The first African Americans in Oak Cliff were enslaved people brought by settlers such as William H. Hord in 1845 to work the land, and the neighborhood that developed there became known as the Tenth Street District, an important African American enclave within the historically white community of Oak Cliff. After the Civil War, Freedman's Town began to grow and thrive, and although records differ on when and how quickly African Americans settled there, by 1900 Oak Cliff had more than 500 African American residents, nearly one-sixth of the town's population. Segregation led to the development of a separate commercial district, and the community prospered, producing figures such as blues artist T-Bone Walker and Olympic gold medal decathlete Rafer Johnson. The community retained a strong African American heritage, but the construction of IH-35 east in 1955 and integration in the 1960s led to the demolition of around 175 original buildings and encouraged residents to seek opportunities elsewhere. Residential buildings in the district date from as early as 1910 and remain relatively unchanged. Within the heart of the district are Oak Cliff Cemetery, established in 1846 by settler William Beaty, near the 1928 N. W. Harllee School, while other significant sites include the 1886 Greater El Bethel Baptist Church and the 1889 Sunshine Elizabeth Chapel CME, which was demolished in 1999. Because so many historic buildings remain standing and in good repair, the Tenth Street area is one of the more well-preserved African American communities of its period remaining in the Dallas metropolitan area, and the Tenth Street Historic District was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1994 for its cultural significance and architectural value.

Photo: QuesterMark