R.L. Thornton Freeway
The R.L. Thornton Freeway is named after former Dallas mayor Robert Lee Thornton.
This is the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) online entry for Robert Lee Thornton. him. https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fth34
However, surprisingly it doesn't mention that R.L. Thornton was a member off the Ku Klux Klan. This should tell you a lot about the TSHA handbook and TSHA's handing of history.
Books
1. "The Ku Klux Klan in the City, 1915-1930," by Kenneth T. Jackson is an excellent source for the Ku Klux Klan in Dallas. It also covers Atlanta, Memphis, Knoxville, Chicago, Detroit, Indianapolis, Portland and Denver.
2. "White Metropolis: Race, Ethnicity, and Religion in Dallas, 1841-2001," by Michael Phillip is an excellent book about the history of race in Dallas and also documents that R.L. Thornton had been a member.
3. I have not read "Dallas: The Making of a Modern City," by Patricia Evridge Hill, but it also documents the presence of the Ku Klux Klan in Dallas and the involvement of many members of the Dallas elite.
4. "Crusade for Conformity: The Ku Klux Klan in Texas, 1920-1930," by Charles C. Alexander, a publication of the Texas Gulf Coast Historical Association, Vol. VI, No. 1, August 1962 is a fairly good history, you might find it in a university library or used copies can be purchased online. It documents how the Texas Division United Confederate Veterans introduced the Ku Klux Klan to Texas in Houston in 1920 which would lead to a campaign of terror against Catholics, foreigners, African Americans, and Jews. For university students you might find it online at your university library.
This is the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) online entry for Robert Lee Thornton. him. https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fth34
However, surprisingly it doesn't mention that R.L. Thornton was a member off the Ku Klux Klan. This should tell you a lot about the TSHA handbook and TSHA's handing of history.
Books
1. "The Ku Klux Klan in the City, 1915-1930," by Kenneth T. Jackson is an excellent source for the Ku Klux Klan in Dallas. It also covers Atlanta, Memphis, Knoxville, Chicago, Detroit, Indianapolis, Portland and Denver.
2. "White Metropolis: Race, Ethnicity, and Religion in Dallas, 1841-2001," by Michael Phillip is an excellent book about the history of race in Dallas and also documents that R.L. Thornton had been a member.
3. I have not read "Dallas: The Making of a Modern City," by Patricia Evridge Hill, but it also documents the presence of the Ku Klux Klan in Dallas and the involvement of many members of the Dallas elite.
4. "Crusade for Conformity: The Ku Klux Klan in Texas, 1920-1930," by Charles C. Alexander, a publication of the Texas Gulf Coast Historical Association, Vol. VI, No. 1, August 1962 is a fairly good history, you might find it in a university library or used copies can be purchased online. It documents how the Texas Division United Confederate Veterans introduced the Ku Klux Klan to Texas in Houston in 1920 which would lead to a campaign of terror against Catholics, foreigners, African Americans, and Jews. For university students you might find it online at your university library.
Opposition to renaming R.L. Thornton Hwy.
Rev. George Mason of Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas has published an essay against renaming R.L. Thornton Hwy. or renaming Woodrow Wilson H.S. It is at this link:
https://lakewood.advocatemag.com/2020/08/19/george-mason-9/
https://lakewood.advocatemag.com/2020/08/19/george-mason-9/
This is my rebuttal of Rev. Mason's inane essay. Click on the icon below. You can download it.