With the discovery of the East Texas oil field in 1930, the region saw a population surge almost overnight. Local Mattie Castleberry recognized a business opportunity and opened Mattie’s Ballroom on April 19, 1931, strategically positioned on the highway between Longview and Kilgore.
The original building was a modest wood structure among pine trees, offering entertainment to oil barons, derrick hands, and local youth. On a typical night, one might see anything from German polka to big band swing to square dancing at Mattie’s.
Simultaneously, Mattie found herself involved in another legendary Texas dance hall, the Palm Isle, which opened its doors outside Longview in 1935.
Initially a business venture for three entrepreneurs hoping to capitalize on the region’s recent population spike, the club boasted a 1,600 square foot hardwood floor — one of the state’s biggest. The Palm Isle’s owner leased the club to Mattie in 1942 after he was drafted into World War II.
She briefly operated both venues but made the difficult decision to close Mattie’s Ballroom in 1943 and focus on the bustling Palm Isle. Bands that frequented the Palm Isle in that period included Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, and Bob Wills.
Mattie sold the Palm Isle in 1948. In 1951, new owners rechristened the venue as the “Reo Palm Isle”— still there — and turned to country acts like Ray Price, Jim Reeves, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, and even Elvis Presley.
Mattie Castleberry’s chapter in the venue may have closed, but her example of women’s entrepreneurship in East Texas remains a source of local legend.
Sources
Olivia L. Moore. “Mattie Castlebury: East Texas Oil Boom Legend.” MA thesis. Stephen F. Austin State University, May 2024. https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?params=/context/etds/article/1583/&path_info=O_Moore_Thesis_5.1.2024.pdf
Douglas Reeh. “Doug’s Doodles” column in Timpson & Tenaha News (Timpson, TX). Accessed via Portal to Texas History. https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth773936/m1/2/?q=matties%20ballroom
Julia Smith. “The East Texas Oilfield: A Historical Overview of America’s Largest Oil Reservoir.” Handbook of Texas Online. 2022. https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/east-texas-oilfield
Lanny Medlin and Heather Milligan in Laurie E. Jasinski, Gary Hartman, Casey Monahan, and Ann T. Smith, eds. The Handbook of Texas Music. Second Edition. Denton, TX: Texas State Historical Association, 2012.
Geronimo Treviño. Dance Halls and Last Calls: A History of Texas Country Music. Plano: Republic of Texas Press, 2002.
