Lakeshore/Lions Park

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Lakeshore and Lions Park in Port Arthur. Back in 1898, the Port Arthur Townsite Company was laying out the whole city, and they had the foresight to set aside a stretch of land right along the Sabine Lake shoreline. They called it Lakeshore Park, and for a while, that's all it was.

But come 1920, something changed. A portion of that park got a new name, Lions Park, named in honor of the Lions Club members who had been rolling up their sleeves and making the place something worth coming to. Playground equipment.

Water fountains. Landscaping. Picnic tables.

And then, the crown jewel, a two-story southern colonial style bandstand planted right in the center of it all. Now when you put a bandstand like that in the heart of a park, people are going to show up, and show up they did. Social gatherings, political rallies, recreational events, you name it.

On those long, hot Jefferson County summers, citizens of all ages made that park their gathering place. And here's where the story gets a little electric. The year is 1938.

A Texas state senator by the name of Allan Shivers is out campaigning, running successfully for reelection, and he makes his way to that bandstand. The marker notes he's a future governor, so you already know this man is going places. But he wasn't the only headliner that year.

W. Lee O'Daniel, who folks called Pappy, was running for Governor of Texas that same year, and he didn't just bring a speech. He brought his band.

The Light Crust Doughboys took that stage in Lions Park, and I imagine the crowd didn't mind one bit. Two future heavy hitters of Texas politics, same year, same bandstand. That park had a way of drawing people in.

But by 1954, according to city records, the bandstand was razed. The focal point was gone. The park carried on, and then in September of 1989, it was donated to Lamar University in Port Arthur.

Today it sits at the heart of Lamar's campus, still a gathering place, just like it always was.

What the marker says

The Port Arthur Townsite Company, planning the layout of Port Arthur in 1898, set aside Lakeshore Park along the Sabine Lake shoreline. In 1920 a portion of the park was named Lions Park in honor of the Lions Club members who made numerous improvements there. Through the years, the Lions Club provided playground equipment, water fountains, landscaping, picnic tables, and a two-story southern colonial style bandstand. The bandstand in the center of the park became a focal point of community social, political and recreational activities. The park was an especially popular gathering place for citizens of all ages during the long, hot summer months. Texas Senator (and future governor) Allan Shivers, campaigning successfully for reelection in 1938, appeared at political rallies in the park. W. Lee "Pappy" O'Daniel, successful candidate for Governor of Texas that same year, and his band, the Light Crust Doughboys, also appeared in a rally at the park. City records indicate that the bandstand was razed in 1954. The park was donated to Lamar University, Port Arthur in September 1989 and has become a focal point of Lamar's campus.