20 Fun Facts About Fort Worth Texas

Fort Worth, Texas is a city filled with rich history, culture, and entertainment. Here are 20 fun facts about this cowboy town:

1. Fort Worth was established as a military post in 1849 and originally named Camp Worth after General William Jenkins Worth. The “Fort” was added later.
2. The Fort Worth Stockyards National Historic District is one of the most famous areas, where you can still see cattle drives down Exchange Avenue.
3. Billy Bob’s Texas, located in the Stockyards, is the world’s largest honky-tonk with 127,000 square feet. It hosts big-name concerts and bull riding events.
4. The annual Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo lasts over three weeks and is one of the oldest and largest in the United States, dating back to 1896.
5. Sundance Square in downtown features 35 blocks of restaurants, shops, and lively nightlife. The name comes from the famous Sundance Kid who hid out in Fort Worth.
6. The Kimbell Art Museum holds an internationally renowned collection and a unique vaulted, perforated ceiling designed by famous architect Louis I. Kahn.
7. Fort Worth was nicknamed “Panther City” in the early 1900s because of a panther that roamed the area and was finally killed by local residents.
8. The Fort Worth Zoo is home to over 7,000 animals and has been rated as one of the top zoos in the nation.
9. The Texas Motor Speedway hosts exciting NASCAR races throughout the year and seats over 150,000 people.
10. Fort Worth was the first city in Texas to install electric street lamps in 1883.
11. Located downtown, the Chisolm Trail Mural is the world’s largest painting at 17,554 square feet on the side of a building.
12. Actress Betty Buckley who played Abby Bradford in the TV show Eight is Enough is a Fort Worth native.
13. Fort Worth is home to the oldest continuously running rodeo – the Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show starting in 1896.
14. Popular musician and pianist Van Cliburn who lived in Fort Worth won the International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow during the Cold War.
15. The Fort Worth Water Gardens designed by Philip Johnson is an architectural wonder with three different concrete pools and waterfalls.
16. The annual Main Street Arts Festival attracts over 200,000 people enjoying arts, crafts, food, and 4 stages with music.
17. Fort Worth has the world’s first and only twice-daily cattle drive down Exchange Avenue in the Stockyards.
18. Amateur boxer Jack Johnson who became the first African American world heavyweight boxing champion was born in Galveston but lived in Fort Worth TX.
19. Longhorn cattle drives traveling the Chisholm Trail went through this city from 1867 to 1884 when the railroads expanded west.
20. The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History has an impressive collection, dinosaurs exhibits, Omni theater, and interactive children’s museum.