Welcome back to our whirlwind tour of White Rock Lake, that watery oasis in the middle of East Dallas. Previously, I discussed the dam complex and the lake itself; today, we’ll explore a few more of its wonders.By the way, here’s the new house I just bought on the shores of White Rock Lake:
Tags: Area Lakes · Attractions · Events
And now it’s time for a visit to everyone’s favorite Metroplex reservoir, the famous White Rock Lake! This 1,254-acre body of water, so named because it was formed from damming White Rock Creek in East Dallas in 1910, was originally created to provide a source of drinking water for the rapidly growing city. That lasted only until it was superseded by Lake Dallas (now Lake Lewisville) back in the 1930s. White Rock doesn’t provide much of Dallas’ drinking water these days, but it has become a recreational fixture in the Metroplex. It’s also used as a coolant source for a local power plant, I believe, and the old waterworks has become a historic site on the National Record of Historic Places.
Tags: Area Lakes · Attractions
The Amon Carter Museum is a physically small but nonetheless major entry in Fort Worth’s Cultural District, that cluster of attractions that also includes (among other things) the Kimball Art Museum, the Will Rogers Memorial Center, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, and the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame. It’s worth a close look if you enjoy American art.
The Museum is located in a rather minimalist building at the edge of a park. Here’s what it looks like from the outside. Just a simple concrete structure with five bays and a front wall made of glass.
Tags: Museums
Constant readers might remember me mentioning once or twice, in previous posts, the fact that Fort Worth outshines Dallas as the cultural center of DFW. While some of us on the East side of the Metroplex may not like to hear this, that doesn’t lessen the fact that the statement is true. The Kimball Art Museum is an excellent case in point. Although Dallas has its share of fine art museums, none are as famous — or as well advertised, frankly — as the Kimball.
Tags: Attractions · Museums
I’m not sure exactly why, but for some reason most museums seem paranoid that you’re going to steal their ideas, or even their properties somehow, if you take a camera onto the premises. That’s certainly the case with the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, which is dedicated to the women of the American West. It’s located in Fort Worth just across the street from the Will Rogers Memorial Center, where they hold the Fort Worth Stock Show every year. It’s also conveniently near the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History (FWMSH), which is currently in ruins as they expand and renovate.
Tags: Museums
When last I left you, my party and I had just entered the Green Expo at Trader’s Village in Grand Prairie, and were making our way deeper into this year’s “Tet-in-DFW” festival, which is the annual celebration of Lunar New Year by the local Vietnamese-American community. We had already encountered that classic Vietnamese cultural icon, Ronald MacDonald, and the food pavilions serving all kinds of scrumptious Asian goodies.
Tags: Attractions · Events · Shopping
On February 2, I hied myself over to Trader’s Village, a huge, permanent flea market/craft fair/festival site located between Interstates 20 and 30 in Grand Prairie. The occasion was the Chinese Lunar New Year, which is celebrated by the Vietnamese as Tet. Now, Tet actually fell on February 7 (a Thursday), but for reasons of accessibility and practicality, the Tet-in-DFW Festival was celebrated on February 2-3, the weekend before. Vietnamese-Americans are nothing if not practical.
Tags: Attractions · Events · Shopping
You might think that an attraction like the Fort Worth Stockyards wouldn’t need a luxury hotel, but it fact it’s got a great one — the aptly-named Stockyards Hotel, which has been there since long before the Stockyards was a Historic District. It’s located less than half a block off North Main Street on East Exchange, which is the cobbled thoroughfare that cuts through the heart of the Stockyards. Even though cattle barons are no longer passing through on a daily basis, a nice hotel at this location is still a great idea — after all, there are all those great restaurants, bars, and other points of interest nearby. It’s ideal for a getaway vacation for the weekend.
Tags: Attractions · Lodging