Grand Prairie, Texas

This article is about the city in Texas. For the city in Alberta, Canada, see Grande Prairie, Alberta.

Grand Prairie, Texas
City
Main Street in Grand Prairie.
Nickname:  GP
Location of Grand Prairie in Dallas County, Texas
Country	United States
State	Texas
Counties	Dallas, Tarrant, Ellis
Government
• Mayor	Charles England
Area
• Total	81.5 sq mi (211.2 km2)
• Land	71.4 sq mi (184.9 km2)
• Water	10.1 sq mi (26.3 km2)
Elevation	515 ft (157 m)
Population  (2006)
• Total	153,812
• Density	2,154.2/sq mi (831.9/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP codes	75050-75054
Area code	972
FIPS code	48-30464Template:GR
GNIS feature ID	1336802Template:GR
Website	www.gptx.org

Grand Prairie is a city in Dallas, Ellis, and Tarrant Counties in the U.S. state of Texas and is a part of the Mid-Cities region in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. The population was 153,812 in 2006. Grand Prairie is one of the fastest growing cities in the United States.

History

• Incorporated as "Grand Prairie" in 1909, the community was first recognized as Dechman in 1863.
• From his home in Birdville, Alexander McRae Dechman learned he could trade his oxen and wagons for land in Dallas County. In 1863, he bought 239½ acres on the east side of the Trinity River and 100 acres (0.40 km²) of timber land on the west side of the river for a broken down wagon, oxen team and US$200 in Confederate money. He tried to establish a home on the property, but ran into difficulties, so returned his family to Birdville before joining the Civil War. In 1876 he filed a town plat consisting of 50 acres with Dallas County.
• After the war, he returned to Birdville for two years before selling that farm in 1867 and moving to Houston, where Yellow Fever broke out causing the family to settle in Bryan.
• In 1876, Dechman traded half his "prairie" property to T&P Railroad to ensure the railroad came through the town. The railroad named the depot "Dechman" prompting its namesake to relocate his home from Bryan to Dechman. His son Alexander had been living in Dechman and operating a trading post and farm.
• The first church in the area was the Good Hope Cumberland Sabbath School established in 1870 by Rev. Andrew Hayter. The church was later renamed West Fork United Presbytrian Church and remains an active church.
• The post office was opened in 1877 under the name "Deckman" rather than "Dechman" because the U.S. Post Office couldn't read the writing on the form completed to open the post office.
• The name of the town changed to Grand Prairie later in 1877. Legend has it that the town was renamed after a famous actress stepped off the train and exclaimed "My, what a grand prairie!" Dechman sold the remainder of his Grand Prairie land in 1890 and apparently moved to Waxahachie. He is buried in historic Greenwood Cemetery in Dallas.
• Grand Prairie incorporated as a city in 1909.

• Grand Prairie has a long history with the defense and aviation industry. While the present day Vought plant on Jefferson Ave is part of a small strip of the Dallas city line; it was originally in Grand Prairie. During WWII it was a North American Aviation plant that produced the P-51C and K Mustang variants. After the War, Vought Aircraft took over the plant. This later became Ling Temco Vought and then eventually returned to the Vought moniker. The plant was the production site for the F-8 Crusader and the A-7 Corsair II aircraft of the 1950-1989 time period. The Missile and Space division of LTV produced missiles such as the Scout and MLRS. This division was eventually sold to Lockheed Martin which continues to operate in Grand Prairie.

• For a period, Grand Prairie was the North American headquarters for Aérospatiale Helicopter. This company eventually became Eurocopter.

• Lion Country Safari - In the 1970s a drive through African Wildlife amusement park was built in Grand Prairie. While quite common in the US now, this was first in the region. As one would expect it allowed the visitor to drive through and see lions, hippos, and similar animals. It also featured wildlife shows. At one point, due to flood waters from the West Fork of the Trinity River, a number of animals escaped and caused quite a stir in the city. The facility is now closed.

Geography

Grand Prairie is located at 32°42′55″N 97°1′1″W (32.715266, -97.016864).Template:GR

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 81.5 square miles (211.2 km²), of which, 71.4 square miles (184.9 km²) of it is land and 10.1 square miles (26.3 km²) of it (12.44%) is water.

The West Fork of the Trinity River and a major tributary, Johnson Creek, flow through Grand Prairie.

Grand Prairie has a long history of flooding from Johnson Creek. In the 1990s a major Army Corps of Engineer project was started to straghten the channel which has reduced the damage of flooding.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 127,427 people, 43,791 households, and 32,317 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,784.6 people per square mile (689.1/km²). There were 46,425 housing units at an average density of 650.2/sq mi (251.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 62% White, 13.5% African American, 0.8% Native American, 4.42% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 15.90% from other races, and 3.34% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 33% of the population.

There were 43,791 households out of which 41.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.9% were married couples living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.2% were non-families. 20.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.90 and the average family size was 3.38.

In the city the population was spread out with 30.5% under the age of 18, 10.1% from 18 to 24, 34.1% from 25 to 44, 18.8% from 45 to 64, and 6.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $46,816, and the median income for a family was $51,449. Males had a median income of $35,300 versus $28,184 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,978. About 8.7% of families and 11.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.2% of those under age 18 and 10.4% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Public schools

Approximately 65% of Grand Prairie's K-12 student population attends schools in the Grand Prairie Independent School District. The remaining 35% of Grand Prairie's student population reside and therefore attend schools in the following districts in descending order: Arlington ISD, Mansfield ISD, Cedar Hill ISD, Irving ISD, and the Dallas ISD. Population dynamics indicate that it is plausible that by 2015, the majority of City of Grand Prairie residents will not reside in the Grand Prairie ISD. This is due to the rapid development and population growth of the city's population south of I-20 and west of Carrier parkway. Most of these areas of the City of Grand Prairie reside in the Arlington and Mansfield ISD attendance boundaries.

In Texas, school district boundaries do not always follow city and county boundaries because all aspects of the school district government apparatus, including school district boundaries, are separated from the city and county government.

Grand Prairie Independent School District

The high schools in the district are Grand Prairie High School Sucks and South Grand Prairie High School.

Arlington Independent School District

The Arlington ISD has the second highest portion of Grand Prairie's K-12 student population. 6 Arlington ISD Elementary schools are within the city limits of Grand Prairie. Grand Prairie residents in the Arlington ISD are located generally west of the Dallas-Tarrant County boundary and north of the intersection of Camp Wisdom and Lake Ridge in Southwest Grand Prairie. One of the Arlington High Schools, James Bowie High, has more Grand Prairie residents than Arlington residents that are students at the school.

Grand Prairie student/residents in the Arlington ISD will attend Bowie, Sam Houston, or Lamar High School in the Arlington ISD and their feeder elementary schools and junior high schools.

Mansfield Independent School District

The Mansfield ISD contains the third highest portion of the Grand Prairie's K-12 student population. Grand Prairie residents in the Mansfield ISD are located generally south of the intersection of Camp Wisdom and Lake Ridge and west of Joe Pool Lake to the Tarrant and Ellis County line in Southwest Grand Prairie. No Mansfield ISD schools are currently open within the city limits of Grand Prairie, but 2 elementary schools and 1 junior high school are planned to be built in these areas. The Mansfield ISD is the fastest growing ISD in Tarrant county and the growth in far southwest Grand Prairie is a major factor in the Mansfield ISD's subsequent growth.

Grand Prairie student/residents in the Mansfield ISD will attend Mansfield Timberview High School or Mansfield High School in the Mansfield ISD or their feeder elemetaries and junior highs. Timberview High School is located on State Highway 360 less than 100 yards from the Grand Prairie city line.

Other School Districts

Less than 10% of Grand Prairie residents reside in the Cedar Hill, Midlothian, Irving, and Dallas Independent School Districts. The number of Grand Prairie residents in the Cedar Hill ISD is expected to increase significantly over the next 10-20 years as suburban development spreads to these mostly undeveloped areas of Grand Prairie.

Infrastructure

Transportation

A water tower neighboring future SH 161.

Interstate highways 20 and 30 run east-west through the city, along with SH 303, SH 180, and SH 161, a future extension of the Dallas outerloop (President George Bush Turnpike). FM 1382 (Belt Line Road) begins from SH 180, crossing I-20 and eventually heading to Cedar Hill.

Attractions

• In 1997 Lone Star Park was opened, where each Memorial Day they hold the Thoroughbred meeting with seven stakes races worth just over $1 million.

• In 2000 GPX Skate Park, was opened up next to Lone Star Park, which hosted the 2001 and 2002 X-Games trials. They closed in 2005 and were later re-opened in June 2006 by the Grand Prairie Parks and Recreation committee.

• The state of the art Nokia Theatre at Grand Prairie, previously NextStage, is in Grand Prairie. Numerous concerts and other events are held here throughout the year.
• Prairie Lights, a two-mile (3 km) long seasonal display, featuring more than three million lights on more than 500 lighted displays. Santa’s elves, snowmen, reindeer, angels, penguins, stars, lollipops and the world’s longest tunnel of lights are just a few of the displays showcased during the 40-day event. The theme park also offers a unique out-of-car experience in Holiday Village mid-way through the drive with concessions, carousel rides, Santa’s Store for shopping and photos with Santa on Fri., Sat. and Sun. New in 2007, Holiday Magic by John Barrett’s Lightasmic and sponsored by Chesapeake Energy offers a unique “out of car” experience for those who want to walk through the 10-minute choreographed light show. Dates for 2007 are November 22 through December 31.

• In 1973 Traders Village was opened off of State Highway 360 and it boasts as the largest Flea Market in Texas where it opens on weekends from 8 A.M. until Dusk. There is also special events held at Traders Village on certain weekends. Those events include Chili Cookoff, auto swap-meet, etc.

• The AirHogs minor league baseball team and their stadium, Quiktrip Park were established in Grand Prairie in May 2007 and started play in May 2008.

External links

• City of Grand Prairie (official website)