05/05/2026
Happy Cinco de Mayo, now a day to celebrate Mexican-American culture. Did you know that in the 1930s and 1940s, the "Girl Guides" who toured guests around Ed Clark's Eskimo Sled Dog Ranch to see and learn about the sled dogs and black bears at Clark's wore Mexican sombreros? In the 1930s, Edward P. Clark leased the land across from the gift shop to Earl Murphy, and he built "El Ranchito," a shop featuring Mexican goods. Almost certainly, the girls' sombreros came from El Ranchito; perhaps a deal had been struck to have the guides wear the sombreros in an effort to cross-promote El Ranchito. Items such as Mexican Bubble Glass, Saddles, Dressed Fleas and Spanish Shawls were on display and offered for sale there.
Photos: Joyce Avery, wearing her Mexican sombrero, was a Girl Guide at Clark's. Joyce later married Edward M. Clark, son of Clark's founders Ed and Florence Clark.
El Ranchito was located across the street from the Clark’s main gift shop. Earl Murphy, the owner of Longhorn Palace, built El Ranchito with his wife, Sadie in the 1930’s.
