Sunday At The Fort Worth Water Gardens & Hell's Half Acre

That's the new Omni Convention Center Hotel as seen from the Water Gardens located on the south end of the Fort Worth Convention Center. I have grown used to the goofy big balconies sticking out. When you take in the entire complex of the Convention Center, the Hotel and the Water Gardens it is quite an upgrade to downtown Fort Worth.

I had not been to the Water Gardens since it re-opened after safety fixes were installed after the tragic drowning of 4 convention goers in the Active Water Pool.

The Active Water Pool was seeming way too active, to me, today. The steps down to it were a bit slippery. The first time I saw this I was both impressed and surprised. Impressed because it looks so cool. Surprised because it looks so dangerous.

The only changes that I could detect were new signage, with warnings not to swim or play in the water. I believe there are new shut off systems if someone falls in the water.

I'm a fan of goofy signs. This one at the entry to the steps down to the Active Pool says, "It is unlawful for any person or pet to swim or wade in the water features of The Water Gardens." The warning is repeated in Spanish. But not in any language that a pet might understand.

A small memorial to the 4 who drowned overlooks the Active Pool. The Water Gardens were designed by architects Philip Johnson and John Burgee. According to a sign I read at the Water Gardens they were "designed to be a playground for the senses. Surrounded by over 500 species of plants and trees, the main areas of the park, that being the 3 pools, the Mountain, Central Square and the Theater, were created as micro-environments for the people of Fort Worth to enjoy and explore."

You can see how easy it would be for a kid to fall into that pool. And for a dad to jump in to rescue his kid. Or to trip and fall into the pool. The Fort Worth Water Gardens cover a 4 and a half block square area of about 4 acres. Every minute 19,000 gallons of water are pumped through 10 miles of pipes, flowing past 7 miles of retaining walls.

The small steps down to the Active Pool and back up are a bit dicey when trying to pass someone on the narrow steps.

Can you imagine standing at this view and watching a dad try to rescue 3 kids? And all 4 disappearing. Terrible. I'm glad it's been re-opened and I trust that it is now safe. Now if only Fort Worth could fix Heritage Park at the other end of downtown.


The Water Gardens and Fort Worth Convention Center are located in an area that used to be known as Hell's Half Acre. That being a notorious red light district which was a favored destination of thousands of cowboys, buffalo hunters, railroad workers and all sorts of other sorts eager to wash off the trail dust and have themselves a good time. To satisfy that demand Hell's Half Acre had a lot of Saloons, Dance Halls, Gambling Dens and Bordellos.

The Fort Worth Good Ol' Boy Network of the day tolerated the illegal activities, just like the same Good Ol' Boy Network does today, in Fort Worth, because of the importance of Hell's Half Acre to the town's economy. Hell's Half Acre gave Fort Worth a reputation for being a rowdy frontier town that brought in the famous gamblers of the time, like Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp. Outlaws like Sam Bass, Eugene Bunch, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid spent time in Hell's Half Acre. Modern day Fort Worth has even named part of its downtown after one of the notorious Hell's Half Acre outlaws, by calling several downtown parking lots Sundance Square.

I'll end our look at Fort Worth's Water Gardens with a picture of the Quiet Pool. You walk down to the Quiet Pool. Walls are all around you with water dripping down the walls. It is very quiet, peaceful and serene. Hard to believe this used to be known as Hell's Half Acre.