Denver City, TX

Denver City is a small town located in Williamson County, Texas. The population of Denver City was 1,827 at the 2010 census. Denver City is home to the historic Colorado State Penitentiary and the new Williamson County Courthouse.

Denver City was founded in 1872 by James A. Garfield and named for his hometown of Denver, Colorado. The town was originally settled by farmers and ranchers who came to exploit the rich agricultural land that surrounded it. By 1900, Denver City had a population of 1,600 and boasted a cotton gin, two churches, three schools, a post office, and several businesses. However, the town's fortunes changed dramatically with the arrival of the railroad in 1881. With easy access to markets in Dallas and Houston, Denver City quickly became an important commercial center for Williamson County.

By 1920, Denver City had a population of 5,000 and boasted fifteen businesses including two banks (the First National Bank of Denver City and the Farmers & Merchants National Bank), four grocery stores (Baxter's Grocery Store/Grocery Outlet/Harris' Grocery Store/Smith's Grocery Store), three drugstores (Dixon Drugstore/Harris Drugstore/Wright Drugstore), two hardware stores (Harrison Hardware & Implement Company/Phelps Hardware Company), two lumberyards (Lumberman's Supply Company/Thompson Lumber Company), two meat markets (Fowler Meat Market & Smith Meat Market), one opera house (The Opera House) as well as several other small businesses such as barber shops (), beauty salons (), cafes (), doctors' offices (), dentists' offices (), garages () etc.

However with the onset of World War II , many businesses closed their doors due to shortages caused by war production . After World War II , many new businesses began to open including several gas stations (), motels () etc., which helped revive the economy . In 1970 , however , economic problems once again hit Denver City hard with many businesses closing their doors .

However , since 2000 there has been a resurgence in business activity in downtown Denver city with new restaurants opening up such as The Tin Roof BBQ restaurant () along with several other small business owners (). In addition , there has been an increase in residential development around downtown including apartments (), condos () etc., which has helped revitalize this part of town .