Some say that Dallas, in central Texas on the banks of the Trinity River, is the heart of Texas both culturally and economically. Houstonians disagree but to most of the world Dallas is Texas. In 1839, John Neely Bryan who would die almost destitute in the State Lunatic Asylum explored and surveyed the area that would become Dallas. He came to the Three Forks area of the Trinity River, where the Trinity was easily forded, to start a trading post serving Indians and settlers. This trading center would eventually link North and South Texas. The origin of the name Dallas is unknown. Candidates include: George Mifflin Dallas, vice president of the United States, 1845-49, his brother, Commodore Alexander J. Dallas, United States Navy, and Joseph Dallas who settled near the new town in 1843. The Texas legislature granted Dallas a town charter on February 2, 1856. In 1861 Dallas voters voted 741 to 237 to secede from the Union. After the Civil War freed slaves flocked to Dallas in search of jobs and settled in freedmen's towns on the periphery of the city. By 1870 the population of Dallas was about 3,000. Cotton was the region's principal cash crop however Dallas also became the world center for the leather and buffalo-hide trade. Merchants, who made it a point to open general stores along transcontinental railroad routes, settled in Dallas and soon established flagship stores, perhaps a precursor of Nieman Marcus. By 1880 the population had more than tripled, to 10,385. By January 1, 1890, having annexed the neighboring town of East Dallas, the city ranked as the most populous city in Texas, with 38,067 residents. In 1914 Dallas was selected as the site for a Federal Reserve Bank and, with a wave of immigrants from Mexico, the population was 158,976 by 1920, and then soared to 260,475 by 1930, but was only 294,734 in 1940 because of the depression. The discovery of oil in East Texas in 1930 eased the pain of the depression and soon Dallas became a center for petroleum financing. During the 1950s and 1960s, Dallas became the nation's third-largest technology center and with the opening of Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport in 1974, numerous corporate headquarters located in and around Dallas. By 1980 Dallas was a national financial and business center. The population grew from 679,684 in 1960 to to 1,006,877 in 1990. Population: Metropolitan Dallas 3,646,217, Dallas 1,188,580 Flight times: Chicago-2 hr., NYC-3.5 hrs., Los Angeles-3 hrs., Miami-3 hrs.,London-10 hrs. WEATHER Dallas has a very temperate climate with mild winters but hot humid summers. Days of sunshine: 300 days, Annual precipitation: 32 inches. Average Daily High/Low Temperature: • March - May: 77°f / 56°f, 26°c / 14°c • June - Aug.: 92°f / 72°f, 34°c / 22°f • Sept. - Nov.: 79°f / 59°f, 26°c / 15°c • Dec. - Feb.: 58° / 37°f, 16°c / 3°c TRANSPORTATION Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport http://www.dfwairport.com/index.htm DFW, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, is the world's third busiest airport in terms of operations. It serves is the dynamic 12-county region made up of Dallas, Fort Worth and 126 other municipalities. Transportation Guide: http://www.dfwairport.com/transport/ For additional ground transportation information: 972 574 5878 (USA). Dallas Airports (Local) The City of Dallas operates two municipal airports and a downtown heliport. Dallas Love Field Airport hosts daily flights to Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Louisiana cities. http://www.dallascityhall.com/dallas/eng/html/aviation.html. General Information (8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday) 512 530 ABIA Parking Information (24-hour number) 512 530 3300 Taxis: Taxis Taxi service is available on the upper level of each terminal. For assistance, please locate the Airport Ground Transportation employee wearing a white Airport shirt. Fares to downtown Dallas are approximately $38 (US). Fares to downtown Fort Worth are approximately $43 (US). Phone Numbers Alamo Cab Company 214 688 1999 Ambassador Cab 214 905 1111 Checker Cab 972 222 2000 Cowboy Cab Company 214 428 0202 Eagle Cab Company 214 421 7788 Executive Taxi, Inc. 972 554 1212 Freedom Cab 214 712 0800 Golden Cab Company 972 484 4848 Jet Taxi Inc. 800 538 8294 King Cab Company 972 241 3337 Ranger Taxi Company 214 421 9999 Star Cab 214 252 0055 State Taxi Cab Company 214 630 9595 Taxi Dallas 214 821 8294 Yellow Cab Company 214 426 6262 Flights Rental Cars: Rent-A-Car Advantage 800-777 5500, Alamo 800-327 9633, Avis 800-331 1212, Hertz 800-654 3131. Travel Information Centers of the Texas, Department of Transportation, offers trip routing information and emergency road conditions. 800-452 9292 (8 a.m. and 5 p.m. daily). PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) gets you around 13 cities with rail, bus, paratransit, HOV lane and rideshare sevices. We serve DFW International Airport and Fort Worth via the Trinity Railway Express (TRE). http://www.dart.org/ ATTRACTIONS and INFORMATION http://www.dallascvb.com/visitors/ http://www.fortworth.com/ http://www.dfwairport.com/visitor/