Kerrville, Texas

Kerrville is a city in Kerr County, Texas, United States. It is the county seat of Kerr County. The population was 20,425 at the 2000 census. In 2009, the population was 22,826. Kerrville is named after James Kerr, a major in the Texas Revolution, and friend of settler-founder Joshua Brown, who settled in the area to start a shingle-making camp.

Being nestled in the hills of Texas Hill Country, Kerrville is best known for its beautiful parks that line the Guadalupe River - which runs directly through the city, its nearby youth summer camps, hunting ranches, and RV parks. It is also the home of Texas' Official State Arts & Crafts Fair, the Kerrville Folk Festival, Mooney Aviation Company,James Avery Jewelry, Kerrville Bus Company, and Schreiner University. The Museum of Western Art (founded 1983) features the work of living artists specializing in the themes of the American West.

History

Archeological evidence suggests that humans dwelled in the area known as Kerrville as early as 10,000 years ago. The early modern residents were successful shinglemakers whose mercantile business became a hub that served the middle and upper Hill Country area in the late 1840s. One of the earliest shinglemakers was Joshua D. Brown. With his family, Joshua Brown had led several other families on an exploration of the Guadalupe Valley. These early pioneers organized their settlements near a bluff just north of the Guadalupe River in the eastern half today's county line. The settlement was referred to as "Brownsborough," but after the area was formally platted in 1856 by James Kerr, a major in the Texas Revolution, the settlement was formally known as "Kerrville" and maintained a county seat with Texas.