Some notes about Vickery and nearby. I hopes this stimulates some memories. Any feedback or additions would be appreciated. Vickery was centered around Park Lane and Greenville Avenue (P&G).
TSHAOnline: John E Vickery laid out and promoted a townsite in the early 1900's; a post office was established in 1912. Vickery was annexed by Dallas in March 1945. Other than the TSHAOnline info, which was derived from the DMN, evidence does not stand out on John on Census and death records, a mystery.
It's been 64 years since Vickery, a small town on Dallas' northern edge, became part of Dallas. During the seventies, small frame houses were torn down, and apartment buildings went up. Restaurants and strip shopping centers replaced the pasture lands that once bordered the old Greenville highway. It was one of the largest building booms the city had seen.
Older Businesses in Vickery:
Vickery Motor Court, later Vickery Cabin Apartments. 7000 block of Greenville. Used in the filming of Bonnie & Clyde in 1967. Rock construction, likely removed in the mid 70's. Located very near the current location of 7-11 at Greenville and Ridgecrest.
Vickery Saddle Shop, 6911 Greenville DMN12141966; apparent residence of the Hoss family in 1947.
Vickery Dining Hall, Mrs T. J. Watkins DMN01121931
Dorothy's Beauty Shop, 6913 Greenville (Mrs. Dorothy Simmons Lewis.) Reported to be the oldest continuously operating business in Vickery. DMN08031975
Webb's Chicken Gardens, Tom S. Webb, DMN06131944
Al's Hardware Store, guessing NE corner of P&G. DMN08031975
Al's Liquor Store, NE corner P&G. DMN08031975
Vickery Feed Store, NE corner, 6918 Greenville and Park Lane. One of two known structures remaining from Old Vickery, it is now the Great Outdoors. DMN08031975
Sunshine's Miniature Trees, 7118 Greenville. Located inside in the one of the last original homes remaining, Sunshine's has been in operation since 1965.
Vickery Park, 7400 Greenville. Opened in the 40's, land developed by Dorchester in 1977. Site of large swimming pool and later Amusement park including minature golf. Site of racial tensions at times; management appeared to deal with circumstances appropriately. Numerous Church picnics.
More Recent in Vickery:
The Railhead, DMN06081974, was located at the current location of the DART parking lot at P&G.
Dairy Queen, DMN08031975, cannot locate proof of this. There was a DQ@3709 Greenville.
Tables 'n Things, small business established about 1976 @P&G. DMN12261976
Al's Import Foods, NE Corner P&G, DMN08051991
The Filling Station, 6862 Greenville, just south of P&G. Tune-Ups were really good. Building still there as "Nai Bar & Grill," it would be nice to know the earlier tenants and the original Gas Station.
Captain Cooks Restaurant, 7557 Greenville, DMN06081974
Strawberry Fields, SW corner Greenville and Park Lane. 70's in an old two story building.
Mr. Chicken, 6884 Twin Hills, SE corner of P&G. 70's in brick building. Great plate lunches, moved near the current Krispy Kreme shop about 1979, to a white frame house.
Ebby Halliday announces a major land sale of 17 acres to Metro Develop of Dallas bounded by Fair Oaks and Phoenix Street. DMN03031974.
Nearby Notes:
Deuback's Skating Rink, 7800 Greenville. Burned 08011956, $80,000 in damages, John Edward Deuback injured. The family lived in a second story apartment above the rink. Rink rebuildt 12131957. DMN first report of rink 03031938. Last DMN report 10161971. Name changed to Skateland at some point.
Walnut Hill and Glen Lakes: "It isn't an Indian Lookout" Interesting story about a water tower on what is now Presbyterian Hospital. DMN05061964
Glen Lakes Country Club: SW and SE of Central and Walnut Hill. Had great food in the Clubhouse. Glen Haven Country Club was renamed to Glen Lakes in April of 1933. In Feb of 1922, the "Dallas Automobile Country Club" was renamed to Glen Haven. The DACC can be traced to 1914. Good pictures at DMN archives of DACC on Feb 16 1919.
Don the Beachcomber Restaurant, 8380 Meadow Road DMN06081974
Howard Johnson's Lodge, Meadow and Central, built 1966, replaced by Marriott Courtyard
Jim Wheat's notes on Vickery
For the best Dallas Morning News story about Vickery, search the DMN Archives for "Old Vickery" August 3, 1975.

I would also throw in for the 1970's, Chili's.

I remember the roller skating rink, the one that backed up to the old railroad track.

The Dairy Queen was somewhere just south of Walnut Hill Lane on Greenville. Forget where.

I had an Aunt and Uncle (Billie Ann and Lee Finley) who lived in that part of town and they use to take my Brother and me to the Old Vickery Park Swimming Pool which was pretty neat back in the early 1950's.......It was'nt as nice at Lake Cliff but was top rate for back in those days.......Bill Strouse

Sorry for the ommision of Chili's, it was a factor in the history of the area.
It was the first location and beginning of what now is about 1400 locations worldwide; opened in 1975 and closed in 2007.
More info

There was a bar/restaurant north of Chili's on the opposite side of the street called Randy Tar.

Some more info!
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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/25/2009 02:04PM by Joel Parks.

Judge Roy Bean's restaurant on the corner of P&G in the 70's. Some drug store sits there now. I remember in 1979 there was one way to wind through from Skillman to Greenville between Forest and Northwest, and that was Vickery. I took Pineland but can't remember the names of other streets that accomplished the feat.

Joel...

Thank you for adding a lot of detailed info to this forum and your research that brought it to the surface.

Ex: I sent a photo you provided of the TL Marsalis grocery warehouse to a descendant of his who is from Dallas but now lives in NC.

Being a Cliffy, I never knew much about the Vickery area. I only recall seeing the name "VICKERY" on the routing signs on the old street cars in the 1940-50s. Just remembered the routing for "FORNEY" was also on the streetcars.

Fred

I recall visiting a relative in Presbyterian Hospital about 10-15 years ago. I stopped in the gift shop to buy a few things. There was a display of Vickery history in the windows. One artifact that drew my attention was a photograph of the Vickery station for the TE Ry. interurban.

I remember the Railhead too. Ate there a few times in the 70s, the heyday of rail-theme restaurants. I never would have guessed it would be the site of a rail station (DART)!

We traveled from the Lake Highlands area over to Vickery or North Park by taking Church Rd. (wonder which church that name originated from?) and Fair Oaks. It always impressed me as undeveloped bottom land until you got near Vickery. Fair Oaks Park was there. It was out of the way enough that our Boy Scout troop had occasional meetings there by a roaring campfire.

I certainly remember the swimming pool, skating rink, and all the shade trees.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 09/06/2009 06:06AM by Dennis H.

So where exactly was Reynolds Presbyterian Orphanage? Where the hospital is today?
There was a spur to the orphanage from the H&TC mainline.

Fred, thank you; If you did not see the Marsalis Grocery picture in the referenced zip file, it is nice too.
Dennis, I'll post a new thread on the orphanage and will visit the Hospital Library soon and provide some detail.
Joel

Probably in the late '70's I remember many very small residences (maybe 700 sq ft) on very large plots with big commercial type "for sale" signs out front. Guess there was a zoning change. Now the apartments are biting the dust. Much vacant land. Opportunity again, but much better, no doubt.

Leslie

I remember The FilIing Station. Good hamburgers. I was there at midnight when I turned 18 and got my first (legal) drink. I have heard that Bonnie and Clyde hung out there when it was an actual filling station during the 30's.

Ahh, Yes, remember it well. Went there a lot from 1945 thru 1956. Rode our bikes out there from Highland Park. A great adventure for us. Played under the bridge there. All thru Junior High, and even High School, the roller scate rink was where parties were held.
Had the best crane machine where you put in 25 cents, and tried to pick up something, like a kewpie doll.
All gone now, and hardly recognized the area from the road.
There also was a great swimming pool there, cost money to get in, but had plenty of pretty girls to look at and dream about. I still see the old place in clear Technicolor.

Just In the last 10 years I have photographed alot of change in that area. Central Market was built on land that hosted strip clubs and one gas station, Medieval Inn/Bens Half yard was torn down to make way for a new gas station The eckerd went to a cvs, The plaza on Lovers Lane apartment were down down in 2008 to make way for new apartment(which are more dense) The filing station became something else. The Timbercreek apartments were torn down in 2007 for what is now vacant land and filled in part of the creek,(thanks trammel crow for destroying all the tree and running off the wildlife in that area.) The old Shamburger lumberyard which had been there for so long was torn down in 2008 The land also sits vacant ready for development. Cokers Automotive was torn down in late 2008 for the now existing shelby loft at Yale near central. Ua Cine 4 was torn down in 2007 for future development in 2006 the Old club next to the theater was torn down an the old volleyball courts taken out. I am being told that in the future the existing cafe Brazil and the car lot next door to it could go off 75 and Fondren, the vet clinic two clubs/bar and asian food restarant could go as well.

Dennis,
You had mentioned Church Road and how it was named.
It appears the former McCree Church (Audelia and Church Rd) is it's origin. I found this particularly interesting, considering a Bonner was involved.
To make a long story short, Anderson Bonner, a son of slaves, and associated family came to Dallas early, before the Civil War was over and was a very successful farmer owning as much as 2000 acres of land surrounding current Forest Lane and Central expressway. Muhulda's Bonner's married name was McCree and was likely Anderson's aunt. A book has been written by the family. They would have known the Huffines, Floyd's and many other pioneer families. Anderson had a school named after him in Vickery years ago as well as Anderson Bonner Park on White Rock Creek.

After further review, I question my post about the naming of Church Road.
In McCree Cemetery, there are a number of members of the Church family interred.
There is also interred Mr. Church Goforth, a major landowner from White Rock Creek to Garland. There is a street named after him near White Rock Lake as he sold land to the city for the building of the lake.

Someone on Facebook has created a GREAT group called Remember-in-Dallas. So many people have posted many memories or questions about things they have 'heard'.
The other day someone mentioned Deuback's Skating Rink, I responded with "and the HUGE Swimming Pool", where I learned to swim, mid 50's. I remember everything about it. Vickery Park. Have not heard anyone say that they knew Vickery had once been it's own city.
I found this website, determined to find someone who knew about the Pool. THANK YOU!!

Jan

It was the DALLAS ATHLETIC CLUB COUNTRY CLUB that was renamed not the Automobile C C

Some thoughts:

Randy Tar was quite a trendy place when it opened. Also, there was Annie's Santa Fe (Mexican food), which was on the SW corner of P&G, in the late '70s and early '80s. Then there was The Hole In The Wall, that had great burgers (late '70s). This was on Greenville close to the Chili's location at Greenville and Meadow. The skating rink I just remember vaguely. I also remember the old Van Valkenburgh & Vogue (sp?) plant nursery, on Greenville north of NW Hwy.