Cedar Hill, Texas
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| City of Cedar Hill, Texas | |
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| — City — | |
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| Nickname(s): The Hill Country of Dallas County | |
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| Coordinates: 32°35′18″N 96°56′50″W / 32.58833°N 96.94722°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| Counties | Dallas, Ellis |
| Government | |
| - Mayor | Rob Franke |
| Area | |
| - Total | 35.2 sq mi (91.3 km2) |
| - Land | 35.1 sq mi (91.0 km2) |
| - Water | 0.1 sq mi (0.3 km2) 0.26% |
| Elevation | 830 ft (253 m) |
| Population (2008) | |
| - Total | 44,422 |
| - Density | 913.0/sq mi (352.5/km2) |
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) |
| - Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP codes | 75104, 75106 |
| Area code(s) | 972 |
| FIPS code | 48-13492[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1332440[2] |
| Website | http://ci.cedarhill.tx.us/ |
Cedar Hill is a city in Dallas and Ellis Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It lies sixteen miles from downtown Dallas and is adjoined by Joe Pool Lake and Cedar Hill State Park to its west.
Early in its history, Cedar Hill served as the temporary county seat of Dallas County and lay along a branch of the Chisholm Trail. In 1856, a tornado swept through the town killing nine people and destroying most of its buildings. The seat of the county was moved to Dallas not long after.
Cedar Hill is part of the Best Southwest area, which includes Cedar Hill, DeSoto, Duncanville, and Lancaster.
Contents |
[edit] History
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Perched atop the highest elevation between the Red River and the Gulf Coast, Cedar Hill, Texas is a vibrant, growing Southwest Dallas County community and a place where both family living and economic opportunity complement each other. The beauty of the rolling terrain, heavily punctuated with thousands of native cedar trees, is near Mountain Creek and Joe Pool Lakes. The escarpment which lies east of Joe Pool Lake is one of the most scenic areas in Dallas County. But along with the natural beauty of the area, the city embraces a rich heritage that includes pioneers and preachers, outlaws and educators, agriculture and technology.
In its earlier history, the densely covered area served as a hiding ground for those evading the law, as well as a resource for folks as far away as Oklahoma who sought cedar posts for fencing. Before these days, the terrain was underwater, leaving abundant samples of fossils, mother of pearl, and sharks teeth embedded into the Austin limestone that runs along the edge of the city.
Shortly after 1835, a group of early Texas Rangers reported “no sign of civilized humans south of the Trinity River.” Then, in 1840, when Texas broke from Mexico and functioned as an independent republic, a road northward from Austin was built, following the approximate path of the current I-35. Numerous Native American tribes lived in and out of the area, many ‘wintering’ here. A battle took place between two warring tribes that met near current High Pointe neighborhood, leaving Indian artifacts on the acreage.
Early Settlement
As a result of sales posters in Kentucky, Alabama, and other adjoining states, settlers came to North Texas, billed as the “France of the New World.” Filtrating into what was known then as Peters Colony, in 1844 197 families and 184 single men were living in the region, with Cedar Hill being the second largest settlement in the area. The new citizens arrived in Dallas, on the Trinity River, before traveling south on a trail that ran through Hord’s Ridge (now Oak Cliff)—to the “cedar brakes” and their new lives.
With the now Dallas County area a part of Robertson County in 1845, Crawford Treese is noted as one of Cedar Hill’s earliest settlers. His marriage on July 22, 1846 was the first one registered in the new Dallas County with the marriage license memorialized in the cornerstone at the Old Red Courthouse. Treese came back from the California Gold Rush with enough money to purchase several thousand acres of Cedar Hill land. During the Civil War he enlisted and fought in the Confederate army. One of Treese’s late 1880s barns is now a family home on Cedar Hill Road.
Another early settler in the area was Andrew Penn. Arriving here for a visit with Treese, he stayed, married, and made a home on the edge of the prairie. He was a rancher and used the cedar mountain for grazing and the bottomland of the mountain creek for farming. A Northern sympathizer, he left his family and went north during the Civil War before returning after peace was established.
The 1845 Central National Road, via its intersection in Dallas with the Preston-Austin Road, connected north and south Texas and ran close to Cedar Hill. In 1852 the town opened the first post office in the area followed by the first official school hosting sixteen students. Previously, Major Penn imported a schoolteacher and provided a cabin on his property. The cabin is currently inside a barn at Penn Farm.
An 1856 tornado, made up of two funnel clouds that merged, destroyed the town, leaving only one house and one business undamaged, and nine citizens not only dead but unrecognizable. Gone were the post office, blacksmith shop, and mercantile, the only source of supplies for the thriving community. Posts and trees were splintered, and items from Cedar Hill homes were found as far away as the current Dallas Zoo location. After more than 300 people from surrounding communities helped rebuild the town, it became a center of trade and shipping. The old graveyard where the dead were buried was lost for almost 100 years. Recently re-discovered, it has been certified by the Texas State Historical Commission.
A line of the Chisholm Trail wandered through Cedar Hill beginning in the 1860s; the 1870s brought Indian raids and church burnings; while the 1880s added a saloon to the town—an establishment visited by the outlaw Belle Star.
No longer hauling by horse and wagon, the 1880s brought railroad business through Cedar Hill, Duncanville, and Midlothian, benefiting all, and the Cedar Hill Institute for Girls opened in 1880. The 1890s saw Cedar Hill a farming community with two competing cotton gins, fires at both, and also in one of the churches. A Saturday trip to town for supplies and church on Sunday was normally the only break from hard work for these pioneer families. An 1892 city directory listed two druggists, two blacksmiths, and two confectioners—one also being the town barber.
Early 1900's
In the 1920s the Dynamo Electric Plant provided electricity to Cedar Hill customers, with a 10:30 p.m warning ‘blink’ before shutting down completely at 11:00. Cooking on wood burning stoves continued until WWII and some farms didn’t have electricity until the 1940s. Many homes and farms had cisterns as their water supply, but later Midlothian Oil Mill and Gin laid unprotected above-ground water lines that would freeze in the winter.
Around the turn of the century, the only phone in town was at Well’s General Store at the NW corner of Cedar and Main Streets, with a telephone exchange established inside a home at the SE corner of Main and Belt Line Streets. Now Cedar Hill residents could keep up with outside events and be freed from their isolation. The home still stands.
In the 1920s and 30s, farmers ginned 5,000 bales of cotton annually, but by 1940 the emphasis had shifted to dairy and cattle.
The Anderson plantation was west of Cedar Hill near Penn Farm. Patriarch Andy Anderson told Farmer Tidwell, "We ought to be able to find a sulfur mine around here". The old tenant farmer replied, "Shore, shore, I’ll find you one."
West of the house the natural spring had cut a deep gully in the dark bluish shale underlying the farm site. T. J. Tidwell was up early the next morning and began his search. Along the top of the gully, he noticed some strange looking bones. He carefully removed soil and shale and found parts of a rock body skeleton with paddle shaped legs, an eighteen foot long neck and finally a vicious toothed, crocodile-like head.
Mr. Tidwell erected a tent over his finding and had a lot of visitors to see the strange skeleton. He charged them 50 cents to view it.
After Mr. Tidwell’s attraction lost its drawing power, Charles Gill Morgan came from SMU to meet with Mr. Anderson and Mr. Tidwell. At the end of the day he went home with the skeleton. Later Dr. Barnum Brown of the Museum of Natural History in New York offered to swap three dinosaurs for the strange creature called Elasmosarus morgani.
Many mosasaurs and sharks teeth continue to be found in Cedar Hill.
1940's and 1950's
In the 1940's, Lancaster, TX was the home of the draft board and an ammunition plant. After the war, Cedar Hill became a "bedroom community" with many working in Dallas, riding in car pools or taking the Central Texas Bus Line. Many were employed at North American Aviation in Grand Prairie. Laborers left the farm for "city" jobs and land owners began raising cattle and dairy farming.
In May 1955 construction began on one of the most unique structures in Cedar Hill. It also contributed largely to Cedar Hill’s unique identity. Construction was completed in late October 1955 on a 1,521 foot tall Candelabra antenna system for transmission for WFAA-TV and KRLD-TV.
1960's
In 1946 Cedar Hill’s population totaled 435 and covered an incorporated area of one square mile. The population was only 750 in 1950 and 848 in 1960. Cedar Hill’s story changed toward the end of the 20th century. Today, the city houses some 48,000 residents.
Just as our founders were lured to the area by the beauty of the Cedar Mountains, so shall future generations continue to make this lofty rolling terrain their home.
1980's and 1990's
In the early 1980's after Joe Pool Lake was built, expensive homes and mansions started being built in the new upscale sub-division of Lake Ridge, nestled in the hills which overlooked the lake. This is a highly sought after area for both raising a family and for those looking to retire. Also nearby is Tangle Ridge Golf Club.
Throughout the 1990's Cedar Hill continued extensive growth and development.
Since the year 2000, the city of Cedar Hill has also had a major economic boom in retail, with the additions of several new shopping centers, a movie theater, and an outdoor mall.
Today Cedar Hill is a different town, but it holds many of the same wholesome qualities.
Article References [3] [4] For more information please visit the Cedar Hill Museum of History website and the Cedar Hill Chamber of Commerce.
[edit] Geography
Cedar Hill is located at 32°35′18″N 96°56′50″W / 32.58833°N 96.94722°W (32.588454, -96.947325)[5]. Adjacent cities are: Grand Prairie to the southwest, west, and northwest; Dallas to the north; Duncanville to the north and northeast; DeSoto to the northeast and east; Glenn Heights and Ovilla to the southeast; and Midlothian to the south. Most of the city of Cedar Hill is in Dallas County, but a small southern section of the city spills over into Ellis County.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 35.2 square miles (91.3 km²), of which, 35.2 square miles (91.0 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (0.26%) is water.
Because of its elevation many local radio and TV stations have their antennas located there. Pulse-Doppler weather radar equipment for tracking tornadoes are also attached to these steel antennas that reach several thousand feet into the air and whose blinking lights appear like Christmas trees at night.
It is sometimes referred to as the "hill country of Dallas" (in comparison to the "hill country" surrounding Austin and San Antonio). The city is full of native, eastern red cedar evergreen trees and stands at an elevation of about 800 feet (240 m) above sea level--the highest point in a straight line from the Red River at the Texas-Oklahoma border to the Gulf Coast.
The "Austin chalk" limestone uplift on which most of Cedar Hill is spread is covered with "gumbo"-cleche-clay topsoil from a few inches to many feet. The western edge of the city, primarily the Lake Ridge neighborhood, falls below the limestone uplift on the Eagle Ford shale strata surrounding Joe Pool Lake. Home foundation problems--similar to those in Irving's Las Colinas neighborhood to the north and built on the same strata--await those who fail to take precautions in building on expansive soil lying over the Eagle Ford formation. As noted in the demographics below (and like some of the cities immediately surrounding it such as Duncanville and DeSoto), the city is significantly diverse compared to other cities around Dallas which tend to be predominantly of one ethnic origin or another. In the last few years, the city has been booming with new construction as urban sprawl spreads south of Dallas.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 32,093 people, 10,748 households, and 8,738 families residing in the city. The population density was 913.0 people per square mile (352.5/km²). There were 11,075 housing units at an average density of 315.1/sq mi (121.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 56.67% White, 33.61% African American, 0.50% Native American, 1.98% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 4.87% from other races, and 2.32% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.91% of the population.
Demographics in southwest Dallas County have changed substantially since the late 1990s. For decades, south Dallas areas like Oak Cliff were predominantly African American communities and African Americans were the largest minority group in the Dallas area. However, Hispanics became the largest minority for the first time in 2000. As large numbers of Hispanics have moved into poorer, south Dallas areas like Oak Cliff, more affluent African Americans have moved further south into cities like Cedar Hill, Duncanville, DeSoto, Lancaster and to a lesser extent in county-border cities like Ovilla and Red Oak. While the White population has been relatively static, the African American population in Cedar Hill has risen dramatically. Even the demographics of Cedar Hill's most affluent neighborhood, Lake Ridge (a Master Planned Community), has changed in step with the city as a whole. As of 2007, African Americans outnumber Whites almost five to one in the Cedar Hill Independent School District.
As of 2000 There were 10,748 households out of which 49.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.8% were married couples living together, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.7% were non-families. 15.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 2.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.96 and the average family size was 3.30.
In the city the population was spread out with 32.6% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 35.8% from 25 to 44, 19.2% from 45 to 64, and 4.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 91.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $60,136, and the median income for a family was $63,416. Males had a median income of $41,360 versus $32,207 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,389. About 4.2% of families and 5.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.7% of those under age 18 and 6.5% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Education
Most of the city is served by the Cedar Hill Independent School District. Some of it is served by Duncanville Independent School District and the Midlothian Independent School District.
The Cedar Hill ISD portion is served by Cedar Hill High School. The Duncanville ISD portion is served by Duncanville High School. The Midlothian ISD portion is served by Midlothian High School. Trinity Christian School - Cedar Hill (affiliated with a local Assemblies of God church) also serves the area.
On December 23, 2006 the 16-0 Cedar Hill High School Longhorn football team won its first state championship, defeating Cypress Falls (of the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District) 51-17 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. William Cole, who would eventually sign with Oklahoma State, was the star of the game, rushing for nearly 300 yards (270 m) and 3 touchdowns. Cole earned the Offensive MVP honors, and linebacker Chris spencer brought home the Defensive MVP award.
Northwood University serves as a 4 year post-secondary institution. The school is private and is nestled in the hills and woods on the east side of Joe Pool Lake.
[edit] Economic Development
Since the year 2000, the city of Cedar Hill has had a major economic boom in retail. The opening of The Plaza at Cedar Hill, in the fall of the year 2000, began the growth. This 260,000 sq ft (24,000 m2) retail center included a variety of large and small stores including: Old Navy, Pier One, Macaroni Grill, David's Seafood, Chili's, Hobby Lobby and Office Max.
Later that year, The Cedar Hill Crossing was built. This large retail area, included anchors like Home Depot, Kohl's, Staples and Bennigan's. A few years later in the year 2003, Cedar Village was built. This 70-acre (280,000 m2) retail center is part of a master plan that includes linking a new city hall and historic Main Street district to innovative retail, residential, office and entertainment developments. The Village includes retail frontage along US Hwy 67, restaurants, office space and a stand-alone 100,000 sq ft (9,300 m2) J. C. Penney, and an Ultimate Electronics, which was later changed to a 24 Hour Fitness.
A few months later, the Pleasant Run Towne Crossing was built. This retail area giant first opened in 2003 with 409,000 sq ft (38,000 m2) of retail including anchors like SuperTarget, Circuit City, Sports Authority, and Bed Bath & Beyond. Restaurants that have sprouted up on nearby pad sites are Joe's Crab Shack, Saltgrass Steakhouse and Panera Bread. A couple of years later, Cedar Hill Pointe was built. Cedar Hill Pointe, which opened in 2005, includes Best Buy, Rooms to Go Beds, Wolf Camera and other retail stores.
Cedar Hill is also home of the Boxcar Club, a restaurant and bar that is partially constructed from an old railroad box car. The club hosts many charitable events and has annual crawfish boils and pig roasts. The club is also the starting point for the annual "Dicky Bob's Frog Run" which had over 200 participants in 2007. [1]
By this time, Cedar Hill was the main site for retail, but there were still many developments being planned. The biggest development is an upscale open-air shopping mall called Uptown Village. The 725,000 sq ft (67,400 m2) shopping center includes three anchoring department stores (Dillard's, Barnes & Noble, and Dick's Sporting Goods), 75 additional stores, and six fine-dining restaurants. Some of the stores include Hollister Co., American Eagle Outfitters, Victoria's Secret, Aéropostale, Finish Line, Foot Locker, Champs Sports and Game Stop. Uptown Village at Cedar Hill opened on March 12, 2008. Sprouts Farmer's Market opened a new store in October 2009.
[edit] References
- ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ http://www.cedarhillmuseum.com/history.php
- ^ http://www.cedarhillchamber.org/ourcomm.html
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2005-05-03. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
[edit] External links
- Cedar Hill official website
- Wade Emmert, City Council Member
- Cedar Hill Chamber of Commerce
- Cedar Hill Economic Development Corporation
- Cedar Hill Independent School District
- Cedar Hill ISD Education Foundation
- Uptown Village official website
- Hand book of Texas Online article about Cedar Hill
- Cedar Hill State Park
- Joe Pool Lake
- Cedar Hill, Texas is at coordinates 32°35′18″N 96°56′50″W / 32.588454°N 96.947325°WCoordinates: 32°35′18″N 96°56′50″W / 32.588454°N 96.947325°W
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![[1]](http://boxcarclub.com/images/BoxcarFrogRunFront2007.JPG){kind=link}