Oak Lawn in Dallas in Dallas County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)

Stephen J. Hay School

Photographed by Kayla Harper, April 25, 2020

1. Stephen J. Hay School Marker

Inscription. This site commemorates a significant civic and business leader. Georgia native Stephen J. Hay (1864-1916) migrated to Dallas in 1887 and became an executive of the Texas Paper Company. He served eight years on the Dallas Board of Education and in 1907 was the first mayor elected to a new mayor-council government that replaced the ward system. Hay was reelected in 1909, and as mayor he and four commissioners oversaw major city projects, including the first city plan, designed by George Kessler; passage of a bond election to help establish Southern Methodist University; and construction of White Rock Dam and Reservoir, the Houston Street Viaduct, and a new city hall, hospital and fire stations. Hay took a leading role in the development of Modern Dallas and was later prominent in banking, insurance, and the chamber of commerce.

Stephen J. Hay Elementary School, established here in 1921, initially consisted of frame classrooms and outhouses. A bond election paid for a new 16-room brick schoolhouse in 1926 planned by architect Thomas J. Galbraith and built by contractors Spearman and Sons. Galbraith designed residences and

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churches in Dallas, and schools in Royse City, Hillsboro, Coleman and Cuero. The Hay School building is a two-story red brick building with a center block and flanking wings, prominent Tudor Revival entrance, cast stone panels and quoins, and multi-light steel windows.

The school was designed to accommodate 400 students, but enrollment dwindled to less than half its intended capacity by the 1960s. The school operated below capacity until 1978, when it became the site of Dallas I.S.D. offices. The building was later the first campus of the Irma Rangel Young Women's Leadership School.
Marker is property of the State of Texas

Erected 2007 by Texas Historical Commission. (Marker Number 13912.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Education.

Location. 32° 49.245′ N, 96° 48.572′ W. Marker is in Dallas, Texas, in Dallas County. It is in Oak Lawn. It is on Herschel Avenue, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3801 Herschel Avenue, Dallas TX 75219, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally,

Photographed by Kayla Harper, April 25, 2020

2. Stephen J. Hay School Marker

this marker is in the Prairies & Lakes Region.

Globally, it is in North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the Republic of Texas,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within one mile of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Cedar Springs (approx. 0.3 miles away); Reichenstein Home (approx. 0.6 miles away); a different marker also named Cedar Springs (approx. 0.7 miles away); The Crossroads (approx. 0.7 miles away); Oak Lawn United Methodist Church (approx. 0.8 miles away); Robert E. Lee Park (approx. 0.9 miles away); John Hickman Miller House (approx. one mile away); Preston Road (approx. 1.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Dallas.

Stephen J. Hay School image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Kayla Harper, April 25, 2020

3. Stephen J. Hay School

Credits. This page was last revised on February 2, 2023. It was originally submitted on April 25, 2020, by Kayla Harper of Dallas, Texas. This page has been viewed 587 times since then and 53 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on April 25, 2020, by Kayla Harper of Dallas, Texas. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.