A summer breeze sweeps across the patio at Joe T. Garcia’s, and water splashes into the sun-kissed pool where generations of this proud family came of age. Tranquility and tradition are the main draws here, but it’s a well-oiled kitchen operation, perfected over eight decades, that keeps the Mexican dishes and margaritas flowing at Fort Worth’s busiest and best-known restaurant. Rarely has an 18-hour workday been made to look so easy.
The Legend of Billy Bob’s Texas (video)
IN THE MOMENT EPISODE 3 - Billy Bob's Texas and Dallas Sonnier
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Landmarks Commission Approves Expanded Stockyards Historic District
The Historic and Cultural Landmarks Commission voted Monday to approve an expanded version of the Stockyards historic district and reject the smaller district that the Fort Worth City Council favors.
With the vote, the Landmarks Commission is recommending that the council approve the larger district when it votes on the issue April 5. Regardless of the Landmarks Commission’s recommendation, however, the final decision will be up to the council.
The Zoning Commission will also vote March 9 on the recommendations it will send to city council regarding the historic district. The council will consider the Landmarks Commission’s recommendations and the Zoning Commission’s recommendations before taking final action.
To Save the Stockyards’ Living History
Rows of dutifully preserved photographs in the Stockyards Museum are all that remain from much of Fort Worth’s early days. Several images capture the enormity of the meatpacking industry at the turn of the last century. Spread over 100 acres, 2,600 pins once held cattle, hogs, and sheep in what are now large parking lots flanking both sides of East Exchange Avenue.
The livestock was headed to either of two sprawling meatpacking plants: Swift and Company or Armour and Company. Throughout the early part of the 1900s, the Stockyards ranked among the top five meatpacking markets in the country.
Little of that era remains today. Both plants were largely destroyed by fires in the early 1970s. The wood that constitutes large chunks of the structures has been damaged by the elements, and few traces of the beams that once guided animals to slaughter lie intact today. The barns for …
Bass Performance Hall is the Anchor of the Arts in Fort Worth, Texas
Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall is the anchor of the arts in Fort Worth, Texas. The renowned pianist and Fort Worth resident Van Cliburn urged the Bass' to build a performance hall for the arts. The hall was built in 1998 and the two 48-foot-tall angels were carved from Texas limestone by Marton Varo. The hall, which seats 2,042, is home to the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Texas Ballet Theater, Fort Worth Opera, and the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and Cliburn Concerts. These organizations produce work that is worthy of the magnificent hall that they call home.
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