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CITY OF BENBROOK 2019-20 ANNUAL BUDGET

Early during the first world war, General John J. "Blackjack" Pershing invited the Royal Canadian Flying Corps to establish training fields in
Texas because of the mild weather. After looking at sites in Dallas, Fort Worth, Waco, Austin, Wichita Falls, and Midland, three sites were
established in the Fort Worth vicinity - these sites in North Fort Worth, Everman, and Benbrook became known as the "Flying Triangle." The
Royal Flying Corps used the fields from October 1917 to April 1918; the fields were then turned over to the U. S. Army. Taliafero Field Number
3 (later renamed Carruthers Field after Cadet W. K. Carruthers who was killed on June 18, 1917) was located south of Mercedes Street

in what is now the Benbrook Lakeside subdivision. When the U. S. entered the war, the field was renamed Benbrook Field and served to train
American pilots.

The most famous casualty at Benbrook Field was Vernon W. Blyth Castle, part of the famous Vernon and Irene Castle dance team; the duo was
best known for introducing the tango to the United States in 1913. Captain Castle, recipient of the French Croix de Guerre for his combat
missions over Germany and Commander of the 84th Canadian Training Squad, was killed on February 15, 1918. Captain Castle's plane
crashed while avoiding another airplane that was landing. Captain Castle's pet monkey and his student both survived the crash; the student's
survival is attributed to the fact that he sat in the seat normally occupied by the instructor. The funeral for Castle was one of the largest held in
Fort Worth and drew international attention. Castle's body was transported to New York for burial. The training field and the thirty-four
buildings and hangars were razed in the 1920s. A memorial for Vernon Castle was erected in 1966 at the crash site near the corner of Vernon
Castle Avenue and Cozby West Street. The memorial included a replica of a Curtis Jenny and photographs of Castle and the airfield. As his
eagle scout project, Jerret Martin, a Benbrook scout, restored the monument in 1997. The monument was rededicated as part of the City's
fiftieth anniversary; the ceremony was attended by dignitaries from Canada, Great Britain, and the United States.

The only remaining building is an ammunition warehouse west of Highway 377 (Benbrook Boulevard); the foundations of several buildings can
be found behind some of the homes along Cozby North Street. The City contacted the National Archives, the Defense Department, and the
Texas State Library to find original plans for the airfield, but to no avail. Following the closure of Benbrook Field, the land was purchased by
William Monnig and used as a dairy. The dairy was later acquired by Manning Trammell and then later by Mrs. Grace Cozby.

GROWTH OF BENBROOK

1920s and 1930s

Benbrook's population was estimated to be thirty-three people in both 1920 and 1930. The community's business base consisted of two stores.
Other nearby communities in the 1930s included Chapin (twenty-five voters), Wheatland (population of forty and a school), and Primrose.

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