23 replies to this topic

[bfg9000d]

I didnt have much luck with this question in the Dallas Forum.
Anyway I'm looking for a photo or even a newspaper photo. Of the orginal configuration of the
I-35W I-20 (South Interchange) in Fort Worth. Any photos or anything would be of great help. I'm not talking about the I-20 I-30 interchange like many people think. Its the orginal I-20 I-35W south interchange.

[cbellomy]

Here's one, from texasfreeway.com:

[seurto]

Wow! What a great photo! What year was that? My neighborhood is still west a couple of exits, but it's sooo empty! I drove that cloverleaf many a time!

[cbellomy]

That photo was taken in July of '58. And apparently you live pretty close to me.

[seurto]

I'm off the Trail Lake Dr exit. We moved up here in '67 so the area had already grown quite a bit by then. My late husband lived in the Greenbriar neighborhood and remembered walking across the freeway when it was being built. It would be very interesting to see a photo from the same spot in '67 and now in '07.

[bfg9000d]

I guess I shot myself in the foot. This is a awesome photo but it is one that I have already seen. I guess my posting wasn't very exacting as my mind was thinking. Anyway I'm thinking more along the lines of a photo sometime around the 1970's or 1980's of being more built up before the new stack was built. Seems no photos where taken just before the interchange was demolished or prior to 1990 or such.

[safly]

WOW! That's cool.

[RD Milhollin]

...Seems no photos where taken just before the interchange was demolished or prior to 1990 or such.

Part of that original cloverleaf interchange still exists, carrying access road traffic from the south off of I-35W up to the east bound lanes of I-20. I grew up off of that highway between Trail Lake and Westcreek Dr. (used to be exits and entrance ramps there) and still have a hard time remembering to call the road "I-20" and not Loop 820.

[seurto]

...Seems no photos where taken just before the interchange was demolished or prior to 1990 or such.

Part of that original cloverleaf interchange still exists, carrying access road traffic from the south off of I-35W up to the east bound lanes of I-20. I grew up off of that highway between Trail Lake and Westcreek Dr. (used to be exits and entrance ramps there) and still have a hard time remembering to call the road "I-20" and not Loop 820.

Is that the honest-to-God truth!? - Seminary South, TCJC, loop 820!

[bfg9000d]

Thank-you for all the positive postings I have gotten on this topic. I have no idea if a 1980's or 1990's picture of this interchange still exists. Somebody might have one in their old photo library. But I was thinking was their any restaurants around that clover leaf that got demolished in the building of that new interchange????? Maybe I was dreaming but I vaguely recall one restaurant had to get demolished because a ramp was going right through it. Can somebody confirm that.

Also I remember some worker on the interchange or something committed suicide by jumping off that top ramp. It was on the news if I recall. Anyone remember that????

[JBB]

The only thing I remember being demolished for the interchange was the large church that sat to the southeast. I was pretty young, so someone else may remember more details.

[bfg9000d]

thanks for the info

[Roger_H]

Thank-you for all the positive postings I have gotten on this topic. I have no idea if a 1980's or 1990's picture of this interchange still exists. Somebody might have one in their old photo library. But I was thinking was their any restaurants around that clover leaf that got demolished in the building of that new interchange????? Maybe I was dreaming but I vaguely recall one restaurant had to get demolished because a ramp was going right through it. Can somebody confirm that....

At the southeast quadrant of the interchange there was a Motel 6 and another motel, the name of which I cannot recall. The second motel had a restaurant/coffee shop in it that was fairly popular with locals. If my memory is correct, the ramp that connects north-bound I-35W to east-bound I-20 ran right through those two motels.

Also, The Rig restaurant which is now at Altamesa and I-35W used to be located in the southwest quadrant of the interchange. The building was demolished, but the oil derrick sign was relocated to the current location.

Those are the only businesses I recall that were totally wiped out, though the state did acquire some land from other businesses, such as the old Kimbell warehouse.

[GenE]

Thank-you for all the positive postings I have gotten on this topic. I have no idea if a 1980's or 1990's picture of this interchange still exists. Somebody might have one in their old photo library. But I was thinking was their any restaurants around that clover leaf that got demolished in the building of that new interchange????? Maybe I was dreaming but I vaguely recall one restaurant had to get demolished because a ramp was going right through it. Can somebody confirm that....

At the southeast quadrant of the interchange there was a Motel 6 and another motel, the name of which I cannot recall. The second motel had a restaurant/coffee shop in it that was fairly popular with locals. If my memory is correct, the ramp that connects north-bound I-35W to east-bound I-20 ran right through those two motels.

Also, The Rig restaurant which is now at Altamesa and I-35W used to be located in the southwest quadrant of the interchange. The building was demolished, but the oil derrick sign was relocated to the current location.

Those are the only businesses I recall that were totally wiped out, though the state did acquire some land from other businesses, such as the old Kimbell warehouse.

Is this the road that runs east/west just 2-3 miles north of the big Alcon Labs campus? (IHey, its been 23 years, my distances may be way off.)

If you are talking the same road I am thinking of, contact some big business like Alcon, or the beer distributer (don't remember which one) or the Mrs Bairds. Their public relations department may have some pictures of the way the area looked in their early years.

I worked on Hulen at Homers Hardware (I think it is now a Linen's & Things, or a Container Store...anyway, it is across from Hulen Mall), in 1978-1980. I remember thinking they tore up the road work as fast as they laid it down...and griped that the engineers couldn't get it right the first time.
I worked at Alcon Labs for approx a year as a temp svc clerical worker in 1984. I really think the larger business' would have some pr pictures.

gbs

[bfg9000d]

Thanks for all the info. You guys have been great. I will see about contacting those area companies. If you have any other info to add that would still be very much appreciated .

[Bill Sievers]

This is really a great photo! I hope there are more photos like this of this same general area during the '50's and '60's time frames, especially of the old FTW Army Depot before Hemphill Blvd. was finally extended through and over it.

It will always be Loop 820 to me too! Wasn't there another nomenclature for this loop prior to "Loop 820"? Seems like there was but I can't remember for sure. (I'll probably remember right after I post this!)

It was really interesting seeing the road bed for this loop being prepared near Trail Lake Drive. Lots of blasting. Then a concrete paving machine would come along later and continuously pave the roadbed with cement, while cement trucks were lined up dumping their loads into the back-end of the paver while it moved along. Fascinating stuff for a 10-year old!

Bill

[RD Milhollin]

It will always be Loop 820 to me too! Wasn't there another nomenclature for this loop prior to "Loop 820"? Seems like there was but I can't remember for sure. (I'll probably remember right after I post this!)
Bill

Bill, look at the caption under the posted photo. It identifies the new highway as "Loop 217".

[Bill Sievers]

DUUuuhh! How did I miss that! That's it! LOOP 217! At least I did remember correctly that there was indeed a third road number. Thanks for pointing that out Prairie! This would have been bugging me for weeks.

Bill

[360texas]

Just thought I would provide a current view courtesy of MS LiveEarth. 35W runs left to right across the bottom of the image. You are looking WEST at 820 Loop. Yes this a real aerial photograph. Those are real cars and buildings. The white bar scale on lower right photo corner says 70 yards. So the scale length of the white bar is 210 feet.

[pelligrini]

How can one scale a perspective?

[360texas]

Probably only left/right across the bottom of the image which might be the closest view to straight down. If the view was straight down looking at ground.. then the scale accuracy would probably work.

But then you probably already knew this.

[Giraffe]

I have no picture to contribute, and wish I did. I remember driving through that cloverleaf interchange many a time in the old Dodge station wagon as a kid in the '70s. My mother always took me with her grocery shopping at the Kroger on Felix Street & I-35. Since we lived on Trail Lake, we always took the same route to get there: east on Loop 820, take the cloverleaf to I-35 north. I remember the Motel 6 there and it's been long gone.

I recall someone driving north on I-35 punched a small hole in the roadbed of the Loop 820 overpass shortly before that interchange was redone.

And Man, that Kimball distribution center has been there for half a century! Wow!

I didn't know that The Rig had to relocate as a result of the new interchange. Funny how your mind plays tricks on you. I still have never eaten there but I want to try it someday.

[Papaw]

Anyone noticed the street person living under the bridge on the West bound side? If you exit Hemphill going West look over to your left. He has been living there about TWO YEARS now.

[Papaw]

There was a small airstrip at the South East corner of this interchange - Russell Field.