Irving, Texas

Everything Irving is known for

2 songs mention this city 9 artists from here

Music in Irving

Songs About Irving

Introduction / Washington Irving Song
Bryce Pinkham
80%
"Song about Irving"
Michael Irvin
Westside Gunn
51%
"In an Irving, Texas motel room"

Artists From Irving

P
Play‐N‐Skillz
hip-hop Pop: 54
T
Terror Universal
metal Pop: 41
P
Point Blank
rock Pop: 36
C
Calah Lane
pop Pop: 30
D
David Garza
latin Pop: 29
B
Brian McBride
electronic Pop: 28
T
The Esquires
rock Pop: 27
N
Nobody’s Children
rock Pop: 21
D
David Garza (musician)
latin Pop: 18

Rivers & Roads in Song near Irving

Songs written about the waterways and highways that run near Irving.

Trinity River 8 songs Interstate 45 2 songs Interstate 20 10 songs Texas State Highway 199 8 songs Interstate 35 27 songs Chisholm Trail 4 songs

History of Irving

The Trinity River Massacre RoadyGoat

1971

On the night of February 15, 1971, five law-enforcement officers were ambushed and most of them killed in the Trinity River bottoms near the Westmoreland bridge in West Dallas, in what became known as the Trinity River Massacre -- one of the deadliest attacks on law enforcement in the city's history. Ellis County deputies had come to Dallas to serve a burglary warrant on Ingersoll Road, aided by a Spanish-speaking Dallas County deputy. Two suspects pulled guns and tied up the deputies; two more deputies who arrived were also taken captive. The suspects drove all five to the Trinity River bottoms near Westmoreland Road. One deputy, McCurley, escaped to get help, but the four others were shot and only one survived. The killings touched off one of the largest manhunts the state had seen, and the suspects were arrested four days later in a raid on an East Dallas apartment. Both were convicted; their death sentences were later commuted to life. Few markers note the site today -- the deputies' names appear on a fallen-officer memorial at Founders Plaza downtown.

4.3 mi away

Farmers Branch, TX RoadyGoat

Farmers Branch wasn't always the peaceful suburb it is today, though that sense of community has been here from the start. Back in 1842, folks were drawn to this area by the promise of rich, fertile soil. The land along Farmers Branch Creek was ideal for farming, and that's exactly what they did. Imagine those early settlers, working the land, building their lives from scratch, drawn to this specific spot within the vast Trinity River watershed. A replica of that first log cabin schoolhouse stands as a reminder of their commitment to building a future here, generation by generation. The town's location eventually proved just as important as its soil. Lying right along what became the Dallas-Fort Worth Turnpike, Farmers Branch was strategically placed for growth. That early road, connecting two burgeoning cities, brought trade, travelers, and new opportunities. Even today, with many residents working in professional and technical fields, that spirit of hard work and neighborly connection echoes back to those first families who saw the potential in this little patch of Texas, 463 feet above sea level.

8.4 mi away

Farmers Branch, TX RoadyGoat

Farmers Branch started as a small, tight-knit community, named for the rich soil that lined Farmers Branch Creek. Imagine those early settlers in 1842, drawn to this fertile land within the Trinity River watershed, building their lives from the ground up. A replica of their original log cabin schoolhouse still stands, a tangible reminder of their commitment to education and a hopeful future. For years, it remained a quiet agricultural hub. But everything changed with the Dallas-Fort Worth Turnpike. Suddenly, Farmers Branch wasn't so isolated anymore. Its strategic location transformed it from a rural farming community into a bustling suburb, a convenient place to live and work. Today, you're more likely to find residents employed in professional and technical fields than tending crops. While it maintains its peaceful suburban vibe with well-kept parks, there are echoes of the bigger world nearby. The roar of the crowd at the Cotton Bowl during the 1994 FIFA World Cup wasn't far away, and the Dallas Stars' Stanley Cup victory in 1999 brought a taste of championship glory to the area.

8.4 mi away

Texas Stadium Site - America's Team

1971

Texas Stadium in Irving served as home to the Dallas Cowboys from 1971 to 2008. Its distinctive partial roof and the Cowboys' five Super Bowl wins made it an icon of American sports culture.

Site of the Dr. D. W. Gilbert Homestead

1874

Site of the Dr. D. W. Gilbert Homestead Mississippi native Daniel Webster "D.W." Gilbert (1854-1930) was one of three brothers who became Texas doctors. At age 20, he joined his brother, Franklin Monroe Gilbert, in Grapevine and began to study medicine under him. In 1879, he enrolled at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, graduating in 1881 with a medical degree. Returning to Texas, D.W. wed Marietta Boardman in 1882. In 1886, then a widower with one son, D.W. married Fannie Trigg Roberts, a widow who also had one son. They later lived near this site in a large house he had built on a hill. The couple had nine other children; four of the boys became doctors. From a small office he built on a corner of this land, Dr. Gilbert served his patients in the surrounding communities. He later purchased additional land and raised livestock, farmed, planted a peach orchard and operated the Gilbert Dairy, utilizing progressive farming methods. Later, he moved his office to Sowers, where he also operated a drugstore, mixing medicines and training others to become pharmacists. When the town of Irving was laid out in 1903, Dr. Gilbert moved his office to a space near the local bank, which he helped organize. He later moved his office to the second story of the bank building. Dr. Gilbert continued to practice medicine in Irving until his death in 1930. Fannie Gilbert lived on the farmstead until she passed away in 1942. The home remained near this site until the 1950s, when it was demolished. Dr. Gilbert was one of the most influential early citizens in and around Irving. He is remembered for his compassion, generosity and tireless commitment to helping others.																(2004)

Historical Marker →

Bear Creek Community

1850

Settlers began arriving in this area, once a part of Robertson’s Colony, in the 1850s. Early families included the Casters, Borahs, Sowers and Haleys. Following the Civil War, freedmen moved to the area, and friends and families once separated by slavery were reconnected. Jim Green, the first African American landowner in what became known as the Bear Creek community, bought his acreage in 1878. Others soon followed: Jim Chivers, Ben and Rose Dilworth, Alex King, Elizabeth Lawson, Collins and Rachel Patton, D.W. Ellison (Ellerson), Sam Sweat, the Trigg family and Minnie Shelton (Sheldon), who later donated land for Shelton’s Bear Creek Cemetery. 	These families organized the Shady Grove Christian Methodist Episcopal Church in 1884, erecting a one-room church and school building on land donated by Jim Green. The congregation, which built a larger structure in 1897, continued to grow and worship together throughout the 20th century. 	The Bear Creek community school, known as Freedom School, began as a private education facility. The students later transferred to Grand Prairie’s Dal Worth School, which became County Colored School No. 2. It, along with schools from the Sowers community, were annexed to the Irving Independent School District in 1955. Early teachers in the Bear Creek settlement included Josie Davis and Earlie Mae Wheeler. 	Approximately 150 years after the first settlers came to the area, the once rural Bear Creek settlement is experiencing rapid growth from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and related highway and airport expansion. Shelton’s Bear Creek Cemetery is one of few links to the settlement and the lives of the families who contributed over the years to the community.	(2004)

Historical Marker → · 3.1 mi away

Irving, TX

1902

The City of Irving is located on State Highways 183 and 114 in western Dallas County (32.81351° N, -96.9555° E). This area of western Dallas County, about 12 miles west of the city of Dallas, saw farming communities begin to grow during the 1850s. Among these communities, spread throughout the area between the Elm and the West Forks of the Trinity River, were Kit, Sowers, Twin Wells, Union Bower, Bear Creek and Estelle, all of which would one day be annexed by the city of Irving. O. Schulze and Otis Brown came to this area as members of a survey crew for the Chicago, Rock Island and Gulf Railway in the fall of 1902. While surveying a 10-mile stretch of land between Dallas and Fort Worth, the two young men decided to establish a town along the proposed rail route. They purchased 80 acres of land from local rancher Henry Britain on which to begin their town. They held a lot auction that launched the town on December 19, 1903. Irving residents voted to incorporate in 1914 and elected their first mayor and city commission at that time. For its first forty years Irving was a small farm town where farmers grew fruit and vegetables on small farms known as truck farms. Dairy farming and raising poultry were also local occupations during the first half of the 20th century. The town grew slowly. Irving's population in 1920 was 357. In 1950 it was only a modest 2,615. Beginning in the 1950s Irving transformed into a suburban community as the farmland was bought up by home developers looking to fill a post- World War II housing shortage. Irving's proximity to Dallas made it a prime location to undergo suburbanization. Irving's population exploded to 45,895 in 1960 and then more than doubled to 100,996 by 1970. In 1963 the city had 730 businesses, seventy churches, sixteen public schools, three banks, and two hospitals. Manufacturing plants produced paint, cement blocks, aluminum products, millwork, roofing, chemical supplies, petroleum, and electronic components. In 1964 the world's largest trucking terminal was built in Irving. By the end of the 1970s the number of businesses was close to 2,000. The University of Dallas in Irving was founded in 1956, and the North Lake campus of Dallas Community College opened in 1977. In 1971 the Dallas Cowboys football team began playing their home games at Texas Stadium in Irving, bringing the city its first national recognition. The team played its last game at Texas Stadium in 2008 and the stadium was imploded in 2010. During the 1970s, Dallas-Fort Worth Airport was developed along the western edge of the city and Las Colinas, a planned residential and business community, was begun on its north side. A combination of the two remade the city. As of 2024 Irving had an estimated population of 256,000 residents. The city has a strong council-manager form of government , where an elected mayor and city council appoint the city manager. Today Irving is a multi-racial, multi-cultural city that is home to 8,500 businesses. Ten Fortune 500 companies make their global headquarters in Irving.

Tsha Handbook → · 3.3 mi away

Cistercian Fathers

1958

Our Lady of Dallas Abbey, the home of the Cistercians in Texas, is located in Irving off Highway 114, near Texas Stadium, Las Colinas, and the University of Dallas. It comprises thirty-six acres dotted with elevations and mesquite trees, and its brick buildings exhibit both modern and traditional architectural features. Its chapel, built in the early 1990s, is a massive limestone building with no veneers and few modern features; according to one critic, "the Cistercian church evokes 900 years of history, scholarship and prayer." The members of the community dedicate themselves exclusively to the love of God and the service of their fellow men. To be undivided in their loyalties they renounce marriage and individual ownership and subordinate their wills to the higher ideals of their institution. They belong to the world-wide Cistercian order, hence are called Cistercians. The name derives from Citeaux (in Latin, Cistercium ), their parent abbey in Burgundy, founded as a reform branch of the Benedictine order in 1098. The Cistercians, who adopted the white habit and black scapular, quickly spread over all of Europe and influenced medieval life in numerous ways. Their constitutional document, the Charter of Charity , is said to have inspired parliamentary government. The Cistercians in Irving came from the abbey of Zirc in western Hungary, founded in 1182. Upon higher request, Zirc, cloistered at first, accepted full educational and teaching responsibilities in the latter part of the eighteenth century. Afterward the monk-priests also acquired academic degrees in the liberal arts and taught in one of the five modern college preparatory schools of the abbey. They trained generations of prominent public figures and intellectual leaders. Hungarian monks living in the United States after the Communist takeover were invited by Bishop Thomas Gorman to the Diocese of Dallas-Fort Worth. They moved into their own monastery, built on the campus of the University of Dallas, in 1958. Five years later their priory was raised to the status of an abbey. Since then, buildings have multiplied on their grounds, and American vocations have increased their ranks. The Irving Cistercians follow a rigorous daily schedule. Their communal prayer life includes the recitation of the monastic office, made up largely of psalms, and on Sundays they also chant traditional Gregorian melodies. As teachers, they staff their own Cistercian Preparatory School for boys grades five through twelve, built on their premises in 1963, or serve as teachers or administrators at the University of Dallas. They carry out their priestly ministry in the abbey, as well as in parishes, convents, and military bases of the metropolitan area. Individually, the monks are well-versed in languages and have earned advanced degrees in the classics, modern languages, science, history, music, philosophy, and theology. Some have published scholarly books and articles, given talks on a variety of subjects, or cultivated the fine arts on a highly professional level. Thus one can see attractive sculptures, paintings, ceramics, and prints all over the monastery. Collectively, the Cistercians contribute their spirituality, achievements, and cosmopolitan enthusiasm to the culture of North Texas.

Tsha Handbook → · 3.3 mi away

Las Colinas, TX

1973

Las Colinas is a commercial and residential community on State Highway 183, Interstate highways 35E and 635, and Belt Line Road within the city of Irving and ten miles northwest of Dallas in western Dallas County. It is southeast of the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport . At the center of Las Colinas is Lake Carolyn; the community also includes the University of Dallas, North Lake Community College, Las Colinas Country Club, Texas Stadium, and the Trinity River Greenbelt Park. The site was settled during the late 1800s, and by the early 1900s a number of small towns, including Kit, Sowers, Finley, and Irving, were in the vicinity. In 1928 John W. Carpenter , father of the founder of Las Colinas, Ben Carpenter, established a ranch in the area; by 1959 the ranch, originally called Hackberry Creek Ranch, had grown to 6,000 acres. The ranch was renamed El Ranchito de Las Colinas (the little ranch of the hills) and was managed by John Carpenter's son Ben and Dan C. Williams. In the late 1960s the westward growth of Dallas prompted the men to develop the ranch as a residential area, but after plans for the D-FW Airport were revealed, Carpenter and Williams began developing a master-planned commercial and residential community. The project was to take some twenty years to complete and would originally encompass about 7,000 acres, 3,450 of which would be used for recreational and educational facilities and Lake Carolyn, a 125-acre man-made lake. The remaining acreage would include numerous business parks built around a public transportation system that would include the Mandalay Canal (a series of canals and water taxis) and the Area Personal Transit system (a system of elevated tracks and passenger vehicles that would serve 1,000 acres of Las Colinas). The community would also have residences for 50,000 people; the residences would be developed so as to preserve the natural setting. The development of Las Colinas was announced on September 14, 1973, as a joint venture of Southland Financial Corporation (represented by corporate president Ben H. Carpenter and chairman Dan C. Williams) and its subsidiary, the Las Colinas Corporation (represented by chairman Wayne Hurd and president Ernest O. Perry). At the date of the announcement the Las Colinas Country Club had already been completed and two residential areas were under construction. University Hills Village was next to the country club, and Northgate Village was at the southern end of the community. Additional acreage had already been donated for the University of Dallas and for a park on the nearby Elm Fork of the Trinity River. The Dallas County Community College system had also secured a section of land in the community for North Lake College. Construction on the infrastructure began along State Highway 114 (the John W. Carpenter Freeway), and Allstate Insurance Company, the first corporation to settle in Las Colinas, bought a section of land in the site for its new regional office building. In the next two years Las Colinas developed slowly because of a poor economy, but by 1975, 627 acres had been fully developed and two business parks had also been completed. In 1976 the Associates Corporation of North America moved its national headquarters to Las Colinas, and American Honda Corporation moved its regional headquarters there. Around 1977 the Las Colinas National Bank was chartered, and the world headquarters of Sunmark Exploration Company was established there. In 1978 the national headquarters of the Boy Scouts of America was moved to Las Colinas; both General Telephone and Electronics Corporation and General Motors Corporation established new headquarters in the community. Warehouse and distribution space was established at Las Colinas for Pioneer Electronics, Panasonic Company, and Super Valu stores. By April 1978, 831 apartments had been completed and 417 were under construction, and 1,807 homes had been completed and eighty-two were under construction. The number of

Tsha Handbook → · 3.3 mi away

Things to Do in Irving

historical 8.5 mi away
The Sixth Floor Museum

Where Lee Harvey Oswald fired from. The JFK assassination site at Dealey Plaza.
historical 8.5 mi away
Dealey Plaza

On November 22 1963 President John F Kennedy rode through Dealey Plaza in an open Lincoln convertible and was shot from the sixth floor window of the Texas…
quirky 11.2 mi away
Big Tex at the State Fair

A fifty-five-foot cowboy named Big Tex has welcomed visitors to the State Fair of Texas in Fair Park Dallas every fall since 1952. He booms howdy folks over a…
food 22.7 mi away
Joe T. Garcia's

Joe T opened his little family restaurant behind the packing plant in the Fort Worth Stockyards in 1935. There was no menu. His wife Jessie served whatever she…
historical 23.1 mi away
Fort Worth Stockyards

Daily cattle drives down the street. Honky-tonks and rodeos in the old West.
historical 23.2 mi away
Billy Bob's Texas

Billy Bob's opened in 1981 in an old cattle barn in the Fort Worth Stockyards and at one hundred twenty-seven thousand square feet it is the largest honky-tonk…
food 9.7 mi away
Pecan Lodge

Dallas' best BBQ. The beef rib alone is worth the drive.
spooky 13.1 mi away
Lady of White Rock Lake

Since the 1930s drivers along White Rock Lake report picking up a soaking-wet woman in a white dress. She asks for a ride home then vanishes leaving the seat…

Everything Near Irving

1328 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.

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