THE VILLAGE OF SALADO
As a welcome break from travel on Interstate 35 between Austin and Waco or as a destination, downtown Salado rewards visitors with art galleries, antiques stores and restaurants in 19th Century limestone buildings and historic residences. Salado’s Main Street saw the dust of cattle headed to market along the Chisholm Trail and served as a well-known stopping point for stagecoaches. Wagon wheels carved permanent ruts in the bedrock of Salado Creek, where fish-filled springs lured Native Americans long before Spanish explorers and Anglo-American settlers arrived. The creek itself is a designated Texas Natural Landmark.
The town, platted in 1859, promoted education and culture from the start. Salado College rose on a hill above Main Street. (Stone ruins remain.) The school sponsored a men’s debating group and a women’s society that discussed books, presented plays and raised funds for a circulating library. The first farmers’ Grange in Texas was organized in Salado in 1873. Today, visitors can retrace Salado history with a vaudeville show at the Tablerock Amphitheatre followed by a stroll by the historic Stagecoach Inn. The Inn, founded as Shady Villa in 1860, maintains the original frame buildings as a restaurant.
Salado boasts a state cultural district designated by the Texas Commission on the Arts. Explore all they have to offer on your next visit!
Related
Salado Museum and College Park423 S Main St.
Salado, Texas 76571
Brazos Trail Region
Stagecoach Inn (formerly Shady Villa)
401 S. Stagecoach Road Salado, TX 76571 (254) 220-4251 Website
Stagecoach Inn (formerly Shady Villa)401 S. Stagecoach Road
Salado, TX 76571