Fin & Feather Hunting and Fishing Club

On May 6, 1901, 21 Wills Point men met in the law office of W.B. Wynne to organize the Fin & Feather Hunting and Fishing Club to be located at Thorn Lake. The Texas & Pacific Railroad Company built Thorn Lake to provide water for their steam engines. In June, Mr. and Mrs. H.F. Goodnight deeded six acres surrounding the lake; the new park was named after the couple. The charter members of the club felt the location would make an ideal meeting place, and plans were made to improve the lake, stock it with fish and provide boats for members and other visitors. In August, 1901, a reunion meeting of old settlers and Confederate veterans was held at the club; the reunion, which in later years included the Woodmen of the World, Knights of Pythias, Women’s Temperance Union, Farmers Union and other organizations, became an annual event punctuated by festivities including speeches, music, dancing and baseball games. Church groups and other organizations also used the facility. Visitors to the lake also included noted area citizens and individuals who used the setting for marriage proposals. The club purchased additional property in 1914 and in 1920. In 1934, the club reorganized. In 1994, the Fin & Feather Club purchased the lake from the Union Pacific Railroad Company for $30,000. Today, the Fin & Feather Club continues to care for the lake and establishment. For more than 100 years, the club has provided and maintained this place of history, festivity and community.

Fin & Feather Hunting and Fishing Club is a historical marker in Wills Point, Van Zandt County, dedicated in 2010. It is one of 84 historical markers documented in Van Zandt County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 167 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.7028, -95.9900 near Wills Point. The nearest cataloged historic site is County Seat War (historical marker), about 0.1 miles away. Others within a short drive include Dallas-Shreveport Road, White Rose Cemetery, and McKain Family Home.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5507016393. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.