Local
Dallas neighborhood seeks answers after bronze golfer honoring Black history is stolen
A 300-pound statue commemorating Hilliard Memorial Golf Course disappeared from Elm Thicket/Northpark, where it had stood since Juneteenth. Residents are checking security footage as Dallas police investigate.
A six-foot bronze statue honoring a landmark in Dallas’ Black history was stolen from the Elm Thicket/Northpark neighborhood near Love Field, leaving only its concrete base behind.
The statue depicted a golfer and stood beside a historical marker for Hilliard Memorial Golf Course, which opened in 1950 as the first municipal golf course built for African Americans in the southern United States. It was installed in the neighborhood last Juneteenth.
Dallas police received a theft report on Sept. 30 and believe the statue was taken overnight Sept. 24. No arrests had been made as of the report of the theft, nearly four weeks later.
Jonathan Maples, president of the Elm Thicket/Northpark Neighborhood Association and a longtime resident, has been working to preserve the area’s history as the neighborhood changes. He said the theft has hurt residents, including older community members.
“I don’t understand the thought process in coming over here and stealing something with so much significance,” Maples said.
Maples went door to door asking neighbors to check home security footage for clues. Resident Pranav Sheth said losing the statue was heartbreaking because of the history it represented.
The statue’s disappearance is a loss of public art and a visible memorial to a place central to Black recreation and community life in Dallas. Maples said he hopes whoever took it will return it.