Gruene, Texas

Gruene (/ˈɡriːn/ green) is a former town in Comal County in the U.S. state of Texas. Once a significant cotton-producing community along the Guadalupe River, the town has now shifted its economy to one supported primarily by tourism. Gruene is now a district within the city limits of New Braunfels, and much of it was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on April 21, 1975. It is part of the San Antonio-New Braunfels Metropolitan Area

Arriving in Texas in the mid 1840s, German farmers became the first settlers of what is now known as Gruene, Texas. Ernst Gruene, a German immigrant, and his bride Antoinette, had reached the newly established city of New Braunfels in 1845, but acreage was scarce. Thus, Ernst and his two sons purchased land along the Guadalupe River, and Ernst built the first home in Gruene in early fachwerk , German Timber Framing house style.

Ernst Gruene's second son, Heinrich (Henry) D. Gruene, built his house (now Gruene Mansion Inn) and planted his surrounding land with cotton. Having become the number one cash crop, the cotton business soon brought 20 to 30 families to Henry D.'s lands. Henry D. built houses in various styles a Victorian cottage (now Lone Star), a large brick home, and a frame house (now Gruene Haus) for the foreman of his farm. In 1878, Gruene opened a mercantile store to serve the several dozen or so families sharecropping on his land. Originally known as "Goodwin", the town benefited by its location along the stagecoach route between Austin and San Antonio, the store thrived for many years and stimulated local commercial growth. A cotton gin (now Gristmill River Restaurant and Bar) powered by the Guadalupe River was added soon after.Gruene Hall, which opened in 1878, is one of the oldest dance halls in Texas. The Thorn Hill School and three large cotton gins soon followed. By the time the International-Great Northern Railroad was built across Comal County in the 1880s, the small community was bustling with commercial and farming activity, and officially took the name "Gruene" after its founding father and most prominent citizen.

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