Dealey Plaza And Dallas’ Complicated Relationship With History

Dallas has a problem with history — it keeps trying to erase it. The latest target is Dealey Plaza. Preservation architect Norman Alston offers us a two-part history lesson which seems perfect on this particular day. Gratitude for our history is something we should all think about a little more. We hope you find this food for thought this week.

-Karen Eubank

By Norman Alston, FAIA

I heard it again. “Dallas doesn’t have much history, and most of what we did have has been torn down.” I’ve heard that a lot, of course, but this time from a local, well-known, respected, accomplished architecture and design professional. In other words, someone who I thought for sure knew better.

There’s your trouble.

That statement isn’t true. Dallas has a rich and interesting history, including its architecture. Dallas has more than 2,000 locally designated landmarks, with several times that number that are likely eligible for landmark designation if the owners choose to pursue it. The problem is illustrated by who made the statement. If that individual doesn’t know this, how can anyone else?

Many of us are ignorant of Dallas’ history, including the major events and forces that have shaped this City and given us the urban landscape we have today. Without a better knowledge of that history or an appreciation of its value, we seem to continually suffer the loss of cherished historic buildings. We lack what I refer to as a Culture of Preservation.

This has been well illustrated recently by both the loss of a remarkable Hutsell-designed home in Lakewood and an imminent threat to the survival of the Como Motel in Richardson, among others. The problem is not limited to background buildings and houses, however. To illustrate the depth of this problem, tomorrow’s second part of this article looks at the current plight of one of our most important historic sites, Dealey Plaza.

A strong case can be made that Dealey Plaza is the most important historic site in Dallas. It is a National Historic Landmark, the most prestigious designation available, and one it shares locally only with Fair Park, Highland Park Village, and the Fort Worth Stockyards. Some multiple periods and events distinguish Dealey Plaza, including:

• From the City’s founding until the 1920s, it was widely considered to be the “Birthplace of Dallas” because it is the location of the first house, the first store, the first fraternal lodge, and the first courthouse.

• From 1885 through today, it has been associated with the remarkable life and career of George Bannerman Dealey (1859 – 1946), whose accomplishments include founding and operating the Dallas Morning News, campaigning for the channelization of the Trinity River, revitalization of the western end of Downtown Dallas and a truly amazing list of important business and community efforts, much too long to recount here. If you don’t know about him, you should Google him, at least.

• The Triple Underpass: Completed just in time for the Texas Centennial Celebration of 1936, it is a stark reminder of an important shift of the forces that had nurtured and shaped Dallas’ growth up until that time, namely the railroads. The shift was to the new technology that would shape Dallas from that time until today: the automobile. In the 1930’s, automotive technology and road development were expanding at a dizzying pace and Dallas had been at the forefront of the adoption of this technology for some time. The underlying purpose of the triple underpass was to further separate the trains on the streets of downtown Dallas, which they shared with all other downtown traffic. Many problems developed as long trains lumbering through downtown Dallas encountered the new, faster, more nimble automobile traffic. More than a congestion relief measure, the triple underpass also exhibited then-popular Art Deco design detailing. It was heralded as “The Gateway to Dallas,” commemorated in the colorful postcards popular at the time. This was the showpiece of a series of similar, smaller crossings that extended along the tracks well south of downtown. Some of these other crossings have been lost over the years, and many that remain are clearly threatened by future development. Like it or not, the automobile has had, and continues to have, substantial influence on Dallas’ urban development. Historically, these remnants of that time are significant but slowly vanishing.

• Martyr’s Park (Previously known as the Dealey Annex). Not within Dealey Plaza, but immediately adjacent on the river side of the railroad bridge. On “the other side of the tracks,” if you will. The name and a recently installed memorial art installation remind us of an initial barbaric event in the area’s history. In 1860, three enslaved black men were falsely accused of starting a devastating fire as well as a supposed slave uprising and were summarily lynched at this approximate location.

• November 22, 1963: Of course, the events of this day are those that made Dealey Plaza internationally famous and that have prompted subsequent efforts to acknowledge and protect its history. The trauma of the violent and untimely death of President John F. Kennedy changed Dallas, the country, and likely the world forever.

From the legacy of slavery to the assassination of a US President and many important events in between, Dallas has a full and rich but sometimes tragic history. Dealey Plaza has been involved in or the site of that history for more than 160 years. It is as legitimate a historic site as exists anywhere. Yet, it may also be locked in a battle with modern expectations that threaten its real value as a witness and testament to our past.