Once Upon a Time, There Were a Lot of People (and Hats) in Downtown Dallas

Share News:

Look at this 75-year old, never-before- seen- footage of Dallas that Dallas Morning News editor Robert Wilonsky unearthed (and I guess, bought) narrated by Mark Doty, Historic Preservation officer for the city of Dallas. 90 seconds of downtown Dallas on Kodachrome. (If you don’t know what that is, along with ice cube trays, holler at me.) Funny but not surprising to note that there were houses in downtown Dallas as far back as 1939 — single family. This was about the time, says Doty, that the Cedars ‘hood was being built. This was downtown Dallas before skyscrapers and highways. I was also enthralled with the vintage clothes and hats. I swear in 1939 every woman has as many hats as she had shoes, maybe more. Didn’t they blow away? How did women keep them on their heads? Good question for Ebby Halliday, who got her start in selling by selling ladies hats!

Candy Evans, founder and publisher of CandysDirt.com, is one of the nation’s leading real estate reporters.

Leave a Comment