Old East Dallas – Dallas, Texas
Old East Dallas is a community consisting of several neighborhoods in east Dallas, Texas, (USA). In 1890, the city was annexed into Dallas, making Dallas the largest city in Texas. Contrary to what its name implies, East Dallas is rich with culture both old and new; after the annexation, entrepreneurs and creatives occupied then shabby warehouses, turning them into clubs and venues, bringing culture and many social scenes that still thrive today in what is now Deep Ellum, among other neighborhoods of this district.
An area defined by a lot of history, charm, and living at the beat of its rhythm, Old East Dallas is one-of-a-kind! While it technically includes Deep Ellum as well, in this case, we are going to focus on Old East Dallas which encompasses Swiss Ave, Junius Heights, Gaston Ave, N Peak St, Munger Blvd, and Ross Ave. These funky, hippie streets hold historic homes, dive bars, and outstanding gastronomy and farm-to-table food.
History
The area began as a 40-acre (162,000 m²) tract east of the city of Dallas. The Beeman family had settled there in the 1860s. In 1872, William H. Gaston began promoting the area for development. Four families settled there at the time, but when the railroads came to Dallas, several railroad workers came and built houses between Dallas and East Dallas.
Gaston gave the railroad companies US$5,000 and free right-of-way through his land to persuade them to build through East Dallas. The Houston and Texas Central Railroad arrived on 16 July 1872 and the Texas and Pacific Railway arrived on 22 February 1873.
In 1889, Texas state senator R.S. Kimbrough tried to get a bill run through the state legislature to remove East Dallas’ charter so it could be annexed into Dallas. It is generally believed that the act was to make Dallas the largest city in Texas, and the efforts did make Dallas the largest city in Texas by the 1890 census.[3] On 31 December 1889, the day before East Dallas became part of Dallas, East Dallas’ city council passed $45,000 in street improvements which the city of Dallas had to finance. Under the newly adopted charter, the city of Dallas took in all of East Dallas’ debt.
Old East Dallas led the city in restoration activity and neighborhood involvement in the 1970s. Rehabilitation began here because this area contained both the grandest homes and definable neighborhoods in the greatest need of repair. A tremendous asset to redevelopment was the fact that these distinct neighborhoods were fully developed in almost geographical order from the 1880s to the 1930s between the Central Business District and Mockingbird Lane.