Dallas Gets Vertical: 1887-1925

by Paula Bosse

Looking east from the courthouse, ca. 1887 (click for larger image)

by Paula Bosse

Above and below, the view of downtown Dallas looking east from the courthouse, with Main Street on the left and Commerce on the right. The top photo was taken about 1887 (the Grand Windsor hotel is the mammoth building in the top right corner), and the bottom one was taken about 1925. What a difference 38 years makes — the horizon has disappeared!

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Sources & Notes

Both photos appeared in The Dallas Morning News on Oct. 1, 1925. The caption reads: “[First photo]: View of Dallas looking east between Main and Commerce streets from the courthouse. It was taken about 1887. So far as known it is the only picture in existence which shows the Dallas Opera House at the southwest corner of Commerce and Austin streets. It also shows the old Grand Windsor Hotel. Note the vacant lots, and the unpaved condition of the streets and the horsedrawn vehicles on Main. [Second photo] This picture was made by H. B. Hillyer & Son.”

Flashback : Dallas