Arlington Black History Community Archive

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This collection was created to honor, preserve, and communicate the rich heritage of Arlington's Black community. If you can provide more details for any item in the archive or would like to partner with us to preserve your family's or group's materials too, please get in touch by email or leave a message for the Local History Librarian at 817-459-6795.

The following images are just a preview of what is to come! This archive will contain more than 100 items when the first phase of digitizing & describing is complete. So stay tuned and watch us grow!

To learn about the history behind these items, see the following:

The Hill: A Report on the Growth & Development of Arlington’s Historic African-American Communities, 1845-1999 — Hardy, Heck, Moore & Myers (1999)
The Hill: A Proud African-American Community in the Original Township of Arlington, Texas — Mount Olive Baptist Church (1999)
Forgotten Images of Arlington’s African-American Past — Mark Dellenbaugh for APL's Black History Month Festival (2017)
LINK: Arlington's Historic 'The Hill' Neighborhood: A StoryMap — Anthony Cisneros for Arlington's Landmark Preservation Commission (2021)
The Hill: Arlington's Historic African-American Community — Jason Sullivan for the Arlington Historical Society Newsletter (2021)

26 Result(s) Found

1902 - African-American child inside Rogers-McKnight Store

(African-American child inside) Rogers-McKnight Store c1902

Files:

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Description:

Unknown child in downtown Arlington's Rogers-McKnight Store around 1902.

Source: Arlington Historical Society

Record ID: ABHCA 00005

1917 - Willie Strickland - Arlington WWI soldier

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Year: 1917

Description:

Willie Strickland, a soldier during the First World War, sent this photo home to his mother in Arlington as a postcard in about 1917. It is ironic that Stricklin himself could not be served at most restaurants or hotels in the States at a time he was serving his country.

Source: Arlington Historical Society, Fielder House Museum Collection

Record ID: ABHCA 00001

1920s - The Olivers

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Description:

The Olivers.

Source: Arlington Historical Society

Record ID: ABHCA 00018

1925 - Elizabeth Butler O'Neal (L) with mother Emily Johnson Butler

Files:

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Year: 1925

Description:

Rare family portrait of Black mother and daughter in early 20th century Arlington

Source: Arlington Historical Society

Record ID: ABHCA 00002

1925 - Ku Klux Klan Piknik-Barbekue and Mammoth Celebration in Arlington

KKK PiKniK BarbeKue, ticket - City Park, Arlington September 1925

Files:

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Year: 1925

Description:

Ticket for event in what is now Meadowbrook Park near downtown Arlington

Source: Arlington Historical Society

Record ID: ABHCA 00013

1928 - Arthur Manning, 'Col.' - Paycheck from Arlington City Water Works

Arthur Manning- Paycheck with 'Col' designation

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Year: 1928

Description:

A paycheck from the City of Arlington for Arthur Manning. With the "Col." suffix, each check from his employer reinforced that that they saw him as "Colored" as much as they saw him as an employee…

Source: Arlington Historical Society, Fielder House Museum Collection

Record ID: ABHCA 00021

1930s - Allen Pointer, 1872-1941

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Description:

Allen Pointer was born May 30, 1872 in Brookshire, Texas. He went to Prairie View College and studied agriculture. He met and married Trula Oliver who was born on October 4, 1882. They were married on December 18, 1896 in Patterson, Texas. The children born to this union were: Jessie Pointer, Vernice Pointer Nelson, Clyde Pointer, Ruffin Pointer, Virgil Pointer, Wilbert Pointer, Nell Pointer Givens, Eulysee Pointer, and Robbie Pointer Johnson. In the years between 1898 and 1919 they moved to several cities in Texas which include Brookshire, Granger, Gause, Lott, Rockdale and finally to Arlington, Texas in September of 1925 with nine children and five grandchildren. Trula Pointer passed away on September 26, 1928 and Allen Pointer passed away on January 27, 1941, in Arlington, Texas and is buried in the "Colored Cemetery" at the Arlington Heritage Memorial Grounds.

Source: Arlington Historical Society, Fielder House Museum Collection

Record ID: ABHCA 00029

1940s - Merle Mae and Tepee Taylor

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Description:

Merle Mae & Tepee Taylor

Source: Arlington Historical Society, Fielder House Museum Collection

Record ID: ABHCA 00027

1940s - Mount Olive Baptist Church - Christmas party

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Description:

BACK ROW (L to R) Velma Cooper, Thelma Walker, Edith Reed, Lou Henry Taylor, Victoria Rose, Jessie Mae Ditto FRONT ROW (L to R) Gussie Mae Gilmore, Sister Brown, Rev. Brown, Elizabeth O’Neal, Frances Psalms, Oneta Johnson, Blanche Purvis, Mattie Rea Hickey.

Source: Arlington Historical Society

Record ID: ABHCA 00004

1944 - Lou Henry Taylor - portrait taken in Memphis, December 1944

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Year: 1944

Description:

Lou Henry Taylor was a pioneering business woman in The Hill. She opened a small grocery store on Taylor Street in 1946 and eventually moved her enterprise to the corner of Indiana and Houston Streets about 1957. There she developed a side-by-side grocery and lounge known as Lou's Blue Lounge or The Blue Magic Club. The building stood until as late as 2015, across from the Church of God in Christ on Indiana Street. This portrait of Lou Henry was taken in Memphis Tennessee in December 1944.

Source: Arlington Historical Society

Record ID: ABHCA 00003

1945 - Mount Olive Baptist Church Ushers

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Description:

Group portrait of ushers serving the Mount Olive Baptist Church in 1945, as depicted in 1960's era Annual Yearbook

Record ID: ABHCA 00009

1950s - (Possibly) Little Richard performing in the Hill

Little Richard in Arlington Hill Nightclub

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Description:

1950s - A performer described by photo donor as Little Richard performing in the Hill, most likely in the Dragnet Club. We are seeking to verify that claim with docmentary evidence.

Source: Arlington Historical Society, Fielder House Museum Collection

Record ID: ABHCA 00014

1950s - Clarence Purvis outside The Dragnet Club

Files:

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Description:

Clarence Purvis outside The Dragnet Club

Source: Arlington Historical Society, Fielder House Museum Collection

Record ID: ABHCA 00020

1959 - Betty Johnson Hogg - Bible School

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Year: 1959

Description:

Betty Johnson Hogg - Bible School

Source: Arlington Historical Society

Record ID: ABHCA 00017

1960s - Cynthia Jones with car

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Description:

Cynthia Jones with red & white car in the 1960s.

Source: Arlington Historical Society, Fielder House Museum Collection

Record ID: ABHCA 00011

1960s - Easter kids

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Description:

Three children of Cynthia Jones and an out of town guest in their Easter best.

Source: Arlington Historical Society, Fielder House Museum Collection

Record ID: ABHCA 00012

1960s - Margaret Taylor, first black nurse in Arlington

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Description:

Margaret grew up in The Hill roughly 1/2 mile from Arlington High (Cooper at Abram). But until segregation ended in Arlington in the mid 1960s, the closest high school Arlington's black children could attend was I.M. Terrell in Fort Worth—13 miles away by bus! That hardship made getting a diploma challenging for residents of The Hill, but dozens like her overcame the extra burden. Margaret graduated in 1957 and went on to become the first black nurse at Arlington Memorial Hospital.

Source: Arlington Historical Society, Fielder House Museum Collection

Record ID: ABHCA 00023