Photo courtesy of the Dallas Municipal Archive

Meet Jacob and Anna Hinterman Buhrer, Swiss immigrants who settled on White Rock Creek in the 1880s. The family first lived in the area that is now Junius and Gaston. Jacob acquired land and 12 milk cows but quickly realized that the area was not viable for cattle grazing, so he moved the family to a meadow with water and good drainage and constructed a house and barn. Jacob purchased 350 acres. In 1890, a white, two-story home sat atop a hill on their property. Here’s the rest of the story behind this lesser-known pioneer family. (More)

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THE BACK STORY
Fair food: The first Black concessionnaire opened at the State Fair of Texas in 1964, three years after the fair was desegregated. Little Bob’s BBQ was the only Black-owned food vendor at the fair until the early 1980s. Now, about half are. (More)

Custom cars: Is it weird that we’re sad to miss the car show at the State Fair of Texas, of all things? “Let’s take a look at the action and some of the wild colors” at the 1971 Autorama car show. (More)

😍😍😍 Just look at 1974 Roger Staubach talking to a reporter during practice in Dallas, before the Cowboys moved to Valley Ranch. (More)

 

DEEP ELLUM BLUES

Progressive country: Could a band like the Old 97’s exist without Ray Wylie Hubbard? The Texas singer/songwriter grew up in Dallas and made the progressive country scene alongside Willie Nelson and them. Here is Hubbard performing “Up Against the Wall Redneck Mother” in 1975 Dallas. (More)

Speaking of Willie: Did you know that he recorded one of his best-known albums, “Red Headed Stranger,” in a suburban Dallas studio? The history of country music in Dallas runs deep, from Jimmie Rodgers to Merle Haggard and Charley Crockett. (More)

Listen: Here is a playlist of country songs related to Dallas. (More)


Welcome back to the future. Retro Advocate features archived stories and history about the culture and heritage that define our neighborhood. Do you have old photos of Dallas? We would love to see them!  The history of Dallas is your story, too. You’ll be seeing Retro Advocate every Friday. Now, step into our time machine.