First settled in the 1840s, Oak Cliff is situated across the Trinity River from the original settlement of Dallas, and was incorporated as the City of Oak Cliff in 1890.  However, the financially burdened city voted in favor of annexation to the City of Dallas in 1903.  In 1990, claiming misallocation of resources, the Greater Oak Cliff Citizens' Council proposed the dis-annexation of Oak Cliff from the City of Dallas. The organization argued that by becoming an independent municipal entity, the citizens of Oak Cliff would receive more fully the services they felt the City of Dallas had denied them. Following public discussion and study, the Greater Oak Cliff Citizens' Council did not pursue the matter further.

The collection includes dis-annexation studies commissioned by the City of Dallas, a "blue sky" report from the City of Dallas outlining areas of immediate concern to the citizens of Oak Cliff, a City Service Action Plan to improve and enhance the quality of life in Oak Cliff, and the first Oak Cliff Strategic Agenda Monthly Progress Report.