Railroad Survey Crew Members Pose in Front of Tent, c. 1902

Four members of the Chicago, Rock Island & Gulf Railway survey crew pose in front of their tent, c. 1902. The crew worked in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. In Texas, they surveyed a ten-mile stretch between Dallas and Fort Worth. They camped on Britain family land in the vicinity of modern-day Nursery Road and the Rock Island railroad track. Two of the crew members remained behind when the rest moved on to the next job. They purchased 80 acres of land from the Britains and established the town of Irving along the tracks in 1903