Roy A. and Gladys Westbrook House

Roy A. And Gladys Westbrook House is located in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 8, 2009.

Roy A. and Gladys Westbrook House
Westbrook House in 2019
Roy A. and Gladys Westbrook House is located in Texas
Roy A. and Gladys Westbrook House
Roy A. and Gladys Westbrook House
Roy A. and Gladys Westbrook House is located in the United States
Roy A. and Gladys Westbrook House
Roy A. and Gladys Westbrook House
Location2232 Winton Terrace W., Fort Worth, Texas
Coordinates32°43′20″N 97°21′33″W / 32.72222°N 97.35917°W / 32.72222; -97.35917
Area1.5 acres (0.61 ha)
Built1928 (1928)
ArchitectJoseph Pelich
Architectural styleTudor Revival
NRHP reference No.08001300[1]
RTHL No.15766
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJanuary 8, 2009
Designated RTHL2009

In 1946, oilman William Clark acquired the house. He divorced his second wife in 1950, and on February 13, 1951, married Mary Waterstreet Tuerpe. By 1953, Clark had become convinced that Tuerpe had married him for his money, and he sought an annulment. He also changed his will so that Tuerpe would get just $10. The majority of his $750,000 estate was given to charity. Twelve days after making the change, on May 22, 1953, his body was discovered in the house; he had been shot on May 19. The original finding of suicide was changed to murder. His wife, Mary Clark, and three ex-convicts were charged in the plot. Two of the three men who were accused as accomplices were murdered themselves before the case went to trial. In 1955, Tuerpe was acquitted, and the one surviving accomplice was given a five-year sentence in exchange for his cooperation in the prosecution. Tuerpe remained in the house for another fifty years.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. ^ "Hometown by Handlebar". Once Upon a Prominence: Murder in High Places. April 25, 2012. Retrieved December 12, 2014.
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