the downtown nomination calls the first of any denomination organized in Smith County, meets in the log cabins on the courthouse square. The Handbook says a Methodist church was organized in 1846.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "marvin-methodist-first-congregation", "claim": "The downtown nomination calls Marvin Methodist's congregation the first of any denomination organized in Smith County; it met in the log cabins on the courthouse square starting in 1848.", "caveat": "The Handbook says a Methodist church was organized in 1846; the nomination says the congregation met on the square starting in 1848.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The first congregation of any denomination organized in Smith County, the group had been meeting in the log cabins on the courthouse square starting in 1848" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1849", "rulerYear": 1849, "text": "John Lollar sells land and reserves five acres for burials: Oakwood Cemetery, on North Palace Avenue at West Oakwood Street, which the Tyler MPS calls the town’s oldest. The first burials there are thought to date to 1846; the oldest marked grave is from 1852.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "oakwood-cemetery-1849", "claim": "The Tyler MPS calls Oakwood Cemetery, on North Palace Avenue at West Oakwood Street, Tyler's oldest cemetery and dates it to 1849, when John Lollar sold land and reserved five acres for burials, though it says the first burials there are thought to date to 1846; the oldest marked grave is from 1852.", "caveat": "The MPS also lists Oakwood as dating to 1846, the year of the first burials thought to have occurred there.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Tyler's oldest cemetery is Oakwood, established in 1849 when John Lollar sold his land including what is now Oakwood Cemetery and reserved five acres for \"burial purposes.\"" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "The oldest marked grave is that of four year old P.M. Scott who died in 1852" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1852", "rulerYear": 1852, "text": "The county builds its first brick courthouse in the middle of the square, two stories and 40 by 60 feet. The old log courthouse is moved and used as the jail.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouse-1852-brick-57-years", "claim": "Smith County's first brick courthouse, built in 1852 in the center of the square, was remodeled and expanded and served until 1908; the old log courthouse was moved and used as the jail.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "in 1852, the first brick courthouse was built in the center of the square. The log courthouse was moved and used as the jail." }, { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "The courthouse was remodeled and expanded, and was used for 57 years (until 1908)." } ] }, { "id": "courthouse-log-to-brick-1852", "claim": "The Handbook of Texas says a log courthouse on the north side of the square served as meeting hall and church and another log courthouse was built in the center of the square in 1847; in 1852 the county built a two-story brick courthouse, 40 by 60 feet, in the middle of the square. Smith County's own history gives a different early sequence.", "caveat": "The downtown nomination says the brick courthouse came 'after two log building replacements'; the Handbook describes one log courthouse on the north side and another built in 1847 in the center.", "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "A log courthouse on the north side of the square served as the meeting hall and church." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "Another log courthouse was built in 1847 on the center of the Tyler square" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "it was replaced in 1852, when a new, larger brick courthouse was constructed on the same site." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The two-story edifice, which measured 40 feet by 60 feet, was situated in the middle of the square." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1855 to 1858", "rulerYear": 1855, "text": "Alfred W. Ferguson builds five brick stores on the northwest side of the square, and Col. George Yarbrough a three-story dry-goods building on the northeast side.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "ferguson-yarbrough-stores-1855", "claim": "Between 1855 and 1858 Alfred W. Ferguson built five brick stores on the northwest side of the square, and Col. George Yarbrough built a three-story dry-goods building on the northeast side.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "Alfred W. Ferguson erected five brick stores on the northwest side of the square between 1855 and 1858" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "Col. George Yarbrough built a three-story building on the northeast side in which he operated a dry-goods store." } ] } ] }, { "when": "Until 1908", "rulerYear": 1858, "text": "Remodeled and expanded, the brick courthouse serves until 1908.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouse-1852-brick-57-years", "claim": "Smith County's first brick courthouse, built in 1852 in the center of the square, was remodeled and expanded and served until 1908; the old log courthouse was moved and used as the jail.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "in 1852, the first brick courthouse was built in the center of the square. The log courthouse was moved and used as the jail." }, { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "The courthouse was remodeled and expanded, and was used for 57 years (until 1908)." } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The brick courthouse stood in the middle of the square; it has no pin of its own. The square’s pin marks the block OpenStreetMap calls Tyler City Square, the western half of the old square." ] }, { "year": 1859, "to": null, "title": "Bonnie Castle on Broadway", "dek": "A house built in 1859; the city took ownership in 1940.", "entries": [ { "when": "1859", "rulerYear": 1859, "text": "Samuel Gallatin Smith builds the Goodman-LeGrand House at 624 N. Broadway as 'Bonnie Castle'.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "goodman-legrand-house-history", "claim": "The Goodman-LeGrand House at 624 N. Broadway was built in 1859 as 'Bonnie Castle' by Samuel Gallatin Smith, gained a second story in 1880, and got its circular porticos and two-story columns in a 1926 remodel; after Sallie Goodman-LeGrand died in 1939, the City of Tyler took ownership in 1940.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-06: Goodman Legrand One of Tyler's Oldest Properties Honors Family Legacy Lets Visitors Step Back in Time", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/06/goodman-legrand-one-of-tylers-oldest-properties-honors-family-legacy-lets-visitors-step-back-in-time/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-03-20: Tyler's 67th Azalea and Spring Flower Trail Opens with Ribbon Cutting and Celebration of New Ownership for Pyron Garden", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/03/20/tylers-67th-azalea-and-spring-flower-trail-opens-with-ribbon-cutting-and-celebration-of-new-ownership-for-pyron-garden/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1880", "rulerYear": 1880, "text": "The house gains a second story.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "goodman-legrand-house-history", "claim": "The Goodman-LeGrand House at 624 N. Broadway was built in 1859 as 'Bonnie Castle' by Samuel Gallatin Smith, gained a second story in 1880, and got its circular porticos and two-story columns in a 1926 remodel; after Sallie Goodman-LeGrand died in 1939, the City of Tyler took ownership in 1940.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-06: Goodman Legrand One of Tyler's Oldest Properties Honors Family Legacy Lets Visitors Step Back in Time", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/06/goodman-legrand-one-of-tylers-oldest-properties-honors-family-legacy-lets-visitors-step-back-in-time/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-03-20: Tyler's 67th Azalea and Spring Flower Trail Opens with Ribbon Cutting and Celebration of New Ownership for Pyron Garden", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/03/20/tylers-67th-azalea-and-spring-flower-trail-opens-with-ribbon-cutting-and-celebration-of-new-ownership-for-pyron-garden/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1926", "rulerYear": 1926, "text": "A remodel gives it circular porticos and two-story columns.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "goodman-legrand-house-history", "claim": "The Goodman-LeGrand House at 624 N. Broadway was built in 1859 as 'Bonnie Castle' by Samuel Gallatin Smith, gained a second story in 1880, and got its circular porticos and two-story columns in a 1926 remodel; after Sallie Goodman-LeGrand died in 1939, the City of Tyler took ownership in 1940.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-06: Goodman Legrand One of Tyler's Oldest Properties Honors Family Legacy Lets Visitors Step Back in Time", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/06/goodman-legrand-one-of-tylers-oldest-properties-honors-family-legacy-lets-visitors-step-back-in-time/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-03-20: Tyler's 67th Azalea and Spring Flower Trail Opens with Ribbon Cutting and Celebration of New Ownership for Pyron Garden", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/03/20/tylers-67th-azalea-and-spring-flower-trail-opens-with-ribbon-cutting-and-celebration-of-new-ownership-for-pyron-garden/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1939–1940", "rulerYear": 1940, "text": "Sallie Goodman-LeGrand dies in 1939, and the City of Tyler takes ownership in 1940.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "goodman-legrand-house-history", "claim": "The Goodman-LeGrand House at 624 N. Broadway was built in 1859 as 'Bonnie Castle' by Samuel Gallatin Smith, gained a second story in 1880, and got its circular porticos and two-story columns in a 1926 remodel; after Sallie Goodman-LeGrand died in 1939, the City of Tyler took ownership in 1940.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-06: Goodman Legrand One of Tyler's Oldest Properties Honors Family Legacy Lets Visitors Step Back in Time", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/06/goodman-legrand-one-of-tylers-oldest-properties-honors-family-legacy-lets-visitors-step-back-in-time/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-03-20: Tyler's 67th Azalea and Spring Flower Trail Opens with Ribbon Cutting and Celebration of New Ownership for Pyron Garden", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/03/20/tylers-67th-azalea-and-spring-flower-trail-opens-with-ribbon-cutting-and-celebration-of-new-ownership-for-pyron-garden/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "September 2025", "rulerYear": 2025, "text": "The house is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with free admission and a suggested $3 donation, and the Azalea Trail starts there. Check before you go: these are the hours as of September 2025.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "goodman-legrand-house-visiting", "claim": "As of September 2025 the Goodman-LeGrand House was open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with free admission and a suggested $3 donation, and the Azalea Trail starts there.", "caveat": "Hours and donation as of September 2025; re-check.", "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-06: Goodman Legrand One of Tyler's Oldest Properties Honors Family Legacy Lets Visitors Step Back in Time", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/06/goodman-legrand-one-of-tylers-oldest-properties-honors-family-legacy-lets-visitors-step-back-in-time/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-03-20: Tyler's 67th Azalea and Spring Flower Trail Opens with Ribbon Cutting and Celebration of New Ownership for Pyron Garden", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/03/20/tylers-67th-azalea-and-spring-flower-trail-opens-with-ribbon-cutting-and-celebration-of-new-ownership-for-pyron-garden/" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [] }, { "year": 1863, "to": 1865, "title": "Camp Ford", "dek": "Tyler in the Civil War: an ordnance plant and a prison camp.", "entries": [ { "when": "1862", "rulerYear": 1862, "text": "Gunsmiths J.C. Short and William S.N. Biscoe, with Col. George Yarbrough, found an ordnance plant in a two-story brick building on a 125-acre site, to make 5,000 rifles for Texas. It is sold to the Confederate government in October 1863.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "ordnance-plant-1862-1863", "claim": "Tyler's ordnance plant was founded in 1862 by gunsmiths J.C. Short and William S.N. Biscoe with Col. George Yarbrough, in a two-story brick building on a 125-acre site, to make 5,000 rifles for Texas; it was sold to the Confederate government in October 1863. A 1969 marker near the site stands in Bergfeld Park at South College and Fourth Street.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7763: Near Site of C.S.A. Ordnance Plant (1968 text, 1969 marker)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007763", "quote": "Founded 1862 by J.C. Short and Wm. S.N. Biscoe (both gunsmiths) and Col. Geo. Yarbrough. In 2-story brick building, on 125-acre site" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7763: Near Site of C.S.A. Ordnance Plant (1968 text, 1969 marker)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007763", "quote": "plant was sold in October 1863 to the Confederate government." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7763: Near Site of C.S.A. Ordnance Plant (1968 text, 1969 marker)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007763", "quote": "Marker Location Bergfield Park, South College at 4th St." } ] } ] }, { "when": "During the war", "rulerYear": 1863, "text": "The Handbook of Texas calls it the largest Confederate ordnance plant in Texas; a 1965 state marker on the courthouse grounds calls it the largest west of the Mississippi.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "civil-war-ordnance-plant-camp-ford", "claim": "During the Civil War, Tyler had the largest Confederate ordnance plant in Texas, and Camp Ford, four miles northeast of town, became a prisoner-of-war camp in 1863 and was the largest Confederate prison camp west of the Mississippi.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Camp Ford", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/camp-ford" }, { "title": "National Register of Historic Places nomination, Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District (Texas Historical Commission Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000379/04000379.pdf" } ] }, { "id": "smith-county-csa-activities", "claim": "A 1965 state marker on the courthouse grounds says Tyler's Confederate-era activity included a quartermaster depot, training camps, a transportation depot, a foundry, a general hospital and medical laboratories, and calls the ordnance plant the largest west of the Mississippi.", "caveat": "The Handbook calls it the largest Confederate ordnance plant in Texas; the 1965 marker says the largest west of the Mississippi River.", "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7759: Smith County, C. S. A. (1965)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007759", "quote": "The largest ordnance plant west of the Mississippi River manufactured \"Tyler Rifles\" near here." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7759: Smith County, C. S. A. (1965)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007759", "quote": "Other military activities here included a quartermaster depot, training camps, transportation depot, foundry, general hospital and medical laboratories." } ] } ] }, { "when": "July 21, 1863", "rulerYear": 1863, "text": "Camp Ford, a conscript-training camp four miles northeast of Tyler since 1862, named for Col. John S. (Rip) Ford, is ordered made a prison camp. It was the largest Confederate prison camp west of the Mississippi.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "camp-ford-origin-1862", "claim": "Camp Ford began in 1862 as a Confederate conscript-training camp four miles northeast of Tyler, named for Col. John S. (Rip) Ford; on July 21, 1863, the Trans-Mississippi Department ordered a prison camp there.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Camp Ford (F. Lee Lawrence)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/camp-ford", "quote": "In 1862 the Confederacy located a conscript-training camp four miles northeast of Tyler. The installation became known as Camp Ford, in honor of Col. John S. (Rip) Ford." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Camp Ford (F. Lee Lawrence)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/camp-ford", "quote": "On July 21, 1863, the Trans-Mississippi Department ordered the establishment of a prison camp at Camp Ford" } ] }, { "id": "civil-war-ordnance-plant-camp-ford", "claim": "During the Civil War, Tyler had the largest Confederate ordnance plant in Texas, and Camp Ford, four miles northeast of town, became a prisoner-of-war camp in 1863 and was the largest Confederate prison camp west of the Mississippi.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Camp Ford", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/camp-ford" }, { "title": "National Register of Historic Places nomination, Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District (Texas Historical Commission Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000379/04000379.pdf" } ] } ] }, { "when": "After mid-1863", "rulerYear": 1863, "text": "Tyler is the transportation headquarters of the Confederacy’s Trans-Mississippi Department, according to the 1968 City of Tyler marker on the courthouse lawn.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "trans-mississippi-transport-hq-1863", "claim": "After mid-1863 Tyler was the transportation headquarters of the Confederacy's Trans-Mississippi Department, according to the 1968 City of Tyler marker on the courthouse lawn.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7762: City of Tyler (1968)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007762", "quote": "After mid-1863 this was transportation headquarters for Trans-Mississippi Department of the Confederacy." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1864", "rulerYear": 1864, "text": "The stockade, built in November 1863 beside a spring, is doubled in size after about 3,000 prisoners arrive in April 1864; it holds 4,725 men that spring.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "camp-ford-stockade-1864", "claim": "Camp Ford's stockade, built in November 1863, enclosed two to four acres beside a spring; after about 3,000 prisoners arrived in April 1864 it was doubled in size, and it held 4,725 men that spring.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Camp Ford (F. Lee Lawrence)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/camp-ford", "quote": "a stockade was built enclosing an area of two to four acres. A large spring ran along the south wall of the stockade" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Camp Ford (F. Lee Lawrence)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/camp-ford", "quote": "The stockade area was doubled in size in an effort to accommodate this influx. The 4,725 inmates were overcrowded" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1864", "rulerYear": 1864, "text": "Under Lt. Col. G.H. Hill the ordnance plant has 150 to 200 workers; in three months of 1864 it makes 394,156 cartridges, 411 rifles and 3,531 canteens.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "ordnance-plant-workforce-output-1864", "claim": "Under Lt. Col. G.H. Hill the Tyler ordnance plant had 150 to 200 workers and shops for leather, tin and carpentry; in three months of 1864 it made 394,156 cartridges, 411 rifles and 3,531 canteens.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7763: Near Site of C.S.A. Ordnance Plant (1968 text, 1969 marker)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007763", "quote": "operated under command of Lt. Col. G.H. Hill, plant included leather shop, tin shop, dry kiln, carpenter shop. The 150 to 200 man work force" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7763: Near Site of C.S.A. Ordnance Plant (1968 text, 1969 marker)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007763", "quote": "During 3 months of 1864, products made were 394,156 cartridges, 411 rifles and 3,531 canteens; 160 guns were repaired." } ] } ] }, { "when": "May 17, 1865", "rulerYear": 1865, "text": "About 6,000 prisoners were held at Camp Ford over two years, and 286 died there. The last 1,200 leave for Shreveport; that July a Union cavalry detail destroys the compound.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "camp-ford-totals-1865", "claim": "About 6,000 prisoners were held at Camp Ford over two years, and 286 died there; the last 1,200 left for Shreveport on May 17, 1865, and a Union cavalry detail destroyed the compound that July.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Camp Ford (F. Lee Lawrence)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/camp-ford", "quote": "About 6,000 prisoners were confined at Camp Ford over the two years of its existence" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Camp Ford (F. Lee Lawrence)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/camp-ford", "quote": "Of this number, 286 died there." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Camp Ford (F. Lee Lawrence)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/camp-ford", "quote": "the 1,200 remaining prisoners left Camp Ford, on May 17, 1865, bound for Shreveport. The remains of the prison compound were destroyed in July" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1936 and 1969", "rulerYear": 1865, "text": "A 1969 marker near the ordnance plant’s site stands in Bergfeld Park at South College and Fourth Street. A 1936 Texas Centennial marker titled ‘Confederate Arms Factory’ stands at Mockingbird Lane and Robertson Street.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "ordnance-plant-1862-1863", "claim": "Tyler's ordnance plant was founded in 1862 by gunsmiths J.C. Short and William S.N. Biscoe with Col. George Yarbrough, in a two-story brick building on a 125-acre site, to make 5,000 rifles for Texas; it was sold to the Confederate government in October 1863. A 1969 marker near the site stands in Bergfeld Park at South College and Fourth Street.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7763: Near Site of C.S.A. Ordnance Plant (1968 text, 1969 marker)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007763", "quote": "Founded 1862 by J.C. Short and Wm. S.N. Biscoe (both gunsmiths) and Col. Geo. Yarbrough. In 2-story brick building, on 125-acre site" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7763: Near Site of C.S.A. Ordnance Plant (1968 text, 1969 marker)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007763", "quote": "plant was sold in October 1863 to the Confederate government." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7763: Near Site of C.S.A. Ordnance Plant (1968 text, 1969 marker)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007763", "quote": "Marker Location Bergfield Park, South College at 4th St." } ] }, { "id": "confederate-arms-factory-marker-1936", "claim": "A 1936 Texas Centennial marker titled 'Confederate Arms Factory' stands at Mockingbird Lane and Robertson Street in Tyler.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, historical marker 7714: Confederate Arms Factory (1936)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/5423007714", "quote": "Marker Title Confederate Arms Factory ... Address Mockingbird Lane and Robertson St. ... Marker Year 1936" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Today", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "The stockade’s site is Camp Ford Historic Park, owned by Smith County and managed by the Smith County Historical Society, on US Highway 271 about 0.8 miles outside Loop 323. It is free, dawn to dusk.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "camp-ford-historic-park", "claim": "The site of Camp Ford's stockade is now Camp Ford Historic Park, owned by Smith County and managed by the Smith County Historical Society, on US Highway 271 about 0.8 miles outside Loop 323; it has an interpretive kiosk and walking trail and is free from dawn to dusk.", "caveat": "The same Historical Society page also lists the park at 6600 US Highway 271.", "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County Historical Society, Camp Ford Historic Park", "url": "https://smithcountyhistoricalsociety.org/camp-ford/", "quote": "The site of the Camp stockade is now a public park, owned by Smith County, Texas, and managed by the Smith County Historical Society." }, { "title": "Smith County Historical Society, Camp Ford Historic Park", "url": "https://smithcountyhistoricalsociety.org/camp-ford/", "quote": "The Camp Ford Historic Park is located at 6500 US Highway 271, 0.8 miles outside Loop 323 in Tyler, Texas." }, { "title": "Smith County Historical Society, Camp Ford Historic Park", "url": "https://smithcountyhistoricalsociety.org/camp-ford/", "quote": "It is open daily from dawn until dusk and admission is free." } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The Camp Ford pin is where OpenStreetMap places the historic park. No source we have gives the camp’s bounds in 1863. The ordnance plant’s own site is not in our sources: its hollow pin, with the dotted ring, is the 1969 marker that stands near it." ] }, { "year": 1873, "to": 1880, "title": "The railroad", "dek": "A branch line from Troup, then the town’s own Tyler Tap, the start of the Cotton Belt.", "entries": [ { "when": "December 1, 1871", "rulerYear": 1871, "text": "The Tyler Tap Railroad is chartered by a special act of the legislature, after 23 Tyler citizens led by Richard B. Hubbard and Maj. James P. Douglas apply. It may build up to 40 miles, to a connection with another railroad.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "then-tyler-tap-chartered-1871", "claim": "The Tyler Tap Railroad was chartered on December 1, 1871, by a special act of the legislature after 23 Tyler citizens led by Richard B. Hubbard and Maj. James P. Douglas applied; it could build up to 40 miles to a connection with another railroad.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad (Vista K. McCroskey)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad", "quote": "The Tyler Tap Railroad Company was chartered on December 1, 1871, by a special act of the Twelfth Texas Legislature." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad (Vista K. McCroskey)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad", "quote": "Twenty-three prominent citizens of Tyler applied for the charter under the direction of future governor Richard B. Hubbard and Maj. James P. Douglas." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1872", "rulerYear": 1872, "text": "The International and Great Northern (then the Houston and Great Northern) bypasses Tyler, routing its main line through Troup, 19 miles southeast.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "first-railroad-troup-branch-1873", "claim": "The International and Great Northern (then the Houston and Great Northern) bypassed Tyler in 1872 by routing its main line through Troup, 19 miles southeast; after lobbying, Tyler got a branch from Troup, completed in April 1873 by one account and extended to Mineola in 1874.", "caveat": "Sources disagree on when the first railroad reached Tyler: the Tyler MPS says the I&GN (then the Houston and Great Northern) completed its line from Troup in April 1873, and the Handbook's Tyler Tap entry says the Houston and Great Northern 'built through Tyler' in 1873; the Handbook's Tyler entry says the Houston and Great Northern began service to Tyler in April 1874, and the downtown nomination says rail service reached Tyler in 1874.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "When in 1872 it was routed through Troup, 19 miles southeast ofTyler, Tylerites were sorely disappointed." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In April 1873, the I&GN completed a line to Tyler from Troup and the community had direct service." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "In April 1874, however, the Houston and Great Northern began service on their branch line to Tyler." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad (Vista K. McCroskey)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad", "quote": "In 1873 the Houston and Great Northern had built through Tyler on its route from Troup to Mineola." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1873 or 1874", "rulerYear": 1873, "text": "After lobbying, Tyler gets a branch from Troup. When it reached the town, the sources disagree: April 1873, by the Tyler MPS and the Handbook’s Tyler Tap entry; April 1874, by the Handbook’s Tyler entry; 1874, by the downtown nomination.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "first-railroad-troup-branch-1873", "claim": "The International and Great Northern (then the Houston and Great Northern) bypassed Tyler in 1872 by routing its main line through Troup, 19 miles southeast; after lobbying, Tyler got a branch from Troup, completed in April 1873 by one account and extended to Mineola in 1874.", "caveat": "Sources disagree on when the first railroad reached Tyler: the Tyler MPS says the I&GN (then the Houston and Great Northern) completed its line from Troup in April 1873, and the Handbook's Tyler Tap entry says the Houston and Great Northern 'built through Tyler' in 1873; the Handbook's Tyler entry says the Houston and Great Northern began service to Tyler in April 1874, and the downtown nomination says rail service reached Tyler in 1874.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "When in 1872 it was routed through Troup, 19 miles southeast ofTyler, Tylerites were sorely disappointed." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In April 1873, the I&GN completed a line to Tyler from Troup and the community had direct service." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "In April 1874, however, the Houston and Great Northern began service on their branch line to Tyler." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad (Vista K. McCroskey)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad", "quote": "In 1873 the Houston and Great Northern had built through Tyler on its route from Troup to Mineola." } ] }, { "id": "first-railroad-reached-tyler-1873", "claim": "The first railroad reached Tyler in 1873–74.", "caveat": "The source gives a span (1873–74), not a single year. Others differ: the 2001 Tyler cover document and the Handbook's Tyler Tap entry say April 1873; the Handbook's Tyler entry and the downtown nomination say April 1874.", "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad" }, { "title": "National Register of Historic Places nomination, Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District (Texas Historical Commission Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000379/04000379.pdf" } ] } ] }, { "when": "October 1, 1877", "rulerYear": 1877, "text": "The Tyler Tap’s only locomotive, the Governor Hubbard, brings the line’s first train into Tyler over 21 miles of three-foot-gauge track from Big Sandy (then Ferguson). The locally backed line grows into the Cotton Belt.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-tap-first-train-1877", "claim": "On October 1, 1877, the Tyler Tap's only locomotive, the Governor Hubbard, brought the line's first train into Tyler over 21 miles of three-foot-gauge track from Big Sandy; the company's offices stood northwest of the crossing of East Valentine and North Fannin streets.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad (Vista K. McCroskey)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad", "quote": "On October 1, 1877, the Tyler Tap's only locomotive, named the Governor Hubbard, steamed into Tyler with the line's first train." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad (Vista K. McCroskey)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad", "quote": "Company offices were located northwest of the crossing of East Valentine and North Fannin streets." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad (Vista K. McCroskey)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad", "quote": "the Tyler Tap selected a gauge of three feet" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad (Vista K. McCroskey)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad", "quote": "it took the company two years to build twenty-one miles of track to a connection with the Texas and Pacific at Big Sandy." } ] }, { "id": "tyler-tap-railroad-1877", "claim": "The locally backed narrow-gauge Tyler Tap Railroad, completed in 1877 to Ferguson (now Big Sandy), ran its first train into Tyler in 1877, and the line grew into the Cotton Belt (St. Louis Southwestern Railway).", "caveat": "This is the Tyler Tap's first train into Tyler, not the first railroad to reach Tyler (see first-railroad-reached-tyler-1873).", "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad" }, { "title": "National Register of Historic Places nomination, Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District (Texas Historical Commission Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000379/04000379.pdf" }, { "title": "Wikipedia: Cotton Belt Depot Museum", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton_Belt_Depot_Museum" } ] } ] }, { "when": "May 14, 1879", "rulerYear": 1879, "text": "By charter amendment the Tyler Tap becomes the Texas and St. Louis Railway, the beginning of the Cotton Belt. (The Tyler MPS says it was reorganized in the fall of 1878.)", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-tap-renamed-1879", "claim": "The Handbook of Texas says the Tyler Tap was renamed the Texas and St. Louis Railway Company by charter amendment on May 14, 1879 (the Tyler MPS says it was reorganized in the fall of 1878); the company is considered the beginning of the Cotton Belt.", "caveat": "The Tyler MPS says the Tyler Tap was reorganized as the Texas and St. Louis 'in the fall of 1878'.", "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad (Vista K. McCroskey)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad", "quote": "By charter amendment, the Tyler Tap was renamed the Texas and St. Louis Railway Company on May 14, 1879." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Tap Railroad (Vista K. McCroskey)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tap-railroad", "quote": "the company is considered to be the beginning of the St. Louis Southwestern Railway Company (Cotton Belt)." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1880s", "rulerYear": 1880, "text": "The Cotton Belt lays its tracks in an arc across the north edge of downtown; the International and Great Northern runs north-south along its eastern edge.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "downtown-rail-lines-shape", "claim": "The Cotton Belt laid its tracks east-west in an arc across the north edge of downtown, and the International and Great Northern (later Missouri Pacific) ran north-south along its eastern edge.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The Cotton Belt tracks were laid east-west through town, forming an arc across the northern extent of the central business district." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The north-south oriented International and Great Northern (MoPac) Railway extended its tracks along the eastern edge of downtown Tyler." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1880–1890", "rulerYear": 1880, "text": "An influx of railroad-shop workers nearly triples Tyler’s population between 1880 and 1890, the Handbook of Texas says. The census counts 2,423 people in 1880 and 6,908 in 1890.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "railroad-shop-workers-population-1880s", "claim": "The Handbook of Texas says an influx of railroad-shop workers nearly tripled Tyler's population between 1880 and 1890.", "caveat": "Covers the span 1880–1890.", "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" } ] }, { "id": "population-1880", "claim": "Tyler's population was 2,423 in the 1880 census.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "1880 Census, Vol. 1, Table III, Population of civil divisions less than counties, Texas (p. 348)", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1880/vol-01-population/1880_v1-12.pdf", "quote": "Tyler city ... 2,423" }, { "title": "1950 Census of Population, Vol. 1, Number of Inhabitants, Texas (Table 4, Population of incorporated places of 10,000 or more from earliest census to 1950)", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1950/population-volume-1/vol-01-46.pdf", "quote": "Tyler city: ... 1880 ... 2,423" } ] }, { "id": "population-1890", "claim": "Tyler's population was 6,908 in the 1890 census, up 185.1 percent from 1880.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "1950 Census of Population, Vol. 1, Number of Inhabitants, Texas (Table 4, Population of incorporated places of 10,000 or more from earliest census to 1950)", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1950/population-volume-1/vol-01-46.pdf", "quote": "Tyler city: ... 1890 ... 6,908 ... 4,485 ... 185.1" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "6,908 1890" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1888", "rulerYear": 1888, "text": "The Cotton Belt completes its first hospital for railroad workers at West Elm Street and its tracks; its wooden shops northeast of the square employ about 100 to 150 men.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "then-cotton-belt-hospital-1888", "claim": "The Cotton Belt's first hospital for railroad workers was completed in Tyler in 1888 at West Elm Street and the Cotton Belt tracks and operated for 17 years; the original wooden shops northeast of the square employed about 100 to 150 men.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "The original Cotton Belt hospital for railroad workers was completed at Tyler in 1888 (Anderson:36) and operated for 17 years at its West Elm and Cotton Belt tracks location" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Shops also were built at Tyler, northeast of the courthouse square, and about 100 to 150 men were employed in the original wooden shops" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1898", "rulerYear": 1898, "text": "The Cotton Belt begins burning crude oil in its locomotives, which the Tyler MPS calls the first railroad in the Southwest to use oil as fuel. New shops go up on the site of the wooden ones.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "cotton-belt-oil-fuel-1898", "claim": "In 1898 the Cotton Belt began burning crude oil in its locomotives, which the Tyler MPS, citing a railroad history, calls the first railroad in the Southwest to use oil as fuel; new shops were built in Tyler that year on the site of the wooden ones.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Cotton Belt was the first railroad in the southwest to use oil as fuel" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "That same year new shops were built at Tyler on the site of the original wood shops." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1904", "rulerYear": 1904, "text": "When the Cotton Belt announces it will move its headquarters and shops to Texarkana, the City of Tyler sues. The railroad loses and keeps its headquarters in Tyler.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "cotton-belt-headquarters-lawsuit-1904", "claim": "When Cotton Belt executives announced in 1904 that they would move the line's headquarters and shops to Texarkana, the City of Tyler sued; the railroad lost and had to keep its headquarters in Tyler.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "When Cotton Belt executives announced plans to relocate the line’s headquarters and shops to Texarkana in 1904, the City of Tyler sued the railroad" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Following a lengthy trial, the railroad lost and was forced to retain its headquarters in Tyler." } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The track on the map is the railroad as OpenStreetMap draws it today. Where it ran in a given year is on the historic map under the plate for that year, from the first Sanborn key map of 1889 on." ] }, { "year": 1881, "to": 1916, "title": "The jail on Erwin Street", "dek": "Built between 1880 and 1881 just east of the square; the county’s jail until 1916.", "entries": [ { "when": "September 1880 to April 1881", "rulerYear": 1881, "text": "The Smith County Jail goes up on East Erwin Street just east of the square: the county’s third jail, in use until 1916.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "then-smith-county-jail-1881", "claim": "The Smith County Jail, built between September 1880 and April 1881 on East Erwin Street just east of the square, served as the county's third jail until 1916; on March 9, 1916, the county sold it to Jefferson Y. Lewis for $1,800, and he made it the Lewis Hotel.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Smith County Jail (1881)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/96000937/96000937.pdf", "quote": "Constructed between September 1880 and April 1881, it served as the county's third jail until 1916." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Smith County Jail (1881)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/96000937/96000937.pdf", "quote": "the building occupies a narrow, deep lot just east of the public square and courthouse." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Smith County Jail (1881)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/96000937/96000937.pdf", "quote": "That same day, the county sold the 1881 jail to Jefferson Y. Lewis for $1,800. Lewis, bom in 1866, remodeled the building to be the Lewis Hotel." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Smith County Jail, 1881", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2096000937", "quote": "Address 309 Erwin St. City Tyler" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1897 and 1898", "rulerYear": 1897, "text": "According to the jail’s National Register nomination, a mob lynches an African American man held there in 1897, and in 1898 another mob shoots an Anglo American man to death in his cell.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "jail-mob-violence-1897-1898", "claim": "According to the jail's National Register nomination, a mob lynched an African American man held at the Smith County Jail in 1897, and in 1898 another mob shot an Anglo American man to death in his cell.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Smith County Jail (1881)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/96000937/96000937.pdf", "quote": "A mob lynched an African American man in 1897 and, in 1898, another mob shot an Anglo American man to death in his cell." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Smith County Jail, 1881", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2096000937", "quote": "Address 309 Erwin St. City Tyler" } ] } ] }, { "when": "May 1, 1909", "rulerYear": 1909, "text": "A mob breaks into the jail with sledgehammers, seizes Jim Hodge (the downtown nomination also spells it Hodges), held on a rape charge, and lynches him on the courthouse square. Later statements by his accuser led many to believe he was innocent.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "jim-hodge-lynching-1909", "claim": "On May 1, 1909, a mob broke into the Smith County Jail with sledgehammers, seized Jim Hodge, held on a rape charge, and lynched him on the courthouse square; later statements by his accuser led many to believe he was innocent. The MPS says the last lynching in Tyler occurred in the 1920s.", "caveat": "The downtown nomination spells the name 'Jim Hodges' in one citation and 'Jim Hodge' in another.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "in 1909 \"... a mob used sledge hammers to break into the Smith County Jail, seize Jim Hodge" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "who was held on a rape charge. Hodge was lynched on the courthouse square." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Lynchings continued through the early 20th century, with the last occurring in Tyler during the 1920s." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Smith County Jail (1881)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/96000937/96000937.pdf", "quote": "On 1 May 1909, a mob used sledge hammers to break the jail's fence, windows, and doors, seized Jim Hodge (arrested for rape) from incarceration and lynched him." } ] } ] }, { "when": "March 9, 1916", "rulerYear": 1916, "text": "The county sells the jail to Jefferson Y. Lewis for $1,800, and he makes it the Lewis Hotel.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "then-smith-county-jail-1881", "claim": "The Smith County Jail, built between September 1880 and April 1881 on East Erwin Street just east of the square, served as the county's third jail until 1916; on March 9, 1916, the county sold it to Jefferson Y. Lewis for $1,800, and he made it the Lewis Hotel.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Smith County Jail (1881)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/96000937/96000937.pdf", "quote": "Constructed between September 1880 and April 1881, it served as the county's third jail until 1916." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Smith County Jail (1881)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/96000937/96000937.pdf", "quote": "the building occupies a narrow, deep lot just east of the public square and courthouse." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Smith County Jail (1881)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/96000937/96000937.pdf", "quote": "That same day, the county sold the 1881 jail to Jefferson Y. Lewis for $1,800. Lewis, bom in 1866, remodeled the building to be the Lewis Hotel." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Smith County Jail, 1881", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2096000937", "quote": "Address 309 Erwin St. City Tyler" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1986 and 1996", "rulerYear": 1986, "text": "Historic Tyler, Inc., buys the building in 1986; it is listed on the National Register on August 22, 1996.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "smith-county-jail-historic-tyler-1986", "claim": "Historic Tyler, Inc., bought the 1881 jail in 1986, and it was listed on the National Register on August 22, 1996.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Smith County Jail (1881)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/96000937/96000937.pdf", "quote": "In 1986, Historic Tyler, Inc., purchased the building" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Smith County Jail, 1881", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2096000937", "quote": "Address 309 Erwin St. City Tyler Date Listed 8/22/1996" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [] }, { "year": 1888, "to": 1891, "title": "St. James C.M.E.", "dek": "A wooden church of 1888 or 1889 on North Border Avenue, bricked about 1920.", "entries": [ { "when": "1888 to 1891", "rulerYear": 1888, "text": "St. James C.M.E. Church goes up at 408 North Border Avenue as a wooden Gothic Revival church. Its cornerstones read 1888 and 1889; its 2004 National Register nomination says it was likely built between 1889 and 1891, under the Rev. I. S. Persons.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "st-james-cme-church", "claim": "St. James C.M.E. Church at 408 North Border Avenue, built in 1888 as a wooden Gothic Revival church and bricked between 1921 and 1929, is called by the Tyler MPS (2001) the only known surviving 19th-century African American church building in Tyler; it was listed on the National Register on August 20, 2004.", "caveat": "The church's cornerstones read 1889 and 1888.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "St. James was buih in 1888 as a wood Gothic Revival style church" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Between 1921 and 1929 the church was bricked" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "James C.M.E. is the only known surviving 19th century African American church building in Tyler" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: St. James Colored Methodist Episcopal Church", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000887", "quote": "Address 408 North Border Avenue City Tyler Date Listed 8/20/2004" } ] }, { "id": "st-james-cme-oldest-black-church-building-1891", "claim": "The St. James CME Church building at 408 North Border Avenue, likely built between 1889 and 1891 under the Rev. I. S. Persons and bricked and remodeled about 1920, is called by its 2004 National Register nomination the oldest surviving African American church in Tyler.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination: St. James Colored Methodist Episcopal Church (NR 04000887, 2004; THC Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000887/04000887.pdf", "quote": "the historic church building is the oldest surviving African American church in Tyler." }, { "title": "National Register nomination: St. James Colored Methodist Episcopal Church (NR 04000887, 2004; THC Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000887/04000887.pdf", "quote": "The Reverend I.S. Persons was a popular pastor who not only was responsible for the construction of the 1889-1891 church" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1894", "rulerYear": 1894, "text": "With help from St. James C.M.E., ministers of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church found Texas College, north of the city limits.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "texas-college-founded-north-of-city-1894", "claim": "Texas College was founded in 1894 by ministers of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church, with help from St. James C.M.E., on land north of the city limits, because Black Tylerites were restricted in where they could own property; its area was annexed to the city in 1936.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Texas College (Nancy Beck Young)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texas-college", "quote": "Texas College was established at Tyler in 1894 by ministers of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "Texas College was founded north of the Tyler city limits with assistance from Tyler's C.M.E. congregation at St. James C. M. E. Church." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "The area containing Texas College was finally annexed to the City of Tyler in 1936, as a result of the city's explosive growth during the oil boom." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1920s", "rulerYear": 1921, "text": "The church is bricked: about 1920, by its nomination; between 1921 and 1929, by the Tyler MPS.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "st-james-cme-church", "claim": "St. James C.M.E. Church at 408 North Border Avenue, built in 1888 as a wooden Gothic Revival church and bricked between 1921 and 1929, is called by the Tyler MPS (2001) the only known surviving 19th-century African American church building in Tyler; it was listed on the National Register on August 20, 2004.", "caveat": "The church's cornerstones read 1889 and 1888.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "St. James was buih in 1888 as a wood Gothic Revival style church" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Between 1921 and 1929 the church was bricked" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "James C.M.E. is the only known surviving 19th century African American church building in Tyler" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: St. James Colored Methodist Episcopal Church", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000887", "quote": "Address 408 North Border Avenue City Tyler Date Listed 8/20/2004" } ] }, { "id": "st-james-cme-oldest-black-church-building-1891", "claim": "The St. James CME Church building at 408 North Border Avenue, likely built between 1889 and 1891 under the Rev. I. S. Persons and bricked and remodeled about 1920, is called by its 2004 National Register nomination the oldest surviving African American church in Tyler.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination: St. James Colored Methodist Episcopal Church (NR 04000887, 2004; THC Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000887/04000887.pdf", "quote": "the historic church building is the oldest surviving African American church in Tyler." }, { "title": "National Register nomination: St. James Colored Methodist Episcopal Church (NR 04000887, 2004; THC Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000887/04000887.pdf", "quote": "The Reverend I.S. Persons was a popular pastor who not only was responsible for the construction of the 1889-1891 church" } ] } ] }, { "when": "2001 and 2004", "rulerYear": 2004, "text": "The Tyler MPS calls it the only known surviving 19th-century African American church building in Tyler, and its nomination the oldest surviving African American church in Tyler. It is listed on the National Register on August 20, 2004.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "st-james-cme-church", "claim": "St. James C.M.E. Church at 408 North Border Avenue, built in 1888 as a wooden Gothic Revival church and bricked between 1921 and 1929, is called by the Tyler MPS (2001) the only known surviving 19th-century African American church building in Tyler; it was listed on the National Register on August 20, 2004.", "caveat": "The church's cornerstones read 1889 and 1888.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "St. James was buih in 1888 as a wood Gothic Revival style church" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Between 1921 and 1929 the church was bricked" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "James C.M.E. is the only known surviving 19th century African American church building in Tyler" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: St. James Colored Methodist Episcopal Church", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000887", "quote": "Address 408 North Border Avenue City Tyler Date Listed 8/20/2004" } ] }, { "id": "st-james-cme-oldest-black-church-building-1891", "claim": "The St. James CME Church building at 408 North Border Avenue, likely built between 1889 and 1891 under the Rev. I. S. Persons and bricked and remodeled about 1920, is called by its 2004 National Register nomination the oldest surviving African American church in Tyler.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination: St. James Colored Methodist Episcopal Church (NR 04000887, 2004; THC Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000887/04000887.pdf", "quote": "the historic church building is the oldest surviving African American church in Tyler." }, { "title": "National Register nomination: St. James Colored Methodist Episcopal Church (NR 04000887, 2004; THC Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000887/04000887.pdf", "quote": "The Reverend I.S. Persons was a popular pastor who not only was responsible for the construction of the 1889-1891 church" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [] }, { "year": 1890, "to": 1935, "title": "Marvin Methodist", "dek": "A brick church of 1890 that the downtown nomination calls its district’s oldest building.", "entries": [ { "when": "1882", "rulerYear": 1882, "text": "Tyler’s first Immaculate Conception church is built at the northwest corner of North College Avenue and West Locust Street; many early parishioners are Irish railroad workers.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "immaculate-conception-1882-1935", "claim": "Tyler's first Immaculate Conception church was built in 1882 at the northwest corner of North College Avenue and West Locust Street; many early parishioners were Irish railroad workers, joined by the 1890s by Lebanese, Syrian, Hispanic and other immigrants. The present church at South Broadway and West Front Street was dedicated on March 17, 1935.", "caveat": "The diocese dates the parish to 1878; the MPS says it became a permanent parish in 1880. The MPS says the present church was built in 1934; the diocese says it was dedicated March 17, 1935.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "was buih in 1882 at the northwest comer of North College Avenue and West Locust Street." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "By the early 1890s Tyler's Irish Catholics were joined by growing numbers of Lebanese, Syrians, Hispanics, Germans, Poles," }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "which was built in 1934 at the southwest corner of South Broadway and West Front Street." }, { "title": "Diocese of Tyler, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception", "url": "https://www.dioceseoftyler.org/?p=1222", "quote": "Immaculate Conception Parish was established in 1878 and the present Immaculate Conception Church was dedicated on March 17, 1935." } ] } ] }, { "when": "April 11, 1887", "rulerYear": 1887, "text": "Congregation Beth El is founded and first meets in the Odd Fellows hall on the square; it dedicates its first temple at South College Avenue and University Place in 1889.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "congregation-beth-el-1887", "claim": "Congregation Beth El was founded on April 11, 1887, first met in the Odd Fellows hall on the square, and dedicated its first temple at South College Avenue and University Place in 1889; a second congregation, Ahavath Achim, formed in 1898.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "On April 1 1, 1887 Congregation Beth El was founded by the Lipstate, Lipshitz, Wadel, Goldstein, Goldstucker, A. Harris and Liebreich families." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "a lot was purchased at South College Avenue and University Place for the erection of the first temple, which was dedicated in 1889." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Congregation Ahavath Achim formed in 1898" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1890", "rulerYear": 1890, "text": "Marvin Methodist Episcopal Church, South, builds a brick church for $60,000 at the southwest corner of West Erwin Street and South Bois D’Arc Avenue.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "marvin-methodist-1890", "claim": "Marvin Methodist Episcopal Church, South, built in 1890 at the southwest corner of West Erwin Street and South Bois D'Arc Avenue for $60,000, is called by the downtown nomination the oldest building in the district and the only remaining 19th-century brick church in the city; it was listed on the National Register on November 15, 2000.", "caveat": "The downtown nomination's landmarks list says Marvin Methodist was listed in 2000 and the depot in 2000; the Atlas gives the depot's listing as August 8, 2001.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The oldest building in the Tyler Downtown Historic District and the only remaining nineteenth-century brick church in the city, Marvin Methodist Episcopal Church" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "In 1890, the church built a gothic revival edifice at the southwest corner of West Erwin Street and South Bois D’Arc Avenue. The new building cost $60,000" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Marvin Methodist Church, South", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2000001385", "quote": "Address 300 West Erwin Street City Tyler Date Listed 11/15/2000" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1891", "rulerYear": 1891, "text": "Bethlehem First Baptist, Tyler’s first Black Baptist congregation, builds a church on West Front Street that the Tyler MPS, citing the City of Tyler, calls the first brick church in Texas built by African Americans. It moves to West Lollar Street in 1933.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "bethlehem-baptist-brick-church-1891", "claim": "Bethlehem First Baptist, Tyler's first Black Baptist congregation, formed after the Civil War and first met in the basement of the Smith County Courthouse; in 1891 it built a church on West Front Street that the Tyler MPS, citing the City of Tyler, calls the first brick church in Texas built by African Americans. It held its last Front Street service in 1931 and built a new church on West Lollar Street in 1933.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "The first Baptist congregation was Bethlehem First Baptist, founded after the war" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "This congregation first worshiped in the basement of the Smith County Courthouse." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In 1891 the ... Bethlehem Baptist membership erected a new church on West Front Street, the first brick church in Texas to be built by African Americans" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "A new church was built in 1933 on West Lollar" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1913 and 1918", "rulerYear": 1913, "text": "First Baptist builds at the northwest corner of West Ferguson Street and North Bois D’Arc Avenue in 1913, and Christ Episcopal finishes its Gothic Revival church on South Bois D’Arc in 1918.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "first-baptist-church-1913", "claim": "First Baptist Church, organized in 1848 and first meeting in the log courthouse, built its Classical Revival church at the northwest corner of West Ferguson Street and North Bois D'Arc Avenue in 1913, after breaking ground in October 1911.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "built a new brick Classical Revival edifice (Resource 35, photo 23) on the northwest corner of West Ferguson Street and North Bois D’Arc Avenue in 1913." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "When the church first formed in 1848, members congregated in the log courthouse" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "They broke ground on the new building in October 1911." } ] }, { "id": "christ-episcopal-church-1918", "claim": "Christ Episcopal Church, begun as a mission in 1867, bought two lots in 1913 and completed its Gothic Revival church at 118 South Bois D'Arc Avenue in 1918, according to the downtown nomination's narrative (its inventory dates the church 1917).", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Christ Episcopal Church (Resource 93, photo 25), located at 118 South Bois D’Arc Avenue. Established as a mission in 1867" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "In 1913 ... the church purchased two lots, but construction of the new Gothic Revival church building was not completed until 1918." } ] } ] }, { "when": "March 17, 1935", "rulerYear": 1935, "text": "The present Immaculate Conception church, at South Broadway and West Front Street, is dedicated (the Tyler MPS says it was built in 1934).", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "immaculate-conception-1882-1935", "claim": "Tyler's first Immaculate Conception church was built in 1882 at the northwest corner of North College Avenue and West Locust Street; many early parishioners were Irish railroad workers, joined by the 1890s by Lebanese, Syrian, Hispanic and other immigrants. The present church at South Broadway and West Front Street was dedicated on March 17, 1935.", "caveat": "The diocese dates the parish to 1878; the MPS says it became a permanent parish in 1880. The MPS says the present church was built in 1934; the diocese says it was dedicated March 17, 1935.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "was buih in 1882 at the northwest comer of North College Avenue and West Locust Street." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "By the early 1890s Tyler's Irish Catholics were joined by growing numbers of Lebanese, Syrians, Hispanics, Germans, Poles," }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "which was built in 1934 at the southwest corner of South Broadway and West Front Street." }, { "title": "Diocese of Tyler, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception", "url": "https://www.dioceseoftyler.org/?p=1222", "quote": "Immaculate Conception Parish was established in 1878 and the present Immaculate Conception Church was dedicated on March 17, 1935." } ] } ] }, { "when": "November 15, 2000", "rulerYear": 2000, "text": "Marvin Methodist, which the downtown nomination calls the oldest building in the district and the only remaining 19th-century brick church in the city, is listed on the National Register.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "marvin-methodist-1890", "claim": "Marvin Methodist Episcopal Church, South, built in 1890 at the southwest corner of West Erwin Street and South Bois D'Arc Avenue for $60,000, is called by the downtown nomination the oldest building in the district and the only remaining 19th-century brick church in the city; it was listed on the National Register on November 15, 2000.", "caveat": "The downtown nomination's landmarks list says Marvin Methodist was listed in 2000 and the depot in 2000; the Atlas gives the depot's listing as August 8, 2001.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The oldest building in the Tyler Downtown Historic District and the only remaining nineteenth-century brick church in the city, Marvin Methodist Episcopal Church" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "In 1890, the church built a gothic revival edifice at the southwest corner of West Erwin Street and South Bois D’Arc Avenue. The new building cost $60,000" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Marvin Methodist Church, South", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2000001385", "quote": "Address 300 West Erwin Street City Tyler Date Listed 11/15/2000" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "Only Marvin Methodist is pinned. The other congregations’ sites are given as corners or streets, and their buildings have changed." ] }, { "year": 1894, "to": 1936, "title": "Texas College", "dek": "Founded in 1894 north of the city limits; annexed to the city in 1936.", "entries": [ { "when": "1894", "rulerYear": 1894, "text": "Ministers of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church found Texas College, with help from St. James C.M.E., on land north of the city limits, because Black Tylerites were restricted in where they could own property.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "texas-college-founded-north-of-city-1894", "claim": "Texas College was founded in 1894 by ministers of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church, with help from St. James C.M.E., on land north of the city limits, because Black Tylerites were restricted in where they could own property; its area was annexed to the city in 1936.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Texas College (Nancy Beck Young)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texas-college", "quote": "Texas College was established at Tyler in 1894 by ministers of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "Texas College was founded north of the Tyler city limits with assistance from Tyler's C.M.E. congregation at St. James C. M. E. Church." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "The area containing Texas College was finally annexed to the City of Tyler in 1936, as a result of the city's explosive growth during the oil boom." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1909 to 1912", "rulerYear": 1909, "text": "It is renamed Phillips University in 1909 and changes back to Texas College in 1912.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "texas-college-names-accreditation", "claim": "Texas College was renamed Phillips University in 1909 and changed back to Texas College in 1912; it was accredited as a junior college in 1924 and as a four-year senior college in 1932.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Texas College (Nancy Beck Young)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texas-college", "quote": "The school name was changed to Phillips University in 1909 and back to Texas College in 1912." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Texas College (Nancy Beck Young)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texas-college", "quote": "The school was accredited as a junior college by the state department of education in 1924, was accredited as a four-year senior college in 1932" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1924", "rulerYear": 1924, "text": "Martin Hall goes up for about $30,000, with a 1,000-seat auditorium; its National Register nomination calls it the only surviving intact 1920s school building in Tyler. The college is accredited as a junior college that year, and as a four-year senior college in 1932.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "martin-hall-1924", "claim": "Martin Hall at Texas College, built in 1924 for about $30,000 with a 1,000-seat auditorium and named for C.M.E. Bishop Joseph C. Martin, is the only surviving intact 1920s school building in Tyler, according to its National Register nomination; it was listed December 6, 2005.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "Martin Hall was built in 1924 on the then 101.25 acre campus of Texas College for the sum of about $ 30,000" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "a modem administration and classroom facility that also housed a 1,000 seat auditorium." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "is the only surviving intact example of a 1920s education building in the city." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Martin Hall at Texas College", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2005001404", "quote": "Date Listed 12/6/2005" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Martin Hall at Texas College", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2005001404", "quote": "Address 2404 North Grand Avenue" } ] }, { "id": "texas-college-names-accreditation", "claim": "Texas College was renamed Phillips University in 1909 and changed back to Texas College in 1912; it was accredited as a junior college in 1924 and as a four-year senior college in 1932.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Texas College (Nancy Beck Young)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texas-college", "quote": "The school name was changed to Phillips University in 1909 and back to Texas College in 1912." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Texas College (Nancy Beck Young)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texas-college", "quote": "The school was accredited as a junior college by the state department of education in 1924, was accredited as a four-year senior college in 1932" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1936", "rulerYear": 1936, "text": "The college’s area is annexed to the city.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "texas-college-founded-north-of-city-1894", "claim": "Texas College was founded in 1894 by ministers of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church, with help from St. James C.M.E., on land north of the city limits, because Black Tylerites were restricted in where they could own property; its area was annexed to the city in 1936.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Texas College (Nancy Beck Young)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texas-college", "quote": "Texas College was established at Tyler in 1894 by ministers of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "Texas College was founded north of the Tyler city limits with assistance from Tyler's C.M.E. congregation at St. James C. M. E. Church." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "The area containing Texas College was finally annexed to the City of Tyler in 1936, as a result of the city's explosive growth during the oil boom." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1946 to 1966", "rulerYear": 1946, "text": "Texas College houses one campus of Tyler Junior College.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "texas-college-housed-tjc-campus", "claim": "Texas College housed one campus of Tyler Junior College from 1946 to 1966.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Texas College (Nancy Beck Young)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texas-college", "quote": "The college housed one campus of the Tyler Junior College between 1946 and 1966." } ] } ] }, { "when": "About 1948", "rulerYear": 1948, "text": "The D. R. Glass Library is built, likely designed by the noted African American firm McKissack & McKissack of Nashville or a subcontractor under its supervision, according to its National Register nomination.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "glass-library-mckissack", "claim": "The D. R. Glass Library at Texas College, built about 1948, was likely designed by the noted African American firm McKissack & McKissack of Nashville or a subcontractor under its supervision, according to its National Register nomination; it was listed on March 7, 2007.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, D. R. Glass Library at Texas College (2007)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/07000128/07000128.pdf", "quote": "Built ca. 1948, the D. R. Glass Library at Texas College (Photo 1) is a good local example of a Classical Revival influenced education building" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, D. R. Glass Library at Texas College (2007)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/07000128/07000128.pdf", "quote": "the noted African American architectural firm of McKissack & McKissack of Nashville, Tennessee" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: D. R. Glass Library at Texas College", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2007000128", "quote": "Date Listed 3/7/2007" } ] } ] }, { "when": "About 2005", "rulerYear": 2005, "text": "The campus, about two miles northwest of the square at North Grand Avenue and Barrett Street, once covered more than 101 acres; after the sale of 77 acres it covers 24.5.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "texas-college-campus-shrank", "claim": "Texas College's campus, about two miles northwest of the square at North Grand Avenue and Barrett Street, once covered more than 101 acres; after the sale of 77 acres it covered 24.5 acres.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "campus, which lies just north of the intersection of North Grand Avenue and Barrett Street" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "The campus is about two miles northwest of the courthouse square." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, D. R. Glass Library at Texas College (2007)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/07000128/07000128.pdf", "quote": "the sale of 77 acres of the original campus" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Martin Hall at Texas College (2005)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/05001404/05001404.pdf", "quote": "Martin Hall sits amid the 24.5 acre campus of Texas College" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The pin and outline are the campus as OpenStreetMap draws it today, after the land sales the sources describe." ] }, { "year": 1904, "to": 1934, "title": "The Carnegie Library", "dek": "Tyler’s first public library, built by 1904 with a $15,000 Carnegie grant.", "entries": [ { "when": "By 1904", "rulerYear": 1904, "text": "Tyler’s first public library, the Carnegie Library at 125 South College Avenue, is built with a $15,000 Carnegie grant and opens with 12,000 books. It is the 15th of 34 Carnegie libraries in Texas, designed by Patton & Miller of Chicago.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "carnegie-library-1904", "claim": "Tyler's first public library, the Carnegie Library at 125 South College Avenue, had been built by 1904 with a $15,000 Carnegie grant and held 12,000 books when it opened; it was the 15th of 34 Carnegie libraries in Texas, designed by Patton & Miller of Chicago.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "the city’s first public library, Carnegie Library (Resource 94, photo 19, fig. 9), had been constructed on the adjacent lot. With a $15,000 grant from philanthropist Andrew Carnegie" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The fifteenth of 34 Carnegie libraries in Texas, the Tyler Carnegie Library had two large rooms on the first floor and an auditorium—Carnegie Hall—on the second." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The Chicago-based architecture firm Patton & Miller designed the library" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1934", "rulerYear": 1934, "text": "It doubles in size with a Public Works Administration grant. The Smith County Historical Society says it was the first building in downtown Tyler with running water.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "carnegie-library-running-water-1934-addition", "claim": "According to the Smith County Historical Society, the Carnegie Library was the first building in downtown Tyler with running water; it doubled in size in 1934 with a Public Works Administration grant and has housed the historical society since the mid-1980s.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "According to the Smith County Historical Society, the Carnegie Library was the first building in downtown Tyler to have running water." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The building doubled in size in 1934, funded by a Public Works Administration grant." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The Carnegie Library has served as the home of the Smith County Historical Society since the mid-1980s." } ] } ] }, { "when": "March 26, 1979", "rulerYear": 1979, "text": "It is listed on the National Register.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "carnegie-library-national-register-1979", "claim": "The Carnegie Public Library was listed on the National Register on March 26, 1979.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Carnegie Public Library", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2079003007", "quote": "Address 125 S. College St. City Tyler Date Listed 3/26/1979" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Since the mid-1980s", "rulerYear": 1985, "text": "It has housed the Smith County Historical Society.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "carnegie-library-running-water-1934-addition", "claim": "According to the Smith County Historical Society, the Carnegie Library was the first building in downtown Tyler with running water; it doubled in size in 1934 with a Public Works Administration grant and has housed the historical society since the mid-1980s.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "According to the Smith County Historical Society, the Carnegie Library was the first building in downtown Tyler to have running water." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The building doubled in size in 1934, funded by a Public Works Administration grant." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The Carnegie Library has served as the home of the Smith County Historical Society since the mid-1980s." } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [] }, { "year": 1905, "to": null, "title": "The Cotton Belt Depot", "dek": "The depot at 210 E. Oakwood St.: built by the railroad in 1905, given to the city in 1986 or 1988, reopened in 2003.", "entries": [ { "when": "1905", "rulerYear": 1905, "text": "The St. Louis Southwestern Railway, known as the Cotton Belt, builds the brick passenger depot on the north side of Oakwood Street, after the Texas Railroad Commission orders it to replace its 1880s frame depot at the southwest corner of Oakwood (then Common) Street and Fannin Avenue.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "cotton-belt-depot-built-1905", "claim": "The Cotton Belt Depot at 210 E. Oakwood St. was built in 1905 by the St. Louis Southwestern Railway, known as the Cotton Belt, and passenger service ended in April 1956.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Wikipedia: Cotton Belt Depot Museum", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton_Belt_Depot_Museum" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Wikipedia: National Register of Historic Places listings in Smith County, Texas", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Register_of_Historic_Places_listings_in_Smith_County,_Texas" } ] }, { "id": "cotton-belt-depot-ordered-1905", "claim": "The 1905 brick passenger depot on the north side of Oakwood Street was built after the Texas Railroad Commission ordered the Cotton Belt to replace its 1880s frame depot at the southwest corner of Oakwood (then Common) Street and Fannin Avenue.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "the Texas Railroad Commission ordered the Cotton Belt to build a new passenger depot" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "replace the old 1880s frame building located at the southwest corner of Oakwood Street (then Common Street) and Fannin Avenue" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "In 1905, the railroad company constructed a new brick passenger depot" } ] } ] }, { "when": "For a few years", "rulerYear": 1905, "text": "The depot is shared with the International and Great Northern, which later builds its own depot on North Fannin Avenue between Ferguson and Locust streets.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "depot-shared-ign-separate-depot", "claim": "The 1905 Cotton Belt depot, just south of the Cotton Belt tracks and west of the I&GN tracks, was shared with the I&GN for a few years; the I&GN later built its own depot on North Fannin Avenue between Ferguson and Locust streets.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Sharing the space for a few years with the I & GN, the depot is just south of the Cotton Belt tracks and just west of the I&GN tracks." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Eventually the I&GN built a separate depot on North Fannin Avenue between Ferguson and Locust streets." } ] } ] }, { "when": "Before 1900", "rulerYear": 1905, "text": "Across Oakwood Street lies the Levee, a rail business district named for a levee the Cotton Belt built north of its tracks, with hotels, restaurants and stores serving trainmen and travelers. The Tyler MPS says none of the buildings it names survive.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "the-levee-district", "claim": "The Levee, a rail business district across Oakwood Street from the depot, took its name from a levee the Cotton Belt built north of its tracks; established before 1900, it had hotels, restaurants and stores serving trainmen and travelers, and the Tyler MPS says none of the barber shop, hotel and restaurant buildings it names survive.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "The Levee, the small rail serving business district south of the Cotton Belt tracks across from the depot" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Named The Levee because the Cotton Belt had built a levee on the north side of their tracks to contain standing water and runoff" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "three other restaurants, two of which were operated by families from Syria or Lebanon; none of these buildings remain." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1910", "rulerYear": 1910, "text": "The Cotton Belt spends $200,000 to more than double its Tyler shops, just northeast of the square.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "cotton-belt-shops-enlarged-1910", "claim": "In 1910 the Cotton Belt spent $200,000 to more than double its Tyler shops, just northeast of the square; the shops and roundhouse stood north of the tracks, and the depot and a commercial strip called the Levee south of them.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Then five years later, at a cost of $200,000 the Cotton Belt enlarged its shops, situated just east of the historic district boundary, more than doubling their capacity." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "with the shops and roundhouse north of the tracks and the rail’s commercial facilities—known as the Levee— and depot south of the tracks." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1923 to 1935", "rulerYear": 1923, "text": "The Cotton Belt employs 1,543 people in Tyler in 1923, with a $2.29 million payroll; 1,055 in 1927; 711 in 1935.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "cotton-belt-employment-1923-1935", "claim": "The Cotton Belt employed 1,543 people in Tyler in 1923, with a $2.29 million payroll; that fell to 1,055 in 1927 and 711 in 1935. At its peak it provided more than 1,500 Tyler jobs.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In 1923 the railroad had a Tyler payroll of $2,290,000 and employed 1,543 people. By 1927 the number of employees had dropped to 1,055" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "by 1935 employment and payroll had further dropped to 711 people" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "providing more than 1,500 jobs at the peak of its prosperity." } ] } ] }, { "when": "For 50 years", "rulerYear": 1955, "text": "The depot has separate waiting rooms for white and Black passengers.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "cotton-belt-depot-segregated-1986", "claim": "For 50 years the Cotton Belt depot had separate waiting rooms for white and Black passengers; after passenger service ended in 1956 it handled only freight and storage, and the downtown nomination says rail operations ended in 1986, when the railroad donated it to the city (another source gives 1988).", "caveat": "Existing fact cotton-belt-depot-donated-reopened-national-register says the depot was donated in 1988; the downtown nomination says 1986.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "For 50 years the passenger depot operated with segregated waiting rooms for white people and “colored” people." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The depot’s rail-related operations came to a halt in 1986, at which point the railroad donated the depot to the City of Tyler." } ] } ] }, { "when": "April 22, 1956", "rulerYear": 1956, "text": "The last Cotton Belt passenger train passes through Tyler, ending just over 83 years of direct passenger rail service.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "last-passenger-train-1956", "claim": "The last Cotton Belt passenger train passed through Tyler on April 22, 1956, ending just over 83 years of direct passenger rail service.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "On April 22, 1956 the last passenger train passed through Tyler on the Cotton Belt line, ending just over 83 years of direct passenger rail service." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1986 or 1988", "rulerYear": 1986, "text": "After years of freight and storage, the railroad gives the depot to the City of Tyler: in 1986, by the downtown nomination; in 1988, by other sources.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "cotton-belt-depot-segregated-1986", "claim": "For 50 years the Cotton Belt depot had separate waiting rooms for white and Black passengers; after passenger service ended in 1956 it handled only freight and storage, and the downtown nomination says rail operations ended in 1986, when the railroad donated it to the city (another source gives 1988).", "caveat": "Existing fact cotton-belt-depot-donated-reopened-national-register says the depot was donated in 1988; the downtown nomination says 1986.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "For 50 years the passenger depot operated with segregated waiting rooms for white people and “colored” people." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The depot’s rail-related operations came to a halt in 1986, at which point the railroad donated the depot to the City of Tyler." } ] }, { "id": "cotton-belt-depot-donated-reopened-national-register", "claim": "The Cotton Belt Depot was donated to the City of Tyler in 1988 and reopened after a major renovation in 2003; it was listed on the National Register on August 8, 2001.", "caveat": "Sources differ on the donation year: 1988 here; the 2022 Downtown Tyler Historic District nomination says 1986. Show both or omit the year.", "sources": [ { "title": "Wikipedia: Cotton Belt Depot Museum", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton_Belt_Depot_Museum" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Wikipedia: National Register of Historic Places listings in Smith County, Texas", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Register_of_Historic_Places_listings_in_Smith_County,_Texas" } ] } ] }, { "when": "August 8, 2001", "rulerYear": 2001, "text": "It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "cotton-belt-depot-donated-reopened-national-register", "claim": "The Cotton Belt Depot was donated to the City of Tyler in 1988 and reopened after a major renovation in 2003; it was listed on the National Register on August 8, 2001.", "caveat": "Sources differ on the donation year: 1988 here; the 2022 Downtown Tyler Historic District nomination says 1986. Show both or omit the year.", "sources": [ { "title": "Wikipedia: Cotton Belt Depot Museum", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton_Belt_Depot_Museum" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Wikipedia: National Register of Historic Places listings in Smith County, Texas", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Register_of_Historic_Places_listings_in_Smith_County,_Texas" } ] } ] }, { "when": "2003", "rulerYear": 2003, "text": "It reopens after a major renovation.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "cotton-belt-depot-donated-reopened-national-register", "claim": "The Cotton Belt Depot was donated to the City of Tyler in 1988 and reopened after a major renovation in 2003; it was listed on the National Register on August 8, 2001.", "caveat": "Sources differ on the donation year: 1988 here; the 2022 Downtown Tyler Historic District nomination says 1986. Show both or omit the year.", "sources": [ { "title": "Wikipedia: Cotton Belt Depot Museum", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton_Belt_Depot_Museum" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Wikipedia: National Register of Historic Places listings in Smith County, Texas", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Register_of_Historic_Places_listings_in_Smith_County,_Texas" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Today", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "Tyler Transit uses the old waiting area, and the Cotton Belt Depot Museum fills the former baggage area, centered on Clyde Bragg’s model-train collection.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "cotton-belt-depot-today", "claim": "Tyler Transit uses the depot's old waiting area, and the Cotton Belt Depot Museum fills the former baggage area, centered on Clyde Bragg's model-train collection.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Wikipedia: Cotton Belt Depot Museum", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton_Belt_Depot_Museum" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Wikipedia: National Register of Historic Places listings in Smith County, Texas", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Register_of_Historic_Places_listings_in_Smith_County,_Texas" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The pin is the geocode of 210 E. Oakwood St. from OpenStreetMap’s address data, so it is right to the block, not to the building. OpenStreetMap does not map the depot by name." ] }, { "year": 1906, "to": 1913, "title": "Bergfeld Park", "dek": "A plat, a deed with a deadline, and a purchase.", "entries": [ { "when": "1906", "rulerYear": 1906, "text": "Rudolph Bergfeld sets aside the land for Bergfeld Park in a plat.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "bergfeld-park-plat-1906-deed-1909", "claim": "Rudolph Bergfeld set aside the land for Bergfeld Park in a 1906 plat and deeded it to the city in 1909 on condition that park work begin within six months.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-07: How the Bergfeld Legacy Continues to Shape Tyler", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/07/how-the-bergfeld-legacy-continues-to-shape-tyler/" }, { "title": "Tyler Parks and Recreation: Bergfeld Park", "url": "https://www.tylerparksandrec.com/Parks-Trails/Parks-and-Trails/Bergfeld-Park" }, { "title": "Tyler Texas Online: Hiking trails and parks", "url": "https://www.tylertexasonline.com/tyler-texas-hiking-trails-parks.htm" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1909", "rulerYear": 1909, "text": "He deeds it to the city, on condition that park work begin within six months.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "bergfeld-park-plat-1906-deed-1909", "claim": "Rudolph Bergfeld set aside the land for Bergfeld Park in a 1906 plat and deeded it to the city in 1909 on condition that park work begin within six months.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-07: How the Bergfeld Legacy Continues to Shape Tyler", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/07/how-the-bergfeld-legacy-continues-to-shape-tyler/" }, { "title": "Tyler Parks and Recreation: Bergfeld Park", "url": "https://www.tylerparksandrec.com/Parks-Trails/Parks-and-Trails/Bergfeld-Park" }, { "title": "Tyler Texas Online: Hiking trails and parks", "url": "https://www.tylertexasonline.com/tyler-texas-hiking-trails-parks.htm" } ] } ] }, { "when": "After the deadline", "rulerYear": 1913, "text": "When the park-work deadline has passed, Bergfeld offers to sell the land for $4,000. Our sources do not date the offer.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "bergfeld-park-bought-1913", "claim": "When the park-work deadline passed, Bergfeld offered to sell the Bergfeld Park land for $4,000, and the city council approved the purchase on June 21, 1913.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-07: How the Bergfeld Legacy Continues to Shape Tyler", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/07/how-the-bergfeld-legacy-continues-to-shape-tyler/" }, { "title": "Tyler Parks and Recreation: Bergfeld Park", "url": "https://www.tylerparksandrec.com/Parks-Trails/Parks-and-Trails/Bergfeld-Park" }, { "title": "Tyler Texas Online: Hiking trails and parks", "url": "https://www.tylertexasonline.com/tyler-texas-hiking-trails-parks.htm" } ] } ] }, { "when": "June 21, 1913", "rulerYear": 1913, "text": "The city council approves the purchase.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "bergfeld-park-bought-1913", "claim": "When the park-work deadline passed, Bergfeld offered to sell the Bergfeld Park land for $4,000, and the city council approved the purchase on June 21, 1913.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-07: How the Bergfeld Legacy Continues to Shape Tyler", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/07/how-the-bergfeld-legacy-continues-to-shape-tyler/" }, { "title": "Tyler Parks and Recreation: Bergfeld Park", "url": "https://www.tylerparksandrec.com/Parks-Trails/Parks-and-Trails/Bergfeld-Park" }, { "title": "Tyler Texas Online: Hiking trails and parks", "url": "https://www.tylertexasonline.com/tyler-texas-hiking-trails-parks.htm" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1934 and 1936", "rulerYear": 1936, "text": "The park, first called South Side Park, hosts the Texas Rose Festival’s coronation in 1934, and gains a stone amphitheater built with $10,000 given in 1936 by Sears, Roebuck president Robert Wood.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "bergfeld-park-amphitheater-1936", "claim": "Bergfeld Park, first called South Side Park, gained a stone amphitheater built with $10,000 given in 1936 by Sears, Roebuck president Robert Wood, and hosted the Texas Rose Festival's coronation in 1934.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Originally called South Side Park, in time it was renamed Bergfeld Park in honor of its progenitor." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "a stone amphitheater built with $10,000 donated in 1936 by Robert Wood, president of Sears Roebuck &" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "The park was the site of the Texas Rose Festival's coronation of King and Queen in 1934" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [] }, { "year": 1910, "to": 1955, "title": "The courthouse in the square", "dek": "Dedicated in 1910 in the middle of the square, where Broadway now runs; torn down in the 1950s.", "entries": [ { "when": "1888 to 1908", "rulerYear": 1888, "text": "Residents form the Tyler Electric Light and Power Company in 1888. By 1908 the Tyler Gas Company, set up in 1907, lights the fixtures around the square, and the city engineer builds concrete sidewalks on North Spring Avenue.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "utilities-1888-1908", "claim": "A group of residents formed the Tyler Electric Light and Power Company in 1888; the Tyler Gas Company, set up in 1907, was lighting fixtures around the square by 1908, the year the city engineer built concrete sidewalks on North Spring Avenue.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "A group of residents formed the Tyler Electric Light and Power Company in 1888." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "That same year, Tyler Gas Company—which had been established the year prior—provided gas, heat, and power to local customers and fueled the fixtures around the courthouse square." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The City Engineer also had new concrete sidewalks built on North Spring Avenue in 1908" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1895 to 1912", "rulerYear": 1895, "text": "A footnote in the downtown nomination counts three documented lynchings at the courthouse square between 1895 and 1912, none of which led to arrests or prosecution, and says newspapers of the period suggest there were others; the jail’s nomination says a district judge ordered many of the 1909 mob arrested.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouse-square-lynchings", "claim": "A footnote in the downtown nomination says three documented lynchings took place at the Tyler courthouse square between 1895 and 1912, that newspapers of the period suggest there were others, and that none led to arrests or prosecution; the Smith County Jail nomination says a district judge ordered many of the 1909 mob arrested.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Three documented lynchings took place at the Tyler courthouse square between 1895 and 1912, and newspaper articles from the period suggest there were others." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "These murders resulted in no legal prosecution nor arrests." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1906 and 1907", "rulerYear": 1906, "text": "According to the Tyler MPS, paving begins on July 2, 1906, with Thurber red brick at railroad crossings; the streets around the square follow in 1907 with brick from the Mineral Wells Brick Co. The Sanborn map dated September 1907 says ‘streets not paved.’ The Tyler Morning Telegraph, in 2015, put the first brick streets around 1912.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "brick-paving-began-july-2-1906-mps", "claim": "According to the Tyler MPS, paving began on July 2, 1906, with Thurber red brick laid at railroad crossings by contractors Allen and Harrison; streets around the square followed in 1907 with brick from the Mineral Wells Brick Co.", "caveat": "The existing fact brick-paving-began-1906-nomination (Brick Streets nomination) says the 1906 crossings used Thurber brick, consistent with this; the Tyler Morning Telegraph (2015) puts the first brick streets around 1912. Attribute the July 2, 1906 date to the MPS.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "on July 2, 1906, the first paving began with red brick from Thurber, Texas. Allen and Harrison, were the contractors, laying red brick at the crossings." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In 1907 streets around the square were paved using red brick made of heat treated clay manufactured at the Mineral Wells Brick Co." } ] }, { "id": "sanborn-1907-streets-not-paved", "claim": "The Sanborn fire insurance map of Tyler dated September 1907 says on its first sheet: 'Grades generally level. streets not paved.'", "caveat": "The National Register documents (2000, 2003) say the streets around the courthouse square were paved in 1907, and the 2000 survey dates the first paving (railroad crossings) to July 2, 1906; see sanborn-1907-vs-national-register-square.", "sources": [ { "title": "Library of Congress, Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Tyler, Smith County, Texas, Sept. 1907, sheet 1", "url": "https://www.loc.gov/item/sanborn08793_006/", "quote": "Grades generally level. streets not paved." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1908", "rulerYear": 1908, "text": "Work begins on a Classical Revival courthouse in the middle of the square. The Handbook of Texas dates the three-story courthouse to 1909.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouse-1909", "claim": "Work on a Classical Revival courthouse in the middle of the square began in 1908; the Handbook dates the three-story courthouse to 1909, and it served until the 1950s.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "In 1908, construction of a grand Classical Revival courthouse (not extant, fig. 10) commenced in the middle of the square to replace the old one." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "A new three-story courthouse was built in 1909; it served the county until the present courthouse was constructed in 1954." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1910", "rulerYear": 1910, "text": "Smith County dedicates the courthouse commonly remembered in the county. It stood where Broadway now runs, and was in use for 45 years.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouse-1910-dedicated-1955-demolished", "claim": "Smith County says the courthouse commonly remembered in the county, which stood where Broadway now runs, was dedicated in 1910 and used for 45 years; the Smith County Historical Society says it was torn down in September 1955, while the downtown nomination says it was razed before the new courthouse was built.", "caveat": "The Handbook dates this courthouse to 1909 and the downtown nomination says construction began in 1908; the county and KETK give a 1910 dedication. The downtown nomination says the county razed it first and then built the new courthouse; the Historical Society dates its demolition to September 1955, the year the new courthouse was dedicated.", "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "In 1910, county officials held a dedication for the courthouse commonly remembered in Smith County. Located in the center of downtown, where Broadway Avenue now runs" }, { "title": "Smith County Historical Society, 1909 Courthouse young trees (print)", "url": "https://smithcountyhistoricalsociety.org/?p=4958", "quote": "Was located in the middle of the Tyler Square downtown until torn down in September 1955." }, { "title": "Smith County Historical Society, 1909 Smith County, Texas Courthouse (print)", "url": "https://smithcountyhistoricalsociety.org/?p=3184", "quote": "She was the fourth courthouse building to be erected in Tyler, the county seat of Smith" } ] } ] }, { "when": "February 1912", "rulerYear": 1912, "text": "The Sanborn map of that month says on its first sheet: ‘About one mile of brick paved streets.’", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "sanborn-1912-one-mile-brick", "claim": "The Sanborn map of Tyler dated February 1912 says on its first sheet: 'About one mile of brick paved streets.'", "caveat": "Fits neither start date cleanly: the 2000 survey dates the first paving to 1906 and the square to 1907; the 2015 Tyler Morning Telegraph, citing city data, says the first streets were built around 1912.", "sources": [ { "title": "Library of Congress, Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Tyler, Smith County, Texas, Feb. 1912, sheet 1", "url": "https://www.loc.gov/item/sanborn08793_007/", "quote": "Grades mostly level. About one mile of brick paved streets. Public lights electric arc and incandescent." } ] } ] }, { "when": "September 1955", "rulerYear": 1955, "text": "It is torn down, by the Smith County Historical Society’s date; the downtown nomination says it was razed before the new courthouse was built.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouse-1910-dedicated-1955-demolished", "claim": "Smith County says the courthouse commonly remembered in the county, which stood where Broadway now runs, was dedicated in 1910 and used for 45 years; the Smith County Historical Society says it was torn down in September 1955, while the downtown nomination says it was razed before the new courthouse was built.", "caveat": "The Handbook dates this courthouse to 1909 and the downtown nomination says construction began in 1908; the county and KETK give a 1910 dedication. The downtown nomination says the county razed it first and then built the new courthouse; the Historical Society dates its demolition to September 1955, the year the new courthouse was dedicated.", "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "In 1910, county officials held a dedication for the courthouse commonly remembered in Smith County. Located in the center of downtown, where Broadway Avenue now runs" }, { "title": "Smith County Historical Society, 1909 Courthouse young trees (print)", "url": "https://smithcountyhistoricalsociety.org/?p=4958", "quote": "Was located in the middle of the Tyler Square downtown until torn down in September 1955." }, { "title": "Smith County Historical Society, 1909 Smith County, Texas Courthouse (print)", "url": "https://smithcountyhistoricalsociety.org/?p=3184", "quote": "She was the fourth courthouse building to be erected in Tyler, the county seat of Smith" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The pin is worked out from the sources’ words, the middle of the square where Broadway now runs: halfway between Broadway’s crossings with Ferguson and Erwin. The dotted ring means right to the block." ] }, { "year": 1918, "to": 1970, "title": "Emmett J. Scott High", "dek": "Tyler’s high school for Black students, from 1918 until it closed under the integration order in 1970.", "entries": [ { "when": "1918", "rulerYear": 1918, "text": "Emmett J. Scott High School opens as Tyler’s high school for Black students, named for Wiley College graduate Emmett J. Scott, a Black author, editor and civic leader. Students come from towns such as Chandler that have no high school for them.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "emmett-scott-high-school-1918-1970", "claim": "Emmett J. Scott High School, Tyler's high school for Black students, operated from 1918 until 1970, when it closed under the integration order; it stood on what is now Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, and its students and teachers were sent to John Tyler High School.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "KETK, 'Center of excellence': Emmett J. Scott High School educated Black students in Tyler before integration (Feb. 28, 2023)", "url": "https://digital-release.ketk.com/?p=1207829", "quote": "The school operated from 1918 to 1970, when it closed due to the integration order." }, { "title": "KETK, 'Center of excellence': Emmett J. Scott High School educated Black students in Tyler before integration (Feb. 28, 2023)", "url": "https://digital-release.ketk.com/?p=1207829", "quote": "was located on what is now Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Tyler and run by Principal A.G. Hilliard." }, { "title": "KLTV, Lion's 1973 State Championship Team Helped Blur The Color Lines", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/story/4509260/lions-1973-state-championship-team-helped-blur-the-color-lines/", "quote": "Integration would send students and educators across town to John Tyler. The Bulldogs were now Lions." } ] }, { "id": "emmett-scott-namesake", "claim": "Emmett J. Scott High was named for Wiley College graduate Emmett J. Scott, a Black author, editor and civic leader; students came from towns such as Chandler that had no high school for them.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "KETK, 'Center of excellence': Emmett J. Scott High School educated Black students in Tyler before integration (Feb. 28, 2023)", "url": "https://digital-release.ketk.com/?p=1207829", "quote": "The high school was named after Wiley College graduate Emmett J. Scott, who was a Black author, editor and civic leader in the 1910s." }, { "title": "KETK, 'Center of excellence': Emmett J. Scott High School educated Black students in Tyler before integration (Feb. 28, 2023)", "url": "https://digital-release.ketk.com/?p=1207829", "quote": "Students from surrounding areas traveled to attend school since some towns, like Chandler, did not have a high school." } ] } ] }, { "when": "By 1918", "rulerYear": 1918, "text": "Tyler has three movie theaters: the Electric Palace and the Queen for white patrons and the Rapeeds Theater for African Americans. The Queen survives as the Arcadia on North Spring Avenue.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "segregated-theaters-1918", "claim": "By 1918 Tyler had three movie theaters: the Electric Palace and the Queen for white patrons and the Rapeeds Theater for African Americans; the Queen survives as the Arcadia on North Spring Avenue.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "By 1918 the city had three movie theaters: Electric Palace, Queen Theater, both for white patrons, and Rapeeds Theater for Tyler's African Americans." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Two theaters survive around the square including the Arcadia (Queen) on North Spring Street" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1931 and 1945", "rulerYear": 1931, "text": "The Pollard nomination says Tyler’s city plans of 1931 and 1945 promoted segregation, recommending that services be withheld from Black neighborhoods near white ones and that Black schools and parks be placed away from white neighborhoods.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "city-plans-segregation", "claim": "The Pollard nomination says Tyler's 1931 and 1945 city plans promoted segregation by recommending that services be withheld from Black neighborhoods near white ones and that Black schools and parks be placed away from white neighborhoods, setting aside parts of northwest, southwest and central Tyler for Black residents; Black neighborhoods near downtown were displaced for new development.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "The city’s 1931 and 1945 plans also created a segregated city." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "recommended municipal infrastructure and services be withheld from Black neighborhoods near White neighborhoods and that Black schools and parks be in areas removed from White neighborhoods." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "Isolated parts in northwest, southwest, and central Tyler were set aside for the city’s Black population." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "Black neighborhoods across the city, particularly near downtown, were displaced to make way for new development." } ] } ] }, { "when": "September 1956", "rulerYear": 1956, "text": "The Texas attorney general seizes NAACP records and files suit in Tyler to bar the organization from doing business in Texas; the resulting injunction leaves the group nearly dormant.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "naacp-lawsuit-tyler-1956", "claim": "In September 1956 the Texas attorney general seized NAACP records and filed suit in Tyler to bar the organization from doing business in Texas; the resulting injunction left the group nearly dormant.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: National Association for the Advancement of Colored People", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/national-association-for-the-advancement-of-colored-people", "quote": "In September 1956 the attorney general seized the association's records and filed a lawsuit in Tyler to ban the organization from doing business in Texas." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: National Association for the Advancement of Colored People", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/national-association-for-the-advancement-of-colored-people", "quote": "a subsequent injunction against operations intimidated the organization so much that became almost dormant." } ] } ] }, { "when": "Until 1964", "rulerYear": 1964, "text": "Restrictive covenants on subdivisions and deeds confine Tyler’s African Americans to parts of central, northwest and southwest Tyler, according to the Tyler MPS, until the Civil Rights Act of 1964.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "restrictive-covenants-segregated-areas", "claim": "Until the Civil Rights Act of 1964, restrictive covenants on subdivisions and deeds confined Tyler's African Americans to parts of central, northwest and southwest Tyler, according to the Tyler MPS.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "development patterns reflect this through the use of restrictive covenants on subdivisions and deeds that historically confined African Americans to specific areas of central, northwest and southwest Tyler." } ] } ] }, { "when": "July 15, 1970", "rulerYear": 1970, "text": "The federal government sues Tyler ISD to desegregate. That July Judge William Wayne Justice rejects the district’s neighborhood-school plan and orders its schools consolidated.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "us-v-tyler-isd-1970", "claim": "The federal government sued Tyler ISD to desegregate on July 15, 1970; that July Judge William Wayne Justice rejected the district's neighborhood-school plan and ordered its schools consolidated, which brought more busing.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Associated Press via Fox News, East Texas judge ends 1970 desegregation lawsuit in predominantly Hispanic school district (Aug. 27, 2016)", "url": "https://www.foxnews.com/world/east-texas-judge-ends-1970-desegregation-lawsuit-in-predominantly-hispanic-school-district.amp", "quote": "ends a lawsuit filed July 15, 1970, by the U.S. government directing the district to desegregate." }, { "title": "Tarlton Law Library, William Wayne Justice exhibit: U.S. v. Tyler Independent School District", "url": "https://tarltonapps.law.utexas.edu/exhibits/ww_justice/us_v_texas_page3.html", "quote": "In July 1970, Judge Justice rejected Tyler’s neighborhood school plan and ordered consolidation of Tyler’s schools. One result of the consolidation was increased busing" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1970", "rulerYear": 1970, "text": "Emmett J. Scott High closes under the integration order; its students and teachers are sent to John Tyler High School.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "emmett-scott-high-school-1918-1970", "claim": "Emmett J. Scott High School, Tyler's high school for Black students, operated from 1918 until 1970, when it closed under the integration order; it stood on what is now Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, and its students and teachers were sent to John Tyler High School.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "KETK, 'Center of excellence': Emmett J. Scott High School educated Black students in Tyler before integration (Feb. 28, 2023)", "url": "https://digital-release.ketk.com/?p=1207829", "quote": "The school operated from 1918 to 1970, when it closed due to the integration order." }, { "title": "KETK, 'Center of excellence': Emmett J. Scott High School educated Black students in Tyler before integration (Feb. 28, 2023)", "url": "https://digital-release.ketk.com/?p=1207829", "quote": "was located on what is now Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Tyler and run by Principal A.G. Hilliard." }, { "title": "KLTV, Lion's 1973 State Championship Team Helped Blur The Color Lines", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/story/4509260/lions-1973-state-championship-team-helped-blur-the-color-lines/", "quote": "Integration would send students and educators across town to John Tyler. The Bulldogs were now Lions." } ] } ] }, { "when": "July 8, 1971", "rulerYear": 1971, "text": "After Black and white students were listed separately on a cheerleader ballot at John Tyler High School, Judge Justice sets up a Bi-Racial Committee for Tyler ISD.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "bi-racial-committee-1971", "claim": "After Black and white students were listed separately on a cheerleader ballot at John Tyler High School, Judge Justice set up a Bi-Racial Committee for Tyler ISD by order of July 8, 1971.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tarlton Law Library, William Wayne Justice exhibit: U.S. v. Tyler Independent School District", "url": "https://tarltonapps.law.utexas.edu/exhibits/ww_justice/us_v_texas_page3.html", "quote": "Following an incident at John Tyler High School where black and white students were listed separately on ballots for a cheerleader election, Judge Justice established a Bi-Racial Committee." }, { "title": "Tarlton Law Library, William Wayne Justice exhibit: U.S. v. Tyler Independent School District", "url": "https://tarltonapps.law.utexas.edu/exhibits/ww_justice/us_v_texas_page3.html", "quote": "Order establishing a Bi-Racial Committee, July 8, 1971." } ] } ] }, { "when": "August 2016", "rulerYear": 2016, "text": "U.S. District Judge Michael H. Schneider declares Tyler ISD integrated and dismisses the 1970 desegregation suit.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-isd-unitary-2016", "claim": "In August 2016 U.S. District Judge Michael H. Schneider declared Tyler ISD integrated and dismissed the 1970 desegregation suit; the case had been closed for administrative purposes in 1976 while the court kept jurisdiction.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Associated Press via Fox News, East Texas judge ends 1970 desegregation lawsuit in predominantly Hispanic school district (Aug. 27, 2016)", "url": "https://www.foxnews.com/world/east-texas-judge-ends-1970-desegregation-lawsuit-in-predominantly-hispanic-school-district.amp", "quote": "U.S. District Judge Michael H. Schneider, in an order signed Friday, concluded the Tyler Independent School District has complied and eliminated discrimination." }, { "title": "Associated Press via Fox News, East Texas judge ends 1970 desegregation lawsuit in predominantly Hispanic school district (Aug. 27, 2016)", "url": "https://www.foxnews.com/world/east-texas-judge-ends-1970-desegregation-lawsuit-in-predominantly-hispanic-school-district.amp", "quote": "The judge's order says the case was closed in 1976, for administrative purposes, but the federal court retained jurisdiction to monitor compliance." } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "Emmett J. Scott High is not pinned: the sources say it stood on what is now Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, not where on it." ] }, { "year": 1920, "to": 1934, "title": "Black Wall Street", "dek": "Black-owned businesses on the 200 block of East Erwin Street and an alley called Wall.", "entries": [ { "when": "By 1910", "rulerYear": 1910, "text": "Tyler’s African Americans have at least seven churches, including Bethlehem First Baptist on Front Street and Miles Chapel Methodist; by 1934 there are 16 Black congregations.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "black-churches-1910-1934", "claim": "By 1910 Tyler's African Americans had at least seven churches, including Bethlehem First Baptist on Front Street and Miles Chapel Methodist at North Palace and West Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard; by 1934 there were 16 Black congregations.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "By 1910 Tyler's African American population had established at least seven churches" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Miles Chapel Methodist Church at North Palace and West Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In 1934 there were 16 African American congregations" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Early 1900s", "rulerYear": 1920, "text": "Black entrepreneurs and professionals buy buildings and run businesses along the 200 block of East Erwin Street and an alley called Wall, an area remembered as Tyler’s ‘Black Wall Street.’", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "black-wall-street-east-erwin", "claim": "In the early 20th century Black entrepreneurs and professionals bought buildings and ran businesses along the 200 block of East Erwin Street and an alley called Wall, an area remembered as Tyler's 'Black Wall Street.'", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "purchased buildings and operated businesses along the 200 block of East Erwin Street and along the alleyway named “Wall” extending from Erwin Street." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "This area is remembered as Tyler’s “Black Wall Street.”" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1920", "rulerYear": 1920, "text": "Tyler’s population is about 77 percent white and 23 percent African American, according to the downtown nomination.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "population-race-1920", "claim": "In 1920 Tyler's population was about 77 percent white and 23 percent African American, according to the downtown nomination.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Tyler’s population in 1920 was approximately 77 percent white and 23 percent African American." } ] } ] }, { "when": "About 1930 to 1935", "rulerYear": 1930, "text": "Five blocks northwest of the square, J.H. Herndon builds 11 nearly identical bungalows for African American occupants: the Short-Line district, which its nomination calls the only known surviving concentration of intact early- to mid-20th-century housing tied to Tyler’s African American community.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "short-line-district", "claim": "The Short-Line Residential Historic District, five blocks northwest of the square, is 11 nearly identical bungalows built about 1930-1935 by wealthy Tyler businessman J.H. Herndon for African American occupants; the nomination calls it the only known surviving concentration of intact early- to mid-20th-century housing tied to Tyler's African American community.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Short-Line Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000897/02000897.pdf", "quote": "All the dwellings are one-story wood frame Craftsman influenced bungalows built by wealthy Tyler businessman J. H. Herndon for African American occupants" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Short-Line Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000897/02000897.pdf", "quote": "It is also significant as the only known surviving concentration of intact early to mid-20th century housing associated with Tyler's African American community." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Short-Line Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000897", "quote": "Date Listed 8/22/2002" } ] } ] }, { "when": "By 1934", "rulerYear": 1934, "text": "Dr. Archie S. Senate, a Black physician born in Tyler in 1878, moves his practice to 210 East Erwin Street, a building that still carries a ‘SENATE’ plaque; Robert W. Porter’s People’s Cafe also occupies it.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "senate-building-210-east-erwin", "claim": "Dr. Archie S. Senate, a Black physician born in Tyler in 1878, moved his practice by 1934 to the building at 210 East Erwin Street that still carries a 'SENATE' plaque; Robert W. Porter's People's Cafe also occupied it.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Archie S. Senate, a Black physician and surgeon who was born in Tyler in July 1878" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "He moved his practice to the brick two-part commercial block building at 210 East Erwin Street (Resource 58, photo 27) by 1934." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "An embedded plaque with the name “SENATE” appears in the upper zone of the building." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "A restaurant owned by Robert W. Porter called People’s Café also occupied this property." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1934", "rulerYear": 1934, "text": "Henry Miller Morgan opens Tyler Barber College at 212 East Erwin Street, which the downtown nomination calls the first barber college for African Americans in the country. It grows into a chain with schools in Houston, Jackson, Mississippi, and Manhattan.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-barber-college-1934", "claim": "In 1934 Henry Miller Morgan opened Tyler Barber College at 212 East Erwin Street, which the downtown nomination calls the first barber college for African Americans in the country; it grew into a chain with schools in Houston, Jackson, Mississippi, and Manhattan.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Henry Miller Morgan opened the first barber college for African Americans in the country—Tyler Barber College (fig. 11)—in 1934." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "his school became a successful chain with locations across the country, including in Houston; Jackson, Mississippi; and Manhattan, New York." } ] } ] }, { "when": "Today", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "Several Black-owned businesses, including a shine parlor, cafes and People’s Barber Shop at 216 and 218 East Erwin and the Wall Street Cafe at 224 Wall Street, stood where a parking lot now fills the northwest corner of East Erwin Street and North Fannin Avenue.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "black-wall-street-lost-buildings", "claim": "Several Black-owned businesses on Black Wall Street, including a shine parlor, cafes and People's Barber Shop at 216 and 218 East Erwin and the Wall Street Cafe at 224 Wall Street, stood where a parking lot now fills the northwest corner of East Erwin Street and North Fannin Avenue.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "the area now occupied by a large parking lot at the northwest corner of East Erwin Street and North Fannin Avenue" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "another restaurant owned by Alfred Cannon called Wall Street Café, situated at 224 Wall Street." } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The pin is the geocode of 210 E. Erwin St., the building with the ‘SENATE’ plaque: right to the block. The parking lot that replaced the other buildings is at the block’s east end, at Fannin." ] }, { "year": 1926, "to": null, "title": "Tyler Junior College", "dek": "Ninety-three students and nine faculty, at Tyler High School.", "entries": [ { "when": "September 17, 1926", "rulerYear": 1926, "text": "Tyler Junior College opens at Tyler High School with 93 students and nine faculty members.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tjc-opened-1926", "claim": "Tyler Junior College opened on Sept. 17, 1926, at Tyler High School with 93 students and nine faculty members.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-13: Record Breaking TJC Enrollment Adds to Centennial Celebration", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/13/record-breaking-tjc-enrollment-adds-to-centennial-celebration/" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler Junior College", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-junior-college" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-07: Tyler Junior College Celebrates 100 Years", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/07/tyler-junior-college-celebrates-100-years/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1924", "rulerYear": 1924, "text": "The 1924 Tyler High School building at 331 South College Avenue, now Caldwell Arts Academy, stands in the downtown district with its 1936 Caldwell Gymnasium.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-high-school-1924-building", "claim": "The 1924 Tyler High School building at 331 South College Avenue, now Caldwell Arts Academy, stands in the downtown district with its 1936 Caldwell Gymnasium.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "117 331 S COLLEGE AVE Tyler High School/Caldwell Playschool No. 1 1924 Classical Revival C" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Tyler High School/Caldwell Playschool No. 1 (Resource 117) —now Caldwell Arts Academy, a part of the Tyler Independent School District" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Fall 2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "In its 100th year, TJC enrolls a record 13,147 students, nearly 3% above its previous fall record.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tjc-record-enrollment-2026", "claim": "In fall 2026, its 100th year, Tyler Junior College enrolled a record 13,147 students, nearly 3% above its previous fall record.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-13: Record Breaking TJC Enrollment Adds to Centennial Celebration", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/13/record-breaking-tjc-enrollment-adds-to-centennial-celebration/" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The hollow pin is the campus on South Baxter Avenue today. The sources do not say the 1926 classes met in the 1924 building on South College Avenue, so it is not pinned." ] }, { "year": 1930, "to": 1941, "title": "Oil", "dek": "A discovery in Rusk County, and towers downtown: Tyler’s count of people climbs from 17,113 to 28,279.", "entries": [ { "when": "October 3 or 5, 1930", "rulerYear": 1930, "text": "Dad Joiner’s Daisy Bradford No. 3 in Rusk County comes in (October 3, by the Handbook of Texas; October 5, by the Tyler MPS) and discovers the East Texas oilfield, which the Handbook calls the largest and most prolific oil reservoir in the contiguous United States. The Tyler Chamber of Commerce campaigns at once for the oil business, citing the city’s location about 25 miles west on a good paved road.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "east-texas-oilfield-discovered-1930", "claim": "The East Texas oilfield, the largest and most prolific oil reservoir in the contiguous United States, was discovered when Dad Joiner's Daisy Bradford No. 3 in Rusk County was completed on October 3, 1930.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: East Texas Oilfield", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/east-texas-oilfield" } ] }, { "id": "daisy-bradford-tyler-25-miles", "claim": "The Tyler MPS dates the Daisy Bradford No. 3 strike to October 5, 1930, and says the Tyler Chamber of Commerce immediately campaigned for the oil business, citing the city's location about 25 miles west on a good paved road.", "caveat": "Existing fact east-texas-oilfield-discovered-1930 (Handbook) says the well was completed on October 3, 1930; the MPS says October 5, 1930.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Finally, on October 5, 1930 the Daisy Bradford 3 came in at a depth of 3,536 feet" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "citing Tyler's excellent location about ... 25 miles west of the Daisy Bradford 3, on a good paved road." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1930", "rulerYear": 1930, "text": "Tyler’s population is 17,113. The oil boom makes the town a regional center for the oil industry.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "oil-boom-regional-center-population", "claim": "The oil boom made Tyler a regional center for the oil industry, and its population grew from 17,113 in 1930 to more than 25,000 by 1933 and 28,279 by 1940.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Wikipedia: Tyler, Texas", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyler,_Texas" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1930", "rulerYear": 1930, "text": "Liberty Hall, a city venue downtown at 103 E. Erwin St., opens as the Liberty Theater.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "liberty-hall-discovery-science-place", "claim": "Liberty Hall, a city venue downtown at 103 E. Erwin St., seats about 300 and opened as the Liberty Theater in 1930, and the Discovery Science Place, a UT Tyler children's museum founded in 1993, is a short walk north at 308 N. Broadway.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "City of Tyler: Liberty Hall", "url": "https://www.cityoftyler.org/Venues/Liberty-Hall" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2025-05-31: Historic Preservation Month Looking Back Almost 100 Years Tyler's Liberty Hall", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2025/05/31/historic-preservation-month-looking-back-almost-100-years-tylers-liberty-hall/" }, { "title": "UT Tyler press release, 2023-02-08", "url": "https://www.uttyler.edu/about/news/pressrelease/2023/02082023.php" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1930 to 1931", "rulerYear": 1931, "text": "Thirty-three companies open offices in Tyler, and almost all the larger independent operators set up land-leasing headquarters there. Building permit values pass $1 million by May 1931; by the year’s end the field has more than 3,600 wells.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "oil-companies-offices-1930-31", "claim": "With the discovery of the East Texas field in 1930-31, 33 companies opened offices in Tyler and almost all the larger independent operators set up land-leasing headquarters there.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Short-Line Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000897/02000897.pdf", "quote": "With the discovery of the East Texas field in 1930-31, 33 companies established offices in Tyler" } ] }, { "id": "oil-boom-building-permits-1931", "claim": "After the East Texas field came in, Tyler's building permit values passed $1 million by May 1931; the field had more than 3,600 wells by the end of that year.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Building permit values reached more than one million dollars by May 1931." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "More than 3,600 wells made up the oilfield by the end of 1931" } ] } ] }, { "when": "April 1932", "rulerYear": 1932, "text": "On the site of Goldstein and Brown’s store, partly destroyed by fire in 1930, the 15-story People’s National Bank Building is under construction at the northwest corner of North College Avenue and West Erwin Street, designed by Houston architect Alfred C. Finn. The downtown nomination calls it Tyler’s premier office building through the 1950s.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "peoples-national-bank-building-1932", "claim": "The 15-story People's National Bank Building at the northwest corner of North College Avenue and West Erwin Street, designed by Houston architect Alfred C. Finn and financed through Samuel A. Lindsey's People's National Company for more than $910,000, was under construction by April 1932.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "erected a new 15-story highrise office building (Resource 60, photo 30, fig. 13) on the northwest corner of North College Avenue and West Erwin Street in 1932." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "In 1931, Lindsey formed the People’s National Company, a corporation to fund the new building, costing over $910,000" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Construction was underway by April 1932 on the two-part vertical block building" } ] }, { "id": "peoples-national-bank-site-fire-1930", "claim": "The People's National Bank tower replaced Goldstein and Brown's two-story store, partly destroyed by fire in 1930; the downtown nomination says it served as Tyler's premier office building through the 1950s. It was listed on the National Register on August 22, 2002.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "When a 1930 fire partially destroyed the two-story building housing Goldstein and Brown’s mercantile store that previously occupied the site, the bank quickly purchased the property" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The People’s National Bank edifice served as the premier office building in Tyler through the 1950s" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: People's National Bank Building", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000896", "quote": "Address 102 North College Avenue City Tyler Date Listed 8/22/2002" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1932", "rulerYear": 1932, "text": "The five-story Blackstone Hotel at North Broadway and East Locust Street, open since the early 1920s, adds nine stories for oil-boom newcomers. It was demolished in 1985.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "blackstone-hotel-1922-1985", "claim": "The five-story Blackstone Hotel at the northeast corner of North Broadway and East Locust Street opened in the early 1920s, added nine stories in 1932 for oil-boom newcomers, and was demolished in 1985; a parking lot took its place.", "caveat": "The downtown nomination says the hotel was completed in 1922; the Short-Line nomination says it opened in 1921.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "a five-story brick edifice (fig. 14) completed in 1922, already occupied the lot on the northeast corner of North Broadway Avenue and East Locust Street." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Short-Line Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000897/02000897.pdf", "quote": "The Blackstone Hotel opened in 1921 and was demolished in 1985; a parking lot now occupies the site." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Short-Line Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000897/02000897.pdf", "quote": "In 1932 \"the Blackstone [Hotel] added nine stories to accommodate the newcomers\"" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1933", "rulerYear": 1933, "text": "The population is more than 25,000.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "oil-boom-regional-center-population", "claim": "The oil boom made Tyler a regional center for the oil industry, and its population grew from 17,113 in 1930 to more than 25,000 by 1933 and 28,279 by 1940.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "Wikipedia: Tyler, Texas", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyler,_Texas" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1930 to 1936", "rulerYear": 1935, "text": "The school population rises from 4,261 students in 1930 to more than 6,000 in 1936, and assessed valuations from $17,477,254 in 1930 to $28,679,113 in 1935. Thirteen Art Deco buildings go up downtown in the boom years.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "oil-boom-schools-valuations", "claim": "As a result of the boom, Tyler's school population rose from 4,261 students in 1930 to more than 6,000 in 1936, and assessed valuations rose from $17,477,254 in 1930 to $28,679,113 in 1935.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Tyler school population increased from 4,261 students in 1930 to more than 6,000 in 1936. Assessed valuations for 1930 were $17,477,254, for 1935 they were $28,679,113" } ] }, { "id": "thirteen-art-deco-buildings", "claim": "Thirteen Art Deco buildings went up in downtown Tyler during the oil boom years; the downtown nomination says several Art Deco highrises replaced many of the commercial block buildings that had lined downtown streets.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Thirteen Art Deco buildings were constructed in downtown Tyler during the oil boom years." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "several Art Deco highrise buildings transformed Tyler’s cityscape, replacing many of the commercial block buildings previously lining downtown streets." } ] } ] }, { "when": "March 18, 1937", "rulerYear": 1937, "text": "Mother Frances Hospital opens, a day earlier than planned, to care for victims of the New London School explosion.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "mother-frances-hospital-1937", "claim": "Mother Frances Hospital opened in Tyler on March 18, 1937, a day earlier than planned, to care for victims of the New London School explosion; sixteen Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth had come to Tyler to open it, and the system, by then named Trinity Mother Frances, joined CHRISTUS Health in 2016.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "CHRISTUS Health: Our history", "url": "https://www.christushealth.org/connect/mission/history" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2022-03-19: Christus Trinity Mother Frances Health System Marks 85 Years", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2022/03/19/christus-trinity-mother-frances-health-system-marks-85-years/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "February 1938", "rulerYear": 1938, "text": "Construction begins on the Art Deco Blackstone Building at 315 North Broadway. Its ground floor holds Tyler’s first union bus terminal; by 1945 fifteen oil-related businesses rent offices above.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "blackstone-building-1938", "claim": "Construction of the Art Deco Blackstone Building at 315 North Broadway, designed by Fort Worth architect Preston M. Geren, began in February 1938; its ground floor held Tyler's first union bus terminal, and by 1945 fifteen oil-related businesses rented offices above.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Construction on the Art Deco office building and bus terminal commenced in February 1938. Preston M. Geren, based in Fort Worth, served as the architect" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The building housed Tyler’s first Union bus terminal on the ground floor" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "By 1945, 15 oil-related businesses occupied the Blackstone Building, including McMurrey Refining Company." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1940", "rulerYear": 1940, "text": "The census counts 28,279: growth of 65.2 percent in the 1930s. The Streamline Moderne Tyler Theater goes up at 110 West Erwin Street, by the downtown nomination’s inventory.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "population-1930-1940-oil-boom-growth-rate", "claim": "Census tables show Tyler grew 41.6 percent in the 1920s (to 17,113) and 65.2 percent in the 1930s (to 28,279); the Handbook of Texas ties the 1930s growth to the 1930 discovery of the East Texas oilfield.", "caveat": "The Short-Line Residential Historic District nomination (2002) cites the U.S. Census for different figures: 9,255 in 1920, 13,009 in 1930, 20,879 in 1940 and 28,854 in 1950. The Census Bureau's own 1950 and 1960 tables and the Handbook give 12,085, 17,113, 28,279 and 38,968; prefer the Census tables.", "sources": [ { "title": "1950 Census of Population, Vol. 1, Number of Inhabitants, Texas (Table 4, Population of incorporated places of 10,000 or more from earliest census to 1950)", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1950/population-volume-1/vol-01-46.pdf", "quote": "Tyler city: ... 1940 ... 28,279 ... 11,166 ... 65.2 ... 1930 ... 17,113 ... 5,028 ... 41.6" } ] }, { "id": "downtown-theater-buildings", "claim": "The downtown nomination's inventory lists the 1905 Arcadia Theater at 121 North Spring Avenue and the 1940 Streamline Moderne Tyler Theater at 110 West Erwin Street; a photo caption identifies the 1930 Art Deco building at 103 East Erwin Street as the Liberty Theater building.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "48 121 N SPRING AVE Arcadia Theater 1905 Commercial C" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "View of the Liberty Theater building (Resource 79), located at 103 East Erwin Street." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "85 110 W ERWIN ST Tyler Theater 1940 Streamline Moderne C" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The oilfield is in Rusk County, not in Tyler, so the map gets no new layer for it; the 1938 Sanborn map under the plate shows the city after the boom.", "The Liberty Hall, People’s and Blackstone pins are geocodes of their street addresses from OpenStreetMap’s address data, so they are right to the block, not to the building." ] }, { "year": 1934, "to": 1976, "title": "The federal building", "dek": "A federal building of 1934 on the site of the one it replaced, at West Ferguson and North Bois D’Arc.", "entries": [ { "when": "By April 1933", "rulerYear": 1933, "text": "With $360,000 appropriated by Congress, the old federal building has been razed and construction of a new one is under way, by Ralph Sollitt and Sons of Chicago.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "federal-building-appropriation-razed-1933", "claim": "Congress appropriated $360,000 for Tyler's new federal building, and by April 1933 the old one had been razed and construction was under way; Ralph Sollitt and Sons of Chicago built it.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "an appropriation of $360,000 was obtained for construction." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "By April 1933, the old federal building had been razed and the construction of the new one was underway." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The Chicago firm Ralph Sollitt and Sons secured the construction contract." } ] } ] }, { "when": "August 4, 1934", "rulerYear": 1934, "text": "The Tyler U.S. Post Office and Courthouse, designed by Tyler architect Shirley Simons Sr. under Treasury supervising architect James A. Wetmore, is dedicated at the northeast corner of West Ferguson and North Bois D’Arc. Its address is 211 West Ferguson Street by the state’s Atlas, 221 by the downtown nomination’s inventory.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "federal-building-1934", "claim": "The Tyler U.S. Post Office and Courthouse, designed by Tyler architect Shirley Simons Sr. under Treasury supervising architect James A. Wetmore, replaced the old federal building at the northeast corner of West Ferguson and North Bois D'Arc; it was dedicated on August 4, 1934.", "caveat": "The Atlas gives the address as 211 West Ferguson Street; the downtown nomination's inventory lists 221 W Ferguson St.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The site of the old federal building, located at the northeast corner of West Ferguson Street and North Bois D’Arc Avenue, was selected for the new edifice." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Working under the supervision of James A. Wetmore, Supervising Architect for the U.S. Treasury Department, local architect Shirley Simons, Sr. designed the new building." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Construction of the new building finished on schedule in the summer of 1934, and a dedication ceremony took place on August 4, 1934." } ] } ] }, { "when": "Until 1951", "rulerYear": 1951, "text": "Federal judge Randolph Bryant, an oil and gas specialist, hears East Texas oil field cases in the courthouse.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "judge-randolph-bryant-oil-cases", "claim": "Federal judge Randolph Bryant, an oil and gas specialist, heard East Texas oil field cases in the Tyler federal courthouse and served as district judge until 1951.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Judge Randolph Bryant, the seventh judge for the eastern judicial district of Texas, had an expertise in oil and gas matters." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "he presided over multiple cases pertaining to East Texas oil field discoveries and remained district judge until 1951." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1976", "rulerYear": 1976, "text": "After the post office moves out, a Brutalist courthouse annex, approved by Congress in 1966, is finished for more than $2.8 million on the site of the Mayer & Schmidt department store.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "federal-courthouse-annex-1976", "claim": "In the 1970s the post office moved out of the federal building, and a Brutalist courthouse annex, approved by Congress in 1966, was finished in 1976 for more than $2.8 million on the site of the Mayer & Schmidt department store.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "the post office moved to a different location" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "a courthouse annex (photo 36) was added to the east of Resource 36, at the site of Dillard’s Mayer & Schmidt department store." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Congress approved construction of the courthouse annex in 1966, but it was not completed until 10 years later. The annex cost over $2.8 million" } ] } ] }, { "when": "April 25, 2001", "rulerYear": 2001, "text": "The building is listed on the National Register.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "federal-building-national-register-2001", "claim": "The Tyler U.S. Post Office and Courthouse was listed on the National Register on April 25, 2001.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Tyler U.S. Post Office and Courthouse", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2001000433", "quote": "Address 211 West Ferguson Street City Tyler Date Listed 4/25/2001" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The pin is the geocode of 211 W. Ferguson St. (the Atlas’s address) from OpenStreetMap’s address data: right to the block. The 1938 Sanborn map under the plate prints ‘Post Off.’ in that block." ] }, { "year": 1938, "to": 1952, "title": "Rose Park and Lincoln Park", "dek": "A WPA garden, a stadium and a theater on the west side, and one of two ‘colored’ parks.", "entries": [ { "when": "1912", "rulerYear": 1912, "text": "The city acquires the land that becomes the Rose Garden.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "rose-garden-land-1912-wpa-1938", "claim": "The city acquired the Rose Garden land in 1912, and the garden began as a 1938 WPA project; the city and the garden's marker put the federal grant for the park and rose garden project at $181,255.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Visit Tyler: Tyler Rose Garden", "url": "https://www.visittyler.com/business/tylerrosegarden" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-06: Tyler Rose Gardens Nationally Recognized Reputation Draws over 100,000 Visitors Each Year", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/06/tyler-rose-gardens-nationally-recognized-reputation-draws-over-100000-visitors-each-year/" }, { "title": "Living New Deal: Tyler Municipal Rose Garden", "url": "https://livingnewdeal.org/sites/tyler-municipal-rose-garden/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1937", "rulerYear": 1937, "text": "The Tyler Park Board recommends six new parks, four for white residents and two ‘colored’ parks.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "segregated-parks-1937-1949", "claim": "In 1937 the Tyler Park Board recommended six new parks, four for white residents and two 'colored' parks; Lincoln Park, 2.5 acres at North Confederate Avenue and West Nutbush Street, was given for park use in 1938, and in 1949 the city had six white playgrounds and three for Black children.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Of these, four were suggested as white facilities and two for \"colored\" parks" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Lincoln (Colored) Park (2.5 acres), at North Confederate Avenue and West Nutbush Street, given by businessman J.B. Parker in 1938 for park use" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In 1949 Tyler had six white playgrounds and three \"colored\" playgrounds" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1938", "rulerYear": 1938, "text": "The garden begins as a WPA park and rose garden project; the city puts its federal grant at $181,255. Lincoln Park, 2.5 acres at North Confederate Avenue and West Nutbush Street, is given for park use.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "rose-garden-land-1912-wpa-1938", "claim": "The city acquired the Rose Garden land in 1912, and the garden began as a 1938 WPA project; the city and the garden's marker put the federal grant for the park and rose garden project at $181,255.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Visit Tyler: Tyler Rose Garden", "url": "https://www.visittyler.com/business/tylerrosegarden" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-06: Tyler Rose Gardens Nationally Recognized Reputation Draws over 100,000 Visitors Each Year", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/06/tyler-rose-gardens-nationally-recognized-reputation-draws-over-100000-visitors-each-year/" }, { "title": "Living New Deal: Tyler Municipal Rose Garden", "url": "https://livingnewdeal.org/sites/tyler-municipal-rose-garden/" } ] }, { "id": "segregated-parks-1937-1949", "claim": "In 1937 the Tyler Park Board recommended six new parks, four for white residents and two 'colored' parks; Lincoln Park, 2.5 acres at North Confederate Avenue and West Nutbush Street, was given for park use in 1938, and in 1949 the city had six white playgrounds and three for Black children.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Of these, four were suggested as white facilities and two for \"colored\" parks" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Lincoln (Colored) Park (2.5 acres), at North Confederate Avenue and West Nutbush Street, given by businessman J.B. Parker in 1938 for park use" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In 1949 Tyler had six white playgrounds and three \"colored\" playgrounds" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1942", "rulerYear": 1942, "text": "Rose Stadium, at 609 Fair Park Dr., opens. Tyler ISD owns it, and it seats 10,566.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "rose-stadium", "claim": "Rose Stadium, at 609 Fair Park Dr., is owned by Tyler ISD, opened in 1942 and seats 10,566; its field is Earl Campbell Field, and it is also home to the TJC Apaches and the Texas College Steers.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "KLTV, 2026-09-05: Tyler High Runs Past Legacy Behind McMiller's 326 Yard Night", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/09/05/tyler-high-runs-past-legacy-behind-mcmillers-326-yard-night/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-06: How You Feelin Red Tyler Legacy Wins Rose City Rivalry over Tyler High for First Time Since 2022", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/06/how-you-feelin-red-tyler-legacy-wins-rose-city-rivalry-over-tyler-high-for-first-time-since-2022/" }, { "title": "TexasBob: stadium page 568 (Rose Stadium, Tyler)", "url": "https://texasbob.com/stadium/stadium.php?id=568" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1949", "rulerYear": 1949, "text": "The city has six white playgrounds and three for Black children. That year Thomas R. Register, Rev. J.W. Presley and Dr. P.E. Madlock of the Tyler Negro Chamber of Commerce seek access to Tyler State Park and then file Register v. Sandefer; the park is fully integrated only after the Civil Rights Act of 1964.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "segregated-parks-1937-1949", "claim": "In 1937 the Tyler Park Board recommended six new parks, four for white residents and two 'colored' parks; Lincoln Park, 2.5 acres at North Confederate Avenue and West Nutbush Street, was given for park use in 1938, and in 1949 the city had six white playgrounds and three for Black children.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Of these, four were suggested as white facilities and two for \"colored\" parks" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Lincoln (Colored) Park (2.5 acres), at North Confederate Avenue and West Nutbush Street, given by businessman J.B. Parker in 1938 for park use" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In 1949 Tyler had six white playgrounds and three \"colored\" playgrounds" } ] }, { "id": "tyler-state-park-desegregation-1949", "claim": "In 1949 Thomas R. Register, Rev. J.W. Presley and Dr. P.E. Madlock of the Tyler Negro Chamber of Commerce sought access to Tyler State Park and then filed Register v. Sandefer; one side of the lake was minimally developed for Black visitors, and the park was fully integrated only after the Civil Rights Act of 1964.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Vicki Betts, \"For the Citizens of East Texas\": The Desegregation of Tyler State Park (UT Tyler Scholar Works, 2015)", "url": "https://scholarworks.uttyler.edu/pres_pubs/39", "quote": "In 1949, Thomas R. Register, Rev. J. W. Presley, and Dr. P. E. Madlock, representing the Tyler Negro Chamber of Commerce approached the park manager" }, { "title": "Vicki Betts, \"For the Citizens of East Texas\": The Desegregation of Tyler State Park (UT Tyler Scholar Works, 2015)", "url": "https://scholarworks.uttyler.edu/pres_pubs/39", "quote": "the group filed Register v. Sandefer to desegregate all Texas state parks." }, { "title": "Vicki Betts, \"For the Citizens of East Texas\": The Desegregation of Tyler State Park (UT Tyler Scholar Works, 2015)", "url": "https://scholarworks.uttyler.edu/pres_pubs/39", "quote": "a situation which continued until the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 when the park was finally totally integrated." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1951", "rulerYear": 1951, "text": "Tyler Civic Theatre, at 400 Rose Park Dr., opens what it calls the nation’s first building built specifically for theatre in the round.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-civic-theatre-in-the-round-1951", "claim": "In 1951 Tyler Civic Theatre opened what it calls the nation's first building built specifically for theatre in the round, and a 2007 KLTV report says the theatre center houses two theatres in the round, the Braithwaite and the Rogers Children's Theatre.", "caveat": "The \"nation's first\" is the theatre's own claim.", "sources": [ { "title": "Visit Tyler: Tyler Civic Theatre", "url": "https://www.visittyler.com/business/tyler-civic-theatre" }, { "title": "KLTV: Proud of East Texas Tyler Civic Theater", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/story/6575332/proud-of-east-texas-tyler-civic-theater/" } ] }, { "id": "tyler-civic-theatre-origins", "claim": "Tyler Civic Theatre, at 400 Rose Park Dr., traces back to the Tyler Little Theatre (1927), which stopped during World War II and was revived as Tyler Civic Theatre in 1949.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Visit Tyler: Tyler Civic Theatre", "url": "https://www.visittyler.com/business/tyler-civic-theatre" }, { "title": "KLTV: Proud of East Texas Tyler Civic Theater", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/story/6575332/proud-of-east-texas-tyler-civic-theater/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1952", "rulerYear": 1952, "text": "The Tyler Municipal Rose Garden officially opens with nearly 3,000 bushes donated by local nurseries.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "rose-garden-opened-1952", "claim": "The Tyler Municipal Rose Garden officially opened in 1952 with nearly 3,000 bushes donated by local nurseries.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-06: Tyler Rose Gardens Nationally Recognized Reputation Draws over 100,000 Visitors Each Year", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/06/tyler-rose-gardens-nationally-recognized-reputation-draws-over-100000-visitors-each-year/" }, { "title": "Garden Club of America: civic project 680 (Tyler rose garden)", "url": "https://www.gcamerica.org/civicprojects/details/id/680" }, { "title": "KTRE, 2021-01-25: Mark Texas History Smith County Rose Industry", "url": "https://www.ktre.com/2021/01/25/mark-texas-history-smith-county-rose-industry/" }, { "title": "Visit Tyler: Tyler Rose Garden", "url": "https://www.visittyler.com/business/tylerrosegarden" }, { "title": "Living New Deal: Tyler Municipal Rose Garden", "url": "https://livingnewdeal.org/sites/tyler-municipal-rose-garden/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-05-18: 93rd Texas Rose Festival Queen Joins Community for Rose Sunday Service Celebrating New Blooms", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/05/18/93rd-texas-rose-festival-queen-joins-community-for-rose-sunday-service-celebrating-new-blooms/" }, { "title": "Wikipedia: National Register of Historic Places listings in Smith County, Texas", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Register_of_Historic_Places_listings_in_Smith_County,_Texas" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Today", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "The Rose Garden at 420 Rose Park Dr. covers 14 acres and is free and open dawn to dark every day, as listed when we researched it in September 2026.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "rose-garden-14-acres-free", "claim": "The Tyler Rose Garden at 420 Rose Park Dr. covers 14 acres and is free and open dawn to dark every day.", "caveat": "Hours and price as listed when researched; re-check.", "sources": [ { "title": "Visit Tyler: Tyler Rose Garden", "url": "https://www.visittyler.com/business/tylerrosegarden" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-06: Tyler Rose Gardens Nationally Recognized Reputation Draws over 100,000 Visitors Each Year", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/06/tyler-rose-gardens-nationally-recognized-reputation-draws-over-100000-visitors-each-year/" }, { "title": "Living New Deal: Tyler Municipal Rose Garden", "url": "https://livingnewdeal.org/sites/tyler-municipal-rose-garden/" }, { "title": "Garden Club of America: civic project 680 (Tyler rose garden)", "url": "https://www.gcamerica.org/civicprojects/details/id/680" }, { "title": "KTRE, 2021-01-25: Mark Texas History Smith County Rose Industry", "url": "https://www.ktre.com/2021/01/25/mark-texas-history-smith-county-rose-industry/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-05-18: 93rd Texas Rose Festival Queen Joins Community for Rose Sunday Service Celebrating New Blooms", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/05/18/93rd-texas-rose-festival-queen-joins-community-for-rose-sunday-service-celebrating-new-blooms/" }, { "title": "Wikipedia: National Register of Historic Places listings in Smith County, Texas", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Register_of_Historic_Places_listings_in_Smith_County,_Texas" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [] }, { "year": 1949, "to": 1975, "title": "The shopping centers", "dek": "Bergfeld Center on the old fairground in 1949, then a mall on South Broadway in 1975.", "entries": [ { "when": "1876 to 1930s", "rulerYear": 1876, "text": "The East Texas District Fair Association acquires a 75-acre site south of First Street between Broadway, Donnybrook and Troup Highway in 1876. Rudolph Bergfeld buys the land in 1904, and his family subdivides it in the 1920s and 1930s.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "bergfeld-square-on-1876-fairground", "claim": "In 1876 the East Texas District Fair Association acquired a 75-acre site south of First Street between Broadway, Donnybrook and Troup Highway; Rudolph Bergfeld bought the land in 1904, his family subdivided it in the 1920s and 1930s, and Tyler's first suburban shopping center, Bergfeld Square, went up there in the late 1940s.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In 1876 a 75-acre site south of First Street between Broadway, Donnybrook and Troup Highway was acquired by the East Texas District Fair Association." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In 1904 Rudolph Bergfeld bought land from the 1876 fair association's former directors." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "in the late 1940s Tyler's first suburban shopping center—Bergfeld Square—was built on the property." } ] } ] }, { "when": "After World War I", "rulerYear": 1920, "text": "Air Corps veteran O.C. Palmer keeps a small biplane in South Tyler, east of Broadway about where Bergfeld Square is now, and takes passengers up for short flights.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "first-airplane-south-tyler", "claim": "After World War I, Air Corps veteran O.C. Palmer kept a small biplane in South Tyler, east of Broadway about where Bergfeld Square is now, and took passengers up for short flights.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Tyler joined the aeronautic age after World War I when O. C. Palmer, an Air Corps veteran" }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "plane in South Tyler, east of Broadway, about where Bergfeld Square now is" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Late 1940s", "rulerYear": 1949, "text": "Bergfeld Square goes up on the old fairground, and Bergfeld Center opens in 1949. The city’s National Register documentation calls Bergfeld Square ‘Tyler’s first suburban shopping center’ in one passage and Bergfeld Center ‘one of Tyler’s first suburban shopping centers’ in another.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "bergfeld-center-1949", "claim": "Bergfeld Center opened in 1949 as Tyler's first shopping center outside downtown.", "caveat": "Attributed: the city's 2000 historic-resources survey calls it both Tyler's 'first' and 'one of the first' suburban shopping centers; say 'the city's survey calls it the first' or 'one of the first'.", "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2014-09-28: Broadway Square Mall Construction in 70s Rivaled Building a Town", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2014/09/28/broadway-square-mall-construction-in-70s-rivaled-building-a-town/" }, { "title": "Simon: Broadway Square Mall", "url": "https://www.simon.com/mall/broadway-square" } ] }, { "id": "bergfeld-first-suburban-shopping-center-sources", "claim": "The city's National Register documentation calls the late-1940s Bergfeld Square 'Tyler's first suburban shopping center' in one passage and Bergfeld Center, opened in 1949 on South Broadway, 'one of Tyler's first suburban shopping centers' in another.", "caveat": "Existing fact bergfeld-center-1949 (and its card) calls Bergfeld Center Tyler's first shopping center outside downtown; this document hedges once ('one of'). Consider softening the card or citing the Tyler Morning Telegraph wording explicitly.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form: Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (Diane E. Williams, 2000; THC Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "in the late 1940s Tyler's first suburban shopping center—Bergfeld Square—was built on the property." }, { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form: Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (Diane E. Williams, 2000; THC Atlas)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "In 1949, Bergfeld Center, one of Tyler's first suburban shopping centers, opened on South Broadway" } ] } ] }, { "when": "April 1, 1975", "rulerYear": 1975, "text": "Broadway Square Mall opens on South Broadway, when that part of town is considered ‘out in the country’.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "broadway-square-mall-1975", "claim": "Broadway Square Mall on South Broadway opened on April 1, 1975, when that part of town was considered 'out in the country.'", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2014-09-28: Broadway Square Mall Construction in 70s Rivaled Building a Town", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2014/09/28/broadway-square-mall-construction-in-70s-rivaled-building-a-town/" }, { "title": "Simon: Broadway Square Mall", "url": "https://www.simon.com/mall/broadway-square" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "Bergfeld Center has no pin. OpenStreetMap does not name it, and the sources give an area, not a building we could check against the map." ] }, { "year": 1955, "to": 1966, "title": "Broadway through the square", "dek": "A new courthouse, Broadway run through the middle of the square, and a plaza on its western half.", "entries": [ { "when": "May 1953", "rulerYear": 1953, "text": "In a close election, Smith County voters approve a $1.5 million courthouse bond. Arthur E. Thomas of Dallas wins the architect contract and Rambo Construction of Fort Worth the building contract.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouse-1955-bond-architect-cost", "claim": "Smith County voters approved a $1.5 million courthouse bond in a close May 1953 election; Arthur E. Thomas of Dallas won the architect contract and Rambo Construction of Fort Worth the building contract, and the $1.2 million courthouse had twice the 1909 building's space.", "caveat": "The nomination dates the courthouse both 1954 (inventory) and 1955 (narrative), and credits it to 'Jameson & Merrell' in one place, Arthur E. Thomas in another, and 'Thomas, Jameson and Merrill' in the inventory. The Handbook says 1954.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "In a close May 1953 election, Smith County voters approved a $1.5 million bond issue for construction of the new complex." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Arthur E. Thomas of Dallas securing the contract for architect and Rambo Construction Company of Fort Worth being awarded the construction bid." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The total square footage amounted to 80,000 square feet, twice the space in the 1909 courthouse." } ] } ] }, { "when": "Mid-1950s", "rulerYear": 1954, "text": "The county replaces the 1909 courthouse, extends Broadway through the split square, keeps the western half as a park and puts the new courthouse at the center of the eastern half.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouse-1950s-square-split", "claim": "In the mid-1950s Smith County replaced the 1909 courthouse, extended Broadway through the split square, kept the western half as a park and put the new courthouse at the center of the eastern half; the downtown nomination says the old courthouse was demolished first, while the Smith County Historical Society dates the demolition to September 1955.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The county remedied the issue by first demolishing the previous courthouse. Then the existing square was divided in half to allow for the extension of Broadway Avenue through it" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "devoting the western half of the bisected square to park space and building a new modern courthouse at the center of the eastern bisected half." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1955", "rulerYear": 1955, "text": "The six-story Smith County Courthouse is dedicated (the Handbook of Texas says it was built in 1954), to house two district courts, two justice of the peace courts, the jail and county offices. The $1.2 million building has twice the 1909 courthouse’s space.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouse-1955-dedicated-six-story", "claim": "The current Smith County Courthouse, six stories, was dedicated in 1955 to house two district courts, two justice of the peace courts, the jail and county offices.", "caveat": "The Handbook says the present courthouse was constructed in 1954.", "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "The current Smith County Courthouse was dedicated in 1955" }, { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "The six-story facility was constructed to house two district courts, two justice of the peace courts, the jail, and various county offices." } ] }, { "id": "courthouse-1955-bond-architect-cost", "claim": "Smith County voters approved a $1.5 million courthouse bond in a close May 1953 election; Arthur E. Thomas of Dallas won the architect contract and Rambo Construction of Fort Worth the building contract, and the $1.2 million courthouse had twice the 1909 building's space.", "caveat": "The nomination dates the courthouse both 1954 (inventory) and 1955 (narrative), and credits it to 'Jameson & Merrell' in one place, Arthur E. Thomas in another, and 'Thomas, Jameson and Merrill' in the inventory. The Handbook says 1954.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "In a close May 1953 election, Smith County voters approved a $1.5 million bond issue for construction of the new complex." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Arthur E. Thomas of Dallas securing the contract for architect and Rambo Construction Company of Fort Worth being awarded the construction bid." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The total square footage amounted to 80,000 square feet, twice the space in the 1909 courthouse." } ] } ] }, { "when": "September 1955", "rulerYear": 1955, "text": "The old courthouse is torn down, by the Smith County Historical Society’s date.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "courthouse-1910-dedicated-1955-demolished", "claim": "Smith County says the courthouse commonly remembered in the county, which stood where Broadway now runs, was dedicated in 1910 and used for 45 years; the Smith County Historical Society says it was torn down in September 1955, while the downtown nomination says it was razed before the new courthouse was built.", "caveat": "The Handbook dates this courthouse to 1909 and the downtown nomination says construction began in 1908; the county and KETK give a 1910 dedication. The downtown nomination says the county razed it first and then built the new courthouse; the Historical Society dates its demolition to September 1955, the year the new courthouse was dedicated.", "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "In 1910, county officials held a dedication for the courthouse commonly remembered in Smith County. Located in the center of downtown, where Broadway Avenue now runs" }, { "title": "Smith County Historical Society, 1909 Courthouse young trees (print)", "url": "https://smithcountyhistoricalsociety.org/?p=4958", "quote": "Was located in the middle of the Tyler Square downtown until torn down in September 1955." }, { "title": "Smith County Historical Society, 1909 Smith County, Texas Courthouse (print)", "url": "https://smithcountyhistoricalsociety.org/?p=3184", "quote": "She was the fourth courthouse building to be erected in Tyler, the county seat of Smith" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1965 and 1966", "rulerYear": 1965, "text": "The county turns the western half of the square into a concrete plaza designed by Tyler architect Shirley Simons Jr., with a 70-by-20-foot lighted fountain; in 1966 the city announces it will be renamed T.B. Butler Fountain Plaza.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "square-plaza-1965-butler-fountain", "claim": "In 1965 Smith County turned the western half of the square into a concrete plaza designed by Tyler architect Shirley Simons Jr., with a 70-by-20-foot lighted fountain; in 1966 the city announced it would be renamed T.B. Butler Fountain Plaza.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Chief architect for the project was Tyler-based Shirley Simons, Jr., whose design involved converting the park to a concrete-paved plaza" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "Simons designed a lighted fountain with traveling sprays (Resource 44) measuring 70 by 20 feet as a focal point" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "In 1966, the City of Tyler announced plans to rename the downtown square T.B. Butler Fountain Plaza" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [] }, { "year": 1957, "to": null, "title": "Loop 323", "dek": "A state loop around Tyler, designated in 1957.", "entries": [ { "when": "October 30, 1957", "rulerYear": 1957, "text": "TxDOT designates Loop 323, the roughly 19.7-mile state loop around Tyler, from what had been FM 1803.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "loop-323", "claim": "Loop 323 is the roughly 19.7-mile state loop around Tyler, which TxDOT designated on October 30, 1957, from what had been FM 1803.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "TxDOT highway designation history: State Loop 323", "url": "https://www.dot.state.tx.us/tpp/hwy/sl/sl0323.htm" }, { "title": "Tyler Texas Online: Getting around Tyler", "url": "https://www.tylertexasonline.com/tyler-texas-getting-around.htm" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Late 1950s", "rulerYear": 1958, "text": "East Southeast Loop 323, built in the 1950s, opens land along its route to new subdivisions. A ‘distributor’ loop to carry traffic around downtown had been a major recommendation of the city plans.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "loop-323-built-1950s-subdivisions", "claim": "East Southeast Loop 323, built in the 1950s and completed in the late 1950s, opened land along its route to new subdivisions; a 'distributor' loop to carry traffic around downtown had been a major recommendation of the city plans.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "East Southeast Loop 323, completed in the late-1950s, is a state highway circling Tyler" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "East Southeast Loop 323, the highway around Tyler, was constructed during the 1950s and facilitated the development of new subdivisions along its route." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "A major recommendation of the plan was the creation of a four-street “distributor” loop system" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The loop on the map is OpenStreetMap’s geometry for Loop 323 as it is today. The 1957 route is not in our sources; the 1948 map under the plate is from before the loop." ] }, { "year": 1960, "to": 1990, "title": "Annexation", "dek": "Of 51,230 residents in 1960, 10,893 lived in areas annexed since 1950.", "entries": [ { "when": "Early 1950s", "rulerYear": 1950, "text": "By the early 1950s Tyler has issued more than $6 million in building permits, mostly in new subdivisions beyond its prewar neighborhoods, platted near highways on the southwest, west, northwest and southeast edges of town.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "postwar-building-permits-early-1950s", "claim": "By the early 1950s Tyler had issued more than $6 million in building permits, mostly in new subdivisions beyond its prewar neighborhoods, platted near highways on the southwest, west, northwest and southeast edges of town.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "new subdivisions were platted near highways in the southwest, west, northwest, and southeast edges of Tyler in the late 1940s and 1950s." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "By the early 1950s, more than $6 million in building permits had been issued" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1955", "rulerYear": 1955, "text": "National Homes, which the Pollard nomination calls the largest prefabricated home company in the country, opens a plant in north Tyler; about 540 of its houses go up in Tyler and Smith County between 1955 and 1975.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "national-homes-plant-1955", "claim": "National Homes, which the Pollard nomination calls the largest prefabricated home company in the country, opened a plant in north Tyler in 1955, and about 540 of its houses went up in Tyler and Smith County between 1955 and 1975.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "The largest prefabricated home company in the country, National Homes opened a plant in north Tyler in 1955 to serve the southwest and southern markets." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "around 540 of the new houses constructed in Tyler and Smith County over the two decades between 1955 and 1975 were prefabricated houses built by the National Homes Corporation." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1960", "rulerYear": 1960, "text": "Of Tyler’s 51,230 residents, 10,893 live in areas annexed since 1950. The city’s 1950 area has gained only 1,369 people.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "annexation-1950s-population", "claim": "Of Tyler's 51,230 residents in 1960, 10,893 lived in areas annexed since 1950; the city's 1950 area had gained only 1,369 people.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "1960 Census of Population, Vol. 1, Part 45 Texas, Table 9, 1960 population of areas annexed between 1950 and 1960 (p. 45-42)", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1960/population-volume-1/33255142v1p45ch02.pdf", "quote": "Tyler ... 51,230 ... 40,337 ... 10,893 ... 38,968 ... 1,369" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1960s", "rulerYear": 1965, "text": "Most of the land Tyler annexes lies to the south, stretching the city. In the 1960s it annexes stretches of highways 69 and 271, which give the city limits their bug-shaped outline.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "annexation-1960s-highways-south", "claim": "Most land Tyler annexed has been to the south, stretching the city vertically, and in the 1960s it annexed stretches of highways 69 and 271, giving the city limits their bug-shaped outline.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "The Tyler Loop (Chris Groskopf), These eight maps show how annexation shaped Tyler, from 1940 to today (June 8, 2017)", "url": "https://www.thetylerloop.com/these-eight-maps-show-how-annexation-shaped-tyler-from-1940-to-today/", "quote": "Far more property has been added in the south than elsewhere, slowly stretching the city vertically." }, { "title": "The Tyler Loop (Chris Groskopf), These eight maps show how annexation shaped Tyler, from 1940 to today (June 8, 2017)", "url": "https://www.thetylerloop.com/these-eight-maps-show-how-annexation-shaped-tyler-from-1940-to-today/", "quote": "In the 1960s, portions of highways 69 and 271 were annexed, providing antennas for the city’s characteristic bug-shaped outline." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1940 to 1980", "rulerYear": 1980, "text": "Tyler adds roughly 28 square miles, mostly along its southern and western edges, according to the Pollard nomination citing The Tyler Loop.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "annexation-1940-1980-28-square-miles", "claim": "Between 1940 and 1980 Tyler added roughly 28 square miles, mostly along its southern and western edges, according to the Pollard nomination citing The Tyler Loop.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "Between 1940 and 1980, Tyler added roughly 28 square miles to its jurisdiction." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "Much of this acquisition expanded the city limits at the southern and western boundaries." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1990", "rulerYear": 1990, "text": "Tyler covers 39.7 square miles of land, with 1,900.5 people per square mile.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "city-area-housing-1990", "claim": "In 1990 Tyler covered 39.7 square miles of land, with 1,900.5 people per square mile, and its housing units had grown from 20,318 in 1970 to 32,860.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "1990 Census of Population and Housing, Population and Housing Unit Counts, Texas (CPH-2-45), Table 9", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/cph-2/cph-2-45.pdf", "quote": "Tyler city, Smith County ... 32 860 28 404 20 318 102.8 39.7 102.7 39.7 734.7 1 900.5" } ] } ] }, { "when": "2011 and 2012", "rulerYear": 2011, "text": "Tyler annexes Tyler Pounds Regional Airport in 2011 and the UT Health Science Center the next year.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "annexation-airport-2011-hsc-2012", "claim": "Tyler annexed Tyler Pounds Regional Airport in 2011 and the UT Health Science Center the next year, and later a wedge of land along Highway 69 next to Interstate 20.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "The Tyler Loop (Chris Groskopf), These eight maps show how annexation shaped Tyler, from 1940 to today (June 8, 2017)", "url": "https://www.thetylerloop.com/these-eight-maps-show-how-annexation-shaped-tyler-from-1940-to-today/", "quote": "Tyler Pounds Regional Airport was merged into the city in 2011, and the UT Health Science Center was gobbled up the next year." }, { "title": "The Tyler Loop (Chris Groskopf), These eight maps show how annexation shaped Tyler, from 1940 to today (June 8, 2017)", "url": "https://www.thetylerloop.com/these-eight-maps-show-how-annexation-shaped-tyler-from-1940-to-today/", "quote": "Among the most recent acquisitions is a wedge of land along Highway 69 adjacent to I-20." } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "Our sources describe the annexed areas in words, not as lines, so the map draws no city limits." ] }, { "year": 1971, "to": 1979, "title": "A state college and an art museum", "dek": "Tyler State College and the Tyler Museum of Art open the same year.", "entries": [ { "when": "1971", "rulerYear": 1971, "text": "UT Tyler is founded as Tyler State College.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "ut-tyler-history", "claim": "UT Tyler was founded in 1971 as Tyler State College, became Texas Eastern University in 1975, and joined the UT System after Gov. Bill Clements signed Senate Bill 906 on June 2, 1979.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler" }, { "title": "UT Tyler: At a glance", "url": "https://www.uttyler.edu/about/at-a-glance.php" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1971", "rulerYear": 1971, "text": "The Tyler Museum of Art opens, through the efforts of the Junior League of Tyler. It sits on the Tyler Junior College campus at 1300 S. Mahon.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-museum-of-art", "claim": "The Tyler Museum of Art opened in 1971 through the efforts of the Junior League of Tyler and sits on the Tyler Junior College campus at 1300 S. Mahon; it grew out of the Tyler Service League's Community Arts Committee (1952) and an art center in the Jamie T. Smith home (1960), and its building was designed by E. Davis Wilcox.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Museum of Art: Museum history", "url": "https://tylermuseum.org/about/museum-history/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "January 1973", "rulerYear": 1973, "text": "Tyler State College opens upper-division classes in the abandoned O.M. Roberts Junior High School.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "ut-tyler-roberts-1973-campus-1975", "claim": "Tyler State College opened upper-division classes in January 1973 in the abandoned O.M. Roberts Junior High School, and in 1975, as Texas Eastern University, moved to a 200-acre wooded tract in southeast Tyler bordered by Old Omen Road, Patriot Avenue and University Boulevard.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler", "quote": "in January 1973 the school opened upper-division classes in the abandoned O. M. Roberts Junior High School." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler", "quote": "In 1975 it became Texas Eastern University and moved to permanent quarters on a 200-acre wooded tract in southeast Tyler." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler", "quote": "The grounds, including a lake, are bordered by Old Omen Road on the east, Patriot Avenue on the west, and University Boulevard to the south." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1975", "rulerYear": 1975, "text": "As Texas Eastern University, the college moves to a 200-acre wooded tract in southeast Tyler bordered by Old Omen Road, Patriot Avenue and University Boulevard.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "ut-tyler-roberts-1973-campus-1975", "claim": "Tyler State College opened upper-division classes in January 1973 in the abandoned O.M. Roberts Junior High School, and in 1975, as Texas Eastern University, moved to a 200-acre wooded tract in southeast Tyler bordered by Old Omen Road, Patriot Avenue and University Boulevard.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler", "quote": "in January 1973 the school opened upper-division classes in the abandoned O. M. Roberts Junior High School." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler", "quote": "In 1975 it became Texas Eastern University and moved to permanent quarters on a 200-acre wooded tract in southeast Tyler." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler", "quote": "The grounds, including a lake, are bordered by Old Omen Road on the east, Patriot Avenue on the west, and University Boulevard to the south." } ] }, { "id": "ut-tyler-history", "claim": "UT Tyler was founded in 1971 as Tyler State College, became Texas Eastern University in 1975, and joined the UT System after Gov. Bill Clements signed Senate Bill 906 on June 2, 1979.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler" }, { "title": "UT Tyler: At a glance", "url": "https://www.uttyler.edu/about/at-a-glance.php" } ] } ] }, { "when": "June 2, 1979", "rulerYear": 1979, "text": "It joins the UT System after Gov. Bill Clements signs Senate Bill 906.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "ut-tyler-history", "claim": "UT Tyler was founded in 1971 as Tyler State College, became Texas Eastern University in 1975, and joined the UT System after Gov. Bill Clements signed Senate Bill 906 on June 2, 1979.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler" }, { "title": "UT Tyler: At a glance", "url": "https://www.uttyler.edu/about/at-a-glance.php" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Fall 2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "UT Tyler’s preliminary fall 2026 enrollment is a record 11,701 students, and its main campus in southeast Tyler covers more than 260 acres.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "ut-tyler-enrollment-campus-2026", "claim": "UT Tyler's preliminary fall 2026 enrollment was a record 11,701 students, and its main campus in southeast Tyler covers more than 260 acres.", "caveat": "Enrollment is preliminary.", "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler" }, { "title": "Gilmer Mirror, 2026-09-14: UT Tyler Fall Enrollment Continues Growth Trend", "url": "https://www.gilmermirror.com/2026/09/14/ut-tyler-fall-enrollment-continues-growth-trend/" }, { "title": "UT Tyler: At a glance", "url": "https://www.uttyler.edu/about/at-a-glance.php" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "Both pins are hollow: they mark the campuses as they stand today. The college’s first classes, in 1973, met in a junior high school the sources name but do not place." ] }, { "year": 1977, "to": 1982, "title": "Plyler v. Doe", "dek": "A tuition charge in Tyler’s schools, a class action filed in Tyler, and a Supreme Court decision in 1982.", "entries": [ { "when": "1893", "rulerYear": 1893, "text": "Hispanic families appear in Tyler city directories as early as 1893, when Domingo Garcia, listed as Mexican, runs a restaurant at Broadway and Erwin.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "hispanic-earliest-directory-1893", "claim": "Hispanic families appear in Tyler city directories as early as 1893, when Domingo Garcia, listed as Mexican, ran a restaurant at Broadway and Erwin.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "Hispanic families appear in the city directories as early as 1893, when Domingo Garcia, designated as Mexican, operated a restaurant at Broadway and Erwin." } ] } ] }, { "when": "1920s", "rulerYear": 1925, "text": "More Spanish surnames appear in the directories, most of them living just south of the Cotton Belt tracks and east of the Levee.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "hispanic-1920s-south-of-tracks", "claim": "In the 1920s more Spanish surnames appear in Tyler's city directories, most of them living just south of the Cotton Belt tracks and east of the Levee.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, Historic and Architectural Resources of Tyler, Texas (2001)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/64500654/64500654.pdf", "quote": "During the 1920s ... with most living in the area just south of the Cotton Belt tracks and east of The Levee." } ] } ] }, { "when": "September 6, 1977", "rulerYear": 1977, "text": "At the start of the 1977-78 school year Tyler ISD begins charging $1,000 for each undocumented child. MALDEF lawyers file a class action against it, and superintendent James Plyler’s name goes on the case.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "plyler-tyler-tuition-1977", "claim": "At the start of the 1977-78 school year Tyler ISD began charging $1,000 for each undocumented child, and MALDEF lawyers filed a class action against it on September 6, 1977; superintendent James Plyler's name went on the case.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Plyler v. Doe", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/plyler-v-doe", "quote": "The Tyler Independent School District (ISD) began charging $1,000 per each undocumented child at the beginning of the 1977–78 school year." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Plyler v. Doe", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/plyler-v-doe", "quote": "MALDEF attorneys filed a class action lawsuit on September 6, 1977" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Plyler v. Doe", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/plyler-v-doe", "quote": "James Plyler was the Tyler ISD superintendent" } ] } ] }, { "when": "1977", "rulerYear": 1977, "text": "The Handbook of Texas says MALDEF chose Tyler for a progressive judge (William Wayne Justice), sympathetic clients in families whose children held different immigration status, and a rural area where the media glare would be less.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "plyler-why-tyler", "claim": "The Handbook of Texas says MALDEF chose Tyler as its venue for a progressive judge (William Wayne Justice), sympathetic clients in families whose children held different immigration status, and a rural area where the media glare would be less.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Plyler v. Doe", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/plyler-v-doe", "quote": "The MALDEF lawyers found their clients in Tyler, Texas, where brothers and sisters in the same family held different immigration status." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Plyler v. Doe", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/plyler-v-doe", "quote": "MALDEF had carefully selected Tyler as the perfect federal venue for arguing its case: a progressive judge, sympathetic clients, and a rural area" } ] } ] }, { "when": "September 14, 1978", "rulerYear": 1978, "text": "Judge Justice strikes down the state law as applied to Tyler ISD.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "plyler-justice-ruling-1978-supreme-court-1982", "claim": "On September 14, 1978, Judge William Wayne Justice struck down the state law as applied to Tyler ISD, and on June 15, 1982, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the children's right to attend, 5-4, in Plyler v. Doe.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Plyler v. Doe", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/plyler-v-doe", "quote": "On September 14, 1978, after a two-day hearing, Judge Justice issued his opinion, striking down section 21.031 as applied to the Tyler ISD." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Plyler v. Doe", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/plyler-v-doe", "quote": "On June 15, 1982, the Supreme Court gave Roos and Schey their win on all counts, by a 5–4 margin." } ] } ] }, { "when": "June 15, 1982", "rulerYear": 1982, "text": "The U.S. Supreme Court affirms the children’s right to attend, 5-4, in Plyler v. Doe.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "plyler-justice-ruling-1978-supreme-court-1982", "claim": "On September 14, 1978, Judge William Wayne Justice struck down the state law as applied to Tyler ISD, and on June 15, 1982, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the children's right to attend, 5-4, in Plyler v. Doe.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Plyler v. Doe", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/plyler-v-doe", "quote": "On September 14, 1978, after a two-day hearing, Judge Justice issued his opinion, striking down section 21.031 as applied to the Tyler ISD." }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Plyler v. Doe", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/plyler-v-doe", "quote": "On June 15, 1982, the Supreme Court gave Roos and Schey their win on all counts, by a 5–4 margin." } ] } ] }, { "when": "2000 and 2010", "rulerYear": 2010, "text": "The census counts 13,234 Hispanic or Latino residents in Tyler in 2000, about 16 percent, and 20,511 in 2010, about 21 percent.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "hispanic-population-2000-2010", "claim": "The census counted 13,234 Hispanic or Latino residents in Tyler in 2000 (about 16 percent of 83,650) and 20,511 in 2010 (about 21 percent of 96,900).", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau, 2000 Census SF1 table P004 (Hispanic or Latino), Tyler city", "url": "https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=DECENNIALSF12000.P004&g=160XX00US4874144", "quote": "P004002: 13234; P004001: 83650; NAME: Tyler city, Texas (field: value pairs from the JSON response; P004002 = Total!!Hispanic or Latino)" }, { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census SF1 table P4 (Hispanic or Latino origin), Tyler city", "url": "https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=DECENNIALSF12010.P4&g=160XX00US4874144", "quote": "[\"1600000US4874144\",\"T1_POP$1600000US4874144\",\"20511\",\"76389\",\"96900\",\"Tyler city, Texas\"]" } ] } ] }, { "when": "2014-15", "rulerYear": 2015, "text": "Tyler ISD has more than 18,000 students, about 45 percent Hispanic, nearly 30 percent Black and nearly 22 percent white.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-isd-hispanic-2014", "claim": "By the 2014-15 school year Tyler ISD had more than 18,000 students, about 45 percent Hispanic, nearly 30 percent Black and nearly 22 percent white.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Associated Press via Fox News, East Texas judge ends 1970 desegregation lawsuit in predominantly Hispanic school district (Aug. 27, 2016)", "url": "https://www.foxnews.com/world/east-texas-judge-ends-1970-desegregation-lawsuit-in-predominantly-hispanic-school-district.amp", "quote": "The figures showed nearly 22 percent of the children are white, about 45 percent are Hispanic and nearly 30 percent are black." } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "A court case has no place on the map; this plate shows the city as it stood in 1982." ] }, { "year": 1999, "to": 2026, "title": "Historic districts", "dek": "Eight National Register historic districts, listed from 1999 to January 2026.", "entries": [ { "when": "August 20, 1999", "rulerYear": 1999, "text": "Charnwood is listed: about 59.54 acres on Charnwood Hill, half a mile south of the original square, with a period of significance of about 1870 to 1950.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "eight-national-register-districts-list", "claim": "THC Atlas listings give these Tyler historic districts and their National Register listing dates: Charnwood (August 20, 1999), Donnybrook Duplex and East Ferguson Street (June 14, 2002), Short-Line (August 22, 2002), Azalea (June 23, 2003), Brick Streets (April 28, 2004), Tyler Downtown (October 24, 2022) and Pollard (January 29, 2026).", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Charnwood Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2099001023", "quote": "Charnwood Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/20/1999" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000649", "quote": "Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000647", "quote": "East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Short-Line Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000897", "quote": "Short-Line Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/22/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Azalea Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2003000559", "quote": "Azalea Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/23/2003" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000379", "quote": "Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District ... Date Listed 4/28/2004" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Tyler Downtown Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100008283", "quote": "Tyler Downtown Historic District ... Date Listed 10/24/2022" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Pollard Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100012639", "quote": "Pollard Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 1/29/2026" } ] }, { "id": "charnwood-district-details", "claim": "The Charnwood Residential Historic District covers about 59.54 acres on Charnwood Hill, half a mile south of the original square, bounded by East Houston Street, the railroad tracks, East Wells, South Donnybrook and East Dobbs streets, and South Broadway; its period of significance is about 1870 to 1950, and 208 of its 331 resources contribute.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Charnwood Residential Historic District (1999)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/99001023/99001023.pdf", "quote": "platted subdivisions spread across approximately 59.54 acres" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Charnwood Residential Historic District (1999)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/99001023/99001023.pdf", "quote": "the district retains a high degree of integrity with 208 of 331 resources classified as Contributing." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Charnwood Residential Historic District (1999)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/99001023/99001023.pdf", "quote": "PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE : C . 1870-1950" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Charnwood Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2099001023", "quote": "Roughly bounded by East Houston, railroad tracks, East Wells, South Donnybrook, East Dobbs and South Broadway." } ] } ] }, { "when": "June 14, 2002", "rulerYear": 2002, "text": "Donnybrook Duplex (18 one-story duplexes of 1947 and 1948) and East Ferguson Street (six nearly identical Craftsman bungalows built between 1926 and 1930 as rental housing) are listed.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "eight-national-register-districts-list", "claim": "THC Atlas listings give these Tyler historic districts and their National Register listing dates: Charnwood (August 20, 1999), Donnybrook Duplex and East Ferguson Street (June 14, 2002), Short-Line (August 22, 2002), Azalea (June 23, 2003), Brick Streets (April 28, 2004), Tyler Downtown (October 24, 2022) and Pollard (January 29, 2026).", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Charnwood Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2099001023", "quote": "Charnwood Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/20/1999" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000649", "quote": "Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000647", "quote": "East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Short-Line Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000897", "quote": "Short-Line Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/22/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Azalea Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2003000559", "quote": "Azalea Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/23/2003" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000379", "quote": "Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District ... Date Listed 4/28/2004" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Tyler Downtown Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100008283", "quote": "Tyler Downtown Historic District ... Date Listed 10/24/2022" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Pollard Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100012639", "quote": "Pollard Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 1/29/2026" } ] }, { "id": "donnybrook-duplex-district", "claim": "The Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District is 18 one-story duplexes that developer R.J. Henderson built in 1947 and 1948 from plans by Tyler architect Homer H. Lansberry, on a block about 1.5 miles south of the square; the nomination calls it the only known concentration of intact mid-20th-century duplex housing in Tyler.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000649/02000649.pdf", "quote": "The district's resources were built in 1947 and 1948 within Block 786 in the City of Tyler." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000649/02000649.pdf", "quote": "buih by local real estate developer R. J. Henderson from plans drawn by local architect Homer H. Lansberry" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000649/02000649.pdf", "quote": "significant as the only known concentration of intact mid-20th century duplex housing in the city." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000649", "quote": "Bounded by East 6th St., Donnybrook Avenue, East 8th Street, and South Wall" } ] }, { "id": "east-ferguson-district", "claim": "The East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District, at 423-513 East Ferguson Street three blocks east of the square, is six nearly identical Craftsman bungalows built between 1926 and 1930 as rental housing for working-class tenants; 12 of its 13 resources contribute.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000647/02000647.pdf", "quote": "The East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District encompasses six, modest, nearly identical dwellings and three garages on approximately 1.363 acres of land in central Tyler" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000647/02000647.pdf", "quote": "The district's resources were built between 1926 and 1930" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000647/02000647.pdf", "quote": "Containing 13 properties, the district retains a very high degree of integrity with 12 Contributing resources (92 percent) and one Noncontributing property." } ] } ] }, { "when": "August 22, 2002", "rulerYear": 2002, "text": "Short-Line is listed: 11 bungalows built for African American occupants about 1930 to 1935, five blocks northwest of the square.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "eight-national-register-districts-list", "claim": "THC Atlas listings give these Tyler historic districts and their National Register listing dates: Charnwood (August 20, 1999), Donnybrook Duplex and East Ferguson Street (June 14, 2002), Short-Line (August 22, 2002), Azalea (June 23, 2003), Brick Streets (April 28, 2004), Tyler Downtown (October 24, 2022) and Pollard (January 29, 2026).", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Charnwood Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2099001023", "quote": "Charnwood Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/20/1999" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000649", "quote": "Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000647", "quote": "East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Short-Line Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000897", "quote": "Short-Line Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/22/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Azalea Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2003000559", "quote": "Azalea Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/23/2003" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000379", "quote": "Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District ... Date Listed 4/28/2004" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Tyler Downtown Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100008283", "quote": "Tyler Downtown Historic District ... Date Listed 10/24/2022" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Pollard Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100012639", "quote": "Pollard Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 1/29/2026" } ] }, { "id": "short-line-district", "claim": "The Short-Line Residential Historic District, five blocks northwest of the square, is 11 nearly identical bungalows built about 1930-1935 by wealthy Tyler businessman J.H. Herndon for African American occupants; the nomination calls it the only known surviving concentration of intact early- to mid-20th-century housing tied to Tyler's African American community.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Short-Line Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000897/02000897.pdf", "quote": "All the dwellings are one-story wood frame Craftsman influenced bungalows built by wealthy Tyler businessman J. H. Herndon for African American occupants" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Short-Line Residential Historic District (2002)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/02000897/02000897.pdf", "quote": "It is also significant as the only known surviving concentration of intact early to mid-20th century housing associated with Tyler's African American community." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Short-Line Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000897", "quote": "Date Listed 8/22/2002" } ] } ] }, { "when": "June 23, 2003", "rulerYear": 2003, "text": "Azalea is listed: 76 city blocks and 36 platted subdivisions on about 458.9 acres one to two miles south of the square.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "eight-national-register-districts-list", "claim": "THC Atlas listings give these Tyler historic districts and their National Register listing dates: Charnwood (August 20, 1999), Donnybrook Duplex and East Ferguson Street (June 14, 2002), Short-Line (August 22, 2002), Azalea (June 23, 2003), Brick Streets (April 28, 2004), Tyler Downtown (October 24, 2022) and Pollard (January 29, 2026).", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Charnwood Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2099001023", "quote": "Charnwood Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/20/1999" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000649", "quote": "Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000647", "quote": "East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Short-Line Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000897", "quote": "Short-Line Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/22/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Azalea Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2003000559", "quote": "Azalea Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/23/2003" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000379", "quote": "Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District ... Date Listed 4/28/2004" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Tyler Downtown Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100008283", "quote": "Tyler Downtown Historic District ... Date Listed 10/24/2022" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Pollard Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100012639", "quote": "Pollard Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 1/29/2026" } ] }, { "id": "azalea-district-details", "claim": "The Azalea Residential Historic District spans 76 city blocks and 36 platted subdivisions on about 458.9 acres one to two miles south of the square; it developed between about 1900 and 1953, most intensively from 1925 to 1953, and 1,047 of its 1,614 resources contribute.", "caveat": "Existing facts say about 950 houses (Historic Tyler, Visit Tyler); the nomination counts 1,614 resources, which include garages and other outbuildings.", "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Azalea Residential Historic District (2003)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/03000559/03000559.pdf", "quote": "district encompasses 76 \"New City Blocks\" within the City of Tyler and includes 36 formally platted subdivisions" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Azalea Residential Historic District (2003)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/03000559/03000559.pdf", "quote": "spread across approximately 458.9 +/- acres." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Azalea Residential Historic District (2003)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/03000559/03000559.pdf", "quote": "between ca. 1900 and 1953 with the most intensive development occurring between 1925 and 1953." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Azalea Residential Historic District (2003)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/03000559/03000559.pdf", "quote": "the district retains a high degree of integrity with 1,047 of 1,614 resources classified as Contributing." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Azalea Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2003000559", "quote": "Roughly bounded by S. Robertson Ave., Sunnybrook Dr., Fair Lane, Old Bullard Rd." } ] } ] }, { "when": "April 28, 2004", "rulerYear": 2004, "text": "Brick Streets is listed: about 132.6 acres in 29 blocks and 16 subdivisions.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "eight-national-register-districts-list", "claim": "THC Atlas listings give these Tyler historic districts and their National Register listing dates: Charnwood (August 20, 1999), Donnybrook Duplex and East Ferguson Street (June 14, 2002), Short-Line (August 22, 2002), Azalea (June 23, 2003), Brick Streets (April 28, 2004), Tyler Downtown (October 24, 2022) and Pollard (January 29, 2026).", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Charnwood Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2099001023", "quote": "Charnwood Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/20/1999" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000649", "quote": "Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000647", "quote": "East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Short-Line Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000897", "quote": "Short-Line Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/22/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Azalea Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2003000559", "quote": "Azalea Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/23/2003" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000379", "quote": "Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District ... Date Listed 4/28/2004" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Tyler Downtown Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100008283", "quote": "Tyler Downtown Historic District ... Date Listed 10/24/2022" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Pollard Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100012639", "quote": "Pollard Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 1/29/2026" } ] }, { "id": "brick-streets-district-details", "claim": "The Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District covers about 132.6 acres in 29 blocks and 16 subdivisions; it developed from about 1848 to 1953, most intensively from about 1890 to 1940, and 369 of its 586 resources contribute.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District (2004)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000379/04000379.pdf", "quote": "ACREAGE OF PROPERTY: approximately 132.6 acres" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District (2004)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000379/04000379.pdf", "quote": "The neighborhood developed on parcels of varying sizes and shapes between ca. 1848 and 1953 with the most intensive development occurring between ca. 1890 and ca. 1940." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District (2004)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/04000379/04000379.pdf", "quote": "The district retains a high degree of integrity with 369 of 586 resources classified as Contributing." }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000379", "quote": "Roughly bounded by South Broadway, West Dobbs Street, South Kennedy Ave., South Vine Ave." } ] } ] }, { "when": "October 24, 2022", "rulerYear": 2022, "text": "The Tyler Downtown Historic District is listed: about 71.6 acres and about 19 blocks between West Front Street, Border Avenue, the Cotton Belt tracks and Fannin Avenue. Of its 134 resources, 96 contribute.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "eight-national-register-districts-list", "claim": "THC Atlas listings give these Tyler historic districts and their National Register listing dates: Charnwood (August 20, 1999), Donnybrook Duplex and East Ferguson Street (June 14, 2002), Short-Line (August 22, 2002), Azalea (June 23, 2003), Brick Streets (April 28, 2004), Tyler Downtown (October 24, 2022) and Pollard (January 29, 2026).", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Charnwood Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2099001023", "quote": "Charnwood Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/20/1999" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000649", "quote": "Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000647", "quote": "East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Short-Line Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000897", "quote": "Short-Line Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/22/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Azalea Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2003000559", "quote": "Azalea Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/23/2003" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000379", "quote": "Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District ... Date Listed 4/28/2004" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Tyler Downtown Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100008283", "quote": "Tyler Downtown Historic District ... Date Listed 10/24/2022" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Pollard Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100012639", "quote": "Pollard Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 1/29/2026" } ] }, { "id": "downtown-historic-district-listed-2022", "claim": "The Tyler Downtown Historic District, listed on the National Register on October 24, 2022, covers about 71.6 acres and about 19 blocks roughly situated between West Front Street, Border Avenue, the Cotton Belt railroad tracks and Fannin Avenue; 96 of its 134 resources are contributing and 38 noncontributing.", "caveat": "The nomination's form gives a period of significance of 1885-1976, but its narrative says 1890 to 1976; it also gives both 241 and 271 parcels.", "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Tyler Downtown Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100008283", "quote": "Date Listed 10/24/2022" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The Tyler Downtown Historic District encompasses approximately 71.6 acres in the central business district of Tyler" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Tyler Downtown Historic District (NRHP 100008283)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100008283/100008283.pdf", "quote": "The Tyler Downtown Historic District has a total of 134 properties (131 buildings, 1 site, 1 structure, and 1 object), of which 96 are contributing and 38 are noncontributing." } ] } ] }, { "when": "January 29, 2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "Pollard is listed: about 580 acres and more than 85 blocks about three miles southeast of downtown, named for Tomas and Edna Pollard, whose family owned most of its original acreage. Its period of significance is 1947 to 1974.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "eight-national-register-districts-list", "claim": "THC Atlas listings give these Tyler historic districts and their National Register listing dates: Charnwood (August 20, 1999), Donnybrook Duplex and East Ferguson Street (June 14, 2002), Short-Line (August 22, 2002), Azalea (June 23, 2003), Brick Streets (April 28, 2004), Tyler Downtown (October 24, 2022) and Pollard (January 29, 2026).", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Charnwood Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2099001023", "quote": "Charnwood Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/20/1999" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000649", "quote": "Donnybrook Duplex Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000647", "quote": "East Ferguson Street Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/14/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Short-Line Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2002000897", "quote": "Short-Line Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 8/22/2002" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Azalea Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2003000559", "quote": "Azalea Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 6/23/2003" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2004000379", "quote": "Brick Streets Neighborhood Historic District ... Date Listed 4/28/2004" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Tyler Downtown Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100008283", "quote": "Tyler Downtown Historic District ... Date Listed 10/24/2022" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Pollard Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100012639", "quote": "Pollard Residential Historic District ... Date Listed 1/29/2026" } ] }, { "id": "pollard-district-details", "claim": "The Pollard Residential Historic District, listed January 29, 2026, covers about 580 acres and more than 85 blocks about three miles southeast of downtown, bounded by Troup Highway, Paluxy Drive, East Southeast Loop 323 and New Copeland Road; 1,224 of its 1,338 resources contribute, and its period of significance is 1947-1974.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "The district encompasses approximately 580 acres and more than 85 blocks of post-World War II residential development" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "roughly bounded by Troup Highway to the north and northeast, Paluxy Drive to the east" }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "The Pollard Residential Historic District has a total of 1,338 resources (1,318 buildings, 20 structures), of which 1,224 (91 percent) are contributing" }, { "title": "THC Atlas, National Register listing: Pollard Residential Historic District", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/Details/2100012639", "quote": "Date Listed 1/29/2026 ... Time Period 1947-1974" } ] }, { "id": "pollard-family-name", "claim": "The Pollard district is named for Tomas and Edna Pollard, whose family owned most of its original acreage; it holds 17 subdivisions platted between 1930 and the early 1970s, and 706 of its resources (53 percent) were built in the 1950s.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "the most prevalent was the Tomas and Edna Pollard family who owned a vast majority of the original acreage and for whom the neighborhood is named." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "The district is comprised of 17 historic subdivisions of varying sizes platted between 1930 and the early 1970s." }, { "title": "National Register nomination, Pollard Residential Historic District (2026)", "url": "https://atlas.thc.texas.gov/NR/pdfs/100012639/100012669.pdf", "quote": "1950-1959 706 53%" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The districts are not drawn: the sources describe their bounds in words." ] }, { "year": 2020, "to": 2025, "title": "The 2020 count", "dek": "105,995 people in the 2020 census, and an estimate of 113,723 five years on.", "entries": [ { "when": "2000 and 2010", "rulerYear": 2010, "text": "The census counts 83,650 people in 2000 and 96,900 in 2010. Of them, 22,275 are Black or African American alone in 2000, about 27 percent, and 23,986 in 2010, about 25 percent.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "population-2000", "claim": "Tyler's population was 83,650 in the 2000 census.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau, 2000 Census SF1 table P001 (data.census.gov API), Tyler city, Texas", "url": "https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=DECENNIALSF12000.P001&g=160XX00US4874144", "quote": "[\"1600000US4874144\",\"83650\",\"Tyler city, Texas\"]" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "the population remained relatively static at 83,650 inhabitants" } ] }, { "id": "population-2010", "claim": "Tyler's population was 96,900 in the 2010 census.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census SF1 table P1 (data.census.gov API), Tyler city, Texas", "url": "https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=DECENNIALSF12010.P1&g=160XX00US4874144", "quote": "[\"1600000US4874144\",\"T1_POP$1600000US4874144\",\"96900\",\"Tyler city, Texas\"]" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX (Christopher Long)", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx", "quote": "96,900 2010" } ] }, { "id": "black-population-2000-2010", "claim": "The census counted 22,275 residents who were Black or African American alone in Tyler in 2000 (about 27 percent of 83,650) and 23,986 in 2010 (about 25 percent of 96,900).", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau, 2000 Census SF1 table P003 (Race), Tyler city", "url": "https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=DECENNIALSF12000.P003&g=160XX00US4874144", "quote": "P003004: 22275; P003001: 83650; NAME: Tyler city, Texas (field: value pairs from the JSON response)" }, { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census SF1 table P3 (Race), Tyler city", "url": "https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=DECENNIALSF12010.P3&g=160XX00US4874144", "quote": "P003003: 23986; P003001: 96900; NAME: Tyler city, Texas (field: value pairs from the JSON response)" } ] } ] }, { "when": "2020", "rulerYear": 2020, "text": "The 2020 census counts 105,995 residents in Tyler.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-population-2020-2025", "claim": "Tyler had 105,995 residents in the 2020 census, and the Census Bureau estimates 113,723 as of July 1, 2025, up about 7.4% from its April 2020 estimates base of 105,867.", "caveat": "The 2025 figure is a Census Bureau estimate.", "sources": [ { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau data file: sub-est2025.csv", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025.csv" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau data file: 2024_gaz_place_48.txt", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2024_Gazetteer/2024_gaz_place_48.txt" }, { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau data file: sub-est2025_48.csv", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv" }, { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau (data.census.gov): table DECENNIALDHC2020.P9, Tyler city", "url": "https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=DECENNIALDHC2020.P9&g=160XX00US4874144" } ] } ] }, { "when": "July 1, 2025", "rulerYear": 2025, "text": "The Census Bureau estimates 113,723 residents, up about 7.4% from its April 2020 estimates base of 105,867.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-population-2020-2025", "claim": "Tyler had 105,995 residents in the 2020 census, and the Census Bureau estimates 113,723 as of July 1, 2025, up about 7.4% from its April 2020 estimates base of 105,867.", "caveat": "The 2025 figure is a Census Bureau estimate.", "sources": [ { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau data file: sub-est2025.csv", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025.csv" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Tyler, TX", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/tyler-tx" }, { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau data file: 2024_gaz_place_48.txt", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2024_Gazetteer/2024_gaz_place_48.txt" }, { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau data file: sub-est2025_48.csv", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025_48.csv" }, { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau (data.census.gov): table DECENNIALDHC2020.P9, Tyler city", "url": "https://data.census.gov/api/access/data/table?id=DECENNIALDHC2020.P9&g=160XX00US4874144" } ] } ] }, { "when": "July 1, 2025", "rulerYear": 2025, "text": "The Tyler metro area is Smith County alone, with an estimated 252,549 people.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tyler-metro-is-smith-county", "claim": "The Tyler metro area (the Tyler, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area) is Smith County alone, with an estimated 252,549 people on July 1, 2025, up about 8.2% from its April 2020 estimates base of 233,470.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau data file: cbsa-est2025-alldata.csv", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/metro/totals/cbsa-est2025-alldata.csv" }, { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau data file: sub-est2025.csv", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/cities/totals/sub-est2025.csv" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Smith County", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/smith-county" }, { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau data file: co-est2025-alldata.csv", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/counties/totals/co-est2025-alldata.csv" } ] } ] }, { "when": "July 2020 to July 2025", "rulerYear": 2025, "text": "Smith County grows mainly because people move in from elsewhere in the U.S.: Census estimates show net domestic migration added about 13,980 people, compared with about 2,340 from international migration and about 1,845 from births minus deaths.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "smith-county-growth-from-migration", "claim": "Smith County grows mainly because people move in from elsewhere in the U.S.: from July 2020 to July 2025, Census estimates show net domestic migration added about 13,980 people, compared with about 2,340 from international migration and about 1,845 from births minus deaths.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "U.S. Census Bureau data file: co-est2025-alldata.csv", "url": "https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/counties/totals/co-est2025-alldata.csv" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [] }, { "year": 2025, "to": 2028, "title": "The downtown rebuild", "dek": "A $25.6 million city-county rebuild of downtown’s streets, utilities and square.", "entries": [ { "when": "November 8, 2022", "rulerYear": 2022, "text": "A $179 million bond for a new Smith County courthouse downtown passes with 53.73% of the vote. The county plans to move in and demolish the current courthouse by fall 2027.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "smith-county-courthouse-bond-2022", "claim": "A new Smith County Courthouse is going up downtown under a $179 million bond that passed with 53.73% of the vote on November 8, 2022, and the county plans to move in and demolish the current courthouse by fall 2027.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County: Courthouse planning", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2026-03-23: Dome Installed Overnight New Smith County Courthouse Marking Key Progress Project", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/03/23/dome-installed-overnight-new-smith-county-courthouse-marking-key-progress-project/" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2025-11-19: New Smith County Courthouse Build Reaches Halfway Point", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2025/11/19/new-smith-county-courthouse-build-reaches-halfway-point/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "August 15, 2024", "rulerYear": 2024, "text": "Smith County breaks ground on its new courthouse, after demolition of buildings on East Erwin Street and Fannin and Spring avenues began that July. It is expected to open at the end of 2026.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "new-courthouse-groundbreaking-2024", "claim": "Smith County broke ground on its new courthouse on August 15, 2024, after demolition of buildings on East Erwin Street and Fannin and Spring avenues began that July; Fitzpatrick Architects presented courthouse planning to the commissioners in 2021, and Hoar Construction, teamed with SCI Construction, heads the courthouse and parking garage project.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "August 15, 2024: A Groundbreaking Ceremony was held for the new Smith County Courthouse construction project." }, { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "Demolition of the buildings on East Erwin Street and Fannin and Spring Avenues began." }, { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "approved appointing Hoar Construction, which is teaming with SCI Construction, to head the Smith County Courthouse and Parking Garage Bond project." }, { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "representatives from Fitzpatrick Architects and Project Advocates gave a presentation on the planning for a new Smith County Courthouse" } ] }, { "id": "smith-county-courthouse-construction", "claim": "The new Smith County courthouse, under construction since August 2024, is expected to open at the end of 2026.", "caveat": "The opening is an expectation; sources say end of 2026, December 2026 or late 2026. Re-check.", "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-06-10: Downtown Tyler's New Look Starts to Take Shape with Project Completion Expected in 2028", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/06/10/downtown-tylers-new-look-starts-to-take-shape-with-project-completion-expected-in-2028/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-07: Tyler's Downtown Improvement Project Work Shifts to Broadway Avenue", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/07/tylers-downtown-improvement-project-work-shifts-to-broadway-avenue/" }, { "title": "Smith County: Courthouse planning", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2026-03-23: Dome Installed Overnight New Smith County Courthouse Marking Key Progress Project", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/03/23/dome-installed-overnight-new-smith-county-courthouse-marking-key-progress-project/" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2025-11-19: New Smith County Courthouse Build Reaches Halfway Point", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2025/11/19/new-smith-county-courthouse-build-reaches-halfway-point/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "November 12, 2024", "rulerYear": 2024, "text": "The free, five-story, 543-space Smith County Parking Garage opens at 210 East Ferguson Street, paid for with $19 million of the courthouse bond.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "county-parking-garage-2024", "claim": "The free, five-story, 543-space Smith County Parking Garage at 210 East Ferguson Street, paid for with $19 million of the courthouse bond, opened on November 12, 2024.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "November 12, 2024: The Smith County Parking Garage opened on Tuesday, November 12, after a year of construction. The 543-space, five-story parking garage is free" }, { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "The parking garage is located at 210 East Ferguson Street, next to the Smith County Annex Building." }, { "title": "Smith County, Courthouse Planning (including 'The Story of Our Courthouses')", "url": "https://www.smith-county.com/362/Courthouse-Planning", "quote": "The issuance of $160 million in bonds is for the new courthouse and $19 million for the parking garage." } ] } ] }, { "when": "July 8, 2025", "rulerYear": 2025, "text": "The $25.6 million Downtown Improvement Project, built by The Fain Group of Fort Worth, has two phases: Phase I rebuilds Erwin Street, Broadway Avenue, Ferguson Street and College Avenue with water and sewer lines; Phase II builds new green space on the west side of the square.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "dip-two-phases-fain-group", "claim": "The $25.6 million Downtown Improvement Project, built by The Fain Group of Fort Worth, has two phases: Phase I rebuilds Erwin Street, Broadway Avenue, Ferguson Street and College Avenue with water and sewer lines, and Phase II builds new green space on the west side of the square.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "KLTV, Tyler City Council approves $25.6M downtown improvement project (July 8, 2025)", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2025/07/08/tyler-city-council-approves-256m-downtown-improvement-project/", "quote": "The contract was approved with The Fain Group, a Fort Worth-based construction firm." }, { "title": "KLTV, Tyler City Council approves $25.6M downtown improvement project (July 8, 2025)", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2025/07/08/tyler-city-council-approves-256m-downtown-improvement-project/", "quote": "Phase I will consist of major improvements to Erwin Street, Broadway Avenue, Ferguson Street and College Avenue, and include water and sewer improvements." }, { "title": "KLTV, Tyler City Council approves $25.6M downtown improvement project (July 8, 2025)", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2025/07/08/tyler-city-council-approves-256m-downtown-improvement-project/", "quote": "Phase II will complete construction of the new green space on the west side of the Downtown Square." } ] } ] }, { "when": "September 2025", "rulerYear": 2025, "text": "The Downtown Improvement Project begins. It converts the streets around the square to two-way traffic and rebuilds the square with green space and restrooms.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "downtown-improvement-project-scope", "claim": "The Downtown Improvement Project began in September 2025, converts the streets around the square to two-way traffic, rebuilds the square with green space (due by May 2027) and restrooms, and later adds roundabouts on South Broadway starting November 2027.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-04-29: Tyler Mayor Don Warren Discusses Downtown Project Timeline Funding and Businesses on the Square", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/04/29/tyler-mayor-don-warren-discusses-downtown-project-timeline-funding-and-businesses-on-the-square/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-07: Tyler's Downtown Improvement Project Work Shifts to Broadway Avenue", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/07/tylers-downtown-improvement-project-work-shifts-to-broadway-avenue/" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2026-03-02: Downtown Tyler Improvements Continue Bricks Returned College Avenue", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/03/02/downtown-tyler-improvements-continue-bricks-returned-college-avenue/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "September 2025", "rulerYear": 2025, "text": "Crews take up every brick on College Avenue between Ferguson and Erwin streets, palletize them and store them.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "college-avenue-bricks-lifted-2025", "claim": "In September 2025, crews took up every brick on College Avenue between Ferguson and Erwin streets for the Downtown Improvement Project, palletized and stored them.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2025-09-17: Crews Remove Historic Bricks on College Avenue to Make Way for Infrastructure Work in Downtown Tyler", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2025/09/17/crews-remove-historic-bricks-on-college-avenue-to-make-way-for-infrastructure-work-in-downtown-tyler/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "March 2, 2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "Bricks saved from the streets go back down on College Avenue in front of Plaza Tower.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "college-avenue-bricks-relaid-2026", "claim": "On March 2, 2026, bricks saved from the streets went back down on College Avenue in front of Plaza Tower.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "KLTV, 2026-03-02: Downtown Tyler Improvements Continue Bricks Returned College Avenue", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/03/02/downtown-tyler-improvements-continue-bricks-returned-college-avenue/" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2026-03-18: City Tyler Holds Open House Downtown Improvement Project", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/03/18/city-tyler-holds-open-house-downtown-improvement-project/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-03-18: City of Tyler Hosts Open Houses for Updates on the Downtown Improvement Project", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/03/18/city-of-tyler-hosts-open-houses-for-updates-on-the-downtown-improvement-project/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "May 2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "Phase I, covering Erwin Street, Broadway Avenue, Ferguson Street and College Avenue, finishes.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "downtown-improvement-phase-1-north-broadway", "claim": "Phase I of the Downtown Improvement Project, covering Erwin Street, Broadway Avenue, Ferguson Street and College Avenue, finished in May 2026, and North Broadway work began the week of September 7, 2026, after Labor Day.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-04-29: Tyler Mayor Don Warren Discusses Downtown Project Timeline Funding and Businesses on the Square", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/04/29/tyler-mayor-don-warren-discusses-downtown-project-timeline-funding-and-businesses-on-the-square/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-07: Tyler's Downtown Improvement Project Work Shifts to Broadway Avenue", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/07/tylers-downtown-improvement-project-work-shifts-to-broadway-avenue/" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2026-03-02: Downtown Tyler Improvements Continue Bricks Returned College Avenue", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/03/02/downtown-tyler-improvements-continue-bricks-returned-college-avenue/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "August 2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "The city’s engineering director says underground work on College Avenue and Ferguson Street is largely done, that roadway work will move next to Broadway starting near Locust Street, and that two-way traffic will return to the west side of the square.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "dip-august-2026-status", "claim": "In August 2026 the city's engineering director said underground work on College Avenue and Ferguson Street was largely done, that roadway work would move next to Broadway starting near Locust Street, and that two-way traffic would return to the west side of the square.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "KLTV, Downtown Tyler construction moves into next phase, city engineer says (Aug. 20, 2026)", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/08/20/downtown-tyler-construction-moves-into-next-phase-city-engineer-says/", "quote": "Williams said underground work on the College Avenue and Ferguson Street portion of the downtown project is largely complete, and sidewalk work is now underway." }, { "title": "KLTV, Downtown Tyler construction moves into next phase, city engineer says (Aug. 20, 2026)", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/08/20/downtown-tyler-construction-moves-into-next-phase-city-engineer-says/", "quote": "crews will move to roadway work on Broadway Avenue, starting near Locust Street and moving south along the west side of the square." }, { "title": "KLTV, Downtown Tyler construction moves into next phase, city engineer says (Aug. 20, 2026)", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/08/20/downtown-tyler-construction-moves-into-next-phase-city-engineer-says/", "quote": "two-way traffic will be restored on the west side of the square" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Week of September 7, 2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "North Broadway work begins, after Labor Day.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "downtown-improvement-phase-1-north-broadway", "claim": "Phase I of the Downtown Improvement Project, covering Erwin Street, Broadway Avenue, Ferguson Street and College Avenue, finished in May 2026, and North Broadway work began the week of September 7, 2026, after Labor Day.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-04-29: Tyler Mayor Don Warren Discusses Downtown Project Timeline Funding and Businesses on the Square", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/04/29/tyler-mayor-don-warren-discusses-downtown-project-timeline-funding-and-businesses-on-the-square/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-07: Tyler's Downtown Improvement Project Work Shifts to Broadway Avenue", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/07/tylers-downtown-improvement-project-work-shifts-to-broadway-avenue/" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2026-03-02: Downtown Tyler Improvements Continue Bricks Returned College Avenue", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/03/02/downtown-tyler-improvements-continue-bricks-returned-college-avenue/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "By May 2027", "rulerYear": 2027, "text": "Green space on the square is due.", "expected": true, "facts": [ { "id": "downtown-improvement-project-scope", "claim": "The Downtown Improvement Project began in September 2025, converts the streets around the square to two-way traffic, rebuilds the square with green space (due by May 2027) and restrooms, and later adds roundabouts on South Broadway starting November 2027.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-04-29: Tyler Mayor Don Warren Discusses Downtown Project Timeline Funding and Businesses on the Square", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/04/29/tyler-mayor-don-warren-discusses-downtown-project-timeline-funding-and-businesses-on-the-square/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-07: Tyler's Downtown Improvement Project Work Shifts to Broadway Avenue", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/07/tylers-downtown-improvement-project-work-shifts-to-broadway-avenue/" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2026-03-02: Downtown Tyler Improvements Continue Bricks Returned College Avenue", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/03/02/downtown-tyler-improvements-continue-bricks-returned-college-avenue/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "From November 2027", "rulerYear": 2027, "text": "Roundabouts on South Broadway are to start.", "expected": true, "facts": [ { "id": "downtown-improvement-project-scope", "claim": "The Downtown Improvement Project began in September 2025, converts the streets around the square to two-way traffic, rebuilds the square with green space (due by May 2027) and restrooms, and later adds roundabouts on South Broadway starting November 2027.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-04-29: Tyler Mayor Don Warren Discusses Downtown Project Timeline Funding and Businesses on the Square", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/04/29/tyler-mayor-don-warren-discusses-downtown-project-timeline-funding-and-businesses-on-the-square/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-07: Tyler's Downtown Improvement Project Work Shifts to Broadway Avenue", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/07/tylers-downtown-improvement-project-work-shifts-to-broadway-avenue/" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2026-03-02: Downtown Tyler Improvements Continue Bricks Returned College Avenue", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/03/02/downtown-tyler-improvements-continue-bricks-returned-college-avenue/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "By April 2028", "rulerYear": 2028, "text": "The whole project is now expected to finish, by news reports; the state’s registration of the project lists November 30, 2028. Completion dates have moved before.", "expected": true, "facts": [ { "id": "downtown-improvement-project-overview", "claim": "Downtown Tyler is in the middle of a $25.6 million city-county rebuild of its streets, utilities and square, which includes $10.7 million in ARPA funds and is now expected to finish by April 2028.", "caveat": "Status as of September 2026. Completion dates have moved, so re-check before reuse.", "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-06-10: Downtown Tyler's New Look Starts to Take Shape with Project Completion Expected in 2028", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/06/10/downtown-tylers-new-look-starts-to-take-shape-with-project-completion-expected-in-2028/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-07: Tyler's Downtown Improvement Project Work Shifts to Broadway Avenue", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/07/tylers-downtown-improvement-project-work-shifts-to-broadway-avenue/" }, { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-04-29: Tyler Mayor Don Warren Discusses Downtown Project Timeline Funding and Businesses on the Square", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/04/29/tyler-mayor-don-warren-discusses-downtown-project-timeline-funding-and-businesses-on-the-square/" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2026-03-02: Downtown Tyler Improvements Continue Bricks Returned College Avenue", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/03/02/downtown-tyler-improvements-continue-bricks-returned-college-avenue/" } ] }, { "id": "dip-state-registration-scope", "claim": "The state accessibility registration for the downtown project lists a June 1, 2025 start, a November 30, 2028 completion and a scope covering College/Spring from Erwin to Ferguson, Erwin/Ferguson from College to Fannin, and Broadway from Elm to Locust.", "caveat": "Existing facts (Tyler Morning Telegraph, KLTV) give an expected finish by April 2028; the state registration lists November 30, 2028.", "sources": [ { "title": "Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, TABS2025010690, Downtown Tyler Improvements (Infrastructure)", "url": "https://www.tdlr.texas.gov/TABS/Search/Print/TABS2025010690", "quote": "Start Date: 6/1/2025 Completion Date: 11/30/2028" }, { "title": "Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, TABS2025010690, Downtown Tyler Improvements (Infrastructure)", "url": "https://www.tdlr.texas.gov/TABS/Search/Print/TABS2025010690", "quote": "This project includes the reconstruction of College/Spring from Erwin to Ferguson, Erwin/Ferguson from College to Fannin, and Broadway from Elm to Locust" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "The streets on the map are the four named in Phase I, as OpenStreetMap draws them within about 300 m of Tyler City Square. The project’s exact limits are not in our sources.", "Dates after September 2026 are expectations from news reports and the state’s registration, not records." ] }, { "year": 2026, "to": null, "title": "Today, September 2026", "dek": "The same names, side by side: a grocery on the square in 1928, a groundbreaking in 2026.", "entries": [ { "when": "September 1, 1928", "rulerYear": 1928, "text": "Wood T. Brookshire opens a 2,500-square-foot grocery on the downtown Tyler courthouse square. It is the start of Brookshire Grocery Co.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "brookshire-grocery-1928", "claim": "Tyler-based Brookshire Grocery Co. traces its start to Sept. 1, 1928, when Wood T. Brookshire opened a 2,500-square-foot grocery on the downtown Tyler courthouse square, and today it runs more than 200 stores under the Brookshire's, Super 1 Foods, Spring Market, FRESH by Brookshire's, Reasor's and FRESH by Reasor's names.", "caveat": "The store count is undated (\"today\"); re-check.", "sources": [ { "title": "Brookshire's: About us", "url": "https://www.brookshires.com/about-us" }, { "title": "Tyler Economic Development Council: Success in Tyler, Brookshire Grocery Company", "url": "https://tedc.org/success-and-news/success-in-tyler/brookshire-grocery-company" }, { "title": "Handbook of Texas: Brookshire Grocery Company", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/brookshire-grocery-company" } ] } ] }, { "when": "July 9, 2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "Brookshire’s breaks ground on a $17 million, roughly 58,467-square-foot store at 3765 Earl Campbell Parkway in west Tyler, with a full-service Stanley’s. It is expected to be complete by fall 2027.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "brookshires-west-tyler-store-2026", "claim": "Brookshire's, founded in Tyler in 1928, broke ground July 9, 2026, on a $17 million, roughly 58,467-square-foot store at 3765 Earl Campbell Parkway in west Tyler, which will include a full-service Stanley's and is expected to be complete by fall 2027.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-07-10: Brookshire's Breaks Ground on New Store in West Tyler Featuring a Full Service Stanley's Famous Pit Barbecue", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/07/10/brookshires-breaks-ground-on-new-store-in-west-tyler-featuring-a-full-service-stanleys-famous-pit-barbecue/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Fall 2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "TJC enrolls a record 13,147 students, in its 100th year.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "tjc-record-enrollment-2026", "claim": "In fall 2026, its 100th year, Tyler Junior College enrolled a record 13,147 students, nearly 3% above its previous fall record.", "caveat": null, "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-09-13: Record Breaking TJC Enrollment Adds to Centennial Celebration", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/09/13/record-breaking-tjc-enrollment-adds-to-centennial-celebration/" } ] } ] }, { "when": "Fall 2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "UT Tyler’s preliminary enrollment is a record 11,701 students.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "ut-tyler-enrollment-campus-2026", "claim": "UT Tyler's preliminary fall 2026 enrollment was a record 11,701 students, and its main campus in southeast Tyler covers more than 260 acres.", "caveat": "Enrollment is preliminary.", "sources": [ { "title": "Handbook of Texas: University of Texas at Tyler", "url": "https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/university-of-texas-at-tyler" }, { "title": "Gilmer Mirror, 2026-09-14: UT Tyler Fall Enrollment Continues Growth Trend", "url": "https://www.gilmermirror.com/2026/09/14/ut-tyler-fall-enrollment-continues-growth-trend/" }, { "title": "UT Tyler: At a glance", "url": "https://www.uttyler.edu/about/at-a-glance.php" } ] } ] }, { "when": "2026", "rulerYear": 2026, "text": "New retail is planned on South Broadway near The Village at Cumberland Park, including a BJ’s Wholesale Club at 8667 S. Broadway and a Dave & Buster’s at 8930 S. Broadway. Neither had announced an opening date as of September 29, 2026.", "expected": false, "facts": [ { "id": "south-broadway-retail-planned", "claim": "New retail is planned on South Broadway near The Village at Cumberland Park, including a BJ's Wholesale Club at 8667 S. Broadway that the company says will bring up to 150 jobs and a Dave & Buster's at 8930 S. Broadway.", "caveat": "Neither had announced an opening date as of the research check (2026-09-29).", "sources": [ { "title": "Tyler Morning Telegraph, 2026-05-13: Business Beats Denny's and Local Seafood Restaurant Coming to Tyler BJ's Development Progresses as Work Stalled at Dave & Buster's", "url": "https://tylerpaper.com/2026/05/13/business-beats-dennys-and-local-seafood-restaurant-coming-to-tyler-bjs-development-progresses-as-work-stalled-at-dave-busters/" }, { "title": "KLTV, 2026-08-21: BJ's Wholesale Club Bring Up 150 Jobs with Planned Tyler Expansion", "url": "https://www.kltv.com/2026/08/21/bjs-wholesale-club-bring-up-150-jobs-with-planned-tyler-expansion/" }, { "title": "Mix 93.1: Dave & Buster's Tyler construction", "url": "https://mix931fm.com/dave-busters-tyler-construction/" } ] } ] } ], "gaps": [ "Everything dated 2026 is as of September 29, 2026, when the facts were last checked. Re-check before you rely on it." ] } ], "layers": [ { "id": "plat", "from": 1847, "label": "The 1847 plat (schematic)", "note": "The sources give 100 acres, 28 blocks, a central square and the names of the first streets, not a drawing of the plat, so the arrangement of the tiles is ours.", "factIds": [ "tyler-site-bought-1847", "original-plat-street-names" ] }, { "id": "rail", "from": 1873, "label": "Railroad, as mapped today", "note": "Drawn from OpenStreetMap as it stands now. The historic maps under the plate show where the tracks ran in their year.", "factIds": [ "first-railroad-reached-tyler-1873", "tyler-tap-railroad-1877" ] }, { "id": "loop", "from": 1957, "label": "Loop 323", "note": "OpenStreetMap's geometry for the loop as it is today. The 1957 route is not in our sources.", "factIds": [ "loop-323" ] }, { "id": "rebuild", "from": 2025, "label": "Downtown rebuild", "note": "The four streets named in Phase I (Erwin, Ferguson, College, Broadway) as OpenStreetMap draws them within about 300 m of Tyler City Square. Solid: College Avenue between Ferguson and Erwin, where the sources say every brick was lifted; the saved bricks are going back down on College in front of Plaza Tower. The state's registration of the project lists its streets (College and Spring from Erwin to Ferguson, Erwin and Ferguson from College to Fannin, Broadway from Elm to Locust) but not their exact limits.", "factIds": [ "downtown-improvement-project-scope", "downtown-improvement-phase-1-north-broadway", "college-avenue-bricks-lifted-2025", "college-avenue-bricks-relaid-2026", "dip-state-registration-scope" ] } ], "population": [ { "year": 1880, "value": 2423, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1880" }, { "year": 1890, "value": 6908, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1890" }, { "year": 1900, "value": 8069, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1900" }, { "year": 1910, "value": 10400, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1910" }, { "year": 1920, "value": 12085, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1920" }, { "year": 1930, "value": 17113, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1930-1940-oil-boom-growth-rate" }, { "year": 1940, "value": 28279, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1930-1940-oil-boom-growth-rate" }, { "year": 1950, "value": 38968, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1950" }, { "year": 1960, "value": 51230, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1960" }, { "year": 1970, "value": 57770, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1970" }, { "year": 1980, "value": 70508, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1980" }, { "year": 1990, "value": 75450, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-1990" }, { "year": 2000, "value": 83650, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-2000" }, { "year": 2010, "value": 96900, "kind": "census", "factId": "population-2010" }, { "year": 2020, "value": 105995, "kind": "census", "factId": "tyler-population-2020-2025" }, { "year": 2025, "value": 113723, "kind": "estimate", "factId": "tyler-population-2020-2025" } ], "notPinned": [ { "name": "Bergfeld Center and Bergfeld Square", "year": 1949, "why": "OpenStreetMap does not name it, and the sources give an area (south of First Street between Broadway, Donnybrook and Troup Highway), not a building we could check against the map.", "facts": [ "bergfeld-center-1949", "bergfeld-square-on-1876-fairground" ] }, { "name": "Emmett J. Scott High School", "year": 1918, "why": "The sources say it stood on what is now Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, not where on it.", "facts": [ "emmett-scott-high-school-1918-1970" ] }, { "name": "Brookshire's first grocery, on the courthouse square", "year": 1928, "why": "The source says 'on the downtown Tyler courthouse square', not which building.", "facts": [ "brookshire-grocery-1928" ] }, { "name": "Tyler High School in 1926", "year": 1926, "why": "Tyler Junior College opened 'at Tyler High School'. The sources we have do not say where that building stood.", "facts": [ "tjc-opened-1926" ] }, { "name": "The historic districts", "year": 1999, "why": "The sources describe their bounds in words (streets on each side), not as lines we could draw without guessing at the corners.", "facts": [ "eight-national-register-districts-list" ] }, { "name": "The new Smith County courthouse", "year": 2024, "why": "The sources name the streets around its site (East Erwin, Fannin and Spring), not its block.", "facts": [ "smith-county-courthouse-construction", "new-courthouse-groundbreaking-2024" ] } ] }