West End in Dallas in Dallas County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
Fire and Lynchings of 1860
Photographed by James Hulse, July 17, 2026
1. Fire and Lynchings of 1860 Marker
On July 8, 1860, the temperature in Dallas reached 115 degrees. A combustible fire beginning outside W.W. Peak and Brothers Drugstore destroyed most of downtown. At the time, national tensions ran high over the right to enslave human beings. Many were driven by suspicion of Northern abolitionists and a rush to judgment. A local Committee of Vigilance conducted a swift investigation. Without trials for the accused, a committee of 100 white men ordered all Dallas slaves to be whipped. On July 24, 1860, three slaves, Sam Smith, Patrick Jennings and "Old Cato," were hanged on newly-built gallows. In 1991, the site was named Martyrs Park, a memorial to the men and to the inhumane legacy of slavery in Dallas.
Erected 2018 by Texas Historical Commission. (Marker Number 20079.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Disasters • Law Enforcement. A significant historical date for this entry is July 8, 1860.
Location. 32° 46.714′ N, 96° 48.608′ W. Marker is in Dallas, Texas, in Dallas County. It is in West End. It is on Commerce Street 0.1 miles west of N Houston
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Regionally, this marker is in the Prairies & Lakes Region. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the Republic of Texas, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Jane Elkins (a few steps from this marker); The Triple Underpass (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Grassy Knoll (about 400 feet away); Abraham Zapruder (about 400 feet away); Dealey Plaza National Historic Landmark (about 500 feet away); Site of First Ferry and Bridge (about 500 feet away); John Neely Bryan / Margaret Beeman Bryan (about 500 feet away); Alexander Cockrell / Sarah Horton Cockrell (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Dallas.
Also see . . . The Texas Slave Panic of 1860: Causes and Consequences.
Photographed by James Hulse
2. Fire and Lynchings of 1860 Marker
TEXAS TROUBLES.The Texas slave panic of 1860-often called "the Texas Troubles" by the press-was the most serious happening of its kind in the South since the Nat Turner insurrection of 1831. Though generally less emphasized by historians than the more celebrated earlier event, the Texas panic of 1860 may have been at least as important, for it helped prepare Texans and other Southerners to leave the Union. The Texas Troubles broke out in the aftermath of a series of fires in North Texas on July 8, 1860. The most serious of these destroyed most of the downtown section of the small town of Dallas. In addition, about half of the town square in Denton burned, and fire razed a store in Pilot Point. At first, the leaders of the affected communities attributed the fires to a combination of the exceedingly hot summer (it was reportedly as hot as 110 degrees in Dallas on the afternoon of the fire) and the introduction into the stores of the new and volatile phosphorous matches. Indeed, subsequent experience with "prairie matches" in Denton satisfied the citizens of that town that spontaneous combustion(Submitted on July 18, 2026, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.)was the probable cause of the fire there. In Dallas, where there had been excitement the previous year over the whipping and expulsion of two allegedly abolitionist (see ABOLITION) Methodist ministers, certain White leaders detected a more sinister origin to the area's fires. Four days after the fire, Charles R. Pryor, the young editor of the Dallas Herald, wrote a sensational letter to John F. Marshall, editor of the Austin State Gazette and chairman of the state Democratic party, stating that "certain negroes" had been interrogated and had revealed a widespread abolitionist plot "to devastate, with fire and assassination, the whole of Northern Texas...." The "Abolition preachers" whom Dallas had expelled the previous year allegedly had sought their revenge by recruiting Blacks and abolitionist Whites to wreak fiery and bloody vengeance upon the Whites of the region. Pryor wrote similar letters to L. C. DeLisle, editor of the Bonham Era, and Edward Hopkins Cushing, editor of the Houston Telegraph (see TELEGRAPH AND TEXAS REGISTER), warning that the conspiracy, far from being confined to the Dallas area, extended over the whole state.Photographed by James Hulse, July 17, 20263. Fire and Lynchings of 1860 MarkerAt the entrance to Martyrs Park, the Fire and Lynchings of 1860 historical marker stands on the right, while the Jane Elkins historical marker is on the left.Calling the conspiracy "a regular invasion, and a real war," Pryor admonished DeLisle: "You...are in as much danger as we are. Be on your guard, and make these facts known by issuing extras to be sent in every direction. All business has ceased, and the country is terribly excited."Photographed by James Hulse, July 17, 20264. Fire and Lynchings of 1860 MarkerThe marker looking east towards the Triple Underpass and Dealey Plaza.
Additional keywords. Hangings, Lynchings
Credits. This page was last revised on July 18, 2026. It was originally submitted on July 17, 2026, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 16 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on July 18, 2026, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.
