Dallas was founded in 1841 and formally incorporated as a city on 2 February 1856. The city is most well known for its role in the petroleum industry, telecommunications, computer technology, banking, and transportation. It is the core of the largest inland metropolitan area in the United States and lacks any navigable link to the sea—Dallas's prominence despite this comes from its historical importance as a center for the oil and cotton industries, its position along numerous railroad lines, and its powerful industrial and financial tycoons.*****************Before Texas was claimed in the 1500s as a part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain by the Spanish Empire, the Dallas area was inhabited by the Caddo Native Americans. Later, France also claimed the area, but in 1819 the Adams-Onís Treaty made the Red River the northern boundary of New Spain, officially placing Dallas well within Spanish territory.The area remained under Spanish rule until 1821, when Mexico declared independence from Spain and the area became part of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas. In 1836, the Republic of Texas broke off from Mexico to become an independent nation. In 1839, four years into the Republic's existence, John Neely Bryan surveyed the area around present-day Dallas. In 1841, he returned and founded the city of Dallas on a site where several Caddoan trails in the region intersected at a rare natural ford on the Trinity River. In 1846 the Republic of Texas was annexed by the United States and Dallas County was established. ************************ According to the City of Dallas, the origin of the name "Dallas" is a mystery, despite claims to the contrary. Bryan stated only that it was named "after my friend Dallas." It has often been claimed that both the county and the city were named after George Mifflin Dallas, the eleventh Vice President of the United States. However, there is no evidence that Bryan ever met George Mifflin Dallas, and the area was called Dallas several years before the latter was elected.