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This article traces the history of Dallas, Texas (USA).
Territorial Period (1500s-1838)
Main article: History of Dallas, Texas (through 1838)Caddo Native Americans inhabited the Dallas area before it was claimed, along with the rest of Texas, as a part of the Spanish Viceroyalty of New Spain in the 1500s. The area was also claimed by the French, but in 1819 the Adams-Onís Treaty officially placed Dallas well within Spanish territory by making the Red River the northern boundary of New Spain.
Another European who probably visited the Dallas area was Athanase de Mezieres in 1778. De Mezieres, a Frenchman then in the service of the King of Spain, probably crossed the West Fork of the Trinity River near present-day Fort Worth, having followed the western edge of the Eastern Cross Timbers from the Tawakoni Village on the Brazos River near present Waco. He then proceeded north to the Red River. He wrote:
De Mezieres' biographer, Bolton, was convinced de Mezieres was describing the Eastern Cross Timbers and the route would have him crossing the West Fork of the Trinity River between the present Fort Worth and Arlington.
Present-day Dallas remained under Spanish rule until 1821, when Mexico declared independence from Spain, and the area became part of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas. The Republic of Texas broke off from Mexico in 1836 and remained an independent country for nearly 10 years.
Settlement (1839-1855)
Main article: History of Dallas, Texas (1839-1855)John Neely Bryan, looking for a good trading post to serve Native Americans and settlers, first surveyed the Dallas area in 1839. Bryan, who shared Sam Houston's insight into the wisdom of Native American customs, must have realized that Caddo trails he came across intersected at one of the few natural fords for hundreds of kilometers along the wide Trinity floodplain. Bryan also knew that the planned Preston Trail was to run near the ford — the north-south route and the ford at Bryan's Bluff became more important when the United States annexed Texas in 1845.
After Bryan surveyed the area, he returned home to Arkansas. While there, a treaty was signed removing all Native Americans from Northern Texas. When he returned in November 1841, half of his customers, the Native Americans, were gone. He decided that instead of creating a trading post, he would create a permanent settlement, which he founded in November 1841. In 1844 J. P. Dumas surveyed and laid out a 0.5 square miles (1.3 km 2 ) section of blocks and streets near present downtown, which was named "Dallas" after George M. Dallas, whose family originated from Dallas in Scotland.
In 1855, a group of European artists and musicians, notably French, Belgians and Swiss, set up a utopian community west of Dallas called "La Reunion". When that venture collapsed in 1857 many of the artists moved to Dallas, where they established the base of a culture which, a century and a half later, is reflected in creative neighborhoods like Deep Ellum (east of downtown), and lower Greenville Avenue.
Early Existence (1856-1873)
Main article: History of Dallas, Texas (1856-1873)On 2 February 1856, Dallas was granted a town charter during the Regular session of the Sixth Texas Legislature. Samuel Pryor was elected the first mayor along with a constable, a treasurer-recorder, and six aldermen. By 1860, the town's population reached 678, including 97 African Americans as well as Belgians, French, Germans, and Swiss. By that year, the railroad was approaching from the south, and several stage lines were already passing through the city.
In July 1860, a fire broke out in the square, destroying most of the buildings in the business district of Dallas. Many residents assumed that slaves were behind it and two abolitionists were run out of town. Three African-American slaves were hung, and all other slaves in Dallas were ordered to be whipped. In 1861, Dallas County voted 741-237 in favor of secession. On 8 June of that year, a state of war was declared, and citizens were very supportive of the effort. The town was very far from actual battle, and received very little if any damage from the war.
The Reconstruction period brought many challenges for Dallas. On 19 June 1865 (Juneteenth), Texan slaves were liberated. Many African Americans came to Dallas after the war because the city was still prosperous compared to many other Southern cities. Freedmen's towns were scattered throughout Dallas and many whites became fearful — the Ku Klux Klan first appeared in the city in 1868. By 1871, Dallas legally became a city.
Notable Civil War veterans include William W. Ross. The Dallas Morning News states that, “William W. and Andrew J. Ross were early land owners who came to Dallas in 1866. One was a Civil War veteran, but, both men were farmers and real estate developers.” Ross Avenue is named in honor of the two brothers and bisects the land they formerly owned.
The major north-south (Houston and Texas Central Railroad) and east-west (Texas and Pacific Railway) Texas railroad routes intersected in Dallas in 1873, thus ensuring its future as a commercial center. The arrival of the trains also meant soaring populations — the population of Dallas shot from 3,000 in early 1872 to more than 7,000 in September of the same year. New buildings and new businesses appeared daily. Dallas was now the epicenter of the markets for raw materials like grains and cotton that was being shipped to the south and east. It was also the "last chance" for people traveling west to get supplies.
Industrial Period (1874-1929)
Main article: History of Dallas, Texas (1874-1929)The Industrial Period saw Dallas grow from a center of farming and ranching into a major, self-sustaining industrial city. The industrial growth in Dallas formed partially out of problems hurting Dallas area farmers: After buying supplies on credit during the year, farmers owed merchants the majority of their crop. Costs to ship to the coast were very high, and the price of cotton was dropping.
By 1880, the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad, under the leadership of Jay Gould, reached Dallas. In 1888, the Dallas Zoo opened making it the first zoological garden in the state. In 1890, Dallas annexed the city of East Dallas, which was larger geographically than Dallas. The annexation made Dallas the most populous city in Texas. In 1893, following the national financial panic, numerous industries and five Dallas banks failed. Cotton prices dipped below five cents a pound, and the lumber and flour markets had all but vanished, so many people began leaving the city. By 1898, the city began to recover and grow again. In 1894, Parkland Memorial Hospital opened just west of Oak Lawn. In 1903, Oak Cliff, a city across the Trinity River, was annexed.
By the turn of the century Dallas was the leading drug, book, jewelry, and wholesale liquor market in the Southwestern United States. It also quickly became the center of trade in cotton, grain, and even buffalo. It was the world's leading inland cotton market, and it still led the world in manufacture of saddlery and cotton gin machinery. As it further entered the 20th century, Dallas transformed from an agricultural center to a center of banking, insurance, fashion retailing and other businesses, including the founding of Neiman Marcus and the now-defunct A. Harris and Sanger Brothers ready-to-wear stores.
In 1908, the Trinity River reached a depth of 52.6 feet (16.03 m) and a width of 1.5 miles (2.4 km). Five people died, 4,000 were left homeless, and property damages were estimated at US$2.5 million. After the flood, the city wanted to find a way to control the reckless Trinity and to build a bridge linking Oak Cliff and Dallas. In 1911, George Kessler, a city planner, created a plan for both the Trinity and the city. His plans were initially ignored but ultimately brought back, updated, in the 1920s and by the 1930s many of his plans had been realized.
In 1911, Dallas became the location of the eleventh regional branch of the Federal Reserve Bank and millionaire Dr. William Worthington Samuell, purchased the first ambulance for the City of Dallas and later donated thousands to expand Parkland Hospital. Aviation became a major issue in the city in World War I. Love Field was established as an aviation training ground, and Fair Park was the home of Camp Dick, a training facility as well. The city purchased Love Field in 1927 to use as a municipal airport. and in 1915, Southern Methodist University opened.
Oil Period (1930-1945)
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