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GRUENE, Texas

Pronounced: "green"

"Texas' Most Successful Ghost Town"

Population (2000): 20Businesses (2000):
Elevation: 676 ftArea: undefined smCounty: Comal
Zip Code: 78130Area Code: 830Time Zone: CST
Coordinates: 29° 44' 18" N, 98° 6' 14" W
Location: 3 mi N of New Braunfels
Highways: TX 46, 306Creeks: Rivers: GuadalupeLakes: Parks:

REFERENCES

GRUENE DOWNTOWN HISTORIC DISTRICT: Quaint shops, restaurants, historic buildings, B&Bs

GRUENE HALL: 830-606-1281; at 1281 Gruene Rd, FM 306, downtown Gruene (New Branufels). www.gruenehall.com. See Southern Living article at Dance. Built in 1878, this is a huge attraction in modern times. Texas Gernan Heritage, 75th Germania Farmer Verein. Claimed to be the "Built in 1878, Gruene Hall is the oldest continually running dance hall in Texas." Gruene Hall has hosted such acts as Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett and George Strait. "The town was established on the Guadalupe River for the operation of the steam operated cotton gin, and by 1872 over 8000 acres were under cultivation. The Dance Hall was built by Heinrich Gruene along with a store and saloon for the local farmers. Reopened in 1979 it has inspired the entire town to be restored to its 1880s appeal. Many young Artists from all over have played this monument to Texas Music, including Jerry Jeff Walker, George Strait, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Loose Diamonds and the Sisters Morales. Only a few Halls such as Schroeder Hall, Fischer Hall and Anhalt Hall are older than Gruene Hall, one of the older Honky Tonks in the entire Lone Star State. Great music all the time.". Live bands or singers most every day of week, sometimes two per day, free unless it is a big name, sometimes two per day, varying genre.

RIVER WATERSPORTS: Tubing and water fun on the Guadalupe River

NEARBY & HILL COUNTRY-WIDE ATTRACTIONS: See Attractions.

Some of the very nearby attractions include:

NEW BRAUNFELS: ALAMO CLASSIC CAR MUSEUM; BARBERSHOP MUSEUM; CLEAR SPRINGS AVIARIES & ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS; DRY COMAL CREEK VINEYARDS; FIRE MUSEUM; GOLF; HERITAGE VILLAGE; HISTORIC GRUENE; LINDHEIMER HOUSE; McKENNA CHILDREN'S MUSEUM; MUSEUM OF ART AND MUSIC; NATURAL BRIDGE CAVERNS; NATURAL BRIDGE WILDLIFE RANCH; NEW BRAUNFELS CONSERVATION SOCIETY; PARKS; RAILROAD MUSEUM; RIVER TUBING; SCHLITTERBAHN WATERPARK; SHOPPING OUTLET MALLS; SNAKE FARM; SOPHIENBURG MUSEUM

PARKS: There are many parks in the greater area as profiled on the Parks page. These nearby parks include: See New Braunfels

EVENT CALENDAR: Gruene has an on-going schedule of music festivals, and see
Festivals & Events

December: Cowboy Kringle, town lighting at 6p

ON-GOING EVENTS:

Every Day: LIVE MUSIC at GRUENE HALL: 830-606-1281; at 1281 Gruene Rd., FM 306, downtown Gruene (New Branufels). www.gruenehall.com. Cover charge only on Fri & Sat evenings.

Every Friday: FRIDAY AFTERNOON CLUB at GRUENE HALL: 830-629-5077; 4p-7p, at 1281 Gruene Rd., FM 306, downtown Gruene (New Branufels). www.gruenehall.com. Happy Hour, prize givaways and Texas tunes broadcast live by KNBY-92.1 FM.

OLD GRUENE MARKET DAYS: 830-832-1721. Live entertainment; 100 artisans, specialty shopping and unique dining in Gruene's turn-of-the-century historic district. From I-35, Exit 191, go west 1.5 miles, turn L on Hunter Road. 10a-5p. www.gruenemarketdays.com. For Hill Country-wide, see Hill Country Market Days, Trade Days, Farmers Markets

WEATHER: Weather Underground (New Braunfels)

MEDIA COVERAGE: Latest News (not available)

MAPS: Google, more GeoHack

HISTORY: Handbook of Texas Online: "Gruene was originally three miles north of New Braunfels at a crossing on the Guadalupe River in Comal County. In recent decades it has been brought within the city limits of New Braunfels. The community was once a prosperous commercial and supply center for blackland cotton farmers of eastern Comal County. German farmers settled the area in the 1850s, and the town took shape in subsequent years under the name Goodwin Community. In 1872 the Gruene family purchased 6,000 acres north of the Guadalupe River, and in 1878 Henry D. Gruene built a mercantile store to serve the several dozen families sharecropping his family's land. The profitable river-crossing store was also on the stage route between Austin and San Antonio. Gruene provided land for Thorn Hill School and soon added a cotton gin and dance hall to his business concerns. With completion of the International-Great Northern Railroad through Comal County in the 1880s, the community's commercial development accelerated, and it took the name of its leading citizen.

In 1900 Gruene was the banking, ginning, and shipping center for area cotton growers. Its dance hall and saloon became the focus of social activities. By the early 1900s the town was served by the Goodwin post office and by passenger and freight depots for both the International-Great Northern and the Missouri, Kansas and Texas railroads. Gruene began a decline with the boll weevil blight of the 1920s. It is reported that late in that decade the Gruene family's 8,000-acre holdings failed to produce a single bale of cotton. The mercantile store and rail depots were closed with the onset of the Great Depression. As post-World War II highway construction bypassed the community, its decline was completed. An estimated population of seventy-five in the 1930s had dispersed by 1950, leaving the once thriving community a ghost town.

Gruene began a revival in the 1970s with restoration of the nineteenth-century settlement as a center for arts, crafts, and tourism. Within a few years the Gruene Dance Hall-touted as the oldest operating in the state-once again attracted weekend crowds. A live theater company, craft and antique shops, restaurants, a hotel, and a winery occupied historic structures and served tourists attracted by the scenic Guadalupe River. The entire town is on the National Register of Historic Places. Since redevelopment the resident population is estimated at twenty.">

City named for Henry D. Gruene, an early settler. Founded 1878.

PRIOR NAMES: Goodwin

NATIONAL REGISTRY SITES:

CEMETERIES: None

AVAILABLE SERVICES: Gas: no; Convenience Stores: no; Restaurants: yes; Lodging: yes; Grocery Stores: no; Banks: no; Vehicle Repair: no; Hospital: no; Med Clinic: no; Post Office: no; Public Schools: no; Cemetery: no (Note, most services are available in New Braunfels).

OTHER PROFILES: Wikipedia; ePodunk; City Data (not available); Texas Escapes, Travel Texas (not available); Tour Texas

NOTES:

For Directory Listings, be sure to also check New Braunfels listings, of which Gruene is a part).

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