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Lakewood
In the late 1920's and 1930's, Lakewood was the Grandest
neighborhood in Dallas. Prominent Oilmen and Merchants established this as the most
prestigious district in the city. undoubtedly, they consummated many of their deals
at Lakewood Country Club, the city's second oldest, chartered in 1912 by Collett Munger.
In 1920 Munger Place lay at the city's Eastern edge.
Beyond it rolled rich hilly farmland all the way to White Rock Lake. Included in
this Idyllic patchwork of real estate was a 184-acre tract clustered around the country
club and owned by Dr. W. E. Pearson. The doctor sold the land to builders Albert
Dines and Lee Kraft with the stipulation that it be developed "in the right
manner."
Dines and Kraft had started their construction company
building modest cottages. They are responsible for the three subdivisions that
originally made up Lakewood: Country Club Estates, Westlake Park, and Gastonwood.
They made their reputation with the exclusive homes of the Lakewood Country Club
Estates.
Lakewood immediately became the fashionable neighborhood.
This can be attributed not only to the strong architectural presence of French
Eclectic and English Tudor, Colonial Revival and Spanish Eclectic-style homes, but to the
wide lawns, deep lots and wooded hills overlooking White Rock Reservoir. The area was so
popular that even the Depression hardly seemed to affect its growth.
World War II, however, did manage to slow things down so
that even into the 1980s there were still a few unimproved lots in Lakewood. A new
wave of development in the 1950s brought the total number of homes to approximately 700.
In the early 1980s Lakewood Shopping Center was completely
renovated, homes were restored and third-generation Lakewood residents were once again
attending Woodrow Wilson High School and frequenting the refurbished Lakewood Theater,
once advertised as "the theater of the Southwest."
Families have always come first in Lakewood. Each
year the Lakewood Service League raises thousands of dollars for neighborhood improvements
such as the development of Williamson Park. Through service and financial resources
the Service League works to meet the community's needs. Every summer the residents
produce a Fourth of July Parade that winds down Lakewood Boulevard and Tokalon Drive to
White Rock Park, where the celebration continues. East Dallas residents attend this
annual event not only to join in the festivities, but also to enjoy the lush, urban
estates. An autumn tour of homes provides another opportunity to enjoy this
neighborhood.
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