Colorado City

Colorado City, on the west bank of the Colorado River directly opposite La Grange in central Fayette County, never progressed beyond the plat stage. The town was designed in the late 1830s by John W. S. Dancy and associate promoters to rival the promotion of La Grange by John H. Moore. Elaborate plans called for the development of 5,000 acres with 156 blocks of residential and commercial property. The proposed city was unanimously selected by the Congress as the capital of the Republic of Texas, but President Sam Houston vetoed the proposal because he wanted the capital to remain in Houston. When Mirabeau B. Lamar succeeded Houston, he selected the site of what is now Austin as the capital, and the plan for Colorado City languished. One of the frequent floods along the Colorado River made the plan unfeasible, and most of the area was later included in the decentralized community of Bluff.

Adapted from the official Handbook of Texas, a state encyclopedia developed by the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). It is an authoritative source of trusted historical records.