Santa Elena, TX

Santa Elena is a small town located in the Texas Hill Country. The population of Santa Elena was just over 1,000 as of the 2010 census. The town is located in Kendall County and is bordered by Fredericksburg to the north, Lampasas to the east, and Burnet to the south.

The history of Santa Elena dates back to 1849 when a group of settlers from Tennessee arrived in what is now Kendall County. The town was originally called "New Jerusalem" after a religious sect that believed that this was the site where Jesus would return to earth. In 1875, New Jerusalem became known as Santa Elena after a local rancher donated land for a town square. By 1900, Santa Elena had grown enough that it incorporated as a municipality.

Today, Santa Elena is home to several businesses including an Ace Hardware store, an antique store, and two restaurants - La Casa de los Burritos and El Rancho Grande Mexican Grill. There are also several churches in the town including First Baptist Church and Saint John's Catholic Church. The main street in Santa Elena runs through downtown and has several businesses along it including a bank, grocery stores, coffee shops, and restaurants. There are also several homes on Main Street which range from modest single-family homes to large ranch-style houses.

The economy of Santa Elena depends largely on agriculture which includes cattle ranching and farming operations such as cotton production. However, since 2007 there has been an increase in tourism due to its location near some of Texas' most popular tourist destinations such as Fredericksburg and Lampasas National Parks. As a result of this growth, there have been new businesses opening up including hotels (the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Fredericksburg/ Lampasas opened in 2009), restaurants (such as Hacienda Mexicana), gas stations (including Valero), gift shops (such as Sweet Dreams Boutique), bike rental companies (such as Bicycles Unlimited), car rental companies (including Avis), spa services (including Spa Bella Vista), golf courses (including La Quinta Country Club) ,and more . In addition to these new businesses there have also been expansions or remodels done at existing businesses such as Ace Hardware expanding their hours from 7am-11pm seven days per week; La Casa de los Burritos adding breakfast; El Rancho Grande Mexican Grill remodeling their kitchen; Sweet Dreams Boutique adding new clothing lines; Hacienda Mexicana expanding their menu items; Valero adding self-serve fuel pumps; Bicycles Unlimited adding mountain bikes for rent; Spa Bella Vista remodeling their facility with new massage tables and chairs; La Quinta Country Club adding tennis courts; while First Baptist Church added an expanded children's ministry with morning preschool classes starting at 6:30am daily . Overall this growth has helped make Santa Elena one of Kendall County's most prosperous towns .