HISTORIC DRIVING TOURS
GUIDED TOURS BY KNOWLEDGEABLE DOCENTS
Our Guided Driving Tour is one of the most requested and interesting time that any guest of Gonzales has spent. Our tour guides, Leon Netardus and Paul Frenzel, have dedicated over twenty years to sharing the greatness that Gonzales has to offer.
From the second you are introduced to our tour guides, the passion they have for Gonzales as well as Texas History shines through even on the rainiest days. Enjoy taking advantage of their knowledge and experience during their informational guide through over 180 years of history in our wonderful town.
Our guides are very proud to call Gonzales home and are eager to share it with anyone who visits Gonzales. We hope you can join Leon or Paul during your visit to Gonzales.
Contact the Gonzales Chamber of Commerce to set up your tour today!
Set up your adventure by calling toll free 888-672-1095 or email us at admin@gonzalestexas.com. Tours last from half an hour to an hour.
*Group tours are available upon request
HISTORIC TOUR OF GONZALES
WELCOME TO GONZALES, TEXAS!
BIRTHPLACE OF TEXAS INDEPENDENCE AND HOME OF THE COME & TAKE IT CANNON!
Gonzales’ history represents the pride of a people who fought for Texas liberty and independence. No place is this more evident than in the architecture of the homes, churches and commercial buildings that the people of Gonzales built to make their town a home.
In 1825, Green DeWitt established a colony near the confluence of the Guadalupe and San Marcos rivers. The town has two plazas, Confederate Square and Texas Heroes Square, with long boulevards running north and south, east and west in the shape of a Spanish cross. All property within the squares (7 public squares) and boulevards was designated as public lands and parks and many of the settlers built their homes and churches around these public spaces. This is the only town in Texas which still uses the plan as surveyed by the Mexican government in 1832.
Gonzales played a major role in Texas’ fight for independence. It was the site of the first shot of the revolution. Forty members of the colony died in the Alamo, including the Immortal Thirty-Two, who were the only men to answer Travis’ desperate call for reinforcements. Gonzales was also the site of the Run-Away Scrape, which began Sam Houston’s famous retreat to victory at San Jacinto.
We invite you to tour our town. Signs with the ‘Come & Take It’ Cannon will guide you around town & brochures are available at the chamber office in the Old Jail Museum, where the tour begins. Note that you can still download the original walking tour directions below.
You are also able to zoom in, zoom out, and find places of historic importance on the interactive map below.