Future Research Projects
Some of these projects have been researched but never published, and therefore possibly lost. Some have been handled briefly but not in depth. Some have appeared only in the Tyler newspaper...at some point. Some topics lend themselves to a brief article, while others might require months of work leading to a thesis. Some may even be impossible due to lack of resources. If you *do* complete an article related to Smith County history, please consider contacting the Smith County Historical Society at 125 South College Ave., Tyler, TX 75702-7216 (phone 903-592-5993), to donate a copy of your research to the Archives. Good quality articles may be considered for publication in their annual Chronicles of Smith County, Texas. The Local and Family History Room of Tyler Public Library, 201 S. College Ave., Tyler, TX 75702 (phone 903-531-1316) might also like a copy for their files.
Interviews with interesting, significant, or elderly residents of Smith County are always welcome, as are histories of organizations, schools, churches, and communities, even if they are not mentioned specifically below.
1. History
of liquor/prohibition including wet/dry elections in Smith County
2. History
of Tyler parks, actual and planned, particularly Bergfeld, Fun Forest and
Woldert
3. History
of women’s suffrage in Tyler. See Mrs. W. S. Herndon (charter member
Texas Equal Rights Association), Elizabeth Herndon Potter (3rd Vice President of
Texas Equal Suffrage Association and other offices), and Mrs. Cone Johnson
(President, Smith County Equal Suffrage Society)
4. Using
early city directories, city plans, and maps, plot out neighborhood
development in Tyler over time, including racial segregation
5. History
of highway loops in Tyler, going back at least to the city plan of 1931
6. History
of the North Palace African-American business district
7. History
of Tyler State College/Texas Eastern University/University of Texas at
Tyler, including interviews
8. Hispanic
community of Tyler prior to 1980; after 1980; Cinco de Mayo celebrations
9. History
of black county agriculture agents, particularly G. W. Crouch
10. History
of the Favre Baldwin post, American Legion
11. History
of the Arp school district
12. History
of blue laws in Tyler
13. History
of county home demonstration agents and home demonstration clubs
14. History
of commercial blackberry production, particularly around Lindale; also
canneries
15. History
of Juneteenth celebrations in Smith County
16. History
of Boy Scouts and/or Girl Scouts
17. History
of Confederate reunions 1886-1933; last
Confederate veteran
18. When
and how were the rows of crepe myrtles planted along East Texas roads
19. History
of the East Texas Fair, in more depth
20. History
of the State Fish Hatchery in Smith County
21. Biography
of J. W. Fitzgerald, former county judge
22. History
of 4-H Clubs in Smith County
23. History
of country clubs, particularly Willow Brook and Greenbrier
24. History
of the community of Gresham
25. History
of the great influenza epidemic in Smith County, 1919
26. History
of the Kiwanis Club
27. History
of the Ku Klux Klan in Smith County
28. What was the reaction in Smith County to the Longview, Texas, race
riot of 1919
29. History
of Tyler State Park, from CCC days, through the dam breaking (September 12,
1963), to
desegregation, to the burning of the old concession area
30. The lynchings in Tyler of male slave, 1864; Henry Hilliard, October
25, 1895; William Jones, May 23, 1897; J. Hodges, May 1, 1909; Dan Davis, May
25, 1912
31. Singing
conventions in Smith County
32. Smith
County National Guard units
33. History
of the Tyler Police Department
34. Presidential
Election of 1928 (Hoover/Smith) in Smith County
35. Presidential
Election of 1960 (Kennedy/Nixon) in Smith County
36. History
of the Red Cross in Tyler
37. History
of the community of Red Springs
38. History
of the Rotary Club in Tyler
39. History
of the Troup Agricultural Experiment Station
40. History
of the Troup Free Fair
41. History
of Troup Independent School District
42. History
of the Tyler City Market
43. History
of the Tyler Sanitation Department
44. History
of charities in Tyler—United Charities, Community Chest, Federated
Charities, United Way
45. Story
of the April, 1957, tornado
46. Civil
Works Administration projects in Smith County
47. History
of the Daughters of the American Revolution in Tyler
48. History
of radio in Tyler, particularly KGKB and KTBB
49. History
of the Lion’s Club in Tyler
50. NRA
(National Recovery Act) in Smith County
51. NYA
(National Youth Administration) in Smith County
52. People’s
National Bank Building, 1932
53. Public
Works Administration in Tyler
54. Reconstruction
Finance Corporation in Tyler
55. How
the Texas Centennial was celebrated in Tyler
56. History
of the Salvation Army in Tyler
57. Smith
County Relief Board during the Depression
58. History
of the Star of Hope Mission during the Depression
59. History
of the Tyler Business and Professional Women’s Club
60. History
of the Tyler Jaycees (Tyler Junior Chamber of Commerce)
61. Tyler
city plans—what were they, when were they, were they followed
62. History
of the Tyler Petroleum Club
63. History
of the YMCA in Tyler
64. History
of KLTV while it was still the only station in town
65. History
of Butler College
66. History
of Camp Tyler
67. History
of Emmet J. Scott High School
68. Robert
E. Lee goes from Rebels to Red Raiders, 1971/1972
69. "Greshamgate", October 28, 1977--see Smith County Justice, if
you can find a copy
70. History
of the Top Ladies of Distinction in Tyler
71. History
of the Tyler Organization of Men
72. History
of the African-American debutante presentation
73. Early
history of Muslims in Tyler
74. History
of cookbooks produced by Tyler organizations
75. The
Grange in Smith County
76. History
of unions in Tyler—pick one: Communications Workers of America;
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, IUE/CWA, OCAW, Sheet Metal
Workers, United Steel Workers of America, United Transportation Union
77. Civil Rights movement in Smith County during 50's, 60's, 70's--earlier
if you can find it
78. History of Tyler Civic Chorale
79. History of Tyler Community Concerts
80. Loyal Union League in Smith County during Reconstruction--we've got a
list of members (or used to--it may be lost)--what can you find out about them?
81. History of the Troup Banner
82. History of the Tyler Journal
83. History of the Junior League in Tyler
84. Polio, from FDR fundraisers and the March of Dimes to the Saulk vaccine in Smith County
85. Federal troops in Tyler during Reconstruction
86. CME churches in Smith County
87. LDS churches in Smith County
88. St. Francis Episcopal Church
89. Fifth Street Presbyterian Church
90. Highland Park Presbyterian Church
91. Mayfair Building, East Texas Fairgrounds
92. History of Tyler Civic Theatre
93. History of Arp, Texas
94. History of Garden Valley, Texas
95. History of Mount Sylvan, Texas
96. History of New Harmony, Texas
97. History of Owentown/East Texas Center
98. History of the St. Louis Community
99. History of supplying water to Tyler
100. Smith County fords and ferries
101. History of Broadway Square Mall
102. History of Bergfeld Center
103. History
of Brookshire’s
104. History
of Tyler Pipe & Foundry
105. History
of GE/Trane
106. History
of the Oil Palace
107. Gone With the Wind comes to
Tyler, 1939 and 1968 (or any other major movie, such as Star Wars)
108. History
of Rose Stadium
109. Track industry in Smith County through each Products of Industry
census in 19th century
110. History of Woodmen of the World in Tyler
111. History of the Elks Lodge
112. History of Tyler Commercial Club/Tyler Chamber of Commerce
113. History of Veterans of Foreign Wars in Tyler
114. History of Kelly-Springfield in Tyler
115. History of the Utopia Club (black women's organization)
116. History of Stewart Blood Bank
117. The fight to cut Broadway through the courthouse square
118. History of the League for Women Voters
119. Desegregating Tyler schools, 1954-1972
120. History of the Carleton Hotel building
121. History of the Unitarian Fellowship in Tyler
122. History of the NAACP in Tyler, including Texas v. NAACP (1956/1957),
case heard by Judge Otis T. Dunagan in Tyler
123. Hazing of high school boys in Tyler (cutting "T's")
124. History of the City of Tyler Dog Pound/Humane Society of Smith County
125. Robert Taylor, gold medal winner in 400 meters relay at Olympic
Games, Munich, Germany
126. History of Civil Defense in Tyler
127. WPA mural
128. Halloween customs in Tyler, at least back to the 1940s when there
were booths on the square
129. Teen Time and the Battle of the Bands, downtown at the American
Legion Hall, 1960s
130. Dragging Broadway and the Square--teenagers and cars in the 20th
century, from at least the 1940s on
131. Impact on Tyler of the Great Texas Banking Crash, 1982-1992
132. Impact on Tyler of Delta Drilling Company's bankruptcy, 1988-1990
133. The Internet comes to Tyler
134. John Tyler High School burning down in the late 1970s
135. End of the minstrel show in Tyler
136. The opening of Robert E. Lee High School, the choice of the name and
the choice of the symbolism
137. Movies made in Smith County
138. Women's clubs in Tyler through history--how have they changed
139. Electric power comes to
140. Newspapers in
141. Coca-Cola bottling
142. Early grocery stores/markets
143.
144. Neil-Simpson Drug Stores
145. Local reactions to significant events:
146. Interview local WW2 veterans, Korean War veterans, Vietnam War
veterans. Did they enlist or were
they drafted? What was their feeling
about going to war? How were they
received when they came home?
147. Early cattle brands and ear crops