Founded 1934 — New Deal city
Federal subsistence-homestead project championed by Eleanor Roosevelt
City · Tarrant County
Dalworthington Gardens
Population ~2,293 · arlington-isd
☕ Dalworthington Gardens brief Mon, Jun 1
Name combines Dallas + FW + Arlington
Plus 'Gardens' for the food-growing ethos
AISD serves DWG
Surrounded by Arlington on every side
Local News
Dalworthington Gardens headlines
What's happening in Dalworthington Gardens right now
🏛️ History
Only surviving New Deal subsistence-homestead community in Texas
Dalworthington Gardens was established in 1934 as a subsistence-homestead project under the National Industrial Recovery Act's Subsistence Homesteads Division. It remains the only one of the 1930s federal subsistence-homestead projects to exist as an autonomous community in Texas. Source: TSHA Handbook of Texas; Arlington TX History.
Ongoing · Source: tshaonline.org
🏛️ Civic
City name combines three neighbors
The name Dalworthington Gardens is a portmanteau of Dallas, Fort Worth and Arlington, the three surrounding cities. Eleanor Roosevelt is credited with suggesting the area for the federal project after a visit to a Fort Worth family. Source: Arlington TX History; Christian Science Monitor.
Ongoing · Source: arlingtontxhistory.org
🌱 Heritage
Urban farms among the mansions
The original federal program assembled 593 acres for 79 homestead plots ranging from 3.75 to 24.4 acres, and several of those small farms still operate inside the modern city. Source: Christian Science Monitor.
Ongoing · Source: csmonitor.com
From across Tarrant County
🗳️ Election
Contested mayor races in nine Tarrant cities on May 2 ballot
The May 2, 2026 ballot featured contested races for mayor in nine Tarrant cities: Arlington, Euless, Keller, Kennedale, North Richland Hills, Pelican Bay, Sansom Park, Westlake, and Westover Hills. The slate also included numerous city council positions, school board trustee seats, and other municipal offices across the county. Source: NBC 5 DFW / Tarrant County Elections.
🗳️ Politics
Taylor Rehmet (D) wins Texas State Senate District 9 special election
In Tarrant County's state Senate District 9 special election held November 4, 2025, Democrat Taylor Rehmet finished as the top vote-getter, ahead by roughly 14,000 votes and a margin of nearly 15%. Rehmet replaces Republican Kelly Hancock, who left the seat in 2025 to become acting state comptroller. Rehmet completes the remainder of Hancock's term. Source: NBC 5 DFW.
Around Town
Around Town
Dalworthington Gardens's places, people, and traditions
Heritage
Eleanor Roosevelt's footprint
Eleanor Roosevelt championed the federal subsistence-homestead program and is credited with suggesting Dalworthington Gardens during a visit to the Fort Worth family of a woman engaged to her son Elliot.
Year-round
Landmark
Dalworthington Gardens historical marker
A state historical marker on the original homestead grounds tells the story of the 1934 federal project, the 79 homestead plots and the city's New Deal origins.
Year-round
Heritage
Surviving urban farms
Several of the original homestead lots still operate as working small farms, a rarity inside a fully built-out Mid-Cities suburb.
Year-round
Known for
- Only surviving New Deal subsistence homestead community in Texas
- Founded 1934 with Eleanor Roosevelt's backing
- Name combines Dallas + Fort Worth + Arlington
- Surrounded by Arlington
The Story of Dalworthington Gardens
Dalworthington Gardens is one of the most unusual towns in Texas — a living New Deal experiment. It was created during the Great Depression as a federal 'subsistence homestead' project, one of five in Texas and the only one that still survives.
Its very name is a blend: 'Dal-worth-ington' stitches together Dallas, Fort Worth and Arlington, the three cities between which it sits. After First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt toured the Arlington area and saw it as a promising site, the federal government approved the project's charter in early 1934 and put up $250,000 to buy 593 acres.
The idea was to let working families combine part-time industrial jobs with subsistence farming — homes with room to grow gardens and raise animals near the city's factories. By 1937 every homestead was occupied, and residents formed a cooperative that built furniture, stepladders and butter churns.
Residents voted to incorporate as a town in 1949, and today Dalworthington Gardens is a leafy, large-lot community that still treasures its New Deal origins.
Sources: Texas State Historical Association, Handbook of Texas.
🗓️ Coming this week Full calendar →
TUE
28
Birdville ISD Board of Trustees
6:30pm · agenda online
TUE
2
Tarrant County Commissioners Court
10am · agenda online
TUE
2
Fort Worth City Council
7pm · agenda online
TUE
2
Arlington City Council
6:30pm · agenda online
MON
8
Northwest ISD Board of Trustees
6:30pm · agenda online
MON
8
Keller ISD Board of Trustees
6:30pm · agenda online
MON
8
Carroll ISD Board of Trustees
5:30pm · agenda online
🎈 Kids Trading Post · Dalworthington Gardens 1 activities →
Storytime, classes, camps, leagues, and open-play in Dalworthington Gardens, sourced from libraries and partner orgs. Updated nightly · no manual data entry.
See all 1 kid activities →
Sports
Dalworthington Gardens Sports (Arlington ISD)
School-district athletics + city rec
ISD Athletics
Arlington ISD — Various AISD HSs
Dalworthington Gardens students participate in Arlington ISD athletics. UIL classification varies by HS enrollment.
Source: Arlington ISD
Community Rec
Dalworthington Gardens parks + community programs
City Parks & Rec coordinates youth + adult community recreation programs scaled to Dalworthington Gardens's pop.
Source: City of Dalworthington Gardens
Cross-District
Friday-night football in the surrounding district
For HS football fans, the closest district games are in Arlington ISD stadiums — typically a short drive within the Mid-Cities or NE/NW Tarrant corridor.
Source: Arlington ISD
⭐ Game of the week
Carroll Dragons — district football (anchor program)
🏈 District football ·
Tarrant County's anchor programs — Carroll (8 state titles), Keller (top-of-district 5A), Mansfield (B-rated district), Arlington Martin (AISD flagship), Fossil Ridge (KISD power program) — get priority weekly coverage from the news radar. Carroll Dragons headline the off-season anchor framing; weekly schedule populates from MaxPreps DFW + each ISD's athletics site.
📜 On this day in Tarrant County sports
1988
🏈 Carroll (Southlake) Dragons claim 1st state football championship — beginning of the dynasty that would produce 8 UIL state titles. Under coach Bob Ledbetter.
1993
🏈 Carroll Dragons capture their 3rd state football title (1988, 1992, 1993 = three-in-a-row 3A run under Coach Ledbetter; QB Kris Brown led the '93 squad past Cuero).
2011
🏈 Carroll Dragons win their 8th and most recent UIL state football title — capping the program's run as Tarrant County's most successful HS football dynasty.
2018
🥎 Mansfield Tigers softball reaches UIL state semifinals — anchor moment for MISD's growing softball program under HC Gregory George's broader program leadership.
2026
🏃 Keller ISD sends 11 athletes to UIL State Track & Field — multiple medal-stand finishes per district release.
📻 Radio guide
Southlake Carroll Dragons football
KKGM 1630 AM (Fort Worth; news/sports) — exclusive radio home of Carroll football
Dragon Sports Network
Aledo Bearcats football (Tarrant-area marquee program)
KTFW-FM 92.1 'Hank FM' (LKCM Radio Group; country) — flagship for Aledo broadcasts
Aledo Sports Network
Arlington ISD football (Martin · Lamar · Bowie)
NFHS Network (streaming platform) — official AISD broadcast partner
NFHS Network
Mansfield Tigers football
NFHS Network (streaming platform) — Mansfield ISD live broadcasts
NFHS Network
Keller / Fossil Ridge (Keller ISD) football
NFHS Network (streaming platform) — Keller ISD live broadcasts
NFHS Network
Fort Worth-area HS football game of the week
KTCU-FM 88.7 'The Choice' (TCU student station, Fort Worth)
KTCU 88.7
🏆 UIL playoff bracket
No active Tarrant County UIL playoff bracket on the desk. Populates when a Tarrant County team is in a UIL playoff round (football, basketball, baseball/softball, volleyball). Source: UIL playoff records.
Activities
Things to do in Dalworthington Gardens
Kids, library, sports, fitness, classes, camps, open play — sourced from libraries, parks, and partner orgs across Dalworthington Gardens.
event
Pictures with Santa
Dec 6, 2026 · 3:00–5:00 p.m.
City of Dalworthington Gardens · Dalworthington Gardens City Hall, 2600 Roosevelt Dr
Civic & Government
Civic & Government
Dalworthington Gardens city hall, schools, and county connection
Government
Council-mayor form, general-law city
Dalworthington Gardens is governed by a mayor and five council members. The city's southern border adjoins Pantego; both are completely surrounded by the City of Arlington.
Schools
Served by Arlington ISD
Most Dalworthington Gardens students attend Arlington Independent School District schools, with a small Kennedale ISD overlap depending on address.
County
Tarrant County (judge Tim O'Hare)
Dalworthington Gardens sits in Tarrant County. Commissioners Court meets at 100 E. Weatherford St., Fort Worth. Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare; sheriff Bill Waybourn.
Reach the right desk
By the Numbers
By the Numbers
Pop
Approximately 2,293 residents
Census ~2,293. Pop has grown slowly over decades since founding — constrained by fixed boundaries within Arlington + preservation of larger lot sizes. Among smaller incorporated Tarrant cities by pop.
Census · Source: Wikipedia
Founding
1934 makes DWG a New Deal city
Founded 1934 as federal subsistence-homestead project. One of very small number of TX municipalities with direct New Deal lineage surviving in present-day governance + built environment.
1934 · Source: TSHA
Population
2,293
Type
city
School District
arlington-isd
Ask the Desk
Questions about Dalworthington Gardens
What are Tarrant County's 2025 property tax rates?
Tarrant County (general portion): ~$0.19 per $100. City of Fort Worth: $1.0624. City of Arlington: $1.0929 (down ~1¢ from 2024). Combined rates from Fort Worth ISD + City of Fort Worth + Tarrant County College bring the total for most Fort …
Who is Tarrant County's County Judge?
Tim O'Hare. He is the 33rd County Judge of Tarrant County since the county's founding in 1849, took office January 1, 2023, and his current term runs through January 1, 2027. He is running for re-election November 3, 2026, and has said the …
Who is Tarrant County's Sheriff?
Bill E. Waybourn. Source: Tarrant County elected officials (tarrantcountytx.gov).
Who is the State Senator for Tarrant County's District 9?
Taylor Rehmet (Democrat), who won the November 4, 2025 special election to replace Republican Kelly Hancock — Hancock left to become acting state comptroller. Rehmet won by roughly 14,000 votes (~15% margin) and is completing the remainder …
Which ISD serves Dalworthington Gardens?
Arlington ISD serves Dalworthington Gardens. AISD earned a C (77) on TEA 2024-25 accountability (post-appeal) and enrolls approximately 56,000 students. Dalworthington Gardens itself is a small enclave city of about 2,293 residents bordered…
All Dalworthington Gardens Q&As → Community Voice
History
Founded 1934
Eleanor Roosevelt's New Deal homestead, still autonomous
Dalworthington Gardens was born in early 1934 as part of the federal Subsistence Homesteads Division, created under the National Industrial Recovery Act to help Depression-era families combine part-time industrial work with small-scale farming. Eleanor Roosevelt, an enthusiastic backer of the program, is credited with suggesting the area south of Mosig's place during a visit to the Fort Worth family of a young woman engaged to her son Elliot Roosevelt. The federal government bought 593 acres west of Arlington and divided it into 79 homestead plots from 3.75 to 24.4 acres. The new community took its name from a portmanteau of its three big neighbors: Dallas, Fort Worth and Arlington. While dozens of similar federal subsistence-homestead projects across the country were absorbed by their host cities or dissolved, Dalworthington Gardens incorporated as its own municipality and remains the only one to survive as an autonomous community in Texas. Sources: TSHA Handbook of Texas; City of Dalworthington Gardens; Arlington TX History; Wikipedia.
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