Jordan-Bowles House
Grand Prairie, Dallas County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Built about 1860 of hand-hewn logs from bottomland of Trinity River. The builder, David Jordan (1808 -79), came to Texas about 1859, moving his household by wagon from Tennessee. A farmer, he also kept a store and a stage stand on the Dallas-Fort Worth Road. At that time Indian raids were frequent, and the outlaw gang of Sam Bass was suspected of committing an 1870 hold-up here. In 1886 Victor Bowles bought property, which remained in his family for 65 years. Miss Minnie Bowles remodeled house in 1948 and in 1951 donated it to city. Now museum and meeting place.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
David Jordan, who came to Texas from Tennessee around 1859, built this house about 1860 from hand-hewn logs cut in the Trinity River bottomlands. A farmer, he also ran a store and a stage stand on the Dallas-Fort Worth Road in a time of frequent Indian raids — the outlaw Sam Bass gang was even suspected of an 1870 holdup nearby. Victor Bowles bought the property in 1886, keeping it in his family for 65 years, until Minnie Bowles remodeled it and donated it to the city in 1951 as a museum and meeting place.
Why it matters
It preserves the frontier crossroads life of early North Texas, where farming, wayfaring, Indian raids, and outlaw legend all met on a single road.
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Related people
- · David Jordan
- · Victor Bowles
- · Minnie Bowles
- · Sam Bass
Themes & tags
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