Discover Ennis Fall 2020

DISCOVER Ennis FALL 2020

A Complete Guide to the Official Bluebonnet City of Texas

| A Downtown Reborn | Festivals, Events, Fun

WELCOMETOENNIS! Welcome to the wonderful town of Ennis, Texas where

you will find the bluebonnet spirit all year long! Whether you are visiting us for a short period of time or are a lifelong resident, you know what it means to truly feel welcome when you are in our town.

This holiday season all of downtown will be glowing with new, state-of-the-art, rooftop lights that have the ability to twinkle and change color. Our beautiful downtown will look straight out of a Hallmark Christmas movie with beautiful holiday décor and plenty of photoops. We invite you to make your family holiday memories right here in Ennis this December by hunting for elves, meeting live reindeer, decorating cookies with Mrs. Claus, riding in a horse drawn carriage and sledding down a GIANT snow hill! Thank you Ennis Regional Medical Center for your generous donation that makes these events and activities possible for our community.

This spring looked a bit different in Ennis which makes us even more excited to bring our festivals back with a bang in 2021! As the “Official Texas Bluebonnet City,” our town is painted blue with fields of bluebonnets the entire month of April. We host the Ennis Bluebonnet Trails Festival which is a three-day event full of family fun, shopping, wine wander and a full lineup of live music. In May, we celebrate Czech culture in a unique and lively way. Trust us, you have never

Ashley Colunga experienced polka like this Marketing and before! During the summer, we Communications Director celebrate our patriotism with City of Ennis Ennis Freedom Fest and dance on the streets during Blues on Main.

Another must do in downtown Ennis is the Bluebonnet Market open every Saturday from April through October.

Nothing says small town charm like strolling through the beautiful, tree-lined Dallas street visiting with vendors, sipping coffee and shopping for fresh produce, handmade jewelry, essential oils, pottery crafted on-site and more!

Make sure to visit Ennis’ historic downtown where you will find wonderful shopping and dining. There are many new downtown businesses for you to explore. While downtown, you will see a lot of exciting changes including the beautiful, newly renovated Dallas St, and an impressive new Welcome Center. If you haven’t been downtown lately, it is time to go!

Download our free mobile app, Ennis Y’all, where you will have access to all Ennis has to offer and follow us at Ennis TX: A Main Street City on Facebook.

Please stop by the brand new Ennis Welcome Center to get your free Ennis visitors guides. We are now located at 201 NW Main St. We can be reached at 972-878-4748.

Visit us at www.visitennis.org.

Welcome to Ennis Y’all!

Courtesy of Trisha & Cameron Hodges

Ennis, TX Fall 2020

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Special thanks to the City of Ennis, Ennis Convention & Visitors Bureau, Ennis Main Street, Ennis Chamber of Commerce, and Ennis Independent School District. Additional images courtesy of Ennis Chamber of Commerce, Bruce Lattimer Photography, and other contributors.

Discover Fall 2020 is a publication of The Ennis News. Features by Mark Warde and Randy Bigham. Copyright 2020. All rights reserved. For more copies, contact us at The Ennis News or go online to www.ennisdailynews.com.

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ENNISREADIESFORFALL A utumns in Ennis are chocked full of seasonal color and family fun. While COVID-19 redacted some of the best features of what was to be the 19th annual fall festival, now called Autumn Daze, there were still reasons to enjoy the largest-ever Haymaze.

Spring in the Bluebonnet City celebrates Czech culture each year, it is still featured in the fall during October’s Czech Heritage Month. The music and the food that Czechoslovakia has long been identified just can’t be contained. Along with that, residents decorate their homes in harvest hues and seasonal motif. North Plaza is laden with decorated hay bales and just for good measure, a pumpkin powwow, corn stalks and photo ops perfect for shutterbugs or selfies. Don’t miss the Pumpkin Patch.

Local artist, Ben Vyers, adds a splash of autumn colors meshed wonderfully with Halloween characters. Flowers and wreaths are liberally placed and lighting extends the venue into the evening hours through Oct. 31.

Texas Motorplex, located just four miles northwest of downtown, draws thousands of revved up fans who express their need for speed at the annual NHRA Fall Nationals,

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held each October. Add to that, the seven-month season of Saturdays at the farmers market, renamed this year the Bluebonnet Market, comes to a great finish on North Dallas Street. It will resume in April.

A rarity for most cities is an attraction of the arts in downtown Ennis… two live theatre groups within blocks of each other. Both feature local talent and high quality drama in six outstanding plays per season by both groups.

Ennis Public Theatre and Theatre Rocks! They continue with show-busters, including Broadway classics, performed live in an intimate, black box setting.

Visitors and area citizens can learn about the overall history of the Bluebonnet City by stopping by the Ennis Railroad and Cultural Heritage Museum.

Known for its handful of festivals and carnivals, another event that grows each year is the Lights of Ennis, which will be held for a 20th straight year in December. A huge addition in 2020 will take place when downtown is plugged into illumination… a kindling of buildings lit-up with multi-colored LED lighting. The colors will represent holidays, sea seasons, even maroon when the Lions are victorious.

Museum and Library: Czech it out Ennis’ Czech heritage is celebrated at the Sokol Hall Activity Center’s Czech Museum and Library.

Exhibits include authentic Czech costumes, memorabilia, dolls, photographs, crystal and books.

The museum and library is open during special events and by appointment only. To schedule an appointment, call Georgie Morales at 972-875-5398.

KATOLICKA JEDNOTA TEXASKA SOCIETY NO. 35 Members: Approximately 1,250 Community Outreach & Activities:

KJT youth program, scholarships for KJT members who are graduating seniors

History:

KJT Society began so that Czech immigrants could bond with each other after coming to the United States. The Ennis chapter was founded in 1900. KJT began accepting women members in 1980. Although it started out as an exclusively Catholic organization, in 2008, KJT opened membership to all Christians.

SOKOL Members: Approximately 300 Community Outreach & Activities:

Sokol provides gymnastics and fitness classes for all, and a twirling program. Facilities can be used for community functions, weddings, and other parties.

History:

Sokol, which means falcon in Czech, was founded in 1862 in Prague, and brought to the United States by Czech immigrants to preserve their heritage.

The Ennis unit was formed in 1908.

SPJST LODGE #25 Members: Approximately 700 Community Outreach & Activities:

SPJST #25 Youth Program; Scholarships for SPJST Members who are graduating seniors; SPJST Lodge #25 Bar open every Wednesday Night from 5pm-10pm; Kitchen/Dining Room, Bar, and Hall available for bookings for birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, holiday parties and special occasions. New Year’s Eve Party with live music featuring The Moravians and a Balloon Drop. Facebook / Instagram: @spjstennistx

History:

SPJST stands for Slovanska Podporujici Jednota Statu Texas which translates to Slavonic Benefit Order of the State of Texas. SPJST Lodge #25 was established in 1897.

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THEATRELIVESHERE

Ennis is home to two local theater organizations, each

of which presents six productions a year and offers other entertainment on their respective stages. Ennis residents and those in the local area are exposed to some great shows at Ennis Public Theatre and Theatre Rocks! Plus, they get the chance to be part of a production.

Ennis Public Theatre, an Ennis Treasure

An extraordinary find in Ellis County is the live drama productions available year-round as delivered by the Ennis Public Theatre. With over a decade of plays under their belt, EPT produces superb live entertainment at a reasonable cost.

Part of the Main Street revitalization program in Ennis, EPT is located in their new downtown digs at 113 N. Dallas St., where the atmosphere and amenities are outstanding.

The theatre delights audiences of all ages with laughout-loud comedies, heart-warming dramas, lively musicals and K.I.D.S. productions. This year’s Christmas show includes a guest director in Pam Dudley.

A married tandem, Julie Mitchell and Markus Baldwin, serve as overall artistic directors.

Brianna Roberts is the managing director at EPT, while Amy Urbanowicz is the children’s director. The theatre group is supported by a board of directors and a receptive community.

For more information, a list of their shows as well as access to tickets can be found at www.ennispublictheatre. com or by calling 972-878-PLAY.

Theatre Rocks! Under Rhotens’ leadership

Founded in 2012, Theatre Rocks! Is a very popular venue for live plays. An intimate atmosphere with seating for approximately 75, the talent you’ll find is big and productions are unique and well-performed featuring local amateurs working alongside well-trained actors.

Theatre Rocks has produced a number of well-known 8 - DISCOVER ENNIS FALL 2020

hits, from “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof ” by Tennessee Williams to Sam Shepard’s “True West” and “12 Angry Men” in the summer of 2019.

Bill Rhoten, artistic director, and Suzanne Rhoten, executive director, have teamed together in Dallas area performing arts for well over 30 years and have been active in both producing and directing in Ennis since 2002.

Located near downtown at 505 NW Main Street, visit TheatreRocks.com or their Facebook page or call 972-8785126 for additional info.

Upcoming shows slated for this season include The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams, directed by Bill Rhoten, which runs weekends through October 25th. Tickets are $12/$15. Go to www.TheatreRocks.com or call 972-2681295. It is also available to watch online: October 23, 24, 25.

My Favorite Christmas, by Rhoten, is slated for December 4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19, all at 7:30 p.m., and Dec. 20, a 2:30 p.m. matinee. Life’s Little Miracles opens on February 12 and ends on the 28th. Sherlock Holmes hits the stage during late April and early May.

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TEXASMOTORPLEX Texas Motorplex hosts a National Hot Rod Event event each racing season which draws fans from across the globe.

FANFEST

The Texas Motorplex is known nationwide for being the host of the prestigious

For several years running the NHRA Fall

NHRA Fall Nationals event each fall, but it’s also a year-round racing center, located about two miles west of Ennis.

Events start in February and run through November, among them National Hot Rod Diesel Association events, Import Face Offs, car shows, and Fast Fridays.

Fast Fridays give people a chance to take their own cars to the strip to give drag racing a try. It’s a way for people to legally satisfy their need for speed, and for a very reasonable fee, anyone can head to the track and race unlimited times.

Home of the world speed record of 333.95 mph, the Texas Motorplex is considered one of the finest one-quarter mile drag racing facilities in the nation.

Constructed in 1986 by Billy Meyer, the Texas Motorplex is known across the country as “the ultimate drag racing facility” both by drivers and the fans alike.

The Motorplex hosts over 90 events each year, with 500,000 fans visiting the race track annually. Ennis welcomes the racers and race fans with open arms.

If you are just visiting or planning to come back, be sure to get your hotel reservations early. Ennis is blessed with great lodging, and they fill up as fast as a dragster on the strip.

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Nationals bring the flavor of the drag-strip to downtown Ennis for the very popular Fan Fest. It was canceled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, though it is expected to return. The free event, typically held on the first day of the NHRA Fall Nationals, is a super opportunity for fans to get up close to dragsters, funny cars, muscle cars and classics that line the streets of downtown.

Children enjoy the junior dragsters, which race on Friday night.

Plus, enjoy food trucks and live bands for an evening of fun for the whole family!

NHRA Fall Nationals Held each October

The fastest race in Texas is held at the Texas Motorplex every year in Ennis.

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ENNISEVENTSCALENDAR OCTOBER

June - Oct Bluebonnet Market, Saturdays 8am – noon Oct 1 - Nov 2 Annual Lion Pride Fall Sweep competitive litter cleanup event, www.KeepEnnisBeautiful.com Oct 1 - 31 Hay Maze & Pumpkin Patch downtown Oct 3 - 31 Sip, Shop & Stroll in downtown Ennis every Saturday in October 10am-2pm Oct 9 - 25 The Glass Menagerie at Theatre Rocks!

Oct 10 Night Lights Sky Lantern Festival at Texas Motorplex Nov 15 Brave Combo & The Texas Dutchmen live at the Sokol 2622 IH34 1pm-7pm Oct 14 - 18 AAA Texas NHRA Fall Nationals at Texas Motorplex Oct 17 Runnin’ Free Fall Gala, info: runninfreeranch@gmail.com Oct. 29 - Nov.1 Carnival Style Food Trucks at Hay Maze Oct. 31 Final Ennis Bluebonnet Market/ Halloween weekend fun

NOVEMBER

Nov 21 Relay for Life 2nd Annual Turkey Trot bowling tournament at All Star Bowl Nov 28 Small Business Saturday downtown Ennis 12 - DISCOVER ENNIS FALL 2020

DECEMBER

Dec 1- 31 Lights of Ennis events in downtown Ennis include cookies with Mrs. Claus, horse drawn carriage and wagon rides, Elf Seek and Find game, a giant snow hill, photo ops, and more! Details TBA Dec 3 - 13 A Christmas Carol at Ennis Public Theatre Dec 5 Cookies with Mrs. Claus Dec 5 Lucky’s Car Club Car Show & Toy Drive downtown Dec 12 Our Lady of Guadalupe Celebration downtown

FEBRUARY

Feb 13, 2021 Ennis Czech Music Festival www.ennisczechmusicfestival.com *Events are subject to change. Please confirm before driving long distances. *Follow Ennis Convention and Visitors Bureau AND Ennis Tx: A Main Street City on Facebook and Twitter. *Download the mobile app Ennis Y’all www.VisitEnnis.org • 972-878-4748

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FRIDAYNIGHTLIGHTS W hen fall rolls around TGIF takes on a spirited meaning, and its color is maroon. Friday night lights shine brightly for Ennis High School and has for decades. In fact, the game of football has been played on Fridays for over a century.

Five times the Lions have advanced to the state championship game, winning every time, most recently in 2014 before 28,000 at AT&T Stadium.

A long pass, from QB Devin Smith to WR Donta Thompson, ended in the game-winning touchdown in a 38-35 triumph over Cedar Park. The game was also broadcast on television, so most everyone in the area says they saw it because they were there. Sort of.

Lion Nation, like most small-towns, loves them some high school football, and when the team is winning they travel like a herd to whatever stadium the Oval E’s are playing. In fact, it is common for Ennis to outnumber the fans of the home team on the road.

While donning the colors of the Lions is pretty near required, the only mistake one can make is to be seen in dreaded green or royal blue. A rival school 15-miles to the west puts on the first color while a school 20-miles to the south, who calls Ennis their rival, sports the blue. Avoid related pigment in fashion on Fridays.

At home in the friendly confines of Lion Memorial Stadium, which opened in 2001 and seats 10,000 fans, the team averages approximately seven-to-eight thousand, with open seating usually left for the opposing side of the field.

The school has produced scores of award-winning teams, college-bound athletes, and for the last 60 years, a superior-rated marching band. The atmosphere they create can only be capped with the hand-shaped letter “L,” and a fight song that must be memorized to attend first grade.

Almost, but you get the idea.

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Cheer teams are rousing up fans who need little rousing. Plus, the Lionettes dance troupe has over 30 years under their wide white belts and cowgirl hats. If it seems like there is room on the bandwagon for newcomers, you’d be correct in your thinking.

Traditions carry strong meaning in this town, where conservative family values, a strong work ethic and a living faith will bring automatic respect, and a Czech name will bring honor. Few places in this country circle the wagons in support of the military, the colors wafting on a flag pole and especially the heart of meeting the needs of their own. Ennis gives mightily to its organizations, civic groups, heritage halls, veterans service organizations, Helping Hands, Give-A-Kid-A-Chance and churches, to name a few.

It is no wonder they have such pride for those who call the Bluebonnet City their home. Race or creed or nationality are free from much of the tension seen in many metropolitan areas.

And when Friday’s in the fall arrive, late August through November, and in special seasons it stretches into middle December, everyone is either at the game or tuning in to the radio. Everybody loves a winner and Ennis has had their share. Starting in 2012 under HC Jack Alvarez and through 2020 with Hall-ofFame HC Sam Harrell, back for a second go-around, the team has made the playoffs for eight years and counting.

As for being coronated Lion Kings, the first was in 1975 under the late HC Don Essary. Harrell won 3-in-4-years and Alvarez notched the fifth in 2014.

In the process, Ennis has been a

haven for a quality education, athletics that instill values worth learning and living, and being a city that makes for the best in small-town Americana.

No wonder so many keep wearing maroon or return here after college.

It truly is a wonderful town to grow a family, operate a business and the stage shines brightest on Fridays.

To follow all things maroon, visit EnnisLions.org.

Ennis Lions - 2020 Schedule 9-25 at Red Oak (11-2) 10-1 at Keller Fossil Ridge (1-9) 10-9 Waxahachie (2-8) 10-16 Greenville* (6-5) 10-23 at Sulphur Springs* (1-9) 10-30 North Forney* (7-3) 11-6 at Crandall* (10-3) 11-13 Forney* (2-8) 11-20 Royse City* (9-3) 11-27 Bye 12-4 at Corsicana* (7-4) Games kickoff at 7:30 p.m.

State Class 5A Playoffs begin, Dec. 11 *denotes District 8-5A games (Number indicates W-L record in 2019)

National Polka Festival Memorial Day Weekend, May 28-30, 2021 Ennis Bluebonnet Trails April 1-30, 2021

Bluebonnet Trails Festival April 16-18, 2021

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APLACEOFHISTORY The Ennis Railroad and Cultural Heritage Museum is located on Northeast Main Street, along the railroad tracks.

Ennis was founded as part of the westward expansion that followed the Civil War and was aided by the development of steam transportation. In 1872 the Houston and Central Texas Railroad arrived at the depot that became Ennis, named after Cornelius Ennis, railroad official and former mayor of Houston. From 1874 to the mid1880s, the population of Ennis grew from 300 to 3,000.

Many settlers came from war-torn confederate states, others came from war-ravaged European nations that later became Czechoslovakia.

“The city began with a few buildings east and west of the tracks,” according to ennishistoricalsociety.org, the online home for the Ennis Historical Society, formerly the Ennis Heritage Society, founded in 1981. “Lumberyards, cotton warehouses and other freight sheds lined the tracks and the main commercial center of Ennis took shape on south Main Street and Ennis Avenue. To the south, near Main and Lampasas Streets several cotton gins served to process the cotton grown in eastern Ellis County; and at harvest time planters brought their wagons of cotton to town for Trade Day.” The first commercial firms were dry goods, clothing and pharmaceuticals, supplying basic needs of new settlers. Business lots sold for $50. Most early structures were wooden and fire was a constant hazard necessitating the formation of the Ennis Fire Department in 1884. The frontier town lacked public facilities like water, sewage and law enforcement. The new town was full of strangers from various social groups and safety was a prime concern.

Several newspaper reports detail numerous shoot-outs and thirteen saloons added to the volatile atmosphere.

“Economic growth in the 1890s enabled Ennis to afford more of the basics of a stable community,” the Ennis Historical Society records. “In 1891 several community 16 - DISCOVER ENNIS FALL 2020

leaders, led by Joseph Baldridge, Captain Mark Latimer and others, convinced the railroad to locate its northern division headquarters here. Its foundry, machine shop, roundtable and rail yard offered jobs to hundreds of workers who settled in Ennis. Some were former slaves and other farmhands, displaced by mechanization and large scale agriculture and others were immigrant Czechs recently arrived from abroad. The railroad also led to the expansion of the cotton industry, providing access to foreign and domestic markets through the port of Houston.”

By 1920, a total of 152,601 bales of cotton were ginned and shipped from Ellis County, the most of any county in America. Railroads and cotton had produced the wealth that could be seen in the residential development of the city. Residents had built beautiful churches of many different denominations and numerous fraternal organizations met regularly to espouse action to strengthen the social fabric. Elegant houses along “the Avenue” and north were accompanied by dozens of folk Victorian houses and craftsman style bungalows.

By the mid-20th century Ennis had become a modern community with schools, three movie theaters, several drugstores, banks and automobile dealerships. The sons and daughters of early settlers had developed new traditions like high school sports, the National Polka Festival and the Ennis Bluebonnet Trail.

Moreover the city was connected to the growing metropolis of Dallas to the north by the Interurban Transit line and increasingly better roads. Ennisites were able to experience the best of two worlds, participation in the attractions of a large, dynamic city and the familiar streetscape of a unique, nurturing community.

Donations to the Ennis Historical Society help the organization preserve the best of Ennis’ past for future generations. To become a member visit ennishistoricalsociety.org, stop by the group’s Facebook page or write to PO Box 189, Ennis, TX 75120.

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ENNIS ENNISVETERANS MEMORIAL Ennis Veterans Memorial Park, located at 2301 Ennis Pkwy, was dedicated to those who gave their lives to protect American freedom.

The Veterans Memorial monuments honor veterans from each 20th and 21st Century U.S. military conflict.

In addition to the memorial site, there are three lighted competition football /soccer fields for league play and six youth soccer fields, available for use by reservation.

There is also a building for concession and restroom facilities, a 0.4 mile of walking paths, picnic tables and a children’s playground.

Veterans Memorial Park has been open to the public since August 2011, and many have enjoyed its recreational amenities since then.

A salute in brick and mortar to the men and women of America’s Armed Forces, the memorial has been the backdrop for many local patriotic events.

The memorial is now known nationally as in his campaign to secure better medical care for fellow sufferers of Agent Orange (AO), Vietnam War veteran Gerry Wright has referenced how the AO monument erected at the Ennis site inspired him in his work to change the law governing health coverage for AO survivors.

The memorial takes the form of a circular promenade with a centerpiece devoted to veterans and surrounding sections dedicated to specific conflicts, from World War I to the current War on Terror. Larry Fincher, chairman of the committee that supervised the building of the monument, stressed the main objective is to pay homage to all enlisted personnel.

“We want to honor all U.S. veterans,” he said, “whether they served in a war or not, whether dead or alive and whether they are from Ennis or not.”

For more information, contact City of Ennis Parks Department at 972-875-1234.

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LIGHTSOFENNIS Holiday fun is on the way between Thanksgiving and Christmas in Ennis.

While situations dictate no parade or block party in 2020, there is so much planned instead to Light Up the Ya’ll in you all. Families will still create great holiday memories in downtown! Try these on for size. A handful of the most popular activities return, so plan ahead: - Carriage and Wagon rides, Nov. 27-28, Dec. 4-5 and 11-12.

- Cookies with Mrs Claus - Dec 5.

- Lucky’s Car Show and Toy Drive, Dec. 5.

- Elf Seek-and-Find game with new elves, Thanksgiving through Dec. - Holiday décor, Thanksgiving through Dec. - New, state-of-the-art Rooftop LED Lights, planned by Thanksgiving.

- NEW this year, Giant Snow Hill to tube down (Date TBA)

Visit www.visitennis.org for all updates.

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LAKEBARDWELLRESERVOIR Ellis County is home to one of

the largest recreational facilities in North Texas – Lake Bardwell Reservoir. It is one of the most visited tourist spots in the county.

Thousands of residents and tourists visit the 3,500-acre lake each year, enjoying fishing, boating, camping, picnicking, swimming, hiking, biking, and just about any other outdoor activity within and along its 25 miles of shoreline. It is more than 5 miles long and more than 1 mile wide at its largest point.

Both the lake and surrounding campgrounds are maintained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which features a marina and

several boat ramps.

You can reach the marina at 972-646-5330.

Camping reservations or additional information is available at 972-8755711 or recreation.gov.

Congress authorized construction of the reservoir of the Bardwell Reservoir on March 31, 1960.

Construction began in September 1963.

Impoundment of water at the lake, which provides flood control and conservation platform for area water, began in November

1965. It cost more than $12 million to build.

Bardwell is known for its fishing, with bass, catfish and crappie the most-targeted catches.

FUN&GAMESGALORE So you like fun and games? Ennis and the local area

offer a little bit of everything for people.

• Bluebonnet Park: On Ennis Parkway, west of Hwy 287, and follow the signs. Facility includes eight lighted ball fields, 10 acres of dedicated recreational open space, a two-acre fishing lake, and a 0.7-mile jogging path. This magnificent facility is available for softball and baseball tournaments and attracts teams from all across the State of Texas.

• Community theaters – Ennis Public Theatre and Theatre Rocks! See story elsewhere in this edition.

• Disc golf located adjacent to the dam on the south end of Lake Clark, at 3000 W. Ennis Ave. • Big O Speedway: Located east of Ennis, the facility offers dirt track racing on weekends March-October.

• E.I.S.D. Tennis Center: 9 championship quality tennis courts (4 indoors), snack bar, and pro shop.

• Ennis All-Star Bowl – 2313 W. Ennis Ave. • Galaxy Drive-In Theatre features seven screens.

• The Gameroom - 807 W. Lake Bardwell Dr., 469-8811022 , www.ennisgameroom.com • Golf is open to the public at Red Oak Valley Golf Club in Red Oak and at the Old Brickyard course in Ferris.

• Highview Park at Lake Bardwell: Picnic and/or swim there. This park requires a facility use fee per carload.

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For camping reservations, etc, please call 972-875-5711 or go to recreation.gov.

• Highview Marina at Lake Bardwell: 972-646-5330.

• Lake Clark Park: Found on the west end of Baldridge Street, it is a perfect place to have a picnic, to fish, to play on the playground, or to take a walk with a lake view. Check out Kachina Prairie and the bison statue there.

• Lions Park: Corner of Hall and Lampasas streets.

• Meadow View Nature Area: 972-878-4748 for hours.

• Minnie McDowal Park is a unique gathering spot for families located at 119 N. Dallas featuring a gazebo, art wall and water feature.

• Opry: Located in the old Bristol School, about 15 minutes east of Ennis, the Opry features local talent performing live on stage. The show goes on the fourth Saturday of each month at 7 p.m., except in December.

The Bardwell Opry, located in the Bardwell Community Center, is every fifth Saturday.

• Railroad & Cultural Heritage Museum: 972-875-1901.

• Sugar Ridge Winery in Bristol offers local wines, a private tasting room, and reception area.

• Texas Motorplex: 972-878-2641.

• Veterans Memorial Park at 2301 Ennis Parkway features a veterans memorial and athletic fields. Youth soccer is a favorite activity played at Veterans Park.

• Xtreme Raceway Park Ferris: Info on Facebook.

BY THE #’S

OFFICIALS CITY OF ENNIS

18,823

Census Estimated Population in 2014 Angeline Juenemann Mayor

Jake Holland Mayor Pro-Tem

Rowdy Pruitt

Ward 1 Commissioner

Marco Hernandez

Ward 2 Commissioner

39

Miles from Ennis to downtown Dallas

5

State Football Championships

38.1

Percentage of homes with children under 18 Scott Hejny

Ward 3 Commissioner

Shirley Watson

Ward 4 Commissioner

Bill Honza

Ward 5 Commissioner

INFORMATION

David Anthony Interim Chief of Police

City of Ennis, 972-875-1234 Ennis Police Department, 972-875-4462 Ennis Fire Department / Ambulance Service, 972-875-3473 Ennis Fire Station #2, 972-875-6151 Ennis Fire Station #3, 972-895-3313 Ennis Regional Medical Center, 972-875-0900 Ennis Chamber of Commerce, 972-878-2625 Ennis Welcome Center, 972-878-4748 City of Ennis Economic Development, 972-878-4748 City of Ennis Health & Inspections, 972-878-6442 Ennis Independent School District, 972-872-7000 The Ennis News, 972-875-3801 Ennis Main Street Program, 972-878-4748 Go to www.visitennis.org Ennis Public Library, 972-875-5360 or download the ENNISY’ALL app for event times and dates.

Ennis Municipal Airport, 972-875-4279

Do you need information for your visit? Go to www.visitennis.org, or contact the Ennis Chamber of Commerce at 972-878-2625 or www. ennis-chamber.com. Download the free mobile app, Ennis Y’all, for Ennis information and where to shop, stay, do and see!

44,608

Median family income in dollars

11

Number of Ennis Independent School District instructional facilities

2020 & 54th

National Polka Festival would have celebrated its 54th anniversary in May 2020

1/4

Length in miles of drag races at Texas Motorplex

2

Number of Operating Stage Theaters

40

Miles of Bluebonnet Trails

DISCOVERNEWDOWNTOWNENNIS F or years the hopes of a city whose downtown was seriously damaged and, faced with the likelihood of never coming back, had a fresh vision born in the hearts of people. Pacing back and forth like a new father, the revitalization of the Bluebonnet City came to blooming life. Nearly 20,000 residents have witnessed the growth of new housing sectors and incoming businesses. They have sprung up along the I-45 corridor and in downtown, a mile west of the interstate.

May 13, 2013 was the date when 13 local twisters ravaged the area, including one that strolled down midtown toward the east on Ennis Avenue. Once the effects, which included the loss of vitality between McKinney and Main, had taken their toll, what rose from the collapsed heap of bricks was a new-found purpose. Ideas of rebuilding and restoring began to outnumber thoughts of vacating and starting over elsewhere.

Right in the middle of it all the Historical Society

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helped foster a desire to parlay seeming defeat into a spirit of revival.

Even old buildings that had perhaps outlived their usefulness have seen investors step in to do much more than a face-lift. Work has largely been completed on Dallas Street, including a huge undertaking beneath the five blocks of North and South Dallas.

Minnie McDowal Park, formerly a theatre downtown, has been a huge benefactor. So have plans for new restaurants and night life, retail, offices, apartments and lofts, banking and a fenced in dog park at North Plaza.

The city’s heartbeat is alive and well.

Festivals and wholesome events that fill the calendar make Ennis a growing destination for families. A multicultural mesh give credence to sustaining that life for years to come. Most of the venues bring thousands of people, and then there are the 40,000 that flock to Memorial Weekend’s National Polka Festival.

The magnetic appeal of Ennis is related directly to the vibrant life of this community. It’s alive, and contagious.