THE ANNEXATION OF EAST DALLAS

By JOHN SLATE

Jan. 1, 1890 was the beginning of a happy New Year for the City of Dallas. Through an unusual turn of events, Dallas briefly became the largest city in Texas, while closing the door on the short but lively history of a town called East Dallas.

It all started with a Dallas pioneer named William H. Gaston.

A Civil War veteran and a banking and real estate entrepreneur, Capt. Gaston gambled on Dallas’ future and purchased 40 acres of land adjacent to the eastern boundary of the city and proclaimed it East Dallas. It was incorporated as a municipal government in 1882 and expanded to 1,429 acres that stretched from the Baylor Hospital area south to what’s now Fair Park. It was also attractive to business; it encompassed the junction of Dallas’ first two railroads – the Houston and Texas Central and the Texas and Pacific – and had a waterworks that was eyed with envy by the City of Dallas.

With little doubt, a consolidation of Dallas and East Dallas benefited both cities. In March, 1889, State Sen. R.S. Kimbrough introduced a bill to repeal East Dallas’ charter and merge with Dallas, adding three new wards to Dallas and strengthening its tax base. The result was not only a win-win for everyone, but by making it legal on New Years’ Eve 1889, it bumped Dallas’ population to 38,067, making it the largest city in Texas in the 1890 census.

Window Patrol

If you live on Longview, you probably know your neighborhood’s most vocal protectors. With a constant eye on the window, Gumbo and Stella are the self-appointed patrollers of the neighborhood, who make sure their human knows about every passerby, whether it be friend or foe. “If you walk down Longview you will see them at their post at the window barking at people, dogs, squirrels, motorcycles and cats,” says the dogs’ owner.

Dallas Independent School District

Dallas ISD’s Transformation Schools offer specialized academic programming, similar to Magnet Schools, because all children deserve a best-fit school that taps into their individual interests, learning styles, and aspirations.

Transformation Schools are open enrollment for all students, regardless of academic ability. Transportation will be provided districtwide within certain parameters.

Solar Preparatory School for Girls

• Single-gender STEAM school accepting new Kindergarteners; will grow to a full K - 8 th grade

• Secured prestigious $450,000 national grant from NewSchools Venture Fund

Eduardo Mata Elementary

• Montessori school accepting new Pre-K3, Pre-K4, and Kindergarteners

• Recognized as “Best Dallas ISD Innovation” by Dallas Observer in 2015

D.A. Hulcy STEAM Middle

• Project-based learning STEAM school accepting new 6th graders

• Earned 4 state distinctions for student performance

CityLab High School

• Brand new high school accepting new 9th graders with a focus on Urban Planning and Architecture

• Located in renovated downtown Dallas building

Innovation, Design, Entrepreneurship Academy (IDEA)

• Personalized Learning and Entrepreneurship high school accepting new 9 th graders

• Earned 2 state distinctions for student performance

White Rock Airport

WHEN A schoolteacher crash-landed in a cotton field at Buckner Boulevard and John West Road, it inadvertently launched White Rock Airport in 1941. With the beginnings of a runway already carved out, Curtis Parker and M.D. Reeves created a 120-acre facility that housed a 2,450-foot runway and dozens of hangers filled with single-engine planes. Many neighbors learned to fly there, including Curtis Musgrove Sr., pictured here with his son Curtis Musgrove Jr. in the 1970s. The airport closed in 1974, after which Fox & Jacobs bought the land to build homes, many of which are still standing today.

1970s 2016