The Beginning: 1925
Sydney A. Temple Sr. was a native of Farmersville in Collin County. Temple was president of the Dallas Trust and Savings Bank in the 1920s, and organized the S.A. Temple Mortgage Co. and the National Currency Association of Dallas. He attended Metropolitan Business College and taught in the same institution in 1896. He was employed by Captain Sidney Smith, former secretary and general manager of the State Fair of Texas. Temple served as confidential secretary to J.B. Wilson, constructor of the Wilson Building. Temple is known for helping develop Dallas residential sections such as Glendale Acreage, Kessler Square, University Park, Munger Place Heights, Country Club Park Estates, and Beckley Club Estates. Temple died in 1966 at the age of 89 years.
The Mysterious Real Estate Subdivision
May 10, 1925 marked S.A. Temple’s newest venture in real estate. The newest development was shrouded in mystery with a cleverly designed advertisement campaign. With a series of three advertisements, published in the Dallas Morning News each consecutive Sunday in May, the developer skillfully stirred the interest of the roughly 112,000 newspaper subscribers in search of the house of their dreams. The first advertisement was on May 10, 1925 and spoke of a “secret”, inviting the readers to wonder “what and where is it”? The second ad appeared on May 17 and gave another piece of the puzzle, speaking of “innovation”, inviting the readers to wait before purchasing real estate. The third ad, published on May 24, the developer announced he was going to “let the cat out of the bag” with a preliminary announcement to follow in the next Sunday edition of the paper. With each advertisement placed by S.A. Temple, the interest rose to the point that the developer was forced to unveil his real estate plan much sooner than he had anticipated. On May 31, 1925, a full-page advertisement in the Dallas Morning News finally revealed what all those ads were about: Beckley Club, the Beautiful. For many weeks and months to follow, S.A. Temple continued advertising for the subdivision. A third of the available lots were sold during a six-week period from May 21 to July 8, 1925: a stunning success considering the ongoing improvement and development of the subdivision at the time. Some renowned first owners of lots and homes in Beckley Club were Lynn W. Landrum, editor and columnist; Herman Munster, vice president and manager of the Oak Cliff Bakery; and J.A Pitzinger, the architect.
Real estate transfers of June and July 1925 list several socialites and families that bought lots in Beckley Club: Frances L. Griffin, E.L. Trimble, E.G. Martin, G.M. Moore, Mrs. Clara Wilson, S.S. Brogdon, Miss Myrtle Trimble, E.E. Smith, V.G. Bishop, C.M. Proctor, H.D. Pittman, W.T. Hamilton, Dr. Melvin O. Red, V.H. Mahan, P.L. Kennedy, E.H. Laurence, Frederick Pfaff, E.M. Tackett, J.H. Newcomer, Berte Cooper, Ars. Addie C. Buford, D.H. Hancock, J.F. Kempton Jr., L.A. Allen, J.M. Bates, J.H. Parker, G.L. Lloyd, H.J. Voris, R.D. Crawford, E.E. Smith, J.O. Everett, J.H. Rooke, R.M. Clift, M.W. Flourney, Miss Mary C. Bellinger, W.K. Smith, A.E. Allen, W.B. Lumpkin, A. Lois Hale, E.W. Crabb, and H.C. Foster. The list is not complete and was compiled solely from recorded, and legible, transfers published in the Dallas Morning News. We apologize for any misspellings and/or missing names. If you know or can remember who other first residents were, please drop us a note at
info@beckleyclub.com and will be happy to include any new information.