Pioneer Plaza, Dallas (must see)

Pioneer Plaza was created as a tribute to the cattle drives that once passed through Dallas along the Shawnee Trail. Dedicated in the mid-1990s, the 4.2-acre plaza was developed by the Texas Trees Foundation and today, it is considered the largest public open space in the city’s central business district.

The main attraction is the Cattle Drive, a bronze sculpture group by Robert Summers of Glen Rose, Texas. The sculpture group stretches through the plaza between Young Street and Griffin Street, just north of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. The installation features 49 larger-than-life Texas longhorn steers being driven by three mounted cowboys across a recreated trail landscape. Native plants, man-made limestone cliffs, a flowing stream, and a waterfall give the scene a natural setting. Rather than standing in a rigid line, the cattle appear to move through the plaza, turning, pushing forward, and spreading across the terrain as if caught mid-drive.

For visitors, the plaza is especially appealing because the sculptures can be viewed up close. You can walk among the herd and notice the individual details worked into each bronze animal, from the curve of the horns to the expressions, hides, and hooves. At the northwest corner of the plaza, near Young Street and Griffin Street, stands the Dallas Police Memorial, designed by architect Jesús Bautista Moroles. Dedicated in 2001, it honors Dallas police officers who died in the line of duty, adding a more solemn civic element to the park’s western side.

Directly east of the plaza, Pioneer Park Cemetery adds another layer of history, with graves dating back to early Dallas and the 19th century. The cemetery actually brings together several early burial grounds, including the old City, Masonic, Odd Fellows, and Jewish cemeteries, reflecting the different communities that helped shape early Dallas. Among those buried here are pioneers, civic leaders, veterans, and other residents from the city’s formative years.