Day Tripping 2021 Episode 2 January 31, 2021

Yes, I’m a little behind on Day Trip reporting.  The winter weather and helter-skelter of life has kept me from reporting as well as doing much travelling around.  Never fear, I will catch up and soon be on the road again!

A beautiful Sunday afternoon called to me for a little drive to Gonzales, Texas.   My main purpose was to visit the Gonzales County Courthouse, one of the 18 Texas Courthouses designed by James Riely Gordon.  The Courthouse did not disappoint me and I was surprised to discover that Gonzales is a delightful little town with many interesting buildings that I’m sure have many stories for me to discover. It also had a major role in the Texas Revolution and the residents are fiercely proud of that role!

Twelve of Gordon’s Courthouses are extant and in use today, each one distinct in its appearance, but most are based on the same unique and functional design.  After visiting several, I now find comparing the similarities of his Romanesque Revival Courthouses to be a fun game!

Yes, Gonzales is synonymous with the phrase “Come and Take It” that Texans like to use and, just as the City claims, it is where the first shot of the Texas Revolution was fired.  Two bronze cannons had been provided to protect the citizens of Gonzales in 1831.  When the Mexican army demanded the larger one be returned in the fall of 1835, the colonists buried it and told the Mexicans to “Come and Take It”. The Mexican army was unsuccessful in retrieving either cannon and the larger cannon made its way to San Antonio where it was used to defend the Alamo.  You can read more about the argument and the subsequent history of the cannons on the Texas State Historical Association website.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And, of course there is a feed store.  If it had been open, I promise I would have been headed inside!