Clara Wallace Holmes and Robert P. "Bob" Holmes Collection

Tarrant County Archives > Holdings > Named Collections > H > Holmes, Clara Wallace and Robert P. Holmes

Biographical Note

Clara Wallace and Bob Holmes met, and married, later in life through their shared interest in local history and participation with various volunteer organizations. Both participated as members of the Tarrant County Historical Commission for many years. Bob is a 32nd Degree Mason and a member of Fort Worth Lodge 148.

 

Scope and Contents

Clara and Bob Holmes donated material on the Fort Worth Cultural District, biographical information, books, letters, maps, and cattle company records. Included in their collection are two external hard drives containing more than 85,000 files of research conducted primarily from 2006-2018 by Clara Holmes, Bob Holmes, and Doug Harman on a variety of historic topics related to Tarrant County. The digital files include photographs, research notes and PowerPoint presentations.

View the Clara Wallace Homes and Robert P. "Bob" Holmes Collection image gallery.

Materials in this collection consist of the following:

Art and the Cultural District

  • Will Rogers painting by Seymour Stone: includes comments on its provenance and artist from Scott Barker to Clara Ruddell, 2004
  • Sculptures by Robert Wick: List of 13 sculptures at Botanic Garden with each described under its title. It also gives credit to horticulturist who planted the living plants that become part of Wick's sculpture.
  • Robert Wick, Monumental Bronze Sculpture catalog, 1998. Produced by Robert Wick Sculpture Studio, Sierra Vista, Arizona.
  • Cultural District Self-Guided Walking Tour, Will Rogers Complex, Written by donor for distribution at the Convention and Visitors Bureau office in the Cultural District brochure, 2002.
  • "From Cattle to Culture: Fort Worth's Westside Adventure" by Delbert Bailey, six-page manuscript describing the evolution of the Cultural District from Van Zandt farm to center of city's art museums and livestock events.

Freeman Report Map 1853

Freeman Report Map, 1853

Luke Short

Luke Short

Hettie Short

Hettie Bimbo Short, wife of Luke Short

Biographical Research

  • Ikard, Bose

    • "Bose Ikard: 1843-1929" Texas Historical Marker application, 1990
    • Copy of marriage license for Bose Ikard and Jennie Bell, Parker County
    • Copy of death certificate for Bose Ikard, January 4, 1929
    • Copy of funeral records, Bose Ikard, White's Funeral Home, undated
    • "Chas. Goodnight Erects Monument To Negro Friend Buried Here," Daily Herald, June 8, 1929
    • Tombstone for Bose Ikard
    • Page from Parker County Marriages, Trails West, Volume 22, No. 4, July 1992
    • Copy of Letter from Charles Goodnight to T. W. Stanley, Weatherford, May 17, 1929, concerning tombstone from Weatherford Marble and Granite Works
    • Obituary for Jenny Ikard, widow, undated
    • Indiana Ikard, daughter of Bose Ikard, photocopy, undated
    • Charles Goodnight, photocopy, undated
    • Newspaper photo, copy, of descendants of Bose Ikard, on occasion of THC marker dedication September 1990 Fort Worth Star-Telegram
    • Crowd at marker dedication, very bad photocopy, undated
    • "A Novel Cowhand" by Jacquielynn Floyd. Dallas Morning News, October 14, 1990
    • "History a matter of grave concern" by A. C. Greene Dallas Morning News, October 1994
    • "Former slave revered for character and service" by Bill Fairley. Fort Worth Star-Telegram, February 19, 2003
    • "The perfect storyline" by Don Price. Painted Post Crossroads, undated
    • "McMurtry's writing drawn from history" unknown writer and publication, undated
    • Copy of brochure: Loving-Goodnight-Ikard Traildrivers' Exhibit, undated
    • Copy of pamphlet: Loving-Goodnight-Ikard Traildrivers' Exhibit, undated
    • "Woman's ancestor rode tall in saddle with best" by Jon McConal. Fort Worth Star-Telegram, September 4, 1999
    • Weatherford ISD celebrates opening of Bose Ikard Elementary, September 8, 2002

  • Bailey, Delbert

    • "Reflections of Half a Century in Fort Worth," by Delbert Bailey, Cowtown History Buff, five page undated 
    • "Bidding Farewell," Fort Worth Star-Telegram column by Art Chapman, Delbert Bailey, 32 year career as publicity manager for the Fort Worth Stock Show, undated

Books

  • Fort Worth, A Texas Original by Richard Selcer. Texas State Historical Association, Austin. Fred Rider Cotton popular history series, Number 17, 2004

Letters

  • Letter to Botanic Garden Director from Robert J. Wick, proposing his sculptures would be appropriate for the garden, undated

Maps and Plans

  • "Rough Plan of Fort Worth, Texas" drawn by Lt. Col. W. G. Freeman, 1853, from National Archives (image shown above)
  • Montgomery Ward Fort Worth drawing on occasion of its opening. 2600 W. Seventh Street, Fort Worth, 1928
  • Marie Hettie Bimbo Short, black and white photo with some tinting, undated
  • Fort Worth Botanic Garden Guide map, giving locations of Wick sculpture, 2004

Cattle Company Records

  • Invoices, purchasing statements, metal plates, and other records pertaining to various cattle companies; especially Swift and Company, from 1952-1969.  

Photographs

  • Luke Short, black and white photograph with tinting, undated (image shown above)
  • Hettie Bimbo Short, wife of Luke Short, undated (image shown above)

DVDs

  • A Historic Sacred Ground Blessing Ceremony at the Future Site of the Major Ripley Arnold Monument and the John V. McMillan Plaza
  • Comanche Nation: The Story of Quanah and Cynthia Ann Parker "Relationships: Indians in Northwest Texas"
  • In the Tradition of the Warrior: A History of Modern-day Comanche Veterans
  • The Bank Robbery and The Wolf Hunt
  • The Unveiling of the Major Ripley Allen Arnold Monument

Research

  • Two external hard drives containing more than 85,000 files of research done by Clara Holmes, Robert "Bob" Holmes, and Doug Harman on the following topics:
    • Cynthia Ann Parker and Quanah Parker (research for exhibit by Doug Harman, Clara Holmes, and Bob Holmes)
    • Early Tarrant County Exhibit (research for exhibit by Doug Harman, Clara Holmes, and Bob Holmes)
    • Major Ripley Arnold statue creation and installation
    • Chisholm Trail Exhibit (research for exhibit by Doug Harman, Clara Holmes, and Bob Holmes)
    • Texas Trail of Fame
    • Stockyards
    • Masons
    • Native American Code Talkers WWI
    • Elvis Presley in Fort Worth
    • General Worth
    • Tarrant County founding families (Daggett, Tarrant)
    • Al Hayne Monument
    • Broadway Presbyterian Church
    • Famous Rodeo Riders
    • Parker Cabin
    • Old State House Museum Exhibit photographs
    • 1896 Fat Stock Show
    • Photographs of Intermodel Transportation Center Mural on African American marketplace once at that location (1865-1940)
    • WWI Aviator Lieutenant James J. Jo