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HISTORY
The John T. White neighborhood is located on the northeastern edge
of Fort Worth's eastside, seven to ten miles from the Fort Worth Central Business District. It encompasses
eleven surveys made between 1884 and 1896. It is bordered on the north and east by Randol Mill Road, the south
by I-30, and the west by Loop 820.
This neighborhood was named after John T. White, the 1929 Superintendent
of the Fort Worth school district. This neighborhood includes the Sandybrook area and surrounds a small
neighborhood referred to as Cobblestone Square.
Some maps refer to the John T. White neighborhood as Draughon Heights, after
J.W. Draughon, who owned land in the area in the late 1920's and developed portions of it in the early 1950's.
One of the main thoroughfares, Randol Mill Road, was named after a grain
mill originally built by Archibald Leonard and two partners in the 1850's. The mill burned in 1860, was
rebuilt in 1862, and was subsequently bought by W.A. Randol in 1872, retaining his name. A center of trade
and news, Randol Mill operated until 1922 and finally burned down in 1933. The road leading to the mill became
known as Randol Mill Road.
Just east of the John T. White neighborhood, at the confluence of Village
Creek and the Trinity River, the 1841 Battle of Village Creek took place between a group of local Indians and
an expedition led by General Ed. H. Tarrant and included Col. Wm. Cooke. The battle was a success for Tarrant
and Cooke who extended their influence based on this recognition. When Texas became a state, each man had a
county named for him.
One of the main streets running through John T. White was named after
Jacob Cooke, who established a camp and trading post in 1870, for teamsters traveling west from Johnson's
Station, later renamed Arlington. The teamsters would stop at this ten-acre campground before proceeding north
to Birdville (now Haltom City) then west to acquire buffalo hides for later sale in Dallas. The trail these wagons
followed later because known as Cooke's Lane.
Much of the Sandybrook area of John T. White was developed by the Fox & Jacobs
Corporation, beginning in 1979.
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