On July 15, we travelled to Gainesville.
Gainesville, TX.
Gainesville is about 70 minutes north of Dallas by HWY 35. We browsed the archives of the Gainesville Daily Record at the Public Library, and found the ads for the concert, where we learned that besides Elvis, the bill was presenting Frank Starr and the Rock-away Boys as well as Onie Wheeler.
Elvis played in Gainesville on April 14, 1955 at Owl Park, also called Locke Field. According to some sources, the concert was not well attended and Elvis was disappointed with the poor attendance and public reaction. The baseball park was demolished in 2015, an apartment complex was recently built on the site in 2017.
Wichita Falls was our next destination. We headed that way by US Highway 82.
Wichita Falls, TX.
MB Corral
Wichita Falls, the Gateway to Texas, is near Gainesville, so we reached our destination rather quickly. There are several places where Elvis performed in Wichita Falls, so we went to task and visited the first place where Elvis performed. On April 25, 1955, Elvis was booked at the MB Corral. The event was promoted by TNT Records. Some artists from this label where also on the bill with Elvis, such as Chuck Lee and Gene Kay.
The old night club located on Sheppard Access Road seemed to be in decent condition, except for the parking lot, which was overgrown with weeds. According to Scotty Moore website, the MB Corral name was changed to The Hangar MD in 2005 when the VFW Post 2147 sold the hall to Mejia Ventures. From 2005 to around 2016, the venue hosted Mexican bands and artists.
According to texomashomepage.com, the historic venue was up for auction on March 25, 2017. That date was rescheduled May 5, 2017 due to weather and low interest. While we were visiting the venue in July 2017, it had been renamed back to MB Corral, but it is unclear when that happened.
At one point, the building was sold to Eric and Kimberly Stevens. The Stevens' moved their business located at 311 E. Scott St, known as Stick's Place, to the MB Corral location, and the old historic venue was renamed to Stick's place.
Spudder Park
Elvis Presley and the Louisiana Hayride stars entertained Wichita Falls on August 22, 1955. The Louisiana Hayride cast used a flatbed truck as a stage, like they had in many other places before, uch as baseball and football fields. The Spudder Park baseball field is still being used nowadays, but the old bleachers are gone.
Memorial Auditorium
The Memorial Auditorium is a beautiful historical venue constructed in 1927 and is a replica of the State Fair Music Hall in Dallas. The last Indian battle inthe region took place only ten years before construction on the bluff where the Memorial Auditorium now stands. Early entertainers Will Rogers, Elvis Presley, Gene Autry and Bob Hope have graced the stage at Memorial Auditorium.
Elvis Presley returned to Wichita Falls to play at the Memorial Auditorium in 1956. On January 19, 1956, Elvis performed two shows with Hank Snow, His Rainbow Ranch Boys and Rod Brasfield.
On April 9, 1956, Elvis performed two shows with Hank Locklin, Charline Arthur and Bill Mack. After visiting the Memorial Auditorium, our road trip was over, except that the town of Seymour was not that far from Wichita Falls. Let's Go!
Seymour, TX.
Elvis Presley was double booked on April 25, 1955. He played at the MB Corral first, then the group went to Seymour, Texas to play at the High School auditorium. Locals recalled that Elvis ran out of gas a few miles before getting to Seymour. He arrived late at the venue and played a few songs.
The old High School Auditorium, now called Louis H. Johnson Memorial Auditorium, is still standing at 409 W. Idaho St. The auditorium is not being used currently since the School District built a new auditorium in 2018.
As this road trip was over, we drove back to Dallas and flew back to California to think about the next road trip!
