Back to Front: Clark Hotel Museum in Van Horn

Van Horn's history is held for residents and visitors in the old Clark Hotel, now the Clark Hotel Museum.  A story about the Clark Hotel from our Texas Mountain Trail website:

"How would you go about turning a building around so its storefront faces a different street? Just change the street name? How about simply building a new façade, complete with a new front door. The Clark Hotel in Van Horn did just that. During a major thoroughfare construction through Van Horn in 1925 automobile routes known as the Bankhead Highway which ran from Washington D.C. to California and the Old Spanish Trail running from Florida to California, became the new U.S. Highway 80. This road paralleled the community’s Front Street which runs along the railroad tracks, becoming the primary commercial avenue. The Clark, as well as many of the other structures along the south side of Front Street, reversed their facades so that they would face the new highway. The transformation symbolized the passing of a horse-drawn era where most travelers arrived by passenger train to one of automobiles and highways, a paradigm shift that would permanently change much of rural Texas.

For the Clark, however, it was merely another alteration in a long history of changes, beginning with the structure’s initial construction in 1901. It was, in fact, built upon the razed remains of an earlier 1889 commercial building. The new construction served as commercial center for a variety of unrelated businesses until 1918 when a new owner converted the building into a hotel. The design typifies the two-story hotel of the era, with a lobby and public spaces on the first floor and rooms, some with private baths, on the second. Although simple and relatively unadorned, a detail standout is the mahogany bar in the former saloon, an 1876 import from France. The Clark stands as the oldest building in Van Horn and its “about-face” occurred a year before its final expansion phase in 1929. The building’s history includes service as retail space, commercial offices, opera house, community center, pool hall, saloon, drug store, newspaper printing office, dance hall, and court house throughout the 20th century. In an amusing combination of functions, the rowdy saloon activity on the first floor would often disrupt the sober court sessions in progress on the second. The hotel continued to provide respite to travelers until 1968. Today, the Clark Hotel serves as a regional historical museum for the Van Horn Historical Society and its own storied history."

Photo by Dan Baeza

On the Way to the Mountains: Big Spring's 1930 Hotel Settles along the Bankhead Highway

We had occasion to travel down I-20 to our Texas Mountain Trail region, roughly the route of the historic Bankhead Highway this week and found ourselves stopping in Big Spring at the newly renovated (and absolutely beautiful) Hotel Settles.

Built in 1930 and on the National Register of Historic Places, the hotel is seen briefly in the opening scenes of the 1969 film, "Midnight Cowboy."

We loved stepping inside and feeling transported into another (and elegant) era for travelers.

Dining room at the Hotel Settles

So, if you find yourself traveling to the mountains and our Texas Mountain Trail region from the DFW Metroplex, plan to stop for lunch in Big Spring's Hotel Settles! 

Bankhead Highway Meeting in El Paso!

Photo by Dan Baeza, sign in the collection
of the Clark Hotel Museum in Van Horn

Tuesday, December 3, 2013 - 5:30pm to 7:00pm,
El Paso Community Foundation
    333 North Oregon St., 1st floor
   in El Paso

Location

• El Paso Community Foundation
• 333 North Oregon St.
• 1st floor
• El Paso,

- See more at: http://texasmountaintrail.com/events/el-paso-trip-through-time-bankhead-highway-texas#sthash.iMt62Xd5.dpuf

Help Tell the Story of the Bankhead Highway in Texas!
Individuals are encouraged to attend this public meeting to share information and visual items related to the historic Bankhead Highway for use in the two-year survey project led by the Texas Historical Commission (THC).  The THC will introduce the project at the meeting and involve community members through discussion, question-and-answer session, and displays of historical Bankhead images. Please bring your historical photos, postcards, maps and other Bankhead-related items to the meeting. With your consent, staff will scan or photograph materials so they may be included in the project if appropriate. We hope to see you there!

The event listing on our web calendar is HERE.  Read more about the Bankhead Highway on the Texas Historical Commission's website, HERE.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013 - 5:30pm to 7:00pm

Help Tell the Story of the Bankhead Highway in Texas. Individuals are encouraged to attend this public meeting to share information and visual items related to the historic Bankhead Highway for use in the two-year survey project led by the Texas Historical Commission (THC).  The THC will introduce the project at the meeting and involve community members through discussion, question-and-answer session, and displays of historical Bankhead images. Please bring your historical photos, postcards, maps and other Bankhead-related items to the meeting. With your consent, staff will scan or photograph materials so they may be included in the project if appropriate. We hope to see you there!

- See more at: http://texasmountaintrail.com/events/el-paso-trip-through-time-bankhead-highway-texas#sthash.iMt62Xd5.dpufTuesday, December 3, 2013 - 5:30pm to 7:00pm

Help Tell the Story of the Bankhead Highway in Texas. Individuals are encouraged to attend this public meeting to share information and visual items related to the historic Bankhead Highway for use in the two-year survey project led by the Texas Historical Commission (THC).  The THC will introduce the project at the meeting and involve community members through discussion, question-and-answer session, and displays of historical Bankhead images. Please bring your historical photos, postcards, maps and other Bankhead-related items to the meeting. With your consent, staff will scan or photograph materials so they may be included in the project if appropriate. We hope to see you there!
- See more at: http://texasmountaintrail.com/events/el-paso-trip-through-time-bankhead-highway-texas#sthash.iMt62Xd5.dpuf

Bankhead Highway Meetings in Van Horn and El Paso

The Texas Historical Commission (THC) is undertaking a two-year study of the historic Bankhead Highway. As part of this project, the THC and local organizations are holding public outreach meetings along the Bankhead Highway to exchange information and visual items with the public. This exciting project has the potential to assist Bankhead Highway towns with future heritage tourism and economic development endeavors. These meetings kicked off in August starting at the northeastern-most part of the Bankhead Highway in Texarkana and we are working our way westward.

Van Horn meeting: Thursday, November 7, 5:30-7pm, Hotel El Capitan
El Paso meeting: Tuesday, December 3, 5:30-7pm, El Paso Community Foundation, 333 N. Oregon Street, 1st floor

The Bankhead Highway was one of the nation's earliest transcontinental highways.  Its beginnings can be traced back to 1916 when the Bankhead Highway Association was organized to promote the highway's development.  The roadway extended from Washington, DC to San Diego, California, by way of Alabama, home of US Senator John H. Bankhead and a major supporter of the highway.  Its path crossed approximately 850 miles of Texas, passing through Texarkana, Mt. Vernon, Dallas, Fort Worth, Abilene, Midland, Van Horn, and El Paso, among other communities, and roughly followed US 67 and US 80.

The Bankhead Highway was one of the nation's earliest transcontinental highways.  Its beginnings can be traced back to 1916 when the Bankhead Highway Association was organized to promote the highway's development.  The roadway extended from Washington, DC to San Diego, California, by way of Alabama, home of US Senator John H. Bankhead and a major supporter of the highway.  Its path crossed approximately 850 miles of Texas, passing through Texarkana, Mt. Vernon, Dallas, Fort Worth, Abilene, Midland, Van Horn, and El Paso, among other communities, and roughly followed US 67 and US 80. - See more at: http://www.thc.state.tx.us/preserve/projects-and-programs/historic-texas-highways/bankhead-highway#sthash.dCriyMhS.dpuf

"Dining Along Historic Highways" Icebox Cookies from Van Horn, 1934

We'll be serving these cookies (with pecans!) at the Hospitality Heroes Award presentation on August 27th!  Come join us!

Click on the images for a closer view!

Van Horn, the Crossroads community for our own Texas Mountain Trail, has its history determined by its location.  Through time, it has always been a place travelers passed through...whether by foot, horseback, wagon, train, bicycle or automobile.  It was also an important stop on the historic highways--the Bankhead Highway and the Old Spanish Trail!  (There will be a November 7th meeting in Van Horn about the Texas Historical Commission's Historic Highways project--specifically, the Bankhead Highway survey.  Click here for details!)

We found this recipe from 1934 in a Van Horn Hospital Auxiliary cookbook, and wanted to share it with you! 

Click here to view a lovely three page .pdf about Van Horn's legacy in welcoming travelers, plus, the entire recipe! 

Eggs, butter, brown sugar!

Mixing in dry ingredients!

Add pecans, form into loaf and rest in the icebox!

Slice, then bake!

 

Hot and ready to eat!

Bankhead Highway Meetings

The Texas Historical Commission is starting work on a historic highways project, beginning with a survey of the Bankhead Highway through the state.

The Bankhead was one of the first transcontinental roadways, with its beginnings in 1916.  It stretched from Washington DC to San Diego, by way of Alabama, home of Senator John H. Bankhead, a supporter of the roadway.  Through Texas, it passed through Texarkana, Mount Vernon, Dallas, Fort Worth, Abilene,  Midland, and in our Texas Mountain Trail region, Van Horn and El Paso.

To begin their survey, the Texas Historical Commission is holding public meetings in key communities across the route, and in our region, that means Van Horn and El Paso. The historic highways project will be introduced at these public meetings--everyone is invited--where there will be time for questions and answers, displays of historic Bankhead materials.  The public is invited to bring maps, postcards, photos and other materials about the Bankhead and communities along the route, and with owner consent, the materials can be scanned and included in the survey.

The Van Horn meeting, scheduled for November 7, will be at the Hotel El Capitan.  Click here for more information.

The El Paso meeting, scheduled for December 3, will be held at the El Paso Community Foundation.  Click here for more information.

Please bring your historical photos, postcards, maps, and other Bankhead-related items to the meeting. With your consent, staff will scan or photograph materials so they may be included in the project if appropriate. - See more at: http://texasmountaintrail.com/events/van-horn-trip-through-time-bankhead-highway-across-texas#sthash.HcjpDsVA.dpuf

HHM with THC staff will be hosting public meetings in towns along the Bankhead Highway to gather information and visual items related to the  Bankhead Highway for use in the project.  These meetings are scheduled for August through December 2013.  HHM and THC staff will introduce the projects at the meetings and involve community members through discussion, question-and-answer sessions, and displays of historical Bankhead images.  The public is encouraged to attend the public meetings and bring historical images, postcards, maps, and other Bankhead-related items.  With owner consent, HHM will scan or photograph such materials so they may be included in the project.
- See more at: http://www.thc.state.tx.us/preserve/projects-and-programs/historic-texas-highways/bankhead-highway#sthash.02Ts7h12.dpuf

Want to learn more?

Here's a link to an open facebook group celebrating the Bankhead Highway through Texas.

Here's a link to a Flickr group on the Bankhead, administered by the Texas Historical Commission.

The Bankhead Highway was one of the nation's earliest transcontinental highways.  Its beginnings can be traced back to 1916 when the Bankhead Highway Association was organized to promote the highway's development.  The roadway extended from Washington, DC to San Diego, California, by way of Alabama, home of US Senator John H. Bankhead and a major supporter of the highway.  Its path crossed approximately 850 miles of Texas, passing through Texarkana, Mt. Vernon, Dallas, Fort Worth, Abilene, Midland, Van Horn, and El Paso, among other communities, and roughly followed US 67 and US 80. - See more at: http://www.thc.state.tx.us/preserve/projects-and-programs/historic-texas-highways/bankhead-highway#sthash.02Ts7h12.dpuf

The Bankhead Highway was one of the nation's earliest transcontinental highways.  Its beginnings can be traced back to 1916 when the Bankhead Highway Association was organized to promote the highway's development.  The roadway extended from Washington, DC to San Diego, California, by way of Alabama, home of US Senator John H. Bankhead and a major supporter of the highway.  Its path crossed approximately 850 miles of Texas, passing through Texarkana, Mt. Vernon, Dallas, Fort Worth, Abilene, Midland, Van Horn, and El Paso, among other communities, and roughly followed US 67 and US 80. - See more at: http://www.thc.state.tx.us/preserve/projects-and-programs/historic-texas-highways/bankhead-highway#sthash.02Ts7h12.dpuf

The Bankhead Highway was one of the nation's earliest transcontinental highways.  Its beginnings can be traced back to 1916 when the Bankhead Highway Association was organized to promote the highway's development.  The roadway extended from Washington, DC to San Diego, California, by way of Alabama, home of US Senator John H. Bankhead and a major supporter of the highway.  Its path crossed approximately 850 miles of Texas, passing through Texarkana, Mt. Vernon, Dallas, Fort Worth, Abilene, Midland, Van Horn, and El Paso, among other communities, and roughly followed US 67 and US 80.
With special funding allocated by the Texas Legislature and with a grant from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), the Texas Historical Commission (THC) is undertaking a two-year study to document the history of this nationally important roadway.  The THC has awarded a contract to the Austin-based historic preservation planning and management firm of Hardy-Heck-Moore, Inc. (HHM) to complete the study.  The project will result in a history of the Texas section of the Bankhead Highway, and will also survey the Texas Bankhead route and associated historic resources including auto repair garages, gas stations, diners, tourist camps, auto courts, motels, road markers, paving, traffic signs, and bridges.
HHM with THC staff will be hosting public meetings in towns along the Bankhead Highway to gather information and visual items related to the  Bankhead Highway for use in the project.  These meetings are scheduled for August through December 2013.  HHM and THC staff will introduce the projects at the meetings and involve community members through discussion, question-and-answer sessions, and displays of historical Bankhead images.  The public is encouraged to attend the public meetings and bring historical images, postcards, maps, and other Bankhead-related items.  With owner consent, HHM will scan or photograph such materials so they may be included in the project.
- See more at: http://www.thc.state.tx.us/preserve/projects-and-programs/historic-texas-highways/bankhead-highway#sthash.02Ts7h12.dpuf

The Bankhead Highway was one of the nation's earliest transcontinental highways.  Its beginnings can be traced back to 1916 when the Bankhead Highway Association was organized to promote the highway's development.  The roadway extended from Washington, DC to San Diego, California, by way of Alabama, home of US Senator John H. Bankhead and a major supporter of the highway.  Its path crossed approximately 850 miles of Texas, passing through Texarkana, Mt. Vernon, Dallas, Fort Worth, Abilene, Midland, Van Horn, and El Paso, among other communities, and roughly followed US 67 and US 80.
With special funding allocated by the Texas Legislature and with a grant from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), the Texas Historical Commission (THC) is undertaking a two-year study to document the history of this nationally important roadway.  The THC has awarded a contract to the Austin-based historic preservation planning and management firm of Hardy-Heck-Moore, Inc. (HHM) to complete the study.  The project will result in a history of the Texas section of the Bankhead Highway, and will also survey the Texas Bankhead route and associated historic resources including auto repair garages, gas stations, diners, tourist camps, auto courts, motels, road markers, paving, traffic signs, and bridges.
HHM with THC staff will be hosting public meetings in towns along the Bankhead Highway to gather information and visual items related to the  Bankhead Highway for use in the project.  These meetings are scheduled for August through December 2013.  HHM and THC staff will introduce the projects at the meetings and involve community members through discussion, question-and-answer sessions, and displays of historical Bankhead images.  The public is encouraged to attend the public meetings and bring historical images, postcards, maps, and other Bankhead-related items.  With owner consent, HHM will scan or photograph such materials so they may be included in the project.
- See more at: http://www.thc.state.tx.us/preserve/projects-and-programs/historic-texas-highways/bankhead-highway#sthash.02Ts7h12.dpuf

Step Back in Time, Be a Traveler at the Clark Hotel Museum

Van Horn's Clark Hotel Museum

Van Horn has always been a place for travelers, folks heading across the nation.  Before I-10, it was the Bankhead Highway and the Old Spanish Trail or the train, and before that stagecoach lines.  The Clark Hotel was one of several hotels in Van Horn for visitors to spend the night.  Read more about it here.

Located on Broadway, Van Horn's main street, just west of the intersection of Hwy 90 and Hwy 54, the Hotel building is now a historic museum telling the story of early Culberson County.  Visit it, and see how travelers lodged for an evening on their trips across the country.

The Museum's website is here.  The site and the last three photos in this post are the work of Dan Baeza, Van Horn native and our Texas Mountain Trail photography intern last summer.  Thanks, Dan!

We're working on a long-term project on Dining Along Historic Highways, and thought you might like a peek at what we're up to.  Van Horn sits on both the Old Spanish Trail and the Bankhead Highway, and has served travelers for generations.  Want to see the entire "feature," including historic and modern photos, and the full recipe for Icebox Cookies with Pecans from a 1934 community cookbook?  Click HERE!

A New Front Door

Now the FRONT of the Clark Hotel Museum,
In Van Horn along Broadway Street
(Photo by Dan Baeza)
 

Take just outside the "front" door of the Clark Hotel
in 1919, now the back door of the Clark Hotel
Museum in Van Horn
(Photo courtesy, Clark Hotel Museum)

When a society takes a big turn in a new direction, sometimes "back" becomes "front," and "front" becomes "back."

Such is the case with the town of Van Horn, when travel shifted from train to the automobile....and you can see that shift at the Clark Hotel Museum. 

The front door of the hotel was at the north end of the building prior to 1925, adjacent to the train station.  When automobile became more prevalent--Van Horn is on the Bankhead Highway and the Old Spanish Trail, the "front" door shifted to the south side of the building.  Read more about it here.

Travel Spotlight!

Just across the street from the Clark Hotel Museum in Van Horn is the historic Hotel El Capitan, recently restored to its 1930 splendor and available for visitor stays with all the modern conveniences.  The Hotel El Capitan is one of our finest regional historic hotels and a participant in our cycle-friendly program, too.


The Hotel El Capitan is a marketing partner of our non-profit Texas Mountain Trail organization.

How would you like to drive in the Mountains in one of these?

 

 

This lovely vehicle takes a starring role in a little "dream" document we created for our "Dining Along Historic Highways" series...this one...on the Bankhead Highway!  From our website:  "This historic route, established in 1919 and considered the first paved transcontinental highway, connected Washington, D.C. with San Diego as part of the National Auto Trail system. The Texas segment was pieced together county by county entering from the east at Texarkana swinging down to Dallas and making its way across Texas to exit at El Paso." In our Texas Mountain Trail region, the old Bankhead Highway generally follows 1-20 from Midland/Odessa to I-10 around Kent, through Van Horn and Sierra Blanca, then through the backroads to the Mission Trail and El Paso.  CLICK HERE to get to our visual introduction to dining along the Bankhead Highway today...there's more to come in the weeks and months ahead!