Tarrant: Western Heritage, Lake and Family Experiences

Tarrant County combines the heritage of the Wild West with culture, history, lakeside landscapes and a wide range of experiences. Here, Western heritage stands alongside the Cultural District: Cowboys, cattle drives and the development of trade and transportation are just as much a part of the region’s history as museums, historic buildings and gardens. For your travel planning, the question is therefore less about a single highlight than about how you want to focus your days.

History Between the Frontier and the Railroad

A regular stagecoach service had been running through Tarrant County since at least 1856. It carried mail and passengers from the east to the frontier forts and the West Coast. From the end of the Civil War through the late 1870s, millions of cattle were driven through the county to railroad loading points in Kansas. The Texas & Pacific Railroad reached Tarrant County and Fort Worth in 1876 and shaped the city’s subsequent development. The Fort Worth Union Stock Yards also began operating in 1887.

Several historic sites bring this development to life. The Tarrant County Courthouse was completed in 1895 and built from pink granite quarried in Central Texas. The 1895 Room in the courthouse serves as the county’s museum and visitor center. Bird’s Fort was the first attempt at Anglo-American settlement in what is now Tarrant County; the Bird’s Fort Treaty was signed on September 29, 1843. A historic Bird’s Fort marker was moved to River Legacy Parks in 2003. The Texas Spring Palace was built near this marker site in 1889 to host an annual exhibition of agricultural products from Texas.

Water, Gardens and Trails

If you would like to include nature experiences in your search for accommodation, Tarrant County offers several different options. The south side of Grapevine Lake lies in Tarrant County in Grapevine, Trophy Club and Southlake. Murrell Park on the lake has day-use facilities, a boat ramp, primitive camping and picnic areas. Hiking, mountain biking, boating and fishing are also possible there. Waterfowl can be found at the lake at Clear Fork Loop in winter.

River Legacy Parks in Arlington offers hiking and cycling trails along the Trinity River. The Fort Worth Japanese Garden is a 7.5-acre traditional stroll garden. Paths lead through various landscapes and around ponds; expertly guided tours focus on its design, history, and plant and animal life. The Fort Worth Water Gardens provide an urban contrast with waterfalls, the Quiet Pool, Aerated Pool and Active Pool. The Active Pool drops into a 38-foot-deep basin. The grounds invite quiet meditation, but swimming and wading are not permitted there.

Experiences for Curious Families

The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History brings together various subject areas. These include DinoLabs, DinoDig, Innovation Studios, the TCU Children’s Gallery, Energy Blast and the Cattle Raisers Museum. DinoLabs and DinoDig display dinosaur skeletons from North Texas as well as a recreated excavation site. For families who prefer to discover history through buildings and portrayals of ways of life, Log Cabin Village provides insights into life on the North Texas frontier in the 19th century. Historical interpreters portray the way of life of the people who lived and settled in this area during the mid-to-late 19th century.

Forest Park includes the Fort Worth Zoo and Log Cabin Village. In addition, a five-mile ride on the Forest Park Miniature Railroad travels through the park and along the Trinity River. This allows natural history, historical and playful interests to be given different weight in the day’s planning without limiting the trip to a single theme.

Choosing the Right Base

When searching for a vacation apartment or vacation home in Tarrant, you should first decide which experiences are to define your vacation. Those interested in culture can focus on historic buildings, the history of cattle drives and the development of the railroad. For days by the water or in nature, Grapevine Lake, Murrell Park, River Legacy Parks and the Japanese Garden are different options to consider. Those traveling with children will find several distinct themes for their travel planning in the dinosaur exhibits, the zoo, Log Cabin Village and the Miniature Railroad.

For further travel planning, you can also visit Fort Worth, Grapevine, Haslet, Arlington, Bedford, Euless, Azle, Southlake, Forest Hill, North Richland Hills, Hurst, Benbrook, Haltom City, Blue Mound, Mansfield, White Settlement, Everman, Colleyville and Edgecliff Village.

For the broader travel overview: Texas.