Welcome to Tanglewood, Lee County, Texas


TANGLEWOOD, TEXAS

The settlement of String Prarie (and later changed to Tanglewood), was founded in 1856. Later the name was changed to Tanglewood after the dense brush and thick stand of oak trees in the area (and some say inspired by a book called "Tanglewood Tales" being read by some of the locals). Tanglewood is located in northwestern Lee County on present day U.S. Highway 77 approximately five miles northwest of Lexington.

The area was settled by Anglos in 1856 led by the Rev. Hugh Wilson, who founded the String Prairie Presbyterian Church. After the Civil War, a small settlement began to develop around the church.

In 1880, the leaders of the settlement voted to change the name from String Prarie to Tanglewood (there already was a String Prarie in Bastrop County)when it got it's Post Office. In 1880, Tanglewood had three churches including the Presbyterian, Baptist and Primitive Baptist, a public school (with seperate facilities for the colored and white students), a steam gristmill and cotton gin, and a general store.

Railroad Forces the Town to Move
In the early 1890's, the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway bypassed Tanglewood by about a mile, so the Tanglewood residents decided to move the entire town closer to the tracks. A new townsite was platted in 1894, and most of the structures were moved by logs pulled by teams of horses and mules to their new locations. Some of the buildings were torn down and rebuilt at the new site.

By 1900, Tanglewood had three general stores, three cotton mills, and a broom factory owned by Henry Kelley. The 1905-06 school year showed a school enrollment of forty-two students in grades 1 through 12.

By 1914 the population of Tanglewood was estimated at 100, but with the move of the Presbyterian Church to Dimebox, the town began to decline. By 1925, the population of Tanglewood was down to seventy-five and right at forty in 1950 when the local school was consolidated with the Lexington Independent School District. The population of Tanglewood was down to forty-eight by the early 1970s.

Tanglewood Christian Camp (1975)

In May of 1975, the Tanglewood Christian Camp was launched with the filing of constitution and bylaws and the purchase of 20 acres. Today, the Tanglewood Christian Camp covers 50 acres and improvements include a chapel, 5 dorms, 5 study gazebos, a dining hall, cafeteria, swimming pool, two sand beach volleyball courts, basketball, baseball field, and a new recreation room.



The Tanglewood Christian Camp is governed by a 13-member Executive Board and a General Board that consists of three representatives from 44 supporting churches.

Melton Guthrie Studio

In 1989, Tanglewood got a new artist's studeo patterned after a 19th century hotel. This eye-catching building is Tanglewood's latest addition to the business district.




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