As an ode to the last month of Lewisville’s centennial celebration, the City of Lewisville held a public viewing of its documentary going over the past.
Directed by former resident Matthew Alson Thornberry, “Lewisville: 100 Years of Change,” gave a glimpse into the changes that occurred, with notable information including the founding of Lewisville Lake and the expansion of the city limits.
The area was not always as it is today; Route 77 used to run toward Lewisville. Interviewees remembered the area as “a place to gather around during their teenage years” during the weekends, presenting the idea that Old Town had a nightlife.
Expansion of Lewisville was hard, especially to today’s standards when it came to preserving historical landmarks, partly because Lewisville was a small town during the mid 1820’s. They now have to figure out how to build around land and how to use the leftover land wisely to preserve its history.
After the film, mayor T.J. Gilmore, alongside former mayors David Denison (mayor from 1973-1977) and Bobbie Mitchell (1993-2000), held an audience-led panel, giving residents and the press an opportunity to learn more about the city the documentary did not discuss.
This documentary claimed what the city is and what it was back then. The demographic of attendees was mostly older, as they have seen the most significant changes to their city, and they provided a glimpse to younger audiences on how their city used to be.
2025 was one of the biggest for Lewisville. The city went out of its way to celebrate the centennial every chance they got, from the new LPD Public Safety Headquarters, to the renovations of the main fire station, and showing the play “Old Town Neighbors.” The city has flourished into what it is today, and this documentary was a send off to what this year has been.
This documentary, and overall, the whole celebration, has shown how long of a way the city has come from its beginning, and it deserves a 9/10 as the celebration comes to an end.
