This page is referenced by:

• 1 media/football_team.jpg 2018-02-13T23:46:15-08:00 Finding Space 12 Dr. Dickey negotiates land for school and play image_header 2018-06-17T23:19:53-07:00 30.5719087N, -97.3978913 W 30.5669572 N, -97.3987818 W Colored youths needed more than entertainment; they needed a place to run, play and vent some of that teenage angst. In 1940, Dr. Dickey petitioned Taylor’s all white City Council to create a park south of the railroad tracks. He maintained that having a recreational facility where colored youths could play baseball, basketball, have a playground and a place to socialize would decrease the crime rate. The Council agreed. First, the City purchased 7 acres of land adjacent to the colored school to build a football field where the Blackshear/O.L. Price Panthers won 2 state football championships within the next 20 years. In addition, members of the community donated land while the city contributed the necessary funds to create the 6-acre Robinson Park. With a sports field for football, a baseball diamond at Robinson Park, and green space with a playground for smaller children, the City of Taylor was considered quite a progressive town. In fact, its energy inspired the Southwest District Medical and Dental Association to bypass Georgetown and Austin to hold their quarterly meeting in Taylor on October 14, 1941.