Nighttime Bird’s-Eye Views of Dallas
by Paula Bosse
All lit up… (click for larger image)
by Paula Bosse
In my opinion, Dallas has always been most impressive at night. The view above is from the east. Among other familiar landmarks, we see skyline icons the Mercantile Building, the Sheraton Hotel, the Southland Life Building (at the time the city’s tallest building), and the rocket-topped Republic Bank Building (previously the city’s tallest building). I think that’s Live Oak St. on the left running in and out of downtown and Bryan on the right.
And, below, a view toward the east, with Jackson Street on the right, and dramatically-lit appearances by the Adolphus Hotel, the Magnolia Building, the Baker Hotel, and the Mercantile.
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Sources & Info
These postcard images were featured on the front and back covers of the Spring, 2012 issue of Legacies magazine (viewable on UNT’s Portal to Texas History site, here).
A similar photo (colorwise) to the second image above (but taken from a rotated angle) can be found in the Flashback Dallas post “Dallas Skyline At Night — ca. 1965” — this photo shows the skyline just a few short years later after the new Republic Tower II had appeared on the horizon and claimed the title as the city’s tallest building — the Southland Life Building’s reign was only about five years long..
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Copyright © 2018 Paula Bosse. All Rights Reserved.
My father first worked in the Magnolia Bldg with Pegasus on top in 1950 after he graduated from SMU on the GI bill after WWII. Then he worked in the Mercantile Bldg, and I seem to remember the windows would open (13th floor). Finally, he worked in the Southland Life Bldg, and they would tie a weight to the ceiling to watch it sway when the wind would be strong. They would also watch cars wreck out on the freeway below when ice coated the roadways. Ports o’Call restaurant on top of the Southland had the best food and best view from the Ladies’ Restroom, floor to ceiling windows.
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Floor-to-ceiling windows in the ladies restroom!
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And my parents enjoyed Silver Star Service at Republic National Bank!
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You’ve got all the bases covered here!
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