Monument Hill and Kreische Brewery, 12/17/2016

44. We visited this park for its Trail of Lights, since that is something unique to this park and it's very pretty as well.  Monument Hill is the actual tomb of 56 US soldiers who were killed by Mexican troops in Texas' War of Independence - 36 from Dawson's Massacre, 16 from the Black Bean Lottery.  

This event was actually the reason for our initial visit to La Grange in 2010, during which we decided, while gazing upon the Fayette County Courthouse, to visit all 254 County Courthouses in Texas.  It was the beginning of the end.  And I didn't realize that our visits were EXACTLY 6 years apart (12/17 2010 & 2016) until I uploaded the older photos here.  😀

Fayette County Courthouse, La Grange, 12/17/10

Kreische house, 2010

View from Monument Hill & Kreische Brewery, 2010

Kreische Brewery ruins, 2010

Kreische Brewery sign, 2010

Us, 12/17/2010

Us, Fayette County Courthouse, 12/17/16

Trail of Lights, 2016

Kreische house, Trail of Lights, 2016

Guitarist, Kreische House, 2016

The Monument and tomb, 2016

Trail of Lights, 2016

Tile mural of the Black Bean Lottery, 2016

Trail of Lights, 2016

2016

La Grange is a cool town - there is a lovely restaurant, Bistro 108, where we ate dinner both years.  The cemetery has some of the most fantastic stone monuments in it - we haven't seen another cemetery that compares.  La Grange had a highly skilled stonemason at one point and it shows.  Weikel's Bakery is always worth a stop - in addition to wonderful kolaches (and my favorite, the Czech shortbread), it has clean restrooms and a nice gift shop.  The Courthouse is gorgeous inside and is unique among Texas courthouses in its design.  The old jail is now a museum, but has the cells inside still, so one can pretend they're locked up!