The Hall of State (originally the State of Texas Building) is a building in

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

Fair Park Fair Park is a recreational and educational complex in Dallas, Texas, United States, located immediately east of downtown. The area is registered as a Dallas Landmark and National Historic Landmark; many of the buildings were constructed for th ...

that commemorates the history of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

and is considered one of the best examples of

Art Deco architecture Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the United ...

in the state. It was designed and built for the

Texas Centennial Exposition The Texas Centennial Exposition was a world's fair presented from June 6 to November 29, 1936, at Fair Park, Dallas, Texas. A celebration of the 100th anniversary of Texas's independence from Mexico in 1836, it also celebrated Texas and Western Am ...

History

Built in 1936 at the astronomical (especially during the Great Depression) price of $1.2 million, the building was the most expensive per unit area of any structure built in Texas. It was designed for the centennial of the Republic of Texas by architect

Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme (April 7, 1931 – July 23, 1989) was an American short story writer and novelist known for his playful, postmodernist style of short fiction. Barthelme also worked as a newspaper reporter for the ''Houston Post'', was managing ...

in the beaux arts style and is considered one of the most representative examples of

art deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

architecture in Texas. According to documents from the Dallas Historical Society Centennial archives collection, John F. Livers designed and manufactured the majority of the Art Deco ornamental metalwork at his Livers Lighting and Bronze Company in Kansas City, Missouri, including the light fixtures. The Hall of State is the culmination of the long Esplanade of State which is flanked by six exhibition pavilions and features a long

reflecting pool A reflecting pool, also called a reflection pool, is a water feature found in gardens, parks, and memorial sites. It usually consists of a shallow pool of water, undisturbed by fountain jets, for a reflective surface. Design Reflecting pools are ...

. It was built using Texas

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

and features memorials to many of the heroes of Texas history.

Current

The Dallas Historical Society has been responsible for managing the Hall of State since 1938. The Hall of State is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

as a part of

. In 1986, the building was restored at a cost of approximately $1.5 million, and the G.B. Dealey Library was opened. The G.B. Dealey Library, located in the

East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that comprises most of 41 counties. It is primarily divided into Northeast and Southeast Texas. Most of the region cons ...

room of the Hall of State, holds more than ten thousand bound volumes and three million historic documents, including Sam Houston's handwritten account of the

battle of San Jacinto The Battle of San Jacinto ( es, Batalla de San Jacinto), fought on April 21, 1836, in present-day La Porte and Pasadena, Texas, was the final and decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. Led by General Samuel Houston, the Texan Army engage ...

. The Dallas Historical Society rents the Hall of State for events and provides guided tours to school groups. The structure became a

Recorded Texas Historic Landmark Recorded Texas Historic Landmark (RTHL) is a designation awarded by the Texas Historical Commission for historically and architecturally significant properties in the U.S. state of Texas. RTHL is a legal designation and the highest honor the st ...

in 1981.

The American Museum of the Miniature Arts The American Museum of the Miniature Arts was a non-profit museum in Dallas, Texas (USA) that focused on miniature art. Much of the museum's collection was previously on display in the Sharp Gallery at the Hall of State at Fair Park Fair Park i ...

is currently located at the Hall of State.

Architecture

The curved

exedra An exedra (plural: exedras or exedrae) is a semicircular architectural recess or platform, sometimes crowned by a semi-dome, and either set into a building's façade or free-standing. The original Greek sense (''ἐξέδρα'', a seat out of d ...

at the entrance to the Hall of Texas features tall limestone pillars sit in front of blue tiles designed to evoke the state's flower, the bluebonnet (''

Lupinus texensis ''Lupinus texensis'', the Texas bluebonnet or Texas lupine is a species of lupine found in Texas, and the Mexican states of Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas. With other related species of lupines also called bluebonnets, it is the state ...

''). In the center, above the entrance is an bronze with gold leaf statue by Allie TennantHendricks, Patricia D. and Becky Duval Reese, A Century of Sculpture in Texas: 1889-1989, University of Texas, Austin, 1989 p. 45 of the "Tejas Warrior": an

archer Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

holds high a bow without an arrow, meant to symbolize peace. Inside the Hall of State is the Hall of Heroes, which features six bronze statues of

James Fannin James Walker Fannin Jr. (1804 or 1805 – March 27, 1836) was an American military figure and slave trader in the Texas Army and leader during the Texas Revolution (1835-1836) against Mexico. After being outnumbered and surrendering to Mexi ...

Mirabeau B. Lamar Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar (August 16, 1798 – December 25, 1859) was an Lawyer, attorney born in Georgia, who became a Texas politician, poet, diplomat, and soldier. He was a leading Texas political figure during the Republic of Texas, Texas ...

Stephen F. Austin Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836) was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas" and the founder of Anglo Texas,Hatch (1999), p. 43. he led the second and, ultimately, the successful colonization ...

, Sam Houston,

Thomas Jefferson Rusk Thomas Jefferson Rusk (December 5, 1803July 29, 1857) was an early political and military leader of the Republic of Texas, serving as its first Secretary of War as well as a general at the Battle of San Jacinto. He was later a US politician and ...

and William B. Travis. There are also bronze plaques that commemorate the

Battle of the Alamo The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Anto ...

and the

Battle of San Jacinto The Battle of San Jacinto ( es, Batalla de San Jacinto), fought on April 21, 1836, in present-day La Porte and Pasadena, Texas, was the final and decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. Led by General Samuel Houston, the Texan Army engage ...

. Outside, a statue of

Robert L. Thornton Robert Lee Thornton Sr. (often R. L. Thornton; August 10, 1880 – February 15, 1964) was an American banker, civic leader, and four-term Mayor of Dallas, Texas. A child of tenant farmers, Thornton's early years were divided between school and f ...

, benefactor of the State Fair of Texas and former

Mayor of Dallas The Mayor of the City of Dallas is the head of the Dallas City Council. The current mayor is Eric Johnson, who has served one term since 2019 and is the 62nd mayor to serve the position. Dallas operates under a weak-mayor system, and a board-a ...

stands, overlooking the esplanade. On the exterior

frieze In architecture, the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Paterae are also usually used to decorate friezes. Even when neither columns nor ...

, the Hall of State commemorates 60 prominent historical figures in Texas' history: *

Edward Burleson Edward Burleson (December 15, 1798 – December 26, 1851) was the third vice president of the Republic of Texas. After Texas was annexed to the United States, he served in the State Senate. Prior to his government service in Texas, he was a co ...

* Branch Tanner Archer *

* William B. Travis * James Stephen Hogg * Richard Ellis *

* Ben Milam *

David G. Burnet David Gouverneur Burnet (April 14, 1788 – December 5, 1870) was an early politician within the Republic of Texas, serving as interim President of Texas (1836 and again in 1841), Vice President of the Republic of Texas (1839–1841), and Se ...

* John Coffee "Jack" Hays * James Smith (Texas General) *

Albert Sidney Johnston Albert Sidney Johnston (February 2, 1803 – April 6, 1862) served as a general in three different armies: the Texian Army, the United States Army, and the Confederate States Army. He saw extensive combat during his 34-year military career, figh ...

* James Bonham * Davy Crockett * Sam Houston * J. Pinckney Henderson *

Oran M. Roberts Oran Milo Roberts (July 9, 1815May 19, 1898), was the 17th Governor of Texas from January 21, 1879, to January 16, 1883. He was a member of the Democratic Party. Roberts County, Texas, is named after him. Early life Roberts was born in Laure ...

Lorenzo de Zavala Manuel Lorenzo Justiniano de Zavala y Sanchez (October 3, 1788 - November 15, 1836), known simply as Lorenzo de Zavala, was a Mexican and later Tejano physician, politician, diplomat and author. Born in Yucatán under Spanish rule, he was clo ...

James Bowie James Bowie ( ) ( – March 6, 1836) was a 19th-century American pioneer, slave smuggler and trader, and soldier who played a prominent role in the Texas Revolution. He was among the Americans who died at the Battle of the Alamo. Stories of h ...

* John Reagan *

Anson Jones Anson Jones (January 20, 1798 – January 09, 1858) was a doctor, businessman, member of Congress, and the fourth and last President of the Republic of Texas. Early life Jones was born on January 20, 1798, in Great Barrington, Massach ...

Gail Borden Gail Borden Jr. (November 9, 1801 – January 11, 1874) was a native New Yorker who settled in Texas in 1829 (then still Mexico), where he worked as a land surveyor, newspaper publisher, and inventor. He created a process in 1853 to make sweet ...

* William H. Wharton * Peter Bell *

José Antonio Navarro José Antonio Navarro (February 27, 1795 – January 13, 1871) was a Texas statesman, revolutionary, rancher, and merchant. The son of Ángel Navarro and Josefa María Ruiz y Peña, he was born into a distinguished noble family at S ...

* Elisha M. Pease *

Samuel May Williams Samuel May Williams (October 4, 1795 – September 13, 1858) was an American businessman, politician, and close associate of Stephen F. Austin, who was an Anglo-American colonizer of Mexican Texas. As a teenager, Williams started working in ...

Ben McCulloch Brigadier-General Benjamin McCulloch (November 11, 1811 – March 7, 1862) was a soldier in the Texas Revolution, a Texas Ranger, a major-general in the Texas militia and thereafter a major in the United States Army (United States Volunteers) d ...

* James W. Robinson * Matthew Caldwell *

James Collinsworth James Thompson Collinsworth (1802 – July 11, 1838) was an American-born Texian lawyer and political figure in early history of the Republic of Texas. Early life Collinsworth was born in 1802 Davidson County, Tennessee. His father, Edward Co ...

* John Hemphill *

George Childress George Campbell Childress (January 8, 1804 – October 6, 1841) was a lawyer, politician, and a principal author of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Early life Childress was born on January 8, 1804, in Nashville, Tennessee, to John Camp ...

* Thomas Green * R.T. Wheeler * William B. Franklin * Henry Wax Karnes * Moseley Baker * Walter P. Lane *

Patrick Churchill Jack Patrick Churchill Jack (1808–August 4, 1844) was a justice of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Texas from 1841 to 1844. Patrick Churchill Jack was born in 1808 in Wilkes County, Georgia. His father, also named Patrick Jack, led a Georgia r ...

* Francisco Vásquez de Coronado * Alonso Alvarez de Pineda * Alonso de León * Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca * Hamilton Prieleaux Bee *

William Read Scurry William Read Scurry (February 10, 1821 – April 30, 1864) was a general in the Confederate States Army in the American Civil War. Biography Scurry was born in Gallatin, Tennessee. He moved to Texas in 1839 and became a lawyer and district a ...

* Memucan Hunt Jr * Frank Johnson *

Samuel Price Carson Samuel Price Carson (January 22, 1798 – November 2, 1838) was an American political leader and farmer in both North Carolina and Texas. He served as U.S. congressional representative from North Carolina. North Carolina He was born at Carso ...

Sidney Sherman Sidney Sherman (July 23, 1805 – August 1, 1873) was a Texian general and a key leader in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolution and afterwards. Early life Sherman was born in Marlboro, Massachusetts, a son of Michah and Susanna Dennison ...

* Abner Smith Lipscomb * George Washington Hockley * Henry Weidner Baylor *

Robert McAlpin Williamson Robert McAlpin Williamson (1804? – December 22, 1859) was a Republic of Texas Supreme Court Justice, state lawmaker and Texas Ranger. Williamson County, Texas is named for him. He is the first white person documented playing the banjo. Early ...

* Menefee (either William Menefee or John Menefee) * Thomas Jefferson Chambers * Isaac Van Zandt * Thomas S. Lubbock

References

External links

The Hall of State at Fair Park
{{NRHP in Texas Fair Park Landmarks in Dallas Art Deco architecture in Texas Buildings and structures completed in 1936 Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks Museums in Dallas World's fair architecture in Texas

History

Current

Architecture

See also

References

External links