Page 375 - FY 2021-22 ADOPTED BUDGET

By 1940, the Benbrook community had grown to approximately one hundred people and three
stores. The Benbrook Railroad Station was closed and torn down during this decade. Benbrook

gained a temporary resident in the 1940s; Lee Harvey Oswald began his schooling here but moved
shortly thereafter in 1946. In April 1941, construction began on a bomber plant operated by
Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Company (Convair, later named General Dynamics, and then Lockheed
Martin); the first B-24 "Liberator" bomber rolled off the assembly line in April 1942. The Tarrant Air
Drome (later named Carswell Air Force Base) was established at the same time. In May 1947, the
U. S. Corps of Engineers began construction of Benbrook Dam on the Clear Fork of the Trinity River.
Authorized by the Rivers and Hazards Act of 1945, the dam was designed to prevent flooding; major
floods occurred in the area in 1922, 1947, and 1949. The May 1949 flood killed ten people and left
over 13,000 people homeless in Fort Worth following ten inches of rain in twelve hours. Benbrook
Dam was completed in December 1950 and began impounding water in 1952.

Benbrook's first housing development, the Benbrook Estates subdivision, was platted in 1946; lots
were typically 70 feet by 170 feet. On November 17, 1947 the residents voted 25 to 0 to incorporate
as a village. The total area included in the new municipality was 13.3 square miles. The first mayor
was Ed Sproles and the first aldermen included Mrs. Grace Cozby, J. A. Childers, W. J. Nolte, M. N.
Wallace, and D. I. Sessums. Earl Cleveland was elected city marshal-tax collector. One of the first
actions (Ordinance Number 2 adopted in August 1948)) was to create a Planning and Zoning
Commission with the duty to recommend a master plan and zoning ordinance. The first zoning

ordinance created a single zoning district "A" One Family; lots were required to be a minimum of
20,000 square feet and dwellings were required to be a minimum of 1,000 square feet in size. In
1949 the Benbrook Volunteer Fire Department was organized; Jim Childers served as the first Fire
Chief.

The City also began addressing the need for a water supply. Initially homes were supplied by
individual water wells. In 1949, the Worth Water Company was granted a twenty-five year franchise
to install and operate a water system to serve Benbrook. The Benbrook Water and Sewer Authority

was created in April 1955 by the Texas Legislature and assumed the assets of the Worth Water
Company.

1950s

By 1950, Benbrook had three stores and 617 residents. The Dunlap Addition on Llano Street was

platted in 1949. The Benbrook Lakeside Addition was platted in 1950 with typical lots of 225 feet
by 225 feet. These subdivisions reflected the spirit of Frank Lloyd Wright's ideal subdivision where
everyone owned an acre of land. However, to stimulate sales, the subdivision was replatted within
a few years to 75 feet by 225 feet and again to 75 feet by 150 feet; homes sold for about $8,500. At
the same time in 1950, the North Benbrook Addition was platted into lots 50 by 100 feet. A new
268