Brazos Trail Region

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RED POPPY CAPITAL

The mid-1800s saw two groups attracted to the future site of Georgetown with its abundance of timber and clean water: pioneering settlers, both American and European, and the Tonkawa Indians who had already established a village there. History tells us who eventually dominated the landscape, a pastoral stretch along the San Gabriel River, and by the 1870’s Georgetown flourished as an agricultural center and major hub for the historic cattle trails. Industry soon followed, including limestone quarries, woodworking mills, cotton gins, blacksmithing, and bakeries. Georgetown even had its own railroad – the Georgetown and Granger Railroad – facilitating a burgeoning cotton production industry through the late 1800s and early 1900s, adding to the communities growing prosperity. Modern Georgetown, known as the Red Poppy Capital of Texas, continues the practice, adding manufacturing plants and creative downtown cottage industries. Thoroughly modern in tempo, the city never let go of its past and, in fact, it is a longtime participant in the Texas Historical Commission’s Main Street program, renovating and revitalizing much of its downtown commercial historic district and neighborhood structures, including the 1881 Grace Episcopal Church, a sugar-white Gothic chapel with a Norman-style tower and now home to the Georgetown Heritage Society.

Georgetown boasts a state cultural district designated by the Texas Commission on the Arts. Explore all they have to offer on your next visit!

Watch the following video to learn more about Georgetown's historic downtown. This video was produced for the Town Square Walk Around mobile tour.