Llano, Texas

You're driving through Llano, and right here is the county courthouse, the fourth one for Llano County. Designed by A.O. Watson, construction wrapped up in 1893, using sandstone, marble, and granite. Though fires…

You're driving past the Old Southern Hotel building, constructed around 1880 by J.W. Owen. It started as a two-story stagecoach stop, built by stonemasons J.K. Finlay and John Goodman. Later additions expanded it into…

You're driving through Llano, where a local music teacher named Jennie Clopton started a literary society back in 1901. Renamed the Woman's Culture Club, these women established the town's first public library,…

You're driving through Llano, and just ahead is the Watkins House, built around 1916. Merchant George Watkins and his wife Lutie, who was the first president of Llano's Woman's Culture Club, made this their home. It's a…

In the granite hills north of Llano there is a rock that exists nowhere else on the planet. Llanite is a brown rhyolite porphyry shot through with sky-blue…

In 1886 someone discovered iron deposits at Iron Mountain in northwestern Llano County and the town lost its mind. Investors poured in and streets were named…

In 1898 a French immigrant named N.J. Badu bought the former First National Bank building in downtown Llano and turned it into his home. Badu was a…

During the boom years of the early 1890s fires kept breaking out in Llano with a regularity that made insurance companies nervous. New businesses would open…

You're driving through Llano, and just ahead is the former home of Richmond Alexander McInnis. Born in Mississippi in 1852, McInnis came to Llano in the 1870s and became a prominent local businessman and official. He…

You're cruising through Llano, and right here is the former office building of the Cassaday Grey Granite Company. Built in 1919 by businessman Tye Yates Hill, this place was the nerve center for a quarry extracting a…

You're driving through Llano, and just ahead is a beautiful example of Victorian architecture – the Edna J. Moore Seaholm House. Built in 1892 for the Hargon family, this L-plan cottage cost a modest six hundred…

You're driving past the site of the First Christian Church of Llano. This congregation started worshiping together around 1882, initially meeting in a schoolhouse before moving to the county courthouse. By 1888, they…

The pink granite beneath Llano County is some of the hardest and most beautiful stone in the state and Texans used it to build their most important buildings.…

In 1847 John O. Meusebach leader of the German settlers in Central Texas rode into Comanche territory and did something no Texan had managed before — he…

You're driving through Llano, and right here is the Badu House. Built in 1891, this wasn't always a home. It started life as the First National Bank of Llano, a testament to the city's iron production boom days. Then,…

At the height of the iron boom in 1890 tiny Llano had twenty-two saloons serving a population that had swelled to nearly ten thousand souls. Prospectors…

You're driving past the site of Grace Episcopal Church in Llano. It began in 1881 as Llano Academy, but that venture failed. The Episcopal Church purchased the property in 1883, completing the building and holding the…

In 1975 the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Llano Texas needed money for repairs and somehow word reached the most glamorous woman in the world. Italian…

You're driving through Llano, where German Lutherans founded St. Jakobi Evangelish Lutherisch Kirche in 1897. Services were held in local schools and houses until a small building was completed in 1910. The congregation…

South Carolina native Dillard Cooper came to Texas in Jan. 1836 with Capt. John Shackelford’s Red Rovers, landing at Copano Bay and joining Col. James Fannin’s command. Following the Texians’ defeat…

You're driving through Llano, and right here is the city cemetery, a place that's been the final resting spot for generations. It began in August of <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1862</say-as>, with the burial…

You're driving through Llano, and you're passing the O'Henry School Building. This stately, two-story schoolhouse, built starting in 1887, was originally known as the 'College Building' for its impressive style.…

Llano's always been a place where time seems to slow down, a real Hill Country haven. Ranching's in our blood, tourism keeps us going, and Friday night lights at Llano High are practically a religion. But lately, things…

The Lantex Theatre opened its doors in Llano back in 1927, and a ticket would run you thirty cents. Think about that — a single-screen movie house on the square, with a cooling system dreamed up before air conditioning…

On the north side of the Llano River the street signs give away a dream that never got built. Birmingham. Pittsburgh. Bessemer. In 1886 iron ore turned up at Iron Mountain in the northwest corner of the county, and…

As you walk along the Llano River or browse the local rock shops, keep your eyes peeled for a very special stone. It's called Llanite, and this is the only place on the entire planet it is found. At first glance, it…

You'll see signs and logos all over town calling Llano the 'Deer Capital of Texas.' It's not just a clever slogan; it's the town's modern identity. The surrounding granite and limestone hills, covered in live oak and…

Enchanted Rock is a spectacular granite pluton just west of State Highway 965 near the Gillespie-Llano county line in southern Llano County (at 30°30'N, 98°48' W). The granite dome rises some 385 feet above the…

Enchanted Rock , a granite dome in southwestern Llano County about twenty miles north of Fredericksburg, has long been the center of various legends. The local Comanche and Tonkawa Indians both feared and revered the…

You're driving through Llano County, not far from where, on February 5, 1868, a band of Comanche warriors raided the home of John and Matilda Friend. Matilda and eight women and children were gathered inside. In the…

You're driving through Llano County, Texas, a place that might just hold a hidden treasure. Back in 1889, a Scottish mineralogist named William Niven was on an expedition for Thomas Edison himself, searching for a rare…

You're driving through the beautiful Texas Hill Country, a land shaped by rivers and granite, but for early settlers, it was also a dangerous frontier. For centuries, the Tonkawa Indians called this area home. Then, in…

You're driving through the Texas Hill Country, maybe near Llano County, and you're passing over a legend. Back in 1753, Spanish explorers heard tales from Apache Indians about a hill of red ocher, a 'cerro de almagre.'…

You're driving through Llano County, and right here on Packsaddle Mountain, a fierce fight went down on August 5th, 1873. A band of over twenty Native Americans, likely Apaches, had been raiding and stealing horses.…

Bettina, a short-lived commune on the north bank of the Llano River in western Llano County, was settled in 1847 by a fraternity of highly educated German communitarian freethinkers influenced by the writings of Étienne…

Bluffton, also known as New Bluffton, is on Farm Road 2241 near the western shore of Lake Buchanan twelve miles northeast of Llano in northeastern Llano County. One of the earliest settlements in the region that was to…

Castell is at the intersection of Farm roads 2768 and 152, on the south bank of the Llano River in extreme western Llano County. Castell was established in 1847 on the north side of the Llano River by German immigrants…

Valley Spring is on State Highway 71 twelve miles northwest of Llano in northwestern Llano County. The area was originally settled by the O. C. J. Phillips family in 1854 and was known as Phillips Ranch in the early…

You're driving through Llano County, a place with a name that echoes through centuries! The river here was first called 'Llano' by Spanish explorers way back in the 1700s. But that name itself has a fascinating origin:…

Llano County has the highest density of white-tailed deer in the entire United States and the town has leaned into that distinction with both arms. Every…

You're driving through Llano County, past the site of the old Lone Grove School. Established as district number two in 1884, this building dates to 1910. It was one of the first rural schools in the county to offer high…

You're driving past Board Branch Cemetery, a burial ground for the Lone Grove community. Oral history says the earliest grave here might be William Kinderly, killed by Indians around 1864. The first documented burial…

You're driving past Salem Cemetery, established around 1884. It began with the burial of Rebecca Ann Stevenson, daughter of early settlers. The land was formally deeded to the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in 1888…

You're driving past Six Mile Cemetery, a resting place that's served this Llano County community since the early 1880s. William and Jane Stephens donated the land back in 1883. The earliest marked grave here belongs to…

You're driving past the site of the Six Mile School, established in the Six Mile community. The land was donated in 1883 for a school and cemetery. Originally called Union School, it was renamed Six Mile School in 1898…

You're driving past the site of the Valley Springs Primitive Baptist Church. This congregation was formed in August 1882, with Elder S. R. Woods as its first pastor. They met in local schoolhouses until 1886, when they…

On August 4, 1873, James Moss discovered that raiders had stolen horses from a ranch in Llano County. He gathered his two brothers and five other settlers, eight men total, and chased the trail twenty-five miles up the…

You're driving past the Baby Head Cemetery, a name that sounds like a creepy nursery rhyme, but it comes from a dark legend. Local stories say the name Babyhead originated in the 1850s, when a child's remains were left…

You are looking at llanite, one of Texas's most recognizable rocks. The blue-gray spots are quartz crystals, and the rusty pink crystals are feldspar. This was once molten rock forced up through a crack in much older…

You're driving past Bluffton Cemetery, a final resting place with a story shaped by water. In anticipation of Lake Buchanan's construction, this land was purchased and donated in 1930, with sandstone provided for the…

You're driving through Llano, and just ahead is the site of the home of Isaac Byler Maxwell. Born in Tennessee in 1837, Ike moved to this area in 1854, naming his land Bluffton after his Arkansas home. He served as a…

You're driving through Llano County, passing the Oxford Cemetery. This quiet resting place has roots going back to 1880, when Confederate veteran A. J. Johnson founded the Oxford community. A burial ground was set aside…

You're driving through the community of Valley Spring, Texas. It all started back in 1853 when O. C. J. Phillips became the first settler here. Later, two small settlements, Whistleville and Bugscuffle, joined forces to…

On the morning of February 5, 1868, a band of fifteen Comanche raiders hit the homestead of John and Matilda Friend on Legion Creek in Llano County. Matilda was stabbed, shot with arrows, slashed across the hand when…

You're driving past Valley Spring Cemetery, serving this community since 1867. It began with the burials of Martha Eaker and Hattie Phillips, daughters of local pioneers. The Epperson family donated land in 1877, and…

You're driving through Llano County, where Spanish explorers once searched for silver! Back in 1756, Bernardo de Miranda led a party of 23 men from San Antonio. Their mission: to investigate Cerro del Almagre, a red…

You're driving near Packsaddle Mountain, site of the last Indian battle in this region. On August 4th, <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1873</say-as>, a small group of Texans, led by Captain J. R. Moss, faced off…

You're driving through the heart of the Texas Hill Country, and just off the road, beneath the waters of Lake Buchanan, lies a forgotten industrial marvel of the Confederacy. During the Civil War, this very spot was…

You're driving through Llano County, a place with a rich granite history. The first quarry opened right here on the Llano River way back in 1888. When the railroad arrived a few years later, demand for this stone…

You're driving past Buchanan Dam, a community that owes its very existence to a stalled construction project. Back in 1931, this was a bustling work camp for the Bluffton Dam, a massive undertaking on the Colorado…

You're driving past Enchanted Rock, a Texas legend. Back in the fall of 1841, Captain John C. Hays found himself in a desperate situation right here. Surrounded by Comanche warriors, they cut him off from his men. But…

Buchanan Dam, a multiple arch dam on the Colorado River in Texas, forms Lake Buchanan and was the first dam completed in the Texas Highland Lakes chain. This dam serves multiple purposes, including generating…

You're driving past the Tow Cemetery, where the 1850 death of eight-year-old Margaret Thorp, reportedly from a snakebite, tells us this burial ground is older than the 1853 arrival of William Tow's family. Also here is…

Among Kingsland's notable places is the 1901 Victorian-style Antlers Hotel, a railroad resort that fell into disrepair in the early 1900s but was purchased and restored in the 1990s. It reopened as the Antlers Hotel,…

TSU, nestled right there in the heart of Houston's Third Ward, has always been more than just a university; it’s a crucible. Generations have walked its halls and then gone on to shape the world, and you can feel that…

Buchanan Lake Village is a community that embraces both land and water, with an area of 3.325 square miles, of which 1.488 square miles is land and 1.837 square miles is water. This unique blend of terrain is part of…

The granite slabs at The Slab are part of the larger geological process known as weathering and erosion. The clear waters of the Llano River, combined with the abrasive action of the water against the rock, have…

The bridge that carries Ranch to Market Road Twenty Nine Hundred over the Llano River arm of Lake L B J in Kingsland is the Enloe Memorial Bridge, named for David and Pat Enloe. In the early nineteen eighties the couple…

The white Victorian farmhouse where Leatherface and his cannibalistic family terrorized a group of young people in Tobe Hooper's 1974 film "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" originally stood in Round Rock, Texas. The movie…

You're driving past the site of the Antlers Hotel, a railroad resort that opened in 1901. Built by the Austin and Northwestern Railroad to welcome passengers arriving by train, it offered lovely views of the Llano and…

You're driving through northeastern Llano County, heading towards Lake Buchanan. Right here, in what's now Tow, was once a vital saltworks for the Confederacy. In 1852, the Cowan family arrived and discovered a salt bed…

You're driving past the site of the Behrns West Texas Normal and Business College, opened in 1895 by educator Francis Marion Behrns. This impressive 3-story blue marble building, along with a frame dormitory, was built…

You're driving through Castell, and just ahead is the homesite of Emil Kriewitz. This German immigrant arrived in Texas in <say-as interpret-as="date" format="y">1846</say-as>, right as the Mexican War kicked off. He…

You're driving through the area where the Huffman Cemetery was established. James Jackson Larremore and his family settled here in 1853. His daughter Martha married James S. Huffman, and after his Civil War service,…

You're driving past Castell. German Lutherans in this area were served by circuit-riding ministers as early as 1870. A congregation was organized in 1893, and a second church was built in 1907. The two congregations…

You're driving past the St. John Lutheran Church Cemetery in Llano. The church bought this land in 1930 after a member, Anna Charlotte Bauer, died. Her in-laws are also buried here, along with the grave of Christian…

You're driving past Chew Cemetery, a final resting place for a Llano County family. George Oliver Chew settled here in 1883, and this land likely became a family burial ground around 1885 with the internment of his…

You're driving past the site of the Buchanan Dam, a massive project that started in 1931 but went bankrupt. State Senator Alvin Wirtz revived it, promising to name it after U.S. Representative J.P. Buchanan. Built…

You're driving through Castell, the only permanent settlement established by the German Emigration Company on the vast Fisher-Miller land grant. While two other settlements nearby, Leiningen and Bettina, quickly faded –…

The dark green layers across the road are Cambrian sandstone rich in glauconite, an iron-bearing mineral that forms in shallow seawater. The sloping lines inside the sandstone are cross-beds, left behind by moving…

You're driving through Castell, and right here is the site of the old Castell School. While some say education started here as early as 1852, the Llano County commissioners officially designated this place as School…

You're driving past the Trinity United Methodist Church Cemetery in Castell. The oldest grave here belongs to two-year-old Feodor Leifeste, dating back to 1871. The cemetery historically served the Castell, Mason, and…

You're driving through Llano County, past the Rowntree House. Built between 1875 and 1888 by early leader Robert Rowntree, this majestic two-story home was designed by Scottish architect John K. Finlay, a granite…

You're driving through Mason County, and just off the road here, you're passing the spot where the very first religious services were held for the German immigrants who settled this area around 1850. Imagine folks…

You're driving through Hoover's Valley, just outside Burnet. This cemetery, established around 1850 by Reverend Isaac Hoover, holds the stories of early Texas pioneers. While many graves here are marked with names and…

You're driving past the site of the Prairie Mountain School. Originally the Putman School, it was moved here in 1906 and renamed. The community built a one-room schoolhouse on leased land, which also served as a place…

The pink granite and grey gneiss at Inks Lake State Park are some of the oldest exposed rock in Texas. The Valley Spring Gneiss here is around 1.25 billion years old — it cooled deep underground when the Grenville…

You're driving past Sandy Mountain Cemetery, a resting place for this Llano County community. The oldest marked grave belongs to infant Marion Walter Allen, who died in 1873. His father sold the land, and it was…

The granite beneath your feet cooled from magma 1.082 billion years ago, two to four miles underground. It is Town Mountain Granite — coarse-grained, pink from its feldspar content, part of a batholith that stretches…

The oldest projectile point found in this park is a Plainview point, ten thousand years old. Upstream and downstream, Paleo-Indian artifacts push the timeline back twelve thousand years. By the 1500s, the Tonkawa…

The first European to likely see this rock was Cabeza de Vaca in 1536, stumbling through Texas after a shipwreck. Captain Henry Brown led the first Anglo expedition here in 1829 from Gonzales. The most famous chapter…

This billion-year-old pink granite dome is the exposed heart of an ancient batholith — a massive bubble of molten rock that cooled slowly two to four miles underground over a billion years ago. The granite is Town…

A massive pink granite dome rises four hundred feet out of the Hill Country north of Fredericksburg. Tonkawa and Comanche peoples believed the rock was haunted…

Native American legends say this massive pink granite dome glows at night and whispers with the voices of spirits. In 1841, Texas Ranger Jack Hays was cut off from his company by Comanche raiders and climbed to the…

This massive pink granite dome rises 425 feet above the Hill Country, and it's been here for a billion years. Enchanted Rock is the exposed core of an ancient batholith, a bubble of molten rock that cooled deep…

The beautiful lake defining Sunrise Beach Village isn't a natural feature; it's a massive feat of civil engineering. This is Lake LBJ, created in 1951 by the construction of Wirtz Dam, originally called Granite Shoals…

Sunrise Beach Village is located on the southern shore of Lake Lyndon B. Johnson, with 27.95% of its total area covered by water. The city's total area is 2.3 square miles, of which 1.6 square miles is land.

You're driving past Enchanted Rock, a place with a wild past. In the fall of 1841, Captain John C. Hays found himself trapped on this very summit by a large Comanche band. Cut off from his men, Hays single-handedly…

You're driving past the site of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Marble Falls. Catholic residents began worshipping in a local home in 1951, and by 1954, the community bought property for a mission.…

On May 16, 1870, Apache raiders grabbed ten-year-old Herman Lehmann and his eight-year-old brother Willie from their German immigrant family's homestead in Mason County. Willie was released after five days. Herman was…

You're driving past Longhorn Caverns, a place that’s seen it all! This young cave, only a few million years old, has been a hideout for Native Americans, Texas Rangers, and even the notorious Sam Bass gang in the 1870s.…

Most caves in Texas are defined by what nature did to them. Longhorn Cavern is defined by what people did inside it. Native people knew the cave long before settlers arrived in the 1840s, and its constant temperature…

A cave system carved out of Hill Country limestone by an underground river that vanished thousands of years ago. The walls are polished smooth where the water…

You're driving past the Longhorn Cavern Administration Building, a testament to the New Deal era. From 1934 to 1942, Company 854 of the Civilian Conservation Corps, or CCC, took on the task of exploring and developing…