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More than 150 years in the making, Waxahachie is a community that takes great pride in its rich heritage, which is evident by the historically preserved buildings and homes throughout the city. Though modern, progressive and thriving, the city’s pulse resonates with the history of Texas. Strolling through the Historic Downtown District anchored by the state’s most photographed courthouse, you can still see remnants of the famed Shawnee Trail that once served as the major thoroughfare in the state’s early development.
Designated in the early 1900’s as Queen of the Cotton Belt, Waxahachie has grown to be known as the Gingerbread City for the ornate woodwork found on many of the historic homes, as well as being designated the Crape Myrtle Capital of Texas. Waxahachie also claims the title of “The Best Little Hollywood in Texas.” Filmmaking began here with “Bonnie and Clyde,” scripted by Waxahachie native Robert Benton, which was filmed in 1967. It reached its pinnacle in the early ‘80s when Benton returned to his former hometown to write and direct the Oscar-winning feature “Places in the Heart,” starring Sally Field. Two other Oscar-winners — “Tender Mercies,” starring Robert Duvall and Tess Harper, and “The Trip to Bountiful” — were shot principally in Waxahachie at that time, as well.
Waxahachie served as a perfect setting for period films, as well as for motion pictures that were seeking to capture the flavor, the aura, the mystique of small-town rural America.
“The New York Times” said in 1987: “Waxahachie has a stately granite courthouse on the main square and enough 19th century homes with wide verandas, as front porches were called in better families, to organize an annual tour. It has a cemetery shaded by live oak trees that by now must be one of the most photographed graveyards in the country.”
Additional Waxahachie projects were the Horton Foote scripted “1918” and “Square Dance,” starring Rob Lowe and Winona Ryder. The abandoned Supercollider site even managed to find new life when “Universal Soldier,” starring Jean Claude Van Damme, came into town in 1999 and used it as the site for the film. The Chuck Norris television series, “Walker: Texas Ranger” also heavily used Waxahachie as a backdrop for all the action.
Waxahachie may have been the only quintessential small town in the area with which the state film commission was truly familiar. Although currently, there are now hundreds more municipalities and metropolitan areas competing for film business, and the city doesn’t see as many big productions come through, Waxahachie will always be “The Best Little Hollywood in Texas!”
Whether shopping for treasures in the downtown antique shops and boutiques, dining in our award winning restaurants, taking part in a historic tour, enjoying a family outing, or just visiting with the friendly folks who call Waxahachie home, come and discover for yourself what makes Waxahachie “Picture Perfect.” At the end of the day, don’t be surprised if you find yourself wanting to be part of the picture. For more information, visit www.WaxahachieChamber.com.
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