Martyr’s Park Make Over - Revisited

Located just the other side of the trees from the Grassy Knoll, this small plot of land is the location of another tragic assassination.

When I drew Marty's Park in 2021 it was an overgrown, trash covered field with a small community of homeless people camped under the trees. In 2023 the City cleaned up the lot and placed a historic marker next to the road. In 2024 the City installed a p[public sculpture "Shadow Lines" by Shane Allbritton and Norman Lee.

After the Great Fire of 1860 which burned down the Dallas business district, rumors quickly spread that the fire was set by a rebellious band of slaves. A Committee of Vigilance was formed, and the 52 men spent 15 days interrogating around 100 enslaved people, resulting in the “implication” of 1070 people. The city business leaders agreed it would be economically unsound to hang all 1070, so they selected 3 men: Patrick Jennings, Sam Smith, and Old Cato Miller. These men were not guilty of setting the Great Fire, but as District Judge Nat Burford reportedly said after leaving the proceeding in disgust “I didn’t think these three men were guilty, but someone had to die”. The three men were hung on July 24,1860.

Martyr’s Park 265 Commerce St. Dallas TX.