Estelle Community

Estelle Community. . The Estelle community was located on what is now largely DFW Airport property along the Dallas-Tarrant County line. Henry Burgoon received a land grant from the state of Texas and came to the area in 1853. Early Estelle area farmers raised wheat, corn and cotton. At its height, the community had a steam cotton gin, two churches, a blacksmith shop, a school and a general store., Bryant and Ryan Harrington came to the Estelle area shortly after the Civil War. The brothers amassed large land holdings on which they raised cattle and farmed. In 1883, the Harringtons donated land for a community school and Masonic lodge. Area residents built a two-story frame building on the site. In 1916, the community built a two-story brick schoolhouse. During the 1920s, the school began offering only grades 1-7. High school students attended Irving High School, which was about seven miles to the southeast., In 1881, the community received a post office to serve the population of about 600 people. The post office remained in service until 1904. By the 1940s, the population of Estelle had dwindled, and little but the store remained of what had been the community center. The City of Irving annexed the Estelle area in 1968, as construction on the DFW Airport began., Captions , (Photo #1) Estelle Residents , Estelle was located on what was known as the Grapevine Prairie. Here a young couple pauses by the side of the road, as the prairie stretches out behind them. , (Photo #2) Estelle Baseball Team , At the turn of the century, many small farming communes gathered enough local young men to form baseball teams. Teams from area communities would then play each other. In this 1908 photo, members of the Estelle team pose with their bats and gloves.