Tarrant County Convention Center Collection

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Aerial view of downtown Fort Worth and Convention Center, 1979

Aerial view of Downtown Fort Worth and Tarrant County Convention Center, 1979

 

Historical Note

The Tarrant County Convention Center at 1111 Houston Street in Fort Worth opened in 1968. It was designed by a group of local architects: Preston Geren, Herman Cox, Hueppelhueser & White, Morris Parker, and the firm of Wilson, Patterson, Sowden, Dunlap & Epperly. Fourteen square blocks of buildings located in the area known as Hell's Half Acre were demolished for the $20 million dollar project. When it was finished, the convention center offered 100,000 square feet of exhibit space, a 28,000 square foot arena with a portable stage and ice rink, 25 meeting rooms, and the JFK Theatre that seated 3000 people. The convention center continued to make some architectural changes and upgrades in the years following its opening. 

In 1997, the City of Fort Worth purchased the complex from the county and changed the name to Fort Worth Convention Center. In 2000, the City demolished the JFK Theatre to make room for more exhibit space. The theatre was replaced with an event plaza, a ballroom, and other meeting rooms, which brought the total exhibit space up to 253,226 square feet. 

Scope and Content

When the Tarrant County Convention Center was sold to the City of Fort Worth in 1997, the director of the facility, Melvin Morgan, donated items related to the events and management of the Tarrant County Convention Center as well as tourism in Fort Worth. The materials included directories, documents, wall calendars, greeting cards, posters, and publications. A later donation from the convention center included aerial photographs of the building from 1964 to 1983 along with 1,023 color slides and hundreds of photographs of events held at the convention center from about 1965 to 1990. Most of the photographs were taken by photographer W. D. Smith. Altogether, the materials are dated 1961-2005 and document a large part of the convention center's history. 

 

Photographs and slides in this collection consist of the following subjects:

Concerts
  • Aerosmith; Alice Cooper; Allman Brothers; B. B. King and Bobby Bland; Barry Manilow; Beach Boys; Bee Gees; Bob Dylan; Bob Seger; Boz Scaggs; Captain and Tennille; Cat Stevens; Chicago; Commodores; Dean Martin; Duke Ellington; The Eagles, Earth, Wind and Fire; Elvis Presley; Emerson, Lake and Palmer; Foghat; Fort Worth Symphony Starship Encounters; George Harrison; Gino Vannelli; Glen Campbell; Grand Funk Railroad; Gridiron; Heart; Jackson Browne; Jethro Tull; Johnny Cash; Kenny Rogers; KISS; Led Zeppelin; Leon Russell; Linda Ronstadt; Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey; Moody Blues; Neil Diamond; The Osmonds; Parliament - Funkadelic; Paul McCartney and the Wings; Peter Frampton; Queen; Rod Stuart; Rolling Stones; Roy Clark - Badge and Shield; Sonny and Cher; Tina Turner; Tom Jones; Tom Wopat; U.S. Air Force Band: Singing Sergeants; Yes; ZZ Top
Events 
  • All-Star Basketball Game; Banquets/Business Conventions; Bobby Bragan Roast; Builders Association of Fort Worth and Tarrant County Convention; Convention of Local Businesses; Country Music Revue Awards Show; Disney on Parade; Fiesta - Bloodless Bull Fight; Flatbed Truck Demonstration; Fort Worth Police Officers Association Benefit Show Featuring Roy Clark; Fort Worth Wings vs. Dallas Black Hawks Hockey Game; Four Wheel Drive and Truck Pull; Golden Gloves 44th Boxing Tournament of Champions; Harlem Globetrotters; Ice Capades; Kiwanis Antique Show; Lawrence Welk - Lon Varnell Show; Medical Convention; Miss Teen America Pageant; Miss Texas Pageant; New Car Dealers Association Convention; Oldsmobile Auto Show; President Gerald R. Ford Banquet; Profession Wrestling Show; Quarter Century Club Banquet; Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus; Russian/American Indoor Track Meet; State Bar of Texas Convention; Southwest Hardware and Implement Association's Tractor Pull; Southwest Trucking Show; Southwestern Baptist Convention; Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association Convention; Texas Restaurant Association Convention; Texas Retail Grocers Association Convention; Texas Southwestern Regional Food Service Educational Convention; White's Home and Auto Stores Merchandising Show; 20th World Gymnastics Championships
Fort Worth Sites
  • Interior and exterior of the Tarrant County Convention Center
  • Aerial views of the Tarrant County Convention Center
  • Downtown Fort Worth; Hilton Hotel; John F. Kennedy Theater
  • Cultural District: Museums; Fort Worth Zoo
  • Wet N' Wild Water Park
 
Additional materials in this collection consist of the following:
 
Advertising Materials 
  • Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce publications, programs, guides (1968-1971)
  • Fort Worth Magazine (1969-1971)
  • The Key / The Fort Worther (1971)
  • Texas Highways (1975)
  • Pamphlet: Fort Worth, Where You Can See Forever, by Continental National Bank of Fort Worth (1971)
Management Materials 
  • "Action '69" by Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce (1969)
  • Business Proposal from American Eagle Technologies, Inc. (1990)
  • Southwestern Laboratories sub-surface exploration of the building site (1965)
  • Guides, manuals, newsletters (1961-1969)
  • Trinity Valley Progress Bulletin (1969)
  • Resolution Honoring Dr. Samuel Thomas Alexander (1973)

 

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