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Monday 8am - 5pm Tuesday 8am - 5pm Wednesday 8am - 5pm Thursday 8am - 5pm Friday 8am - 5pm

Historic Mesquite, Inc.

Name: Historic Mesquite, Inc.
Address: 711 E Kearney Street, Mesquite, TX, 75149, US
Telephone: +19722166468
Price range: $

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Historic Mesquite, Inc.

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Historic Mesquite, Inc.
711 E.

Kearney St., Mesquite 75149

Opal Lawrence Historical Park Monday - Saturday 9am - 4pm
Florence Ranch Homestead 3rd Fri 10:30a - 3:30p & 2nd Sat 10a - 2p

10/13/2026

🕰️ **Time Capsule Tuesday: Before Mesquite**

Did you know that Indigenous communities lived along the waterways of North Texas centuries before Mesquite was established?

In recognition of yesterday's Indigenous Peoples' Day and October's Texas Archeology Month, we're exploring some of our region's earliest history!

Archaeological research along the East Fork of the Trinity River has identified more than 50 settlement and campsite locations dating from approximately **700 to 1600 CE**.

These communities hunted, gathered wild foods, made pottery and stone tools, and participated in regional trade networks.

Take a look at this map! It shows just how close these archaeological sites are to present-day Mesquite, including locations near Lake Ray Hubbard. There's so much history to discover right in our own backyard!

🏺 **Keep exploring with us!** Join Historic Mesquite on **Saturday, October 24**, as we celebrate Texas Archeology Month. We'd love to see you there!

🎟️ Event details: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1998581601370?aff=oddtdtcreator

📚 **Source:** Crook, W. W. III, and Hughston, M. D. (2016). *The Late Prehistoric of the East Fork of the Trinity River.* CRHR Research Reports, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.44607

10/10/2026

📰 Look who’s in the SPOTLIGHT!

We got a few excited texts today letting us know that Mesquite Meander was featured in The Dallas Morning News! What a fun surprise!

A big thank-you to everyone who shared the article and to The Dallas Morning News for highlighting this longtime Mesquite tradition!

🎭 There’s still time to join us! Saturday is our final day, with tickets available for both our afternoon matinee and evening performances.

🎟️ historicmesquite.org

10/09/2026

99 years ago an infamous crime unfolded in downtown Mesquite. This weekend we’re bringing that chapter of local history back to life at the 16th annual Mesquite Meander.

We still have showtimes remaining!

Grab your tickets for tonight or tomorrow at our website —> historicmesquite.org

Downtown Mesquite, TX

10/07/2026

It’s TIME!!! Mesquite Meander is returning for its 16th year! Come get ready with on of the actors as they prepare for this theatrical living history experience!!!

10/06/2026

🎡 Time Capsule Tuesday: State Fair Season

The weather has finally decided to cool off—just in time for State Fair season! This week, two objects in Historic Mesquite’s collection take us back more than 120 years, to a time when the State Fair itself was changing and growing.

📷 1905: A horse advertises the State Fair
This photograph from the Rhonda Harper Collection shows men gathered with horses and buggies. Look closely at the horse in front: draped across its back is an advertisement for the 1905 State Fair in Dallas.

It was a pivotal time for the Fair. After financial difficulties threatened its future, the City of Dallas purchased the fairgrounds in 1904. The reorganized State Fair returned in 1905 and drew approximately 300,000 visitors, setting new attendance and receipts records.

The blanket preserves another interesting piece of history: it advertises the Fair’s originally scheduled September 30 opening. The Fair was later postponed and ultimately held October 28–November 12. The photo captures that brief moment before the plans changed—and an era when horses were still everyday transportation and, apparently, pretty effective moving billboards!

🎟️ 1908: S. D. Lawrence, State Fair stockholder
Three years later, S. D. Lawrence held this State Fair of Texas Stockholder Ticket, admitting him for the entire Fair, October 17–November 1.

The State Fair began in 1886 as a private corporation supported by local investors. Citizens helped finance an annual exposition showcasing Texas agriculture, livestock, industry and commerce. Even after Dallas purchased the fairgrounds, stockholders remained connected to the organization.

That makes Lawrence’s surviving pass especially interesting: it doesn’t simply tell us that someone from Mesquite attended the Fair—it identifies him as a stockholder in the organization behind it.

Sources: Historic Mesquite, Inc. Collections, Rhonda Harper Collection; Shaw/Fagin Collection; Texas State Historical Association, Handbook of Texas, “State Fair of Texas”; UNT Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, contemporary State Fair materials.

10/05/2026

It’s Membership Monday! 💙

Historic places don’t preserve themselves — it takes a community that believes our local stories are worth saving and sharing.

When you join Historic Mesquite, you’re supporting the preservation of places like Opal Lawrence Historical Park and Florence Ranch Homestead, along with the programs, field trips, events, and experiences that keep Mesquite’s history alive.

Join us and be part of what comes next. 🏡

🔗 Become a member: https://historic-mesquite-inc.square.site/s/shop

10/03/2026

Join Us for an Exciting Dig into History! ⛏

Prepare for a day filled with outdoor adventure and discovery at our Junior Archeologist Field School! Kids will learn what an archeologist is and how they accomplish their important work with hands-on activities, while also exploring a local historic house museum with their friends and family.

This FREE program is perfect for children aged 6 and older (accompanied by an adult) who have an interest in history or getting dirty. The program is on Saturday, October 24th at Opal Lawrence Historical Park. It is come-and-go from 10:00 AM-12:00 PM.

Register for this FREE program today by going to the link below!

https://hmi_junior_arch_field_school.eventbrite.com

10/02/2026

Field trips have started up again at Opal Lawrence Historical Park! Students of all grades get to explore the +150-year-old farmhouse, plus the 13-acre park.

Students also get to explore nature and learn about their local natural history. Plus students get to make an animal track to take home with you.

Plus, this year Historic Mesquite is rolling out a new interactive class, My Mesquite Farm(ing Sim)! Students work as teams to build and manage their farm, learning teamwork, money management, and what it is like running a farm.

Field trip program is opening to all grades for public and private schools, as well as homeschool groups.

Visit historicmesquite.org to book your visit today!

10/01/2026

🌙 COOL NIGHTS AT OPAL ARE COMING!

Three Friday nights. Three wildly different shows. One historic barn.

This November, Cool Nights at Opal brings a one-of-a-kind lineup of live performances to Opal Lawrence Historical Park:

🌙 NOV. 6 | Stories We Tell in the Dark
Gather in the glow of lantern light for an evening of storytelling featuring voices from across the Metroplex — plus one audience member brave enough to stand in the dark and speak from the heart.

🤡 NOV. 13 | Clown Wedding
Exactly what you think it is... and nothing at all as it seems. Watch some of DFW’s most notorious clowns attempt to plan and pull off the wildest wedding you’ve ever seen.

🐴 NOV. 20 | Hootenanny!
Musical improv gets a country twang! Inspired by the 1970s TV classic Hee Haw, this immersive, riotous and highly silly variety show is bound to be a heckuva good time.

All shows at 8 PM | Tickets $20 each

Opal Lawrence Historical Park

Come for one. Come for all three. Just don’t expect an ordinary night at the museum.

🎟️ Tickets are on sale now: https://www.cityofmesquite.com/1892/Events-Programs

Address

711 E Kearney Street
Mesquite, TX
75149

Opening Hours

Monday	8am - 5pm
Tuesday	8am - 5pm
Wednesday	8am - 5pm
Thursday	8am - 5pm
Friday	8am - 5pm

Telephone

+19722166468

Website

http://www.cityofmesquite.com/hmi/

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