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‘One of my favorite
places ...’
By Gelene Simpson
I love to read about what happened in the year 1937 in Corsicana. Of
course, my main reason is that it was the year
of my birth, which also took place in Corsicana.
But when I was playing the piano on recitals at
Kinsloe House in my childhood and youth, I
didn’t realize that was the year in which the
“Crystallization of a Dream,” as described by
Mrs. Lynne A. Wortham, had taken place.
According to Mrs. Wortham, in May of 1937, the
actual calling of a meeting to plan for a
woman’s clubhouse took place when Mrs. W. Kirke
Steele invited “a representative group of
clubwomen to her home” for “a discussion of the
subject.” It seems that a clubhouse “had been a
dream of the local women for more than half a
century.” That’s a long time for a dream to hang
on, but once the dream received momentum, things
began to happen rather quickly. It was only a
short time until “the home of the late Mrs. H.E.
Kinsloe” became available. She had been a
pioneer resident of Corsicana. And her home was
presented to the local club house association by
her “devoted granddaughter, Mrs. Edward W.
Kelley of Houston.” A letter, written by Mrs.
R.L. Hamilton, resulted in Mrs. Kelley’s gift.
The Corsicana club women were invigorated by
this wonderful gift and set about planning a
membership campaign, thus making possible the
remodeling and equipping of the clubhouse which
became a “cultural center of community life.”
This was the house in which piano teachers like
my beloved teacher, Mrs. Terry Sutton, presented
their students in recitals. The teachers
belonged to the Nevin Club, and the students
made up the Junior Nevin Club. My participation
took place during the 1940s and early 1950s. So
Kinsloe House had been in business for a while,
and I thought it was like hitting the “big
time.”
The Kinsloe House/Woman’s Club House Association
of Navarro County became an actual organization
on Nov. 19, 1937, was incorporated in 1938 and
was opened May 10, 1938, the birthday
anniversary of Mr. H. E. Kinsloe. But when I
returned to Navarro County after 40 years of
living elsewhere, I didn’t recognize Kinsloe
House. And the reason is that Kinsloe House of
today is a different building. It was opened on
Sept. 15, 1990, having been built after a fire
destroyed the original house in 1988.
Mrs. Glenn Moore, the president of the
organization at the time, “appointed Mrs. W.D.
Wyatt as rebuilding chairman, and members of her
committee were Miss Mary Collins, Mrs. Bill
Ellzey, Mrs. Regina Fullerton, Mrs. Gus
Gappleberg, Mrs. Lester G. Gegenheimer, Mrs.
Taylor C. Judson, Mrs. W.P. Murchison, Mrs.
Geral D. Nichols, Mrs. B. Lynn Sanders Jr., and
Mrs. Carmack Watkins.” With Gordon Wilson as
architect, Mrs. Leland Kattner led the
fund-raising committee which reached the
groundbreaking date on Feb. 23, 1990. Lester
Gegenheimer donated the adjoining land east of
Kinsloe House which became the parking lot.
When Sept. 15, 1990, arrived, Kinsloe House
opened the doors again and “the dream became a
reality once more.”
The clubs which are presently members of the
Woman’s Club House are Alpha Rho Chapter, Delta
Kappa Gamma Society International; American
Business Women’s Association, Navarro Chapter;
Athenaeum Club; Colonial Dames XVII Century,
Thomas Meredith Chapter; Corsicana Apartment
Association; Daughters of the American
Revolution, James Blair Chapter; LeLivre Club;
The Literary Club; Newcomers Club; Nineteenth
Century Club; Rutherford Supper Club; Sixth
District Dental Society Auxiliary, and Thalian
Club.
Kinsloe House is famous for fund-raisers to keep
the dream going. On March 13, the Woman’s Club
House Association will present “Celebration of
St. Patrick’s Day” at 6:30 p.m. The program will
feature Linda Petty, a well-known
singer/entertainer who has performed at the
Kinsloe before. She wowed the audience then and
has agreed to a return performance. The dinner
will be provided by chef Sharon Van Meter, who
is also on a return engagement. Mrs. Jerry
Steely is chairman of the finance committee of
Kinsloe House. She has organized this event as
well as the one last year. I, for one, am amazed
at her energy and creativity. Mrs. Edward
Alexander is president of the board of directors
of Kinsloe House/Woman’s Club House Association
of Navarro County. As of this time, the board
has no plans for a tour of homes or garden tour
later.
(Information from Volume Seven, Navarro County
History, pp. 146-7, compiled by Gelene Simpson.) |
