Bryan was likely a self-taught lawyer, as were many at the time, and may have brought this book with him to Dallas.
Bryan created the first plan for Dallas, including familiar streets like Elm, Commerce and Main. The block marked with the scales of justice indicates the location of the future courthouse. The Old Red Courthouse stands there today.
EARLY YEARS / PREHISTORY TO 1873
Pioneer Settlement
In November 1841 a Tennessee backwoods lawyer named John Neely Bryan staked a claim on the east bank of the Trinity River at a point where a hard-rock ford provided the best crossing within miles. He recognized that the ford would attract many travellers, and a town nearby could grow and flourish. He even hoped that the Trinity River might someday take goods and people by ship all the way to the Gulf of Mexico, which never proved feasible. He became the first resident of a new town he named “Dallas,” although its namesake is unclear.
