A little History

Before Texas was claimed in the 18th century as a part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain by the Spanish Empire, the Dallas area was inhabited by the Caddo Native Americans. Later, France also claimed the area, but in 1819 the Adams-Onís Treaty made the Red River the northern boundary of New Spain, officially placing Dallas well within Spanish territory^. The area remained under Spanish rule until 1821, when Mexico declared independence from Spain and the area became part of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas. In 1836, the Republic of Texas broke off from Mexico to become an independent nation. In 1839, four years into the Republic’s existence, Warren Angus Ferris surveyed the area around present-day Dallas. Two years later, John Neely Bryan established a permanent settlement that later became the city of Dallas. The Republic of Texas was then annexed by the United States in 1845 and Dallas County was established the following year. It is uncertain whether the city was named after George Mifflin Dallas, the U.S. Vice President under James Knox Polk.

What to do in Dallas

Now that you know a little bit about the history of Dallas here’s what you can actually do in Dallas.  Well there’s go karting, miniture golf, mall crawling and heading out to the rodeo.  Wait seriously there’s some stuff to do in Dallas.  When we figure it out we’ll let you  know.  We can certainly promise some awesome cross-cultural family fun and good eats – especially Vietnamese food and Craw Fish.

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Click here if you’re really adventurous and want a Dallas visitors guide.