S-Parks, October 1960 Page: 2
12 p. : ill. ; 22 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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LETTERS IN ATTIC TRUNK TELL EARLY PARKS STORY
Park letters of rare interest found in a trunk stored in the attic of a Highland
Park residence in San Antonio have been placed in the archives division of the
Eugene C. Barker Texas History Center at The University of Texas.
The correspondence is especially valuable for its day to day chronicling of the
development of the early Texas State Parks. In it is revealed the hopes, successes and
disappointments of the early builders of the Texas State Parks system. The recently-
found files are those of the late D. E. Colp, first Chairman of the Texas State Parks
Board.
Mrs. E. W. Price, San Antonio club-woman, acquired the letters from Mrs. J. C.
McKinney, 127 Highland Boulevard, and presented them to the state university. Some
day some student will use these letters as basis for a thesis, Mrs. Price hopes. In
accepting the correspondence, the desirability of preserving the letters for their de-
tails concerning the history of the Texas State Parks was noted by the University.
A dozen large files contain the letters some of which date back to 1924. Originals
of the letters sent to Mr. Colp about parks are in the collection. With them are
carbon copies of his replies. Most of the replies are on separate sheets of paper.
Some are on the backs of the letters to which they replied.
Former Governor Pat M. Neff's deep interest in parks is shown by his many
letters to Mr. Colp and accounts of the meetings and inspection trips in which he
participated with the Board.
Besides the letters written to Mr. Colp about parks, there are copies of the letters
he wrote initiating park activities and telling what progress was being made. In an
early letter to James M. North, then managing editor of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Mr. Colp mentioned ten proposed state parks. Soon the number of proposed parks
increased and much of the early correspondence concerns plans, proposed schedules
and arrangements for a tour of proffered sites. Places that the Board was requested
to view steadily increased in number and two tours instead of one became necessary.
Early activity in promotion of local and county parks is revealed. Among the
steps in this direction were requests by Chairman Colp to women's clubs and com-
mercial bodies to recommend County Park Commissioners for appointment by the
Governor. County park bond issues were encouraged. The work became so sizable
that in later correspondence Chairman Colp wrote that it was the feeling of the
Board members that they should center their efforts on major state parks but felt
bound by a provision of the initial parks act directing the Board to cooperate with
counties and communities in park establishment.
Pearsall Chamber of Commerce was one of the alert commercial bodies. In the
correspondence there is a letter from its secretary in regard to a park site on the
Frio River, about eight miles south of Pearsall.
Palo Duro Canyon was also under early consideration though it then was so
little known that Mr. Colp in his letters about the site wrote of it as Palo DurA.
Inquiries from Marfa, Fort Davis, Kerrville, Eden, Victoria, Abilene, Hebbron-
ville, Uvalde, Cisco, Llano, Big Spring, Cuero, Brady, Brownsville and the Lower
Rio Grande Valley reveal how the park movement was getting underway.
Big Spring Mountain with its scenic drive possibilities was soon under considera-
tion. Today it is Big Spring State Park. Incidentally, it was the cause of the first
controversy over a park name. A Big Spring woman's club objected to naming the
park for an individual.
Cooperation of the State Highway Commission with the State Parks Board existed
from the start, the letters show. The two boards made an inspection trip of proposed
park sites together for a study of their desirability and accessibility. Governor Neff
and a group of correspondents of leading newspapers of the state accompanied the
boards on this park inspection tour.
(To be continued next month)-2-
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Texas. State Park Board. S-Parks, October 1960, periodical, October 1960; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1567349/m1/4/?q=Lamar+University: accessed June 4, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.