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lcbrownz

Member Since 05 Jul 2008
Offline Last Active Jul 06 2023 05:44 AM
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#144280 Lone Star cafes and The Red Canary

Posted by lcbrownz on 08 February 2023 - 08:21 PM

I remember in the early 60s, there was a regular restaurant or drive-in restaurant near the west intersection of Berry Street and I-35, called The Red Canary. My Dad and cousin remember this place too, although not in detail. I have vague recollections of it, driving by it but never going in. It seemed liked there may have been red neon signifying the title of the place, but that's all I remember. Anyone have any memories of this place and what it was?

Also, does anyone remember the various Lone Star cafes around town. Funnily enough, the one I remember the most was also on Berry Street, not far west of the Red Canary. My Dad says that Dave Benson owned them, and that with his brother, they owned another type of restaurant or club in town. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

The Lone Star Drive-in (located at 700 East Berry) originally opened in 1949 by Dave Benson and his partner.




#125888 Federal Narcotics Hosp in FW?

Posted by lcbrownz on 27 April 2020 - 09:32 AM

I visited there three times during the early to mid 1980s. The 1st time there was no fence around the facilities and it was co-ed. The second time, the perimeter fence was up and the women were gone. The last time I was there, I was given a complete tour of the facilities. The buildings, I saw, needed improvement and some of the terra cotta roofs leaked. The employee training center was on the back side of the facility.

Here is a scan of my postcard captioned U S Public Health Service Hospital. I have seen but do not have a similar view captioned U S Narcotics Hospital

PSHFW.jpg

Here is a comparable recent aerial photo view.

PSHFWA.jpg

M C

Back in the early 80s, FCI, Fort Worth was a minimum security co-ed facility. It was like a college campus and the inmates were wearing civilian clothes. Some of the inmates were taking classes at TCJC. The prison commissary was like a 7-11 store and was always busy. Quite a few pregnancies occurred there during this era. The mission was changed a few years later as the women were transferred to Federal Prison Camp in Danbury, CT. Without the women being there, the sales in the commissary dropped dramatically.

 




#121071 Mrs. Grubbs Potato Chips

Posted by lcbrownz on 12 September 2019 - 03:34 PM

I can't remember when Mrs. Grubbs stopped making chips, but I do remember eating them when I was a kid. That would mean that they were still made in the 1960's. The factory on McCart was demolished around 1990, and it still is a vacant lot.

I found a 1954 Paschal High School yearbook photo showing a young student carrying a bag of Mrs. Grubbs Potato Chips.




#117929 The unobvious food memories

Posted by lcbrownz on 26 March 2019 - 06:34 AM

Out of all of the eateries you listed, I can't believe Griff's is only one still open.

Well, my name is Herb Jones and I was born and raised in Mass. but the Ft Worth area has been home now since 1960. That means I have seen many great food memories come and go. Being at Carswell AFB until 1964 my earliest memories would be the River Oaks - White Settlement area where in my 56 Chevy Bel Air, me and my Air Force buddies went to several cruising spots....The Clover on Jacksboro Hi way, Dairy Queen on River Oaks blvd, Caudles A/W drive inn..I can still recall the little chubby girl that car hopped for years, I believe it was the owners daughter. There was a drive-in theater just up the road( The Westerner) we used to go to quite often. Then in Aug of 1964 while cruising further away in my 1964 Chevy Impala Super Sport, in the best night of my life something happened that changed the rest of my life. Me and Jack Wargo (my friend) pulled into the Clover drive- inn on Rosedale in the Poly area and there I met the love of my life. Her name was Terry Rickard and she was with her best friend Sue Ann Donahue. They both went to Everman H.S. I now had a new cruising partner and just about every night we would drive all over Ft Worth to all the places like Carlson's ( the best bacon burgers ever made ) They had 2 sisters that car hopped that were so nice..Ones name was Rose and the other I forgot. The places I remember so much that are all gone now bring back all the great memories of my early Ft Worth days.
Caudles
Clover drive-inns
Lone Star drive-inns
Carlson's drive-inn
Sandy's on Seminary Dr

Zuider Zee on 7th St and Seminary Dr
Mr. Quick Burgers
Griff's Burgers
Colonial Cafeteria on Berry st
Massey's on 8th Ave...still there

The love of my life, friend and companion for 45 years passed away in March 2008. Terry...Oh how I miss her, and all the memories of being together in Ft Worth. Every time I drive around town and pass a place where one of these great memories took place it grabs my heart and I break down in tears. Oh..to bring back the days when a song meant something. The music that young ones fell in love to is long gone.and the kids nowadays will never know what real clean fun really is. I'm just glad I had that chance and made the best of it in good old Ft Worth, Texas.

Thanks for sharing my memories....Herb Jones.......herbajones@yahoo.com
My 1st car 56 Chevy BelAir
4311856784_0059519477_m.jpg

4305206744_0bf1f1483e_m.jpg My car when I met Terry at the Rosedale St. Clover Drive-In. 1964
4315175194_b885ce8128_m.jpg Terry and Sue Ann in 1964 when we met.




#116444 The unobvious food memories

Posted by lcbrownz on 28 January 2019 - 10:19 AM

The Mexican Inn on E Lancaster was where Terry and I went to eat on Jan. 16th 1967 the night we got married...Then we spent the night at the Holiday Inn at I-30 and University Dr. The next morning we headed north to New England for a few months and then came back to good old Ft Worth, Tx. for our 45 years together.
MexicanInnFtWorth.jpg

As kids of the 1950s, when my family had to drive downtown from the Poly area, we always driven by this Mexican Inn. One day on one of those trips, I asked my dad why we never went to Mexican Inn to eat. His racially insensitive response was "Only Mexican's ate there and we couldn't". It wasn't until decades later, I realized his assumptions were unfounded.




#95119 Forest Park Zoo?

Posted by lcbrownz on 14 December 2015 - 10:39 AM

 

I used to call it the "Forest Park Zoo", but I don't know if that was ever an official name.  The original entrance to the park was on Park Place at Forest Park Blvd., and those gates say Forest Park.  The gates were built in 1918, but the zoo dates back earlier than that.  The road also led down to the zoo, but in a different configuration.  The actual zoo drive too off from Park Place at the westernmost point where you can see the remains of a "Y" intersection.  When I was a kid, this was the access to the zoo.

 
Is this the old zoo entrance?

 

I have a 1945 photo of the Forest Park gate entrance. But I do not know how to post on here.




#91326 Fort Worth swimming pools

Posted by lcbrownz on 02 May 2015 - 07:33 AM

All of Fort Worth's municipal swimming pools (except Forest Park and Marine) have been filled in and grass is now covering those areas. There should be markers placed at those locations to signify their part in Fort Worth's history.




#91314 Forest Park Zoo?

Posted by lcbrownz on 01 May 2015 - 06:55 AM

The Bill Hames rides of Forest Park were removed in 1989 when the zoo was expanded and adding the new tracks for the tarantula train. I have a newspaper article explaining the situation.posted on Facebook. Currently there are no official signs labeling "Forest Park" as such. Much of the open unoccupied land is roped off and now being neglected. The term "Forest Park Zoo" was just coined (over the years) as a nickname. For decades, I thought that was its name as well. 




#91103 Favorite Defunct Restaurants

Posted by lcbrownz on 14 April 2015 - 10:54 AM

Now there is a Facebook page called "Closed and Forgotten Cowtown Eateries" that continue the conversations of  Favorite Defunct Restaurants with photos.




#90339 Foods that are History :(

Posted by lcbrownz on 01 March 2015 - 06:43 AM

Ranch Style Beans and Wolf Brand Chili are both owned by ConAgra Foods and have adapted their recipes to similar ConAgra products.




#83141 Sinclair Stations in Fort Worth

Posted by lcbrownz on 30 March 2014 - 05:44 AM

Inside that Sinclair gas station (on McCart) is the famous Big Boy statue taken from Kip's.




#79583 New Civil Courthouse

Posted by lcbrownz on 14 September 2013 - 07:24 AM

Today. Hope to start seeing some facade soon. 

 

DSC_0125_zpsfec447dc.jpg

With all of the courthouses, law enforcement offices, and correctional centers in the same vicinity, they need to rename the street, "Law and Order Way".




#76938 Heritage Park

Posted by lcbrownz on 06 May 2013 - 05:35 AM

Does anyone know the history of the brick path that leads down to the river? Especially the bricks that are inscribed with names.

I believe the inscribed bricks were part of a fundraiser to help with the rebuilding the park. I took photos last year of the brick walk and found State Senator Betty Andujar and her husband's name inscribed one brick.




#76673 Where is Brian L?

Posted by lcbrownz on 20 April 2013 - 03:15 PM

FB has a larger audience.




#75672 Can You Believe We Demolished This for our City Hall?

Posted by lcbrownz on 03 March 2013 - 08:11 AM

As a child in 1950s while traveling with my parents, we would drive by this building and it always reminded me of an European castle.