Dallas: Geography and Climate

Dallas is located in north-central Texas, 70 miles south of the Oklahoma border, 174 miles west of Louisiana, and approximately 250 miles north of the Gulf of Mexico. The city is situated on the rolling plains near the headwaters of the Trinity River in an area known as the black-land prairies, midway between the Piney Woods of east Texas and the Great Plains. The general area has an unusual concentration of man-made lakes. Its climate is humid and subtropical, characterized by hot summers and mild winters, with snowfall rare. Within a 100-mile radius of the city, there are more than 60 lakes and over 50,000 acres of public parkland. The rainy season occurs in April and May; July and August are the driest summer months.

Area: 342.54 square miles (2000)

Elevation: Ranges from 500 to 800 feet above sea level

Average Temperatures: January, 45.44° F; August, 85.72° F; annual average, 66.42° F

Average Annual Precipitation: 35.77 inches