Douglas Chandor (1897-1953) was an English portrait artist who married a Weatherford girl in 1934. The couple built their home and his studio on caliche pastureland given to them by the Kuteman family. Douglas· artistry transformed this setting into an exquisite English and Chinese garden that he called White Shadows. We know it today as Chandor Gardens. Brenda found a guest book on eBay and knew it needed to come back to Weatherford. Who are the people who signed this book? Why did they visit the Chandors? Were they portrait clients, other artists, or gardeners? Did the guest book travel with them or stay in Weatherford? Come learn what the guest book revealed and how Brenda researched those who signed the book. 

Brenda Mcclurkin, librarian, archivist, historian, and genealogist, is an Arizona native with North Texas roots dating back to the 1850s. She received an undergraduate degree in history from Colorado Woman's College in Denver; a master's degree in library science from the University of Arizona; an archival administration certificate from the University of Texas at Arlington; and became a Certified Archivist in 2002. Brenda and her husband Howard moved to Weatherford from Arizona in 1994. Brenda volunteered in the Weatherford College Archives, the Heritage Gallery of the Weatherford Public Library, and the archives of Historic Fort Worth, Inc., until 2002, when she accepted the position of historical manuscripts archivist in Special Collections of the University of Texas at Arlington Library. Brenda was promoted in 2013 to department head of Special Collections, a position she held until her retirement in January 2022. Brenda is a past president of the Society of Southwest Archivists and received the SSA Distinguished Service Award in May 2022. She co-authored Weatherford: The Early Years (2012, with Jonelle Bartoli) and Fort Worth Quality Hill (2014, with Historic Fort Worth, Inc.), both titles in Arcadia Publishing Images of America Series. In addition, she has authored articles for Legacies: The Journal of Dallas and North Texas History and SSA's Southwestern Archivist. Currently Brenda is a member of the Parker County Historical Commission, the Parker County Heritage Society, a volunteer with the Weatherford Public Library archives, and an advisory board member and archivist for Historic Fort Worth, Inc.