411 Elm Street's mysterious history

[Mark A. O'Blazney]

I am going to share what I have learned about the history of the Texas Scho0l Book Depository and related businesses and individuals and their backgrounds. I'll add more details as my time permits.

William Weston's research on the TSBD and the building at 411 Elm St. is essential reading, and really a paradigm shift away from viewing the Book Depository as a simple textbook warehouse.

http://www.maryferrell.org/mffweb/archiv...eId=389779
[URL="http://www.maryferrell.org/mffweb/archive/viewer/showDoc.do?absPageId=519339"]
http://www.maryferrell.org/mffweb/archiv...eId=519339[/URL]


1900 or 1901 A four-story building at 411 Elm St was built as offices for the Southland Rock Island Plow Company. Destroyed by fire May 4 1901.

1903 Rebuilt after a fire as a 7-story structure.

A History of Greater Dallas and Vicinity - Volume 2 - Page 290

https://books.google.com/books?id=POoxAQAAMAAJ
Philip Lindsley, ‎Luther B. Hill - 1909

1908 The Texas School Book Depository company was organized and was incorporated 1927. (Jack Cason affidavit WC vol.7)

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi...d=58252608
Birth: Apr. 14, 1891 Death: Jul. 21, 1918
Texas, USA

Fred W. Gragg, 26 years old, office manager at the Southern Publishing House, died yesterday morning at a local sanitarium. Funeral
services will be held from the family residence, 1105 Woodlawn Avenue at 4 o'clock this afternoon, the Rev, Wallace Bassett officiating,
with burial in Oak Cliff Cemetery. Mr. Gragg is survived by his wife, a son, Marshall Frederick; a daughter, Cora Emma; his father and
mother Mr. and Mrs. M. F. Gragg of Henrietta; five brothers and one sister. Active pallbearers will be Dennis G. Colwell, H. W. Hamilton,
V. H. Perry, Ben Read, Charles D. Turner and L. L. Kirvin.

Dallas News
07-22-1918

Family links:
Parents:
Marshall Fleming Gragg (1852 - 1929)
Emma Matilda Dees Gragg (1857 - 1937)

Spouse:
Cora Lee Powell Gragg (1891 - 1971)*

1936 originally housing a company called International Harvester, this year D. Harold Byrd purchased 411 Elm St. with the intention of making a manufacturing site for air conditioning units. (NYT 4/17/1970) This enterprise never really got off the ground because of patent disputes with Chrysler Corp. (DH Byrd, I'm an Endangered Species, 1978)



1940 the 411 Elm building stood vacant until this year, when Byrd leased it to the John Sexton Co., a grocery warehouse firm. It opened for business Jan 1 1941. The offices were on the first and second floor. The third to 7th floors were primarily warehouse space for grocery supplies, and machinery for making coffee. In 1959 they constructed a huge new single-story structure in the NW section of Dallas. (The Sextonite Magazine Fall 1964)



1940s The TSBD company and the branch offices of the eleven publishing companies were located at 2210 Pacific Avenue. They all shared an old, rundown building which used to be an auto dealership. (William Weston research)

1947 Jack Cason becomes the owner of the TSBD company, which he bought from two widows.

(Henry William Hamilton was called Harry. he came from Ireland to the US in 1909, a citizen in 1916, and resided for 14 years with his uncle in Dallas, a cotton broker. In 1924, he married Helen Willard Gleason, a niece of a neighbor on his Dallas street.)

page 68, One Life
Gladys Swope Cason
Harry, the Vice-President hailed from Scotland. A dear of a man,
Harry had to be then in his sixties. He had no children but many nephews in Scotland
that he doted on as did his wife, Helen. Every time I ever saw him in a period of more
than thirty years, Harry always was wearing a beautifully cut three-piece suit with
watch chain. Smaller than Jack, he wore a grey mustache like a Scotsman and used
wire-rim spectacles to check the accounts. He also helped Jack manage the publishers'
representatives, the warehouse crew, and the thirty-one office workers who formed the backbone of the business.

http://thehardyparty.com/html/fam16535.htm
More Information:
About Harry W. Hamilton:
Found in 1920 Census, TX, Dallas Co., Dallas, Pct. 22, ED 42.
Name: Harry Hamilton
Home in 1920: Dallas Precinct 22, Dallas, Texas
Age: 39 years
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1881
Birthplace: Ireland
Relation to Head of House: Nephew
Father's Birth Place: Ireland
Mother's Birth Place: Ireland
Marital Status: Single
Race: White
Sex: Male
Year of Immigration: 1909
Able to read: Yes
Able to Write: Yes
Image: 930
Household Members: Name Age
John Hamilton 65
Mildred Hamilton 40 sister-in-law of TSBD V.P. HW Hamilton, daughter of Dr. Thomas D McKeen and Mildred J Erwin
Hattie French 65 sister of Mildred Hamilton, see below
Harry Hamilton 39 (Occupation: Manager, book store)

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi...=120862120[TABLE]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]
[TD="align: left"]Jan. 23, 1926 Dallas Dallas County Texas, USA[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="colspan: 2"]Mrs. A. F. French, 73 years old, died early Sunday morning at the home of Mr. and Mrs. John Hamilton, 2815 South Ervay street. She was the widow of the late A. F. French, who was for many years connected with the banking firm of Hutchings-Sealy Company of Galveston.
She is survived by a son, Frank B. French of Dallas; two sisters, Mrs. John Hamilton of Dallas and Mrs. Sexton of Kansas City; a brother, Robert McKean of Dallas, and a grandson, Thomas E. Thompson of Galveston. Another son, Charles F. French, recently died at Galveston. The body was sent to Galveston Sunday night, where it will be buried beside her husband and children.[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]




January 1, 1956
Death Claims H W Hamilton in Guatemala
obit date (Jan 7, 1956)
HAMILTON
Harry W., 4433 Beverly, passed away, Quirigua, Guatemala
survived by wife Mrs. Helen W. Hamilton; Dallas, brother
William Hamilton. Dublin, Ireland
arrangements pending
WEILAND-MERRITT TE-8141

1950 the TSBD acquired a four-story warehouse at 1917 North Houston for textbook storage.

1951 - The Dal-Tex Building was vacated by the John Deere Plow Co., which allowed the book companies to move into the first floor, and the clothing manufacturers on the other floors.

1952 the TSBD management and clerical personnel at Pacific Avenue building relocated to the first floor of 501 Elm St (the Dal-Tex building). At some point, Jack Cason decides to lease the building across the street, 411 Elm St. There is some confusion about when this happened. O.V. Campbell told William Weston that this happened around 1958. Spaulding Jones, former branch manager of MacMillan Publishing, thought the move to 411 took place in 1957 or 1958.

1960 - "The school depository firm moved in in 1960 and took a 15 year-lease. It was previously occupied by a wholesale grocery firm." (Dallas Morning News 11/24/63)

1961 Nov 14 the Sexton company vacates the 411 Elm St building. (William Weston; date from Ted Leon, former branch manager in Dallas 1961-64; he kept all his pocket calendars from work). According to Thomas Butler, who became the Sexton branch manager in 1964, the building remained vacant for about a year after his company moved out. Months of renovation for new offices would be necessary before the TSBD could move in. A dumb waiter is installed for the first four floors. A passenger elevator for the office floors is built. (Weston)

1962 January the TSBD acquires the 411 Elm St location, leasing it from D.H. Byrd (SS report CO-2-34030 12/7/1963) The Polk's criss-cross 1962 business directory shows that the TSBD was still listed as having an address on the first floor of 501 Elm St (Dal-Tex Bldg). The same directory lists the 411 Elm St building as vacant. The 1963 directory lists the book companies at 411 Elm. Also that year the first floor of the Dal-Tex become vacant. (William Weston)

1963 Oct 15 LHO is hired at the TSBD

1963 "The Texas School Book Depository is a privately-owned firm engaged in the warehousing and shipping of textbooks for various publishers. The books are shipped to schools in Texas and surrounding states. The firm presently occupies a building at 411 Elm Street, Dallas, Texas, and has occupied the building since January 1962. Prior to that time, the firm was located at 501 Elm Street, Dallas, Texas. The presently occupied building is leased from Mr. D. Harold Byrd, 6909 Vassar, Dallas, Texas, who has owned the building for many years. The officers of this company are Mr. Jack C. Cason, President, 4015 Druid Lane, Dallas, Texas; W. 0. V. Campbell, Vice President, 7120 Twin Tree Lane, Dallas, Texas; and W. Roy S. Truly, Director and Superintendent of Operations, 4932 Jade Street, Dallas, Texas. This firm also furnishes office space for seven publishing companies, whose books and publications are handled by the Texas School Book Depository. These publishers are as follows: Lyons and Carnahan, Room 201; South Western Publishing Company, Room 203; Allyn and Bacon, Room 301; The MacMillan Company, Room 302; The American Book Company, Room 303; McGraw-gill Book Company, and their subdivision, Gregg Publishing Company, Room 305; and Scott-Foresman Company, Room 401." (Secret Service report CO-2-34030 12/7/1963)

Details I can independently confirm, from the 1996 obituary of Otis Virgil Campbell's sister, Neta Maxine:
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~neyork...adams.html

• Neta Maxine Adams
  
• Born on December 19, 1916 at Salem, Arkansas
  
• Father was James Alfred Campbell; mother was Mary Iona Barnett
  
• Married John R. Adams on February 2, 1934 at Alton, Missouri
  
• Died on September 10, 1996 at Aurora, Nebraska; age 79
  
• Residence at death was 710 Friesen Avenue, Henderson, Nebraska
  
• Funeral was held at the Faith Evangelical Bible Church, Henderson, Nebraska
  
• Burial was at Chapel Memorial Gardens, Kansas City, Kansas
  
• Survivors included Charles (Alvena) Adams, Raymond (Harriet) Adams, O.V. Campbell, Eugene B. (Wilma) Campbell
  

(I have started a thread covering the Ennis (town in Ellis County, TX) connections of OV Campbell and Mary Germany Bledsoe)

1963 Nov 23 FBI report by Nat Pinkston (File# DL 100-10461) statement by Roy Truly he told the agents that his company "has occupied the building at 411 Elm Street for only a few months. Prior to this time, the building was occupied by a wholesale grocery company engaged in supplying restaurants and institutions…"

1970 - The building was bought by a collector of Kennedy memorabilia from Nashville. The TSBD company moved to a new location.

7/20/1972 Arsonists break into the empty Texas School Book Depository building in Dallas, Texas, spread gasoline on five floors and set it on fire. It is saved from destruction by the overhead sprinkler system as well as by a rapid response from the fire department. Damage from the blaze is minimal. "It was definitely arson," an assistant fire chief tells reporters, "we found gasoline cans on five floors and the smell of gasoline was all through the building."

1977 - The citizens of Dallas County became the caretakers of the historic; by a 2-1 margin, the county voted to purchase and renovate the Depository.

Thank you , Mr. Scully. Your 'data dumps'. as they call it, are most informative. Stars in your Crown.