Plano – Collin County Texas Home Insurance Quote and Auto Insurance Quote

The History of Plano

Plano, Texas is located approximately 16 miles northeast of Dallas. It is situated in the region of Collin County’s Blackland prairie. Plano TX was first settled in 1845-1846 by a group called Peters’ Colony. Most of these people migrated from Tennessee and Kentucky. The Colony’s name came from William S. Peters who helped investors gain land grants from the Republic of Texas in the early 1840s. These settlers were lured to the area by its rich soil in the 1840s.

Before the Peters’ Colony, there were other groups of people who had tried to settle in the area, but their efforts were halted by attacks from the Indians until 1844. In1946, a merchant by trade named William Foreman bought a gigantic land track in the area to establish a sawmill and start a gristmill business. His intention for opening these markets was to support the core needs of the settlers already occupying the area. These markets influenced an influx of new settlers.

The Naming of the Area

As of 1850, this area was nameless. The residents, however, especially Dr. Dye, wanted it to have a proper name. They sent a request to Washington DC with their first proposed name as Fillmore, in honor of the then US President Millard Fillmore. Their request was rejected. They then decided to go with the name Forman. But William Foreman himself declined the settler’s proposal. Later on, Dr. Dye suggested a unique name that represented the settlement’s attributes. He came up with the name Plano, which was accepted. Plano is a Spanish word that means Plain – which is an apt description of the terrain. In 1851, Plano was granted a post office.

 

Plano’s Growth and Prosperity

During that period, livestock farming was the main business in the country. However, more and more of the populace began farming the rich, black land. Schools and churches were built and local businesses began to prosper. By the end of the 1850s, Plano’s growth was steady, until the arrival of the Civil World War II. As a result, between 1861 to 1864, Plano’s growth was at a standstill. It was not only until after the war that the men returned to Plano to pick up their run-down farms, open more businesses and trades to attract more people to the area.

By the time the Houston and Texas Railroad reached Plano in 1872, the country was now on its way to growth. New people were coming in from the mechanized North and South to escape their shattered communities to start a new life. By 1874, the population had grown to over 500 people.

Incorporation of Plano

In June 1873, the city was incorporated and received its first official mayor – C.J.E. Keller. Unfortunately, the town came to a standstill after fires in the business district destroyed it in 1881. The fire affected most of the original buildings that were constructed with the coming of the railway, leaving only a few that still exist today. Still, the residents were not daunted as they helped to reconstruct.

The old and burned wooden structures were replaced with modern brick buildings and a new look of prosperity took place. In the same year, Plano TX took responsibility for what was to become the Plano Independent School District, ending the private school dominance in the area. In the 1880s, businesses and buildings flourished with almost anything being traded and bought in Plano. Throughout the rest of the century, Plano relied majorly on the surrounding farms and ranches for its livelihood.

Plano in the 20th Century

The population of Plano had been growing slowly with only 11,304 people in the area. By 1900, it grew to about 4,000 residents. This was majorly because of the expansion of the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The Central Expressway and Lavon water arrived in 1957, which helped change Plano from an agricultural community to an urban center.

It was not until the 1960s that the growth of Dallas to the south and the success of several large high-technology firms began to make their influence felt on the local economy. When the American population began its famous shift in the 70s, Plano welcomed newcomers with open arms, which made it become one of the fastest growing cities in Texas and the U.S. It’s population grew to 17, 872. By 1980, it had exploded to 72,000. The development of the school’s sewers and streets kept up with the pace of this massive increase, majorly due to Plano’s flat landscape, grid layout, and planning initiatives.

Many large corporations, including Frito-Lay and J.C. Penney moved their center of operations to the city, encouraging even more growth. By 1990, Plano’s populace had grown to 128,713. In 1994, Plano was recognized as the All-American City.

Come 2000, Plano’s population had grown to 222, 030, making it one of Dallas’ largest suburbs. And since it is bounded by other municipalities, it could not expand in the area. Nonetheless, as of July 2012, an expansive land was already being developed at the intersection of George Bush Turnpike and the Renner Rd.

Plano is a far cry to the once-farming community many centuries back. Still, this couldn’t have been possible without the spirit of the early settlers who put it on the Texas Map and turned it into a prosperous area. Today, Plano is a financial and commercial center. Its biggest manufactures include printed materials, satellite communication equipment, compact discs, metals, and bakery equipment. It is also an active and lively community that hosts a variety of events throughout the year that interest both the visitors and the local community. These festivals include arts and crafts fairs, ethnic festivals, exciting theatre, sporting events and so much. For instance, it hosts a popular hot-air balloon festival each September. Despite the tremendous growth, Plano still remains largely unchanged. A large number of existing buildings remain standing since they were rebuilt from the fires. Most importantly, Plano is a top destination to eat, play, shop and live.

In 2013, Plano received top-scoring nationally in a livability index according to an algorithm created by AreaVibes.com, a Toronto-based company specializing in such data. Area Vibes ranked Plano at the top of the list of U.S. cities with populations between 100,000 and 10 million. Another chart, “Best Places to Live in 2013, also has Plano ranked number 1.