Arlington Historical Society: Connecting Past, Present, & Future
The Arlington Historical Society is a trustee of Arlington's historical legacy and an advocate for understanding Arlington's past. The Society was created August 27, 1887, as the Cemetery Society, with a mission to preserve the local historic cemeteries.
Today, our mission is to preserve Arlington's historic sites and structures, documents, photographs, and artifacts, and to provide educational programs focusing on history. This dual mission of preservation and education serves citizens of all ages and encourages and supports historical preservation and education efforts throughout the state.
We maintain the Historic Fielder House, the Knapp Heritage Park, and the Arlington Heritage Memorial Grounds (comprising three independently established cemeteries that, combined, serve as a monument to the history of Arlington and Tarrant County).
Arlington's history is complex, its identity evolving over almost two centuries. It has been a frontier outpost, an agricultural center, a site of Indian battles, and a mecca for horse racing and gambling. It was once famed for its mineral waters. It has long been a college town (it has three colleges), and it hosts major industrial entities such as the Arlington General Motors Assembly Plant. Today, Arlington is the home of Major League sports and world-class amusement destinations, but it also has a high tech component that includes a nanotechnology incubator designed to introduce leading edge university research into the world of commerce.
And the stories of how we got from there to here are quite compelling. Arlington's history is deeply intertwined with that of the major metropolitan areas that surround it. Quite literally, Arlington is the birthplace of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
We believe history should be tangible, engaging, and accessible to everyone, young and old. The past is present... if you know where to look. Can we tell you a story?
