Two towns that could not share a post office became one city that shares everything — a square, a lake, a hundred languages, and a name borrowed from a man who never saw the place. From the Blackland cotton rows to the Plaza's neon to the sails on Lake Ray Hubbard, the whole story still fits on one square. Garland, Texas — one town made from two, since 1887. Wear a little of it wherever the road takes you.
And the modern city may be the best chapter yet. Garland today is one of the most diverse communities in Texas — with deep Hispanic roots and one of the region's most vibrant Vietnamese communities, whose markets and kitchens have become a destination in their own right. Lake Ray Hubbard brings sails, boat ramps, and shoreline parks to the eastern edge; Spring Creek Forest Preserve keeps a rare stand of old-growth Blackland forest; and the old square downtown — with the Plaza's neon glowing — hosts the city that two feuding depot camps accidentally built together.
Why People Visit Garland Texas
- Stroll the historic downtown square and the restored Plaza Theatre (1941).
- Get out on Lake Ray Hubbard for boating, sailing, and shoreline parks.
- Walk the old-growth bottomland of Spring Creek Forest Preserve.
- Ride the wooded singletrack at Rowlett Creek Preserve.
- Shop and gather on the historic downtown square, with the Plaza Theatre marquee glowing over it.
