Gun Fights at the Village Main Street Site of Gun Fight Every 1st and 3rd Saturday Fall 2009

Tickets can be purchased at the gate.

Event Information

Why all the shouting in the Saloon?

Visit Dallas Heritage Village every 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month, October 3 to December 19, and witness early Dallas law and order, settler style, on the Village's Main Street. Performed by the Trinity River Desperados, visitors will get a firsthand view of the “Wild West” when a mild disagreement quickly turns into a gun fight on Main Street.

Gun Fights are at noon and 1 p.m., weather permitting.

Free with museum admission.

After the gun fight, visit with the members of the Trinity River Desperados. Be sure to ask each member for a trading card. You'll want to be on the lookout for these desperados...


Dallas Law Enforcement Historical Facts

Dallas Police Department forms in 1872...

Prior to 1872, Dallas citizenry relied on the local marshall to help them with lawbreakers or they handled criminals on their own...

1900...three detectives and 31 patrolmen protected 45,000 citizens, or one officer per 1,323 citizens.

2007...2,928 officers protecting 1,188,580 citizens, or one officer per 405 people.

Dallas' First Jailhouse...

Dallas’ first city jail was located on Ross Avenue near Market Street in the West End Historic District. The building is still there today.

Crime in Dallas...

In June 1872, Mayor Henry S. Ervay signed an ordinance “to preserve peace and good order, to prevent vice and immorality, to define certain crimes and misdemeanors and prescribe the punishment thereof.” This ordinance revised or added punishments for disorderly houses and saloons, obscene publications, public indecency, prostitution, residing in brothels….gaming and betting, …and ‘suffering minors to play billiards.'


Doc Holliday in Dallas...

Holliday got his start as one of the most notorious outlaws of the West in Dallas. Trained to be a dentist, Holliday fell from respectable circles when he came down with gambling fever. Before long, he was involved in two shootouts causing him to flee Dallas and begin carousing throughout the West, earning a reputation for deadly gunmanship along the way. His most famous escapade was the gunfight at the OK Corral in Tombstone, Arizona.

Gambling in Dallas...

The first anti-gambling ordinance in Dallas under the 1871 City Charter was the encompassing Ordinance Number Eight. The gambling climate at the time Doc Holliday haunted the saloons and hotels of Dallas was pervasive and unstoppable in spite of the city’s best efforts. In police department annual reports from the 1880s and 1890s, for example, gambling and gaming regularly outstripped all other categories of arrests.


Myra Maybelle Shirley aka Belle Star...

Belle Star grew up in Scyene in the eastern part of Dallas County, making a name for herself as a dance hall singer, dancer and horse thief. Outlaws such as Jesse James and the Younger brothers supposedly paid calls on Miss Starr. Many fantastic and outlandish tales were spun about Belle Starr after her death in 1889 – many of which are probably grounded more in imagination than truth.


Bonnie and Clyde in Dallas...

Contrary to popular rumor, Bonnie and Clyde, Texas’ most notorious criminals did not rob the Citizen’s Bank here at Dallas Heritage Village! The bank at the Village is originally from Justin, Texas, and while it served the citizens of Justin for many years, it was not the scene of a Bonnie and Clyde holdup.


FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: Are the guns used during the gun fights real?
A: Yes. Our trained volunteers are using black powder weapons with blanks. All gun fight participants have previous weaponry experience and are required to attend numerous training sessions.

Q: How do I volunteer to join the gun fight?
A: There are several requirements you must meet to volunteer as a gun fighter. All gun fighters are members of the Trinity River Desperados. For more information on joining, visit www.trinityriverdesperados.com.