The area is currently undergoing significant changes due to its central location within the city, attracting new development and revitalization efforts but also threatening existing communities.

The colony attracted approximately five hundred European settlers starting in 1855, briefly rivaling the small town of Dallas as an urban center.

Although the colony was formally dissolved in 1857 and many of the settlers returned to Europe, others such as Benjamin Long and Jacob Boll moved to Dallas and became prominent citizens in the growing metropolis.

[6] In 1873, the Texas and Pacific Railway began service through West Dallas, and because of the Panic of 1873, Eagle Ford would remain the western terminus of the line for several years.

The Dallas Levee System was originally completed in 1932 and upgraded in the 1950s by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, significantly addressing the flooding problem in the area.

[13] In 1955, the West Dallas housing projects were established, consisting of three separate developments, segregated by race (Blacks, Hispanics and Whites).

The highway would accelerate the growth of Grand Prairie and Arlington, leading directly to the creation of Six Flags Over Texas but also created an enormous physical barrier between West Dallas and Oak Cliff.

[18] In 1934 Murphy Metals (later known as RSR Corporation), started operating a 63-acre (250,000 m2) secondary lead smelter facility in West Dallas.

This act went unenforced - in the 1960s RSR Corp West Dallas facility released more than 269 tons of lead particles into the air each year.

[citation needed] Few residents could afford air conditioning, so in the summers they kept their doors and windows open, directly exposing them to the toxins.

[citation needed] The Dallas Health Department then conducted a study - they found children living near smelters had a 36 percent increase in blood lead levels.

It is clear that the State and Federal governments have also failed in their opportunity to regulate and industry of this type with regard to the general welfare of citizens.”On September 6, 1984 the Dallas Board of Adjustment ordered the smelter closed.

[20] In the summer of 1985 an out-of-court settlement for $20 million was reached between RSR and a class including 370 children and 40 property owners affected by the lead, represented by Fred Baron.

Students living on the north side of the original channel of the West Fork of the Trinity River attend Schulze Elementary School and students living on the west side of the original channel of Mountain Creek attend Townley Elementary School.