The Little City of San Marcos

San Marcos, Texas, which is 29 miles south of AustinSouthwest Texas State at the time, became an
and 47 miles northwest of San Antonio, is a beautiful,important regional school, and after other educational
small city with a rich history. The San Marcos area isfacilities opened over the years, including the Gary Job
considered to be the oldest continuously inhabited siteCorps Training Center in the 1960s, education became
in the Northern Hemisphere, although the descendantsthe largest industry in San Marcos.
of today's residents settled the area in the 1800s.Today, San Marcos has a population of just over
In 1689, the San Marcos River was named for St.50,000 inhabitants, and there are many other exciting
Mark after Alonso de Leon's men discovered the riverestablishments and facilities in the city, including
on the celebration of St. Mark's Day, and named theAquarena Springs and Wonder World, both of which
river in his honor. Later, in April of 1808, a group ofwere established in the 1960s. The spring-fed San
Mexican families settled in the area, and an agriculturalMarcos River meanders through the University
community was established shortly thereafter.campus and the city itself, and San Marcos is proud of
In 1812, after numerous floods and raids by local Indians,the beautiful and historic town square, which was
the settlement was disbanded, but in November ofrecently renovated. Both Wonder World and
1848 a group of Anglo settlers tried to establish aAquarena Springs are popular tourist attractions, and
community on the site again, and in 1851, the townvisitors to Aquarena Springs can charter glass bottom
center was laid out. The county of Hays wasboats for rides through the city on the River.
established in 1848 by the Texas Legislature, and theThe tourist trade has become an important industry in
city of San Marcos was named county seat a shortSan Marcos as well as education, and downtown
time later.visitors can stroll through the Belvin Street Historic
The small city was primarily a gin milling and agriculturalDistrict and view 18th century homes, or walk along the
community until the early 1880s, when the railroadSan Marcos River Walkway, which unites three city
arrived and the cattle and cotton industries flourished,parks along the river, and is graced with scenic and
which caused the city to become a commercial centerlush landscaping. Wonder World, which is an
with easy access to transportation for businessmenearthquake-formed cavern and wildlife park with an
and travelers.observation tower and petting zoo, is open daily for
In 1899, a college for school teachers opened, and wasvisitors, with longer hours in the summer.
called the Southwest Texas State Normal School,Another well known attraction is the San Marcos
which is known today as Texas State University. InOutlet Mall, which is on Interstate 35, and includes
1907, another school was established in the area, thehotels, restaurants, spas, movie theaters, and clubs
San Marcos Baptist Academy, which was a privatealong with discount stores and factory outlet stores,
institution, and which is still open today. In the followingsuch as Tanger Outlet Store and Prime Outlet, along
years, Texas State University, which was known aswith many well known specialty stores.