The red pegasus has served as a beacon of the city since 1934.
DALLAS — If you spend any real amount of time in the city of Dallas, you are bound to see a flying horse eventually.
Pegasus, a creature of ancient Greek mythology, can be seen in murals, at businesses, during events and it’s even in the logo of a local sports team.
So how did the horse born from the blood of Medusa become the symbol of Dallas?
Like many other foundations of the city, you can thank the oil industry.
When the Magnolia Petroleum Company built their 29-story skyscraper in Downtown Dallas in 1922, it was the tallest structure west of the Mississippi River. Its top floor could be seen from miles outside the city and in 1934, the company decided to put their mascot, the winged red horse, atop it all.
The Pegasus, stretching 40-feet long, 30-feet high and bathed in red light at night, served as a beacon and a message to all who approached they had reached Dallas.
The symbol of a city was born.
Over the next 65 years, Pegasus flew over Dallas but time would take its toll on the high-flying horse.
As business boomed, other skyscrapers soared higher than the Magnolia building and obstructed the view of Pegasus from the ground. During the energy crisis of the 1970s, the city turned off the illuminating red lights to save on costs.
Finally, the original Pegasus was grounded in 1999 thanks to decades of weather damage.
However, a $600,000 replacement project (the original cost $7000 in 1934) hoisted a new version into place in time for New Year’s Eve. Thousands packed downtown streets to watch the new edition of Pegasus light up red again at the stroke of midnight to ring in a new millennium.
“Tonight is a wonderful intersection of what has been great about Dallas and what will be great about Dallas,” Mayor Ron Kirk told the crowd that night. “Nothing has symbolized that more than the wonderful flying red horse that has presided over our city for many, many years.”
But the life of the original, rusted, weather-beaten Pegasus was not over.
After sitting dormant in storage for 15 years, the same piece of metal that started it all was restored, given a fresh, clean look, and emerged from the shadows in 2015 when it was placed in front of the Omni Hotel where it remains today.
“It almost puts a tear in my eye seeing that come to life here at the Omni,” said Ed Netzhammer, the regional vice president at the time for Omni Dallas on the day Pegasus was unveiled.
The imagery of Pegasus can be seen in more places besides the Magnolia and Omni.
When the Magnolia Petroleum Company merged with Mobil in 1959, the red horse was incorporated into the Mobil logo.
The BMW Dallas Marathon, Pegasus City Brewery and the Dallas Wings basketball team are just a few others using imagery of a winged horse as part of their brand logos.
