Spicewood, Texas
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Spicewood is an unincorporated community in Travis County and partially in
Burnet County Burnet County ( ) is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 49,130. Its county seat is Burnet. The county was founded in 1852 and later organized in 1854. It is named ...
, Texas, United States. According to the Texas Almanac, the community had an estimated population of 2,000 in 2000. But in the 2011 census, the community had a population of 7,666. The community also extends towards Travis County off Highway 71. The community-proper, located at the intersection of C.R 404 and Spur 191, is home to a community center, a former two-room local schoolhouse that was closed after merging with
Marble Falls ISD Marble Falls Independent School District ("MFISD") is a school district based in the city of Marble Falls, in Burnet County, Texas, USA which is located in the heart of the Highland Lakes region of the Texas Hill Country. The district encompass ...
. The community also contains a non-denominational church and a Church of Christ and was formerly the home of BJ Cafe, reputed to have been an occasional favorite of Willie Nelson. The Cafe closed in 1990 and is now a private residence and auto repair shop. In 2020, Willie Nelson was living on the Luck Ranch in Spicewood. He also performed in Spicewood during his Fourth of July Picnic on July 4-5, 2003, at Two River Canyon Amphitheater.


Geography

Spicewood is located one mile north of State Highway 71 in southeastern Burnet and western Travis Counties, approximately nine miles southeast of Marble Falls. The nearest major city is
Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
, located 35 miles southeast of Spicewood.


Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Spicewood has a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.


History

Spicewood was established in the late 19th century, although many residents claim direct lineage from settlers in the early 19th century, many land deeds originating from "script" issued by the Republic of Texas and derived from Spanish land grants. The name possibly came from the " spicewood" timber that grew along nearby Little Cypress Creek. A post office opened in 1899 with James B. Pangle as its postmaster. The Spicewood post office itself moved (2000) from its original location in Spicewood, one mile south to Hollingsworth Corner, and now serves a 100 mi area in three counties, Burnet, Blanco, and Travis, leading many served to incorrectly believe they actually "live in" old Spicewood-proper. As surrounding communities began to decline (early 20th century), many of their residents turned to Spicewood as the focus of local community life. A Baptist church was organized in 1908. In 1919, Spicewood school replaced nearby Rockvale school (no longer extant, only the graveyard remains) as the official local school. The population was approximately 100 during the mid-1920s and rose to 125 by 1933. Local businesses prospered when Farm Road 93 (present-day State Highway 71) was built through the area during the 1940s. In 1949, the school in nearby Haynie Flat consolidated with Spicewood's school district. Three years later, Spicewood became part of the Marble Falls Independent School District. The population, which stood at around 100 in the 1970s and went up to 110 until 1990, had grown to an estimated 2,000 by 2000. It went up to 4,000 in 2010. Spicewood has a post office with the ZIP code 78669. The local magneto-driven Spicewood Telephone exchange was taken over by GTE in the early 1970s and the area is now served by Verizon and cellular phone services. Except for Naumann Feed and Ranch Supply (1 mile NW), the majority of local businesses are 1 mi. S, at nearby "Hollingsworth Corner" (often misunderstood to be Spicewood-proper) and include a general store serving gasoline, hardware, snack foods/beverages, Marine/Boat Service, a Used Car Lot, Real Estate, insurance, and a
Bar-B-Que Barbecue or barbeque (informally BBQ in the UK, US, and Canada, barbie in Australia and braai in South Africa) is a term used with significant regional and national variations to describe various cooking methods that use live fire and smoke ...
restaurant. A favorite outdoor destination is nearby
Krause Springs Krause Springs (Crow-zee) is a camping and swimming site located in the Hill Country of Texas. It is located in Spicewood, Texas, approximately northwest of Austin. The property has 32 springs, and several feed the man-made pool and the natural ...
, formerly known as Tiger ("tigger") Springs, a spring-fed pond, swimming pool, and picnic/camping concession. The Spicewood area has four privately owned airports, one of them, the old "Austin Air Ranch" or "Windermere", FAA-identifier "88R", welcoming to public use, with fuel, hangar, and light-maintenance available, daytime-VFR use only. The other three airports, Flying X River Ranch (8TA3), Lakeside Beach (0XS6), and Fall Creek Air Ranch (52TS) (the last one not depicted on charts), are "Prior-Permission Required/At-Risk" only. During September 2011, wildfires hit and significantly damaged the Spicewood area. 67 structures were lost or damaged across five subdivisions. The majority of the homes in those subdivisions were destroyed, with 22 homes destroyed in one subdivision alone. 17 state agencies and 150 firefighters worked to control the blaze. It affected a minimum of 10 square miles, or 6,400 acres. In 2005,
Cypress Valley Canopy Tours Cypress Valley Canopy Tours is an aerial resort located along the Pedernales River in the Texas Hill Country. Founded in 2005, the company offers canopy tours, canopy walks, zip-lining and overnight treehouse accommodations for guests. Overvi ...
was established in the community. Several studio albums by many different singers and bands have been recorded at
Pedernales Country Club The Pedernales Country Club is a complex located in Lake Travis, 29 miles west of Austin, Texas, United States. Originally the Briarcliff Yacht and Golf Club, a nine-hole golf course constructed in 1968, it was purchased by country music sin ...
and Bee Creek Studios in Spicewood, including: 10,
Half a Hundred Years ''Half a Hundred Years'' is the 26th studio album by American country band Asleep at the Wheel. Produced by the band's frontman Ray Benson and manager Sam Seifert, it was released on October 1, 2021 by Home Records, a sub-label of Bismeaux Producti ...
, and Pasture Prime by western swing band
Asleep at the Wheel Asleep at the Wheel is an American Western swing group that was formed in Paw Paw, West Virginia, and is based in Austin, Texas. The band has won nine Grammy Awards since their 1970 inception, released over twenty albums, and has charted more t ...
; Angel Eyes and
Partners Partner, Partners, The Partner, or, The Partners may refer to: Books * ''The Partner'' (Grisham novel), by John Grisham, 1997 * ''The Partner'' (Jenaro Prieto novel), 1928 * ''The Partners'' (book), a 1983 book by James B. Stewart * ''Partner'' (m ...
by Willie Nelson;
Spend a Night in the Box ''Spend a Night in the Box'' is the sixth album by The Reverend Horton Heat. It was released by Time Bomb Recordings in 2000. Production The album, produced by Paul Leary, was recorded at Pedernales Studios, in Texas. Jim "Reverend Horton" Heath ...
( The Reverend Horton Heat);
Summerteeth ''Summerteeth'' (stylized as summerteeth) is the third studio album by the American alternative rock band Wilco (stylized as ''wilco''), released on March 9, 1999, by Reprise Records. The album was heavily influenced lyrically by 20th century li ...
( Wilco); Zooma ( John Paul Jones);
A River Ain't Too Much to Love ''A River Ain't Too Much to Love'' is the eleventh studio album by Smog. It was released on May 30, 2005 in Europe by Domino Recording Company and in North America by Drag City. It is Bill Callahan's final studio album released under the Smog mo ...
(
Smog Smog, or smoke fog, is a type of intense air pollution. The word "smog" was coined in the early 20th century, and is a portmanteau of the words ''smoke'' and '' fog'' to refer to smoky fog due to its opacity, and odor. The word was then inte ...
);
Seashores of Old Mexico ''Seashores of Old Mexico'' is a studio album by Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson. It is a sequel to their enormously successful 1983 duet album ''Pancho and Lefty'' and was released in 1987. They are backed by The Strangers. The only charting si ...
( Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson); Music from Songwriter ( Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson); The Unbroken Circle: The Musical Heritage of the Carter Family ( The Carter Family);
Wave on Wave ''Wave on Wave'' is the second studio album by American country music artist Pat Green. Released in 2003 on Universal/Republic Records in association with Mercury Records, it produced two singles for Green on the '' Billboard'' country charts. Th ...
( Pat Green); King of the Road: The Genius of Roger Miller (
Roger Miller Roger Dean Miller Sr. (January 2, 1936 – October 25, 1992) was an American singer-songwriter, widely known for his honky-tonk-influenced novelty songs and his chart-topping Country music, country and pop hits "King of the Road (song), Ki ...
); This Will Destroy You by This Will Destroy You; Duets: Friends & Memories ( Juice Newton); The song Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly Fond of Each Other by Ned Sublette was also recorded at Pedernales and Bee Creek.Reuters (15 February 2006)., ''MP3.com''. CBS Interactive Inc. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 8 May 2007. Mentions "home studio".


Education

Public education in the community of Spicewood is provided by the Marble Falls Independent School District. Zoned campuses includ
Spicewood Elementary School
(grades K-5; located in Spicewood)
Marble Falls Middle School
(grades 6-8), and
Marble Falls High School Marble Falls High School (MFHS) is a public high school in Marble Falls, Texas, USA, and a part of the Marble Falls Independent School District Marble Falls Independent School District ("MFISD") is a school district based in the city of Marble F ...
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(grades 9-12). Some schools of the Lake Travis Independent School District have Spicewood street addresses.


Public libraries

The Lake Travis Community Library (LTCL) in Lakeway serves areas in Travis County with Spicewood street addresses. It originally opened in
Lake Travis High School Lake Travis High School is a public high school located in unincorporated Travis County, Texas, United States, approximately 20 miles west of Austin, near Lake Travis. The preparatory is accredited by the Texas Education Agency and rated as ...
in 1985. Area voters approved the creation of the library district serving the library was created in May 2004. Haythem Dawlett donated the land for the library in March 2011, and the library moved into its current location in February 2013. In 2007, residents came together and formed Spicewood Community Library. Located on Spur 191 in front of Spicewood Elementary School, the library is a volunteer effort with all materials being donated or acquired with donated funds.


Media

Several films were recorded in Spicewood, including: *'' Waiting for the Miracle to Come'' *'' Ned Blessing: The True Story of My Life'' *'' The Ballad of the Sad Cafe''


Notable people

* Dave Pelz, golf coach, who conducts research and teaches at the Pelz Golf Institute. * Kimmie Rhodes, singer-songwriter, recorded her first album at Willie Nelson's Pedernales Studios. *
Katy Kirby Kathryn Ellison Kirby is a Nashville, Tennessee based American musician and singer-songwriter from Spicewood, Texas. Early life Kirby grew up as an evangelical Christian in Spicewood, Texas, where she was homeschooled and listened primarily to w ...
, musician, was raised in Spicewood. * James Oakley, politician * Ashley Weinhold, tennis player, lives in Spicewood. * Lian Lunson, filmmaker, filmed ''Waiting for the Miracle to Come'' in Spicewood. *
Texe Marrs Texe William Marrs (July 15, 1944 – November 23, 2019) was an American writer and radio host, who ran two fundamentalist Christian ministries, Power of Prophecy Ministries and Bible Home Church, both based in Austin, Texas. His teachings inclu ...
(1944-2019), writer and radio host * James Dickey, politician, lives in Spicewood with his wife and children. * Meredith Shaw, singer * Jeff Kent, retired professional baseball player, owner of Lakecliff Country Club.


References

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Burnet County, Texas Unincorporated communities in Texas