Downtown Dallas’s Thanks-Giving Square is a meditative and serene urban garden set 15 feet below ground level. Thanks-Giving Square Dallas was built because a few businessmen wanted the city to be known not only for its economic accomplishments, but also for the kind hearts of its citizens. 

Expressions of thanksgiving can be seen in engraving and graphic art all around the square. Humanity is celebrated in the square’s Court of All Nations.  You can walk through the Bell tower and Ring of Thanks, which is a 14-foot ring made of aluminum and gold that symbolizes gratitude.

The Chapel of Thanksgiving is the spiritual center of the square. Inspired by the Great Mosque in Iraq, the spiral-shaped chapel explores unity while representing the diversity of different faith and traditions. The aptly named Glory Window has a spiral ceiling that contains one of the largest horizontally mounted stained-glass windows in the world.  It was designed by French artist Gabriel Loire in his workshop in Chartres, France. Loire intended for its progression of colors to express life with its difficulties and its joys all culminating to a point of light at its center.

Visitors from all faiths are welcome to enter the chapel, which also hosts intimate prayer services, concerts, weddings, and special events. The Hall of Thanksgiving, which is below the chapel, tells the story of the American Thanksgiving tradition, and you can see artifacts on display like the Book of Prayers and Presidential Proclamations. A spiral ramp leads down to the city and back into the world.