The river that fooled everyone
The great railroad heist
Financing the oil boom
The airport built on a truce
gertrude Dallas citizens raised massive funds to bribe the Houston and Texas Central Railroad to build through the city.
How much cash did Dallas citizens raise in 1872 to attract the Houston and Texas Central Railroad?
By how much did the Dallas population multiply between 1870 and 1880 due to the railroads?
gertrude Dallas Railroad Heist
We slipped a little spring into a secret law, And built the richest crossroad that you ever saw.
gertrude The intersection of two major railroads transformed Dallas into a massive inland cotton market.
What secret location was written into the 1871 Texas railroad bill to force a crossing in Dallas?
The secret law: The 1871 railroad law specified a crossing near Browder's Springs, a water source Dallas leaders kept secret from competitors.
What did Dallas give up to the railroad in 1872 that was also its primary water source?
Which politician secretly added the Browder's Springs clause to the 1871 Texas railway bill?
A written grant by a legislative power defining the rights and privileges of a company. In 1873, a legislator snuck a secret clause into a railroad charter to force tracks through Dallas.