The Carpenters are everywhere

Ben H. Carpenter is the founder and developer of Las Colinas, which is a master-planned community in North Irving. Las Colinas spreads across 12,000 acres and has a 960-acre Urban Center. It is the vision of Carpenter with the influence of three generations of the Carpenter family.

You may not have heard about Ben Carpenter, but you must have bumped into his relatives in Irving, because many places here have been named after them. For example, Lake Carolyn, a 125-acre, man-made lake in Las Colinas, is named after Carpenter‘s sister, Carolyn.

State Highway 114 is also referred to as John W. Carpenter Freeway after Ben Carpenter’s father. Ben Carpenter knew that access to the area via main roads would be essential for commercial success, so he took an active role in making sure 114 was routed through Las Colinas.

Williams Square is named after Carpenter’s brother-in-law, Dan Williams.

Carpenter didn’t forget his wife either: There is the Dupree Theatre in the Irving Arts Center– just next to the Carpenter Performance Hall. Dupree is the maiden name of Carpenter’s wife, Betty Dupree Carpenter.

A few of Carpenter’s friends and associates have their names in Irving. Stemmons Freeway is named after John Stemmons and Hurd Drive after Wayne Hurd.

Las Colinas is actually a nickname Carpenter’s mother gave their ranch. The whole name was El Ranchito de Las Colinas, which means “the little ranch of the hills.” Years later the name shortened to Las Colinas.

Source: Gary N. Bourland: Las Colinas – The Inside Story of America ‘s Premier Urban Development