Brick Streets of Wills Point
Wills Point, Van Zandt County, Texas
Marker Inscription
IN THE EARLY 1920s, AN ATMOSPHERE OF GRATEFULNESS FOR THE END OF WORLD WAR I WAS PREVALENT THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY. IN WILLS POINT, A SENSE OF OPTIMISM AND INTEREST IN URBAN DEVELOPMENT LED TO THE FORMATION OF A CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ON DECEMBER 5, 1921, AT THE MAJESTIC THEATER. THE NUMBER ONE GOAL FOR THE NEW CHAMBER WAS FOR THE CITY TO PAVE THE STREETS IN THE BUSINESS DISTRICT. THE CITY COUNCIL ORDERED A SPECIAL ELECTION TO DETERMINE WHETHER TO ISSUE BONDS TO PAVE AND GRAVEL THE STREETS. EVEN THOUGH THE RAIN POURED THAT DAY, THE VOTE WAS THE LARGEST EVER SEEN IN A CITY ELECTION AND THE BOND PASSED. AT A JUNE 15, 1922, CITY COUNCIL MEETING, H.N. ROBERTS, CIVIL ENGINEER, AND E.M. STARR ACCEPTED THE CONTRACT FOR UNLOADING MATERIAL AND CURBING. MAYOR HENRY GILCHRIST AND FIVE ALDERMEN TRAVELED TO MINERAL WELLS PAVING BRICK PLANT TO INSPECT THE BRICK QUALITY. IT IS BELIEVED THAT THE BRICKS CAME FROM THIS PLANT. PLANS CALLED FOR A 4-INCH CONCRETE BASE COVERED WITH A LAYER OF SAND UPON WHICH THE PAVING BRICKS WERE LAID WITH A HEAVY WEARING-SURFACE OF ASPHALT. INSTEAD OF CONTRACTING FOR LABOR TO LAY THE BRICK, VOLUNTEERS UNDER AN EXPERIENCED SUPERVISOR SAVED THE TOWN HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS. WHEN THE BRICK STREETS WERE COMPLETED IN NOVEMBER 1922, TWO TRAFFIC COPS WERE STATIONED DOWNTOWN AT THE ROSE FOUNTAIN FOR THE FIRST TIME TO FAMILIARIZE THE PUBLIC WITH NEW TRAFFIC LAWS. SOON, A NEW ICE PLANT, CHURCHES, ELECTRIC LIGHT PLANT, A RENOVATED POST OFFICE AND FREE MAIL SERVICE WAS AVAILABLE TO WILLS POINT. THE BRICK STREETS IN WILLS POINT OPENED THE DOOR TO A RANGE OF NEW BUSINESSES AND MODERN CONVENIENCES IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In the optimistic years after World War I, Wills Point formed a chamber of commerce in 1921 with one central goal: to pave its downtown streets. Voters braved a downpour to pass a bond in record numbers, and by November 1922 volunteer crews had laid brick over a concrete base, saving the town money. The new streets ushered in traffic cops, an ice plant, electric lighting, and a wave of modern conveniences.
Why it matters
The brick streets mark the moment a rural Texas town embraced the paved, automobile-driven modernity that transformed American Main Streets in the 1920s.
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Related people
- · Henry Gilchrist
Related events
- · Paving of downtown Wills Point
Themes & tags
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