Central Meadowbrook

HISTORY OF THE MEADOWBROOK NEIGHBORHOOD

Meadowbrook is a suburban neighborhood of Fort Worth Texas. Its beginnings go back to
small farms east of Fort Worth during the 1870s.  Its development continued as a place
for a nice middle class home on a few acres for a garden and maybe a horse and a few
chickens.  There are still chickens in the neighborhood that occasionally can be heard
along with a flock of neighborhood Guinea fowls that roam the area without any particular
owner other than the neighborhood itself.
Meadowbrook was aptly named because 100 years ago it was an area of meadows and brooks.
There were clear spring fed ponds or small lakes connected with clear creeks that
eventually fed the Trinity River to the north. There were several community wells where
farm owners shared water with close by neighbors. There were several commercial dairies. 
Current residents still find horseshoes lost long ago in the dirt.  Meadowbrook slowly
developed as a quiet, tree shaded, fine place to raise families and go to church. There
were two major periods of development – the 1920s and 1950s.
In the 1880s there existed an interurban railroad that would connect Fort Worth and
Dallas with many stops along the line that included several to serve Meadowbrook. 
Highway 80 (in Fort Worth, Lancaster Blvd) was a major old road paralleling that rail
line that is still serving as a link to the general area.  Other old streets still used
are Meadowbrook Blvd, Oakland Blvd (shaded tree lined), Tierney Road, and Ederville Road.

Now Meadowbrook is a beautiful housing subdivision of Fort Worth, with no industrial land
uses so it is a quiet tree shaded area that is relatively close to downtown with
essentially little traffic congestion. There are two major parks in the area: Oakland
Lake Park and Tandy Hills Park.  Meadowbrook Golf Course was established in 1922 and is a
high quality and difficult city public course used by golf players of the region. 
The I-30 limited access corridor and Loop 820 give quick access to the larger metropolitan
area.

History article provided by Hal Jennings and Richard Black.