Four Parts of Heritage District Tour in



September 17, 2011

Photographers: Dale Tice and Allan Bubeck Jr.

Allan Bubeck Jr. reported the tour with a dedicated group of NTDSC members who love art and history gathered at Heritage Park in Irving on September 17th.



FIRST TOUR AT CATER CABIN & HERITAGE PARK

On hand to greet us were a representative from Irving Chamber of Commerce, an interpreter they hired, guides and volunteer interpreters. We toured Caster Cabin – a replica from 1880’s with a few original timbers.  The small cabin was typically furnished with a wedding bed, tables, a large hearth for cooking and heating, custom built rocking chair and corner cabinet.  Water was carried from the creek for washing.  We visited the railroad depot which was brought in from outside as the original depot was demolished.  They demonstrated how the depot was run.  One guide explained an old style phone had one line and people would listen to gossip whoever was on the line.  Then on to Heritage House a few blocks away.  It had very impressive furnishings and antiques of 1910’s, mostly the  family of C. P. Schulze.



















































THIRD TOUR AT HERITAGE HOUSE

Then on to Heritage House a few blocks away.  It had very impressive furnishings and antiques of 1910’s, mostly the  family of C. P. Schulze.

































































LUNCH AT JOE'S CAFE







THIRD TOUR AT GENGHIS KHAN -- THE EXHIBITION


After lunch at Joe’s Café, we drove a few miles north to Irving Arts Center where we greeted the imposing statue of Genghis Khan, a famous Mongol warrior and King who conquered almost all of Asia in the 13th century.  The exhibition was so large and very impressive: weaponry, ceramics, gold jewelry, a mummy and textiles.  Genghis, his son and grandson Kublai created a warrior nation using horses for transportation and warfare.  They would go to a city and ask to join the nation.  If they refused, the city would be leveled, people massacred or taken as slaves.  Some male prisoners agreed to join the army.  They conquered as far as Turkey, down to south China.  They invaded and failed three times to conquer Japan.

The Mongols never bathed and wore same clothes until they wear out to be replaced with new clothes.  They practiced democracy among the conquered people, promoted religious freedom and different cultures.  They invented “bows” for stringed instruments, used “Hooray” as cheer – still in use by all 900 years later.  Also they set up several national parks.  The Mongols went as far as to invade Vienna, in Europe when their general died and they stopped and went back home.  The Mongol Empire collapsed some time after the death of Kublai Khan.





STATUE OF GENGHIS KHAN (the first ruler of Mongol Empire)
Note: The white and black "horsetails" can be seen at top

The story of Genghis Khan the conqueror, the myth and the man is told through a stunning and highly interactive world-tour exhibition. Genghis Khan: The Exhibition follows the life of a poor, illiterate child as he becomes one of the world’s greatest conquerors and leaves a lasting imprint on modern-day culture. More than 200 artifacts including gold jewelry, weaponry, silk robes, currency, tomb treasures and more are displayed alongside video-screens, hands-on activity stations and role-playing kiosks to create an educational and historical experience for visitors of all ages.
NO PHOTOGRAPHY INSIDE



FOURTH TOUR AT THE MUSTANGS OF LAS COLINAS
AND THE MUSTANG SCULPTURE EXHIBIT



Robert Glen (left from Kenya, Africa) as the sculptor of the Mustangs
Ben Carpenter (right) as the developer of Las Colinas


The area of Las Colinas was once a ranchland of 12,000 acres purchased by Ben Carpenter who developed this new suburb of Irving.  Mr. Carpenter wanted an impressive sculpture surrounded by office buildings.  He hired famous animal sculptor, Robert Glen of Kenya in Africa to create a band of nine mustangs in bronze crossing a stream of water in the middle of a Texas pink granite plaza completed in 1984 after 8 years.  We went to visit the Mustang Sculpture Exhibit which described in film and exhibits about the sculpture.  Our tour started at 10 a.m. at Heritage Park and finished at the mustang exhibit at 4:00 p.m.  Our thanks to the Irving Chamber of Commerce for their great help and providing interpreters, guides and pamphlets to all these places of interest.























That's all, Folks!