Grand Prairie

Sister cities

• Kalush

History

The city of Grand Prairie was first established as Dechman by Alexander McRae Dechman in 1863. He based the name of the town on Big Prairie, Ohio. Prior to then, he resided in Young County near Fort Belknap. The 1860 U.S. Federal Census—Slave Schedules shows an A McR Dechman as having four slaves, ages 50, 25, 37 and 10. Dechman learned that he could trade his oxen and wagons for land in Dallas County. In 1863, Dechman bought of land on the eastern side of the Trinity River and 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 he returned to his family in Birdville before joining in the Civil War. In 1867, Dechman filed a town plat with Dallas County, consisting of . After the war, Dechman 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 the 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 Presbyterian Church and remains an active church. The first U.S. post office opened in 1877 under the name "Deckman" rather than "Dechman", because the U.S. Postal Service could not read the writing on the form completed to open the post office. Later that same year, after the Postal Service had adopted the "Deckman" name,…

Geography

Grand Prairie is located along the border between Tarrant and Dallas counties, with a small portion extending south into Ellis County. The city is bordered by Dallas to the east, Cedar Hill and Midlothian to the southeast, Mansfield to the southwest, Arlington to the west, Fort Worth to the northwest, and Irving to the north. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and , or 11.08%, 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 1980s, a major Army Corps of Engineers project was begun to straighten the channel, which has reduced the damage of flooding. Grand Prairie is part of the humid subtropical region.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• DUNCANVILLE H S
  High · DUNCANVILLE · 4,501 students · 19.7:1 ratio
• SOUTH GRAND PRAIRIE H S
  High · GRAND PRAIRIE · 3,351 students · 16.2:1 ratio
• GRAND PRAIRIE H S
  High · GRAND PRAIRIE · 3,001 students · 15.4:1 ratio
• NIMITZ H S
  High · IRVING · 2,361 students · 14.4:1 ratio
• CEDAR HILL H S
  High · CEDAR HILL · 2,197 students · 16.4:1 ratio
• MOISES E MOLINA H S
  High · DALLAS · 2,074 students · 16.3:1 ratio
• JOHN A DUBISKI CAREER H S
  High · GRAND PRAIRIE · 1,488 students · 15:1 ratio
• VILLAGE TECH SCHOOLS
  Other · DUNCANVILLE · 1,316 students · 17.1:1 ratio