Garland TX

Residents and visitors enjoy first-class cultural, entertainment and recreational venues, including the Granville Arts Center, the Nicholson Memorial Library System, and the city’s award-winning Parks and Recreation Department.  

Garland is a suburb 15 miles northeast of Dallas with a population of nearly 225,000, making it the tenth-most populous city in Texas. Garland is within a short drive away from most major Metroplex attractions. CNN and Money Magazine placed Garland at 67 on their list of the Top 100 Places to Live, citing the city’s comfortable, hometown feel in the midst of a thriving metropolitan area.  Garland also features the Garland Special Events Center, an arena and conference center with a ballroom, and Firewheel Town Center, an outdoor mall with more than 100 businesses. In the summer months, residents and visitors cool off at Hawaiian Falls waterpark.

Before Texas attained statehood in 1846, the Garland area was part of the vast Peters Colony. Settlers began arriving about 1850, and early pioneers found the black soil ideal for growing cotton. Garland, which grew out of the combined towns of Duck Creek and Embree, was formally established in 1891. The acres and acres of native wildflowers that once enchanted early pioneers still draw the admiration of visitors every spring.

Fire wiped out Garland’s business district three times, but in the late 1930s, businesses began moving back into Garland, including the Craddock Food Co. which manufactured pickles, and the Byer-Rolnick hat factory, later purchased by the Resistol hat company. In 1937 a tower for Dallas’ KRLD radio was constructed in Garland which is still in operation. During World War II several aircraft plants operated in the Garland area, and after the war, Kraft Foods bought the Continental Motors Plant. During the 1940s, Garland was a major onion-shipping point because of its proximity to two major railroads.

By 1990, Garland had 57 schools, two hospitals, 130 churches, 70 parks, three golf courses, nine public swimming pools, and 327 restaurants. The city’s 63-hole championship golf facility, Firewheel Golf Park, The Landmark Museum which showcases the history of Garland, and annual Oktoberfest celebration attract visitors from all over North Texas. Residents and visitors also enjoy performances by the Garland Civic Chorus, Ballet Classique, Texas Baroque Ensemble.

www.ci.garland.tx.us
www.garlandchamber.com