Dallas

Geography: Approximately three miles north of the City of Gastonia. lies within the Long Creek watershed. Long Creek is a right tributary of the South Fork Catawba River.

History: The community was named for Vice President George Dallas under James K. Polk.

Dallas was officially incorporated in 1863 and is the oldest incorporated town in Gaston County. It served as the original county seat for Gaston County from 1846 until 1911. The old Gaston County courthouse, renovated in 1868 after a fire, still stands in the main square of the town and serves as the Dallas Police Department.

Dallas began to decline in importance when the town commissioners refused to appropriate money for construction of bridges over several creeks for theAtlanta and Richmond Air-Line Railway in the 1872. The commissioners said the reason was because residents thought that trains would wake them during the night and frighten their livestock. After this the county seat was relocated to Gastonia in 1911.

The Dallas Historic District, bounded by Holland, Main, Gaston and Trade Streets, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The District consists of eight buildings, including the former Gaston County Courthouse (built in 1848), former Gaston County Jail (1848), the Smyre-Pasour House (1850), Rhyne Store (1850), and the Hoffman Hotel (1852). The Hoffman Hotel is now home to the Gaston County Museum.

What To Do/Where To Go: North Gaston High School in Dallas was the location for filming of the 1999 movie Carrie 2.

Biggerstaff Park in Dallas will be the location for the 2008 "Shelby Hamfest", a gathering of amateur radio operators. This is one of the oldest and largest such festivals in the country.

Tony's Ice Cream Gaston County Park, Applecreek Golf Course