Gonzales is a city and the seat of Gonzales County, Texas, set on the Guadalupe River between San Antonio and Houston in south-central Texas. With a population of about 7,300, it anchors a largely agricultural county of rolling prairies and river bottoms, and it sits near Interstate 10 along the corridor between the state's two largest cities. Gonzales holds a singular place in Texas history. On October 2, 1835, Texian colonists refused to surrender a small cannon to Mexican troops, raising a banner bearing the words "Come and Take It" and firing the shot that opened the Texas Revolution. That confrontation, the Battle of Gonzales, earned the city its identity as the Cradle of Texas Independence. Nine Texas historical markers in and around Gonzales commemorate the locations tied to the battle's prelude, and the event is re-enacted each October. The city's built environment reflects that long history. Gonzales has an unusually high concentration of historic houses and commercial buildings, with a Romanesque Revival courthouse and Victorian-era residences clustered around the courthouse square. The historic core is recognized among Texas's best-preserved old-house neighborhoods. Modern Gonzales is a quiet county seat with a walkable downtown of shops and eateries, a strong civic calendar, and a school system centered on the Gonzales Independent School District. Recreation centers on the Guadalupe and San Marcos rivers, and Palmetto State Park, with its dwarf palmettos, sits a short drive to the west. Gonzales appeals to those drawn to Texas history, small-town life, and the open country of the central Texas corridor, with San Antonio and Houston within easy reach for work and regional travel.