Irving Community Lantern Slide Collection

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This series of photos was taken by the Dallas County government as part of a county-wide study in 1925. The purpose of the study is no longer known.

During the early 1970s, the county offered the original glass slides to the subject cities. The city of Irving took possession of the images related to the Irving community.

The original images are on 3¼″ by 4″ glass slides. Prints were made from the slides, and those prints were scanned to create these electronic images.

In 1925, the city of Irving did not encompass much more than the original 80 acres of land on which the town was founded. The surrounding area was made up of many small farming communities such as: Kit, Twin Wells, and Union Bower to the east; Shady Grove, Sowers, Bear Creek, and Estelle to the west; and Elm and Hackberry to the north.

The population of Irving in the 1920 census was 357, but there were about two thousand people living on farms within a five-mile radius of the city. All of these small communities, except for Shady Grove, were eventually annexed by the city of Irving. Today the city covers 69 square miles.

Each glass slide has the original label attached to it. The labels are often vague, and, in some cases, have proven to be incorrect. Further information, and any corrections, come under the description portion of the individual image pages.

View the Irving Community Lantern Gallery | View the PDF