Downtown Historic Gruene, Texas
Plan to join OPS for its “first time ever” paint out in the wonderful historic town of Gruene in the Texas Hill Country. Come and experience restored old Victorian homes and German stone buildings, scenic sites along the Guadalupe River, and areas with cliffs, waterfalls and large cypress trees. Gruene is deeply seeded in Texas history and as plein air painters, be prepared to capture some of this history!
Arriving in Texas in the mid 1840s, German farmers became the first settlers of what is now known as Gruene (pronounced Green), Texas. The town benefited by its location along the stagecoach route between Austin and San Antonio, a 30-mile distance from both cities. By 1900, Gruene was a prominent banking, ginning, and shipping center for area cotton farming. But by the 50’s, Gruene had not survived a cotton blight and the great depression, becoming a virtual ghost town. In the mid-1970’s a UT Austin architecture student came upon this unique town while kayaking the Guadalupe River just before real estate developers were preparing to level the historical buildings of Gruene to make way for a condominium development. With the help of the Texas Historical Commission, convincing the developers of the significance of these buildings in Texas history, Gruene was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975 as an entire district and is now a thriving tourist destination with its many restored original structures.
Outdoor Painters Society™
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