Street names can honor past, embrace future

Posted: Sunday, February 08, 2004

First, here's an opinion that will stir up disagreement in the audience.

Amarillo should have a street named in memory of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Please bear with me, regardless of your initial response.

This column's intent is not to join the ongoing campaign to change portions of Washington, Adams and Hughes streets by putting King's name on that stretch of thoroughfare.

That's an ill-advised choice. It's the right idea in the wrong place for the wrong reasons.

The proposed route, for those who haven't paid close attention, would be Hughes Street south from Northwest 24th to Southwest Third, where it becomes Adams and later (after the curve south of 10th) Washington before ending at Interstate 40. South of the freeway, it would remain Washington.

Apparently the next step for those leading the crusade is to convince enough business owners and residents along that stretch to agree.

My guess is not enough of those folks will say yes, and the movement will try again later.

Regardless, some points are worth bringing up here - since they've been ignored or glossed over.

First, we're messing with Amarillo's history to rename those streets for King - or anyone, for that matter.

We're tampering with the work of William Henry Bush, who actually set up Amarillo's street layout, beginning at what was then the west edge of town and moving eastward. Bush named the north-south streets for the American presidents, in chronological order - except for John Quincy Adams, the sixth president, because the family name was taken with his father John Adams being second in line.

William Bush did that, by the way, in the late 1800s, about four decades before Martin Luther King Jr. was born. Bush also started the town of Bushland and had a major influence on the area's early days. (For those who might wonder, William Bush was from Chicago and has no relation to the Texas family of political fame.)

Then there's Hughes Street. That name is just as important to Amarillo's past, because now we're talking about a street named for an area pioneer, J.E. Hughes. He was one of the first sheriffs of Potter County, and the grandfather of Sybil Harrington.

We could go on and on, explaining the historical significance (some obvious, others not) of such streets as Milam, Crockett, Bowie, Parker and Bonham.

The point is, no street that was legitimately named for someone should be changed.

It's also safe to say Dr. King might disagree with his name replacing Washington, Adams and Hughes on a street in Amarillo, Texas. After all, he wanted to change the future, not the past.

Amarilloans of all races should approach this in a different way.

Naming a street for Dr. King is not just for the satisfaction of people here today. This should be done for generations to come, especially when nobody is around anymore who can remember when King was alive.

Also, this is not just for the black neighborhoods of Amarillo. Surely, it would have a larger public impact to put King's name on a street that will be prominent in decades to come.

The idea of choosing Loop 335, which previously came up but didn't fly, was on the right track.

There is another alternative.

Amarillo could put Dr. King's name on the two-mile stretch of West Ninth Avenue, going west from the Bell Street underpass all the way to Soncy Road/Loop 335.

West of Bell, it's actually one of the more scenic, hilly thoroughfares in the entire city. Much of it also is extremely well-traveled already, as the main entry to the Medical Park's hospitals and clinics from the north.

The western segment, from Coulter to Soncy, goes along the north boundary of an area destined for major economic expansion in years to come.

Just in the past few weeks, we've reported about developing plans to widen what is now West Ninth from Coulter to Soncy, making it a major artery for the future.

And whenever development takes the street west of Soncy, King's name could continue with it.

The best part is that, at this point, there are only a handful of medical operations on that stretch of road, along with Amarillo College's West Campus and the new Northwest Branch Library. So the task of pulling together business support would be much less daunting.

The guess here is that renaming those two miles of West Ninth Avenue for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. could be a solution. While we're at it, we also should consider streets to name for other Amarillo heroes, such as Dr. J.O. Wyatt, a trailblazing black physician, and the Rev. Jacinto Alderete, a Hispanic community leader for decades.

If somebody else comes up with a better idea, fine. But changing names of streets that are more than 100 years old isn't the answer.

Placing King's name, and others such as Wyatt and Alderete, on streets of the future would be.

Amarillo Globe-News Executive Editor Ralph Routon can be reached at ralph.routon@amarillo.com.

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