Bill Text: TX HR1336 | 2013-2014 | 83rd Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Commemorating the dedication of the Moorland YMCA Building on Flora Street in Dallas as a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Passed) 2013-04-22 - Reported enrolled [HR1336 Detail]
Download: Texas-2013-HR1336-Enrolled.html
| H.R. No. 1336 | ||
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| WHEREAS, The proud heritage of a Dallas institution is being | ||
| honored on April 12, 2013, with the dedication of the Moorland YMCA | ||
| Building on Flora Street as a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark; and | ||
| WHEREAS, In the late 1920s, the Young Men's Christian | ||
| Association of Dallas began an effort to create a YMCA in the | ||
| African American neighborhood of North Dallas; despite the economic | ||
| hardship of the Great Depression, local residents raised $75,000, | ||
| and another $25,000 was contributed by the Rosenwald Fund, which | ||
| helped build YMCAs for African American communities across the | ||
| American South; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Named for Dr. Reverend Jesse Edward Moorland, a | ||
| national official of the YMCA, the new facility was designed in the | ||
| Italian Renaissance Revival style and opened in 1930; it offered | ||
| programs in education and recreation for local youth and made its | ||
| gymnasium available for use by nearby schools; a number of | ||
| prominent athletes received their earliest training there, among | ||
| them welterweight boxing champion Curtis Cokes, professional | ||
| football player Jimmy "Iron Claw" Hill, and Chicago Cubs shortstop | ||
| Ernie Banks; and | ||
| WHEREAS, This handsome, redbrick building became a hub for | ||
| the social, cultural, and political life of the African American | ||
| community in Dallas as one of the few places where African Americans | ||
| could congregate outside of church; it served as an important | ||
| meeting venue for civil rights activists and members of the NAACP, | ||
| and it provided hospitality for African American visitors who had | ||
| difficulty finding a hotel room in the segregated city; famous | ||
| overnight guests included boxer Muhammad Ali and Supreme Court | ||
| Justice Thurgood Marshall; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Eventually the needs of area YMCA members outgrew | ||
| the building, and the facility on Flora Street was closed in 1970 | ||
| and replaced with a location in Oak Cliff; the Moorland YMCA | ||
| Building continues to serve the community today as the home of the | ||
| Dallas Black Dance Theatre, which purchased the property in 1999; | ||
| and | ||
| WHEREAS, For more than 80 years, the Moorland YMCA Building | ||
| on Flora Street has played a meaningful role in the lives of African | ||
| Americans in Dallas, and the preservation of this notable structure | ||
| for future generations is truly deserving of recognition; now, | ||
| therefore, be it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas | ||
| Legislature hereby commemorate the dedication of the Moorland YMCA | ||
| Building as a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark and commend all | ||
| those responsible for this noteworthy occasion. | ||
| Giddings | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Speaker of the House | ||
| I certify that H.R. No. 1336 was adopted by the House on April | ||
| 17, 2013, by a non-record vote. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
