The city of Dallas, Texas is the ninth largest city in the United States and a popular location for many reasons. Dating back to before Texas was a part of the United States, the city has a long and colorful history with many ties to both the oil industry and the old west. The city is a modern day leader in the banking, telecommunications and energy industries but to this day is probably still most famous for its professional football team the Dallas Cowboys as well as the prime time soap opera titled Dallas that aired during the 1980s. A great deal is known about this most interesting city in the great state of Texas, but here are five things you may not know about the city of Dallas.
1. The Bank of America Plaza in downtown Dallas is at 921 feet tall, the tallest building in Dallas. It was built in 1985 and is currently the third tallest building in the entire state of Texas. Before its construction, the tallest building in Dallas was the Renaissance Tower which measures in at 886 feet tall.
2. The founder of the community that would eventually grow into Dallas was John Neely Bryan. Bryan led an interesting life that included time spent as a lawyer, Indian trader, explorer, and city founder. He traveled to California as part of the 1849 Gold Rush, but returned a year later having experienced no success. He would be sent to the Texas State Lunatic Asylum in 1877 and later die there.
3. One of the icons of the annual State Fair of Texas that is held yearly in Dallas, Texas is Big Tex which is a 52 foot tall cowboy statue. Big Tex wears size 70 boots and a 75 gallon hat. To make the pants that the statue wears requires the use of 72 yards of denim. The first State Fair that Big Tex appeared at was the 1952 State Fair of Texas. He had originally been built three years earlier as a 49 foot tall Santa Claus.
4. Known as “America’s Team”, the Dallas Cowboys, the city’s entry in the National Football League, are said to be the most valuable sports franchise in the entire world with an estimated value of 1.5 billion dollars.
5. Though known mostly for its ties to the oil industry, a great many movies have been filmed in and around the Dallas, Texas area including: State Fair, Bonnie and Clyde, Benji, Logan’s Run, Silkwood, Tender Mercies, Places in the Heart, The Trip to Bountiful, RoboCop, Talk Radio, Born on the Fourth of July, Problem Child, JFK, The Apostle, Batman & Robin, Any Given Sunday, Office Space, The Rookie, and Bewitched.
Because of its emergence as a world leader in a number of businesses and industries, coupled with its reputation as a great place for sports fans and those interested in American history, the city of Dallas is a popular destination for people with a wide variety of interests. For those traveling in the south, Dallas offers both outdoor recreational opportunities as well as standard tourist attractions and points of interests. The city has the unique ability to be able to satisfy a number of different visitors no matter what their interests are. Anyone planning their vacation could not go wrong by including the city of Dallas, Texas in their plans.
