TXWOCO: When the “W” in “TWC” Stood for “Woman’s”

Polytechnic College opened in 1891, became Texas Woman’s College in 1914, Texas Wesleyan College in 1935, and Texas Wesleyan University in 1989.

txwoco poly to twu 9-19-13 9-24-14In 1913 the Methodist church announced that Polytechnic College would become a woman’s college. Male students would be transferred to the new Southern Methodist Church in Dallas. Texas Woman’s College opened on September 24, 1914 with an enrollment of 220. (Polytechnic College was not the first Methodist college in town. Likewise, the Texas Wesleyan College that Polytechnic College became was not the first Texas Wesleyan College in town.) Star-Telegram clips are from September 19, 1913 and September 24, 1914.

txwoco coverThe TWC yearbook was the TXWOCO. These pages are from the 1922 edition:

txwoco best all round“Popular and best all round.”

txwoco faculty 1Some of the faculty.

txwoco buildingsCampus buildings, from top left: administration building, science hall, gymnasium, Ann Waggoner Hall, conservatory, Dan Waggoner Hall, Mulkey Hall, college church.

twu adminThe administration building (1903) is now Oneal-Sells Administration Building.

twu dan waggonerDan Waggoner Hall (1917) now houses the School of Education.

txwoco fine artsAnd today the “college church” is Ann Waggoner Fine Arts Auditorium (1909, Sanguinet and Staats). The 1909 church replaced the church built when the college opened in 1891. Ownership of the building was transferred to the college in 1923.

txwoco fine arts pedimentThe words “Polytechnic Methodist Church” still appear below the pediment.

txwoco soph1Sophomore class sponsor, president, and mascot.

txwoco evalyn 22Some of the class of ’25. The yearbook was not big on first names. See the Martel at the bottom of the page? She was eighteen then. She would become a Poly High institution.

txwoco martelsThat institution was Evalyn Martel. Sisters Evalyn and Maurine were teaching at Poly High by 1930 (in the Nashville Avenue building) and still at the school in 1965 (in the Conner Avenue building).

txwoco martels 30In 1930 the sisters were living at home with their parents on North Street (Lancaster). Maurine was born in 1898, Evalyn in 1904. Maurine would die in 1966. Evalyn, who would retire in 1969 after forty-three years at Poly High (teacher, dean of girls, vice principal), would celebrate her 106th birthday on March 14, 2010. She would die the next day.

txwoco preachers daughters

txwoco glee clubPreacher’s daughters (no first names, please), Glee Club, and orchestra. These young women would be centenarians now.

txwoco track1Sports. Note how sparsely developed the area was in 1922. Fort Worth annexed Poly that year.

txwoco tombstonesCould those be tombstones of Polytechnic Cemetery behind the javelin thrower? If so, she was standing just west of Bishop Street at the northeast corner of the campus.

txwoco interurbanThe interurban ran just north of the campus.

txwoco rogers map2In fact, there was a College Hill stop for the interurban just west of the Tandy Lake stop. (Map detail from Pete Charlton’s “1000+ Lost Antique Maps of Texas & the Southwest on DVD-ROM.”)

txwoco plat peteThe campus also was served by the Polytechnic streetcar line, which ran from downtown through Glenwood along Vickery Boulevard and Nashville to Avenue E at Wesleyan Street. (1905 plat detail from Pete Charlton’s “1000+ Lost Antique Maps of Texas & the Southwest on DVD-ROM.”)

txwoco meat“NUF SED.”

txwoco 33 grads 5-28-22TWC graduated thirty-three seniors in 1922. Clip is from the May 28 Star-Telegram.

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4 Responses to TXWOCO: When the “W” in “TWC” Stood for “Woman’s”

  1. M PHILLIPS says:

    My brother, William James (Jimmy) Shires, was the salutatorian of the Poly High graduating class of 1971. I transferred in ’71 to Eastern Hills and graduated from there. We both went on to graduate from TWC. Jim passed away in June 2018 due to complications from quadriplegia as a result of a snow-tubing accident in 2001.

    Thanks for the memories…great website!

    • hometown says:

      Thank you. Am sure we had some of the same teachers at Poly. My mother went to TWC as an adult.

  2. Scott Gorman says:

    Wow! I love the diversity of all the campus buildings, and glad to see that some are still around.

    • hometown says:

      I have watched that school with interest since I grew up in Poly and my mother went to TWC as an adult. It perseveres, even prospers.

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