Oak Cliff History - 1931-1940
Early History |1901-10 | 11-20 | 21-30 | 31-40 | 41-50 |
| 51-60 | 61-70 | 71-80 | 81-90 | 91-2000 | 2001 -
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Like the rest of the world, Oak Cliff’s economy staggered under the weight of the Great Depression. With jobs hard to find, some people resorted to crime. One of the nation’s most notorious crime duos, Bonnie and Clyde, lived in Oak Cliff. When their reign of crime was stopped in 1934, they were both buried (in separate cemeteries) in Dallas and Oak Cliff. Methodist Hospital, which opened in 1928, almost went into foreclosure in 1934, and was finally saved by private donations. The Texas Theater, seating an amazing 2,000 people, opened in 1931. For live theatre, Oak Cliff residents could go to the Oak Cliff Little Theater, which was located across from Lake Cliff.
Like the rest of the world, Oak Cliff’s economy staggered under the weight of the Great Depression. With jobs hard to find, some people resorted to crime. One of the nation’s most notorious crime duos, Bonnie and Clyde, lived in Oak Cliff. When their reign of crime was stopped in 1934, they were both buried (in separate cemeteries) in Dallas and Oak Cliff. Methodist Hospital, which opened in 1928, almost went into foreclosure in 1934, and was finally saved by private donations. The Texas Theater, seating an amazing 2,000 people, opened in 1931. For live theatre, Oak Cliff residents could go to the Oak Cliff Little Theater, which was located across from Lake Cliff.
Up thorough the Depression era, Dallas public schools offered both January and June graduating classes for all grade levels. This piture shows the January 1932 James Stephen Hogg 8th grade graduating class. (Courtesy Gayla Kokel.)
Several Oak Cliff churches that had grown and expanded in the 1920s found themselves in a financial crisis as members lost jobs and income plummeted. Tyler Street UMC members were shocked to find the doors of the church padlocked shut on Easter Sunday morning in 1932. Services were held in the Rosewin Theatre, the Calvary Baptist Church and Sunset High School until the building was bought back (for half of what it originally cost.) On December 29, 1940, a dedication service for the Church was held to celebrate the retirement of the debt.
This 1931 photograph of the Dallas fire station at the corner of Tenth and Tyler Streets shows the pride of the department, as the firemen stand alongside their ‘modern’ equipment. Of interest is the building’s intricate architecture, with medallion moldings crowning both bays, ornate roofing and overhanging eves, and decorative stonework corner columns, while second floor open windows expose the firemen’s white iron beds. (Courtesy of Joe Whitney.)
The Cedar Crest Country Club golf course gained a reputation as one of the country’s finest in the 1930s. The course opened in 1926 and hosted the first Dallas Open. That spring a blue norther froze greens and fairways on the eve of the tournament, but the course was still impressive enough to win hosting duties for the 1927 PGA Championship. Walter Hagen won that tournament with a little help from a 15-year-old lad who loaned him a cap on the 13th hole. That lad was Byron Nelson. (Courtesy of Bill Melton.)
In early Depression years, when affordable summer entertainment was scarce, Lake Cliff Park offered free, outdoor silent movies. Cliffites sat on straight benches as the flicks were projected onto a large fabric screen stretched on a rope. Moviegoers also enjoyed additional entertainment while there: watching members of the local rat population scurrying back and forth across the rope! The park also had a large swimming pool, a playground, and amusements. (Courtesy of Bill Melton.)
Early History |1901-10 | 11-20 | 21-30 | 31-40 | 41-50 |
| 51-60 | 61-70 | 71-80 | 81-90 | 91-2000 | 2001 -