The Burning of Downtown Dallas, July 8, 1860

“On Sunday afternoon, July 8, 1860, at about two o’clock, a fire started in some rubbish on the outside of the store of Messrs. W. W. Peak and Brothers in Dallas. The flames spread rapidly and
in less than two hours every building on the western and northern sides of the square was destroyed, together with nearly all their contents. Both of the town’s hotels, and the printing establishment in of the DallasHerald, and every store in town were consumed. About one half of the buildings on the eastern side of the square were also burned. The total loss was estimated at $400,000 with only $10,000 of that value insured.”¹

¹Northern Standard ( Clarksville, Texas), July 14, 1860; New Orleans Daily Crescent, July 24, 1860, quoting the Austin Southern Intelligencer, July 18, 1860.

1. Townsfolk talk about two suspicious characters spotted outside of Dallas. You investigate.
   
   
2. You lay low for the afternoon, talk with local people about the fire, and read an Austin paper brought in by a traveler.