What Arlington, Texas, looked like in the 1970s

At the start of the 1970s, Arlington, Texas, was a city on the move. Its population stood at around 90,643 — a number that told only part of the story. What was really happening in Arlington was a full-scale transformation. New stadiums were going up. Shopping malls were opening. A marine life park was being built from scratch. And an old downtown that had nearly disappeared was fighting to survive. These photos capture exactly what that decade looked like, street by street and season by season.

One of the first major signs of Arlington’s growth in 1970 was the opening of its retail corridor along Highway 303. Two shopping malls launched the same year: Six Flags Mall and Forum 303 Mall. Forum 303 sat farther down the highway and quickly became an anchor for commerce on that side of the city.

Forum 303 Mall was home to several major retailers, including a Leonard’s Department Store. Leonard’s was a Fort Worth institution that had expanded into the Arlington market, drawing shoppers from across the region.

While retail was booming on the outskirts, Arlington’s downtown core was struggling. By 1972, much of the original downtown had already been marked for demolition. Buildings that had stood for decades — a pharmacy, Hutton Pianos and Organs, Walter’s Auto Supply — were fenced off and prepared to come down.

Photographers captured the last days of downtown Arlington from multiple vantage points, including the rooftop of First Baptist Church. From there, the streets below — South Center, East South, South Mesquite — spread out in a grid of aging storefronts, power lines, and parked cars. One block showed a bank under construction, signaling that not all the change was erasure. Some of it was rebuilding.

The intersections of Abram and Center streets in 1970 showed what the heart of Arlington looked like before the wrecking crews arrived — modest storefronts, wide roads, and the low-slung skyline of a mid-century Texas town.

No development defined 1970s Arlington more than its baseball stadium. Turnpike Stadium — originally built for the minor leagues — was expanded and renamed Arlington Stadium in 1972 when the Texas Rangers arrived from Washington, D.C. Mayor Tom Vandergriff had been the driving force behind bringing Major League Baseball to the city, and he was on the field for opening night to prove it.

Construction on the stadium continued into 1972, and the expansion work was substantial. When it was done, Arlington Stadium could hold tens of thousands of fans. The Texas Rangers played their first home game there on April 21, 1972, against the California Angels. The crowd that filled the seats that night marked a turning point for the city.

Ted Williams, the Hall of Fame slugger, managed the Rangers during that first season in Arlington. He was on the field alongside the players as the franchise took its first steps in Texas.

From the air, the scale of Arlington Stadium and its surrounding parking lots was clear. The stadium sat in a sprawling complex that made it a dominant landmark in the city’s landscape. Aerial photos from 1973 and 1975 show just how much land the facility consumed — and how quickly the surrounding area was developing around it.

The stadium also hosted large-scale entertainment events beyond baseball. In 1973, WBAP radio held its Country Gold third anniversary event at Arlington Stadium, packing the seats with country music fans. By 1974, the event drew performers like Dolly Parton, who took the stage in a sequin-covered green outfit and performed to an enthusiastic crowd.

Just down the Dallas-Fort Worth Turnpike from Arlington Stadium, another major attraction was taking shape. Seven Seas Marine Life Park opened in 1972 as a marine mammal and animal theme park owned by the City of Arlington itself. Aerial photos from construction show the scope of the project — pools, tanks, and performance spaces carved out of the Texas flatland.

Six Flags Over Texas, which had already been operating in Arlington since 1961, continued to be one of the region’s biggest draws throughout the 1970s. The park maintained its rides, added new attractions, and brought in entertainment acts from around the country, including Hawaiian dancers in 1976. Behind the scenes, maintenance crews kept the rides running and replaced damaged greenery across the grounds.

The University of Texas at Arlington was also growing rapidly during this period. The campus expanded its footprint, added new buildings, and increased enrollment. Aerial photos from 1970 and 1973 show the campus spreading northward along Cooper Street. The university’s library received a new building, photographed from both the front entrance and the south side in 1972.

Campus life at UTA was vivid and active. On Earth Day in 1970, students staged an unusual protest: the Alpha Rho Chi architecture fraternity led mock funeral services for an internal combustion engine, with pledges in surgical and gas masks lowering the engine into a shallow grave on campus. A live oak tree was planted on top. The university’s homecoming parades were equally spirited, with floats traveling northbound along Cooper Street and student groups like the Handicapped Student Association making their presence known.

High school sports were a central part of Arlington’s community identity throughout the decade. Lamar High School’s football team drew crowds and local pride, with Coach Peach leading the team in 1970 and homecoming games bringing out the whole neighborhood. Arlington High School had its own mascot — Little Arlie, the Colts mascot — who appeared at school events in 1974.

Arlington’s civic institutions were also getting new facilities in the 1970s. The city built a new public library, and Arlington Memorial Hospital continued serving the growing population. The School Administration building housed the operations of a school district that was expanding along with the city itself. Plans for the J.C. Duncan Community Center in Vandergriff Park were drafted in 1972, showing the city’s intent to invest in public spaces.

Religion was woven into the fabric of the city. Arlington had a notable number of churches, ranging from First Baptist and First Christian Church to Mt. Pilgrim Baptist Church. The stained-glass windows of Arlington First Christian Church were photographed in 1973, capturing the interior craftsmanship of one of the city’s older congregations.

Labor tensions made news in Arlington in 1970, when four members of United Auto Workers Local 276 walked a picket line in front of the General Motors Assembly Plant. The strike put a spotlight on one of the city’s largest employers and the blue-collar workforce that kept it running. Later in the decade, a large fire broke out at a building on South Cooper Street in 1970, and a Crisco fire in the Greater Southwest area made headlines in 1979.

Mayor Tom Vandergriff remained a constant presence throughout the decade. Beyond his role in bringing the Rangers to Arlington, he appeared at the opening of Seven Seas and was photographed at a 1976 Texas Turnpike Authority and Texas Highway Commission meeting — a sign of how closely Arlington’s growth was tied to road infrastructure and regional planning.