PRESS RELEASES - FEBRUARY 2007

Texas Historical Markers to recognize “The Hill”

February 23, 2007

A nearly forgotten five-block area of Arlington, once the center of bustling African-American life and the church that supported it, will get its historical due Sunday, February 25, at George Stevens Park. At 2 PM, the City of Arlington Landmark Preservation Commission will dedicate the former all-African-American enclave known as “The Hill” and Emmanuel Church in Christ with Texas Historical Markers.

The ceremony will begin at George Stevens Park, located at 400 W. Sanford St. in Arlington, and conclude at the Emmanuel Church of God in Christ at 513 Indiana St.

The area, coined “The Hill” for its location perched on a slight rise overlooking a cow pasture, was the only land addition set aside primarily for the city’s African-American residents. As many as 300 people resided there at any given time. As early as 1895, some of those residents came together to form Emmanuel Church of God and Christ, which served as a meeting place for many local African-American leaders. The church continues to serve parishioners as a place of worship and community.

“They didn’t have indoor plumbing or electricity until around the 1940s,” Geraldine Mills, director of the Arlington Historical Society, said of the residents’ living conditions. “Some owned their homes but most weren’t encouraged to buy or even improve their homes. A number of them lived in houses rented and leased out by whites.”

In 1907, Arlington resident Edward F. Wilkerson conferred land to the city which would become the core of “The Hill” (which is why some also refer to the area as the Wilkerson addition). Growth occurred in subsequent years with several businesses including grocery stores, restaurants, nightclubs and the former Booker T. Washington School, opening by the 1920s. Stevens Park is named after the principal of the school.

Originally a rural area, “The Hill” became more densely populated and urban as the city grew around it. “Although “The Hill” didn’t grow, it did experience change,” Mills said. “From the mid-1940s through the 1960s, “The Hill” began to decline as job opportunities and social changes led residents to other areas. Booker T. Washington School, built in 1953, closed in the 1960s as integration scattered residents to different parts of the city.”

Today, “The Hill” is an ethnically diverse community, according to the Texas Historical Commission.

Information about the dedication may be obtained from Pablo Calderon with the City of Arlington Community Services Department at 817-459-6232 or e-mail calderonp@ci.arlington.tx.us