Central Handley Historic District

Handley was platted by the Texas and Pacific Railway in 1885, and this district preserves its commercial core, about seven miles east of downtown Fort Worth. Most of the 12 resources are 1-story Commercial Style brick storefronts built between about 1910 and 1933 along the north side of East Lancaster Avenue, originally Front Street. Their widths follow the original 25-foot lots, and the buildings sit close to the street on two-tiered curbs. The district also includes a 1924 metal-sided feed store, a Folk Victorian house and a 1930s drug store built of sandstone and petrified wood. Businesses here included groceries, drug stores, a bank, a theater, dry cleaners and post offices. Ten buildings contribute to the district's character, while two are counted as noncontributing because of stucco and replaced windows. A 1989 survey called it the finest ensemble of commercial buildings in East Fort Worth from the heyday of the Interurban, and that assessment supports its listing.