Dallas Holds on to its Roots
Posted on Jun 28, 2010 under Travel | No CommentThe Old Red Courthouse, located at 100 S. Houston Street, in Dallas is an outstanding historical building, built in 1892 in the Romanesque Revival style. The red Pecos sandstone is rough-cut, but the trim is the smooth Arkansas Blue Granite. Listed on the National Register, the Old Red Courthouse is listed as the City of Dallas Landmark and is a recorded Texas Historical Landmark, but even though this structure is of historical interest, it currently houses the Dallas Visitor Information Center and a high-tech Internet Cafe is situated in one of the turrets.
This building is the fifth out of four prior courthouses gracing the same location. Inside the building are theaters representing the four previous ‘eras’ of Dallas County, covering a span of two centuries up till 2007. On the 4th Floor, visit the Hatton W. Summerlee Court Room, it was just recently restored to it original appearance. You’ll end up spending several hours at the Old Red Courthouse, especially if you take in all the theaters and all the touch-screen interactive displays. The 2nd floor is where the Museum and gallery is located; artifacts from each of the 5 versions of the Red Courthouses history are expertly displayed.
The exhibit, or theaters are: ‘The Trading Center: The Sumnerlee Foundation Trading Center Gallery – 1874 to 1917. With the arrival of the first two railroads in 1872 and 1873, Dallas experience its first boom period making Dallas an important regional center for trade; ‘Big D: The Ruth Ray and H.L. Hunt Gallery – 1918 to 1945, displays how Dallas gained national recognition and at the same time faced the challenges of a major metropolitan area; ‘World Crossroads’: The Linda and Mitch Hart World Crossroads Gallery – 1946 to 2007, with post-war times just beginning, Dallas takes on a new direction and reinvents itself for the 21st century.
Nestled amongst skyscrapers, massive freeways and five star hotels, Dallas seems to stand still, if just for a moment by continuing to hold on to this very historical and distinctive building.
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