Dallas Trivia
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59 free Dallas trivia questions with answers — geography quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
48 free Dallas trivia questions with answers. Dallas gave the world the integrated circuit, the frozen margarita machine, 7-Eleven, Neiman Marcus and the question of who shot J.R. This quiz covers the city from John Neely Bryan's stake on the Trinity River in 1841 through the cotton boom, the Kennedy assassination and the 1980s skyline to today's Arts District, Klyde Warren Park and Calatrava bridges. There are questions on the State Fair and Big Tex, the Cotton Bowl, the Mavericks and Stars, Deep Ellum, SMU and the TV Ewings of Southfork, plus a few on the Cowboys — the team has its own quiz. The easy questions ask what 'the Ball' downtown is and which family ran Ewing Oil. The hard ones want the tower's height, the year the Sixth Floor Museum opened, why the convenience store chain changed its name and which Texas town built the original Big Tex as a Santa Claus. It suits newcomers, natives and anyone planning a State Fair visit. Every answer was checked against Wikipedia's articles on the city and its landmarks, and each question carries the sentence that backs it up.
30 of 59 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Who planted a stake near the Trinity River in 1839 and returned in 1841 to found Dallas?
John Neely Bryan
He surveyed the site three years after Texas won independence, accompanied by his dog and a Cherokee he called Ned.
Q 02The official historical marker says the city is named after which US vice president?
George M. Dallas
Another theory traces the name to the village of Dallas in Moray, Scotland.
Q 03Dallas is the third most populous city in Texas after which two?
Houston and San Antonio
It ranks ninth in the whole United States.
Q 04Reunion Tower, the illuminated ball on the skyline, is how tall?
561 feet
It opened in 1978 alongside the Hyatt Regency as part of an urban renewal project around Union Station.
Q 05The Reunion district takes its name from what?
A 19th-century French socialist commune
La Réunion was founded by French settlers along the Trinity in what is now West Dallas.
Q 06The tallest building in Dallas, lit in neon at night, is which skyscraper?
Bank of America Plaza
It rises 921 feet and 72 storeys; a planned twin tower was never built.
Q 07President Kennedy was shot in 1963 as his motorcade passed along Elm Street through which downtown space?
Dealey Plaza
He was pronounced dead at Parkland Memorial Hospital about half an hour later.
Q 08From which building did the Warren Commission conclude Lee Harvey Oswald fired?
Texas School Book Depository
Its sixth and seventh floors are now a museum.
Q 09Where was Lyndon Johnson sworn in as president two hours after the shooting?
Aboard Air Force One at Love Field
DFW Airport did not open until 1974.
Q 10Who shot Oswald in the basement of Dallas police headquarters two days later?
Jack Ruby
Ruby was a local nightclub operator; he died in prison in 1967 awaiting a retrial.
Q 11In what year did the Sixth Floor Museum open in the former book depository?
1989
It opened on Presidents' Day after a decade of local soul-searching about commemorating the site.
Q 12The plaza where Kennedy was shot was completed in what year as a WPA project?
1940
It sits where Main, Elm and Commerce streets converge at the 'triple underpass'.
Q 13The State Fair of Texas has been held at Fair Park since what year?
1886
It normally opens the last Friday in September and runs 24 days.
Q 14Fair Park's Art Deco buildings were mostly built for which 1936 event?
Q 21Who shot J.R.?
Kristin Shepard
She was Sue Ellen's scheming sister, played by Mary Crosby.
Q 22The entire ninth season of Dallas was revealed to have been whose dream?
Pam Ewing's
It let the show bring Bobby back after his character had died.
Q 23The real Southfork Ranch used for the TV show is in which town 25 miles north of Dallas?
Parker
The house was built in 1970 as Duncan Acres.
Q 24Which spin-off of Dallas premiered in 1979 and also ran 14 seasons?
The Texas Centennial Exposition
The 277-acre park is a National Historic Landmark.
Q 15How tall is Big Tex, the State Fair's cowboy mascot?
55 feet
He has greeted fairgoers since 1952 and burned down in 2012 before being rebuilt.
Q 16Big Tex started life in 1949 in the town of Kerens as a giant what?
Santa Claus
The 'World's Largest Santa' was built to boost holiday shopping and sold to the fair after two seasons.
Q 17What destroyed the original Big Tex in October 2012?
An electrical fire
The fire started in his right boot and worked its way up.
Q 18The Red River Rivalry played at the Cotton Bowl each October pits Texas against which school?
Oklahoma
It falls on the second weekend of the State Fair.
Q 19The Cotton Bowl opened in 1930 under what name?
Fair Park Stadium
The Cowboys played there from 1960 to 1971 before moving to Irving.
Q 20Which family owned Ewing Oil and Southfork on the TV series Dallas?
The Ewings
The show ran on CBS from 1978 to 1991 and produced 357 episodes.
Knots Landing
It followed middle brother Gary Ewing to California.
Q 25The Dallas Mavericks won their only NBA championship in which year?
2011
Dirk Nowitzki led them; they lost the 2006 and 2024 Finals.
Q 26The Dallas Stars moved to Texas in 1993 from which city?
Minnesota
They were the Minnesota North Stars, an original 1967 expansion team.
Q 27In what year did the Stars win the Stanley Cup?
1999
Joe Nieuwendyk took the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
Q 28Which arena do the Mavericks and Stars share?
American Airlines Center
Reunion Arena was the previous home of both teams.
Q 29The Texas Rangers, based in Arlington, were originally which franchise?
Washington Senators
They moved after the 1971 season and finally won a World Series in 2023.
Q 30How many Super Bowls have the Dallas Cowboys won?
Five
They joined the NFL as an expansion team in 1960 and have reached eight Super Bowls.