Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) emerged as an economic powerhouse in the last half of the 20th century to create one of the most diverse and vibrant metropoli­tan areas in the United States. Starting with a combined population of less than 1.3 million residents in 1950, DFW now claims a population over 6 million. This translates to growth averaging 225 net new residents per day, every day, total­ing 4.7 million persons added, over 55 years. Employment growth has been equally dramatic, quadrupling from fewer than 600,000 jobs in 1950 to more than 2.8 million. Today’s demographic characteristics, local economy, and infrastructure as well as the quality of life in DFW reflect this vibrant history and expansion.

Dallas and Fort Worth developed as two distinct urban areas in the early stages of rapid expansion following World War II. The future integration of the two metros was determined by the positioning of the DFW International Air­port between their northern growth paths. In less than two decades between the time the airport opened in the early 1970s and the 1990 decennial census, DFW International became the functional center of the newly created region. The cities immediately surrounding the air­port—Coppell, Grapevine and South­lake—grew from fewer than 11,000 residents combined in the 1970 Census to nearly 100,000 in the year 2000. Over the same period, the commercial districts of Las Colinas and Centerport grew out of the prairie to surround the airport with business activities, including the head­quarters of Fortune 500 companies such as AMR, Kimberly-Clark, Exxon Mobil Corp. and Commercial Metal Co.

The Dallas and Fort Worth urban areas now combine to form the 12-county DFW region, including Collin, Dallas, Delta, Denton, Ellis, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant and Wise coun­ties. The data still reflects pre-2003 DFW counties that include Henderson and Hood in place of Delta and Wise. This change does not have a significant impact on the region total.

The region’s growth culminated in the 1990s when DFW outpaced all other U.S. metros in total employment attractive package of corporate opportunities and appealing quality of life amenities. This influx of young workers helped lower the median age of DFW to 33, three years below the nation’s average age of 36, and swell the 20-44 years old age bracket to capture 39 percent of the local population.

Nearly three million workers saturated the DFW labor force in 2005 as job growth remained positive and unemployment fellbelow 6 percent. Today’s “Dallasites” are reasonably wealthy and multicultural. According to the most recent U.S. Census, 16.3 percent of Dallas residents are actually foreign born. Median household incomes were $48,577 per year with just over 28 percent of all households reporting incomes in excess of $75,000 in 2004, according to the U.S. Census, American Community Survey, 2004.