Cedar Hill is a city in Dallas and Ellis counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is located approximately southwest of downtown Dallas and is situated along the eastern shore of Joe Pool Lake and Cedar Hill State Park. Per the 2020 United States census, the population was 49,148. Cedar Hill is a suburb of the city of Dallas and is part of the Best Southwest area, which includes the nearby cities of DeSoto, Duncanville, and Lancaster.
Early in its history, Cedar Hill lay along a branch of the Chisholm Trail and served as the temporary county seat of Dallas County. In 1856, a tornado swept through the town, killing nine people and destroying most of its buildings. The seat of the county was moved to Dallas not long after.
History Cedar Hill was founded circa 1846 by a small group of settlers from the Peters Colony. They came from Kentucky, Alabama, and surrounding areas to arrive in the Dallas area of North Texas; 197 families and 184 single men settled in what is now Cedar Hill, making it the largest settlement in the area at the time.
Cedar Hill has five homes listed on the National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places, four historical structures on the Texas Historical Commission's list of Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks, and two graveyards designated as "Historical Texas Cemeteries" by the Texas Historical Commission, one of which is believed to be the oldest integrated cemetery in Dallas County.
1856 tornado On April 29, 1856, Cedar Hill was struck by a tornado that claimed at least nine lives, damaged property, killed livestock, and reportedly left only two structures standing. Among the survivors was teacher and pastor, Robert Crawford. Crawford donated four acres of his land to church trustees to be designated as a free and indiscriminate public graveyard. Nine victims of the tornado were buried on Crawford's land.
The graveyard lay lost for about 100 years. It was rediscovered and certified by the Texas Historical Commission in 2006, and was named the Crawford Tornado Graveyard. The graveyard was reconsecrated in a blessing ceremony on October 7, 2011. The Texas Historical Commission marker was officially placed on the site on April 29, 2012, the 156th anniversary of the tornado.
Cedar Hill Bank robbery On October 8, 1932, the then First State Bank of Cedar Hill was robbed by Raymond Hamilton, a sidekick of bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde. After taking the money, he locked the employees in the vault and made his getaway. When Hamilton got wind of reports that some of the cash had been hidden during the first robbery, he returned to rob the bank again. The consecutive robberies took a toll on the bank, causing it to fall into financial ruin and ultimately close its doors for good.
Raymond Hamilton was incarcerated at Eastham Prison in Lovelady, Texas on other charges when, on January 17, 1934, his partners, Bonnie and Clyde, broke him out of jail. The gang is known to have had an old hide out on the south edge of Cedar Hill and scattered places in the Mountain Creek Valley.
Hamilton was later re-captured on April 24, 1934. The building where the robbery took place still stands in downtown Cedar Hill. It is the current home of Cedar Hill Barbers. In March 2008, the building was designated as a historic resource by the city of Cedar Hill and bears an official medallion indicating its significance.
Geography
Cedar Hill is located in North Texas. Adjacent cities are Grand Prairie to the southwest, west, and northwest; Dallas to the north; Duncanville to the north and northeast; DeSoto to the northeast and east; Glenn Heights and Ovilla to the southeast; and Midlothian to the south. Most of the city of Cedar Hill is in Dallas County, but a small southern section of the city spills over into Ellis County.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.26%, is water.
The city is sometimes referred to as the "hill country of Dallas" (in comparison to the "hill country" surrounding Austin and San Antonio). The city is full of native eastern red cedar evergreen trees and stands at an elevation of about above sea level—the highest point in a straight line from the Red River at the Texas-Oklahoma border to the Gulf Coast.
The "Austin chalk" limestone uplift on which most of Cedar Hill is spread is covered with "gumbo"-cleche-clay topsoil from a few inches to many feet. The western edge of the city, primarily the Lake Ridge neighborhood, falls below the limestone uplift on the Eagle Ford shale strata surrounding Joe Pool Lake.
Demographics
From the 1950 United States census-tabulated population of 732, to 2000's 32,093 people, the city of Cedar Hill has experienced positive growth trends as a suburban community of Dallas. According to the 2020 U.S. census, Cedar Hill's population grew to 49,148.
Racial and ethnic composition
+Cedar Hill city, Texas – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 2000Pop 2010% 2020% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)16,31711,6048,64650.84%25.77%17.59%Black or African American alone (NH)10,72723,14625,79033.42%51.40%52.47%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)1131341570.35%0.30%0.32%Asian alone (NH)6278931,0351.95%1.98%2.11%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)1618220.05%0.04%0.04%Other race alone (NH)31632000.10%0.14%0.41%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)4407651,4171.37%1.70%2.88%Hispanic or Latino (any race)3,8228,40511,88111.91%18.67%24.17%Total32,09345,02849,148100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Cedar Hill had a population of 49,148. The median age was 36.9 years. 26.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 12.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 88.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 82.4 males age 18 and over.
95.2% of residents lived in urban areas, while 4.8% lived in rural areas.
There were 16,592 households in Cedar Hill, of which 40.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 49.0% were married-couple households, 13.5% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 32.6% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 19.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 17,193 housing units, of which 3.5% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 69.4% were owner-occupied and 30.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.7%.
The 2020 American Community Survey estimated a median household income of $75,715.
2000 census
In 2000 the racial makeup of the city was 56.67% White, 33.61% African American, 0.50% Native American, 1.98% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 4.87% from other races, and 2.32% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latinos of any race were 11.91% of the population.
The median income as of the 2000 census for a household in the city was $60,136, and the median income for a family was $63,416. Males had a median income of $41,360 versus $32,207 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,389. About 4.2% of families and 5.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.7% of those under age 18 and 6.5% of those age 65 or over. Economy In the early 1990s, the population of Cedar Hill was increasing rapidly and citizens began to be concerned about the need for orderly economic development. An economic development advisory committee was formed by the city council that surveyed the residents to see how they envisioned Cedar Hill's future. Based on the response, subcommittees were formed to look into funding, asset enhancement, and community image.
In January 1994 voters approved a special sales tax to fund the economic development efforts, and the Cedar Hill EDC was incorporated in September 1994. They began with an annual budget of $150,000, and have increased it to $3.5 million with their development efforts. The economic development corporation has been a huge proponent in development activity in the City, assisting with recruiting and retaining businesses.
Since 2000, the city has added several retail outlets. The opening of The Plaza at Cedar Hill, in the fall of 2000, began the growth. This retail center included a variety of large and small stores. Later that year, The Cedar Hill Crossing was built. A few years later, in 2003, Cedar Village, , was built to include linking a new city hall and historic Main Street district to retail, residential, office and entertainment developments. The Village includes retail frontage along US Hwy 67, restaurants, stores and office space. The Pleasant Run Towne Crossing was built in 2003 with of retail and restaurants. A couple of years later, Cedar Hill Pointe was built, which opened in 2005. Hillside Village (formerly Uptown Village at Cedar Hill), Cedar Hill's upscale lifestyle center, opened in March 2008. The lifestyle shopping center includes three anchor stores, 65 additional stores, and numerous restaurants. Hillside Village is bound by Highway 67 to the east, FM 1382 on the south, Pleasant Run Road on the north, and Cedar Hill Road on the west.
The Uptown Village development was awarded the 2006 Best Real Estate Deal in Retail/Hospitality by Dallas Business Journal. Trademark Property Co. acquired the Uptown Village property in 2015 which brought multimillion-dollar renovations including first phase: new children's play area, new promenade section with a bocce ball court, a covered stage area, and enhanced outdoor elements to increase the shopping experience at the lifestyle center. The new name and corresponding new brand were selected to reflect the garden-like look and feel planned in the multimillion-dollar property renovation as well as paying homage to the community in which it lies.Trademark gets $38.3M in refinancing of Uptown Village in Cedar Hill - Dallas Business Journal. December 5, 2014. Retrieved November 22, 2015.Uptown Village gets a rebrand - Focus Daily News. April 30, 2015. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
The City worked with citizens on developing a long-range plan called City Center Vision Plan. The plan is a specific area plan dedicated to transforming Cedar Hill's City Center into a walkable, mixed-use destination that will have a sense of place. City Center consists of 3 sub districts referred to as Uptown, Midtown and Historic Downtown. City Council adopted the City Center Development Plan in October 2014, the implementation of this plan is fully underway. Implementation of the Plan has four components: Regulation Actions, Economic/Financing Strategies, Communication/Marketing and Projects. In 2014, a $26 million project was developed in Midtown area. Midtown Apartments is a 255-unit, 3-apartment story complex that lies within the City Center area plan providing residents direct access to outdoor recreation activities, retail and restaurants. The development was recognized in 2014 as Best Real Estate Deal in Multifamily Deal by Dallas Business Journal.
Education
Most of the city is served by the Cedar Hill Independent School District. Some of it is served by Duncanville Independent School District and the Midlothian Independent School District.
The Cedar Hill ISD portion is served by Cedar Hill High School and Cedar Hill Collegiate High School. The Duncanville ISD portion is served by Duncanville High School. The Midlothian ISD portion is served by Midlothian Heritage High School. Life School, a public charter school, operates the K–4 Cedar Hill campus."Contact Us ." Life School. Retrieved on September 2, 2011. "950 South I-35E Lancaster, TX 75146" Additionally, Trinity Christian School – Cedar Hill (affiliated with a local Assemblies of God church) also serves the area.