Decatur, Texas
Decatur, Texas is the county seat of Wise County and is located north of Ft. Worth. If you have an interest in antiques, victorian architecture, and the like then you will enjoy visiting Decatur. The one element that dominates the skyline and my impressions of Decatur is the Courthouse. It is a huge sandstone building that typifies the victorian style of courthouse.
You won't have any trouble finding the courthouse.... you can see it from almost anywhere in town. All around the courthouse are little shops, antique stores, and places to eat. We didn't try out the food on this trip, since we were just passing through on our way north to Bowie (check out that ride for the Nostalgia Soda Fountain!).
As rushed as we were, however, I couldn't resist doing a little exploring. As you approach Decatur on Hiway 380, you will see the clock tower of the courthouse rising above the trees in front of you. As soon as you see the courthouse, look to left of it and you will see another odd looking structure just barely peeking above the horizon.
When I saw it, I was intrigued. Was it a church?... it looked pretty ornate from what little I could see. Was it another government building?
Once we rolled into town (taking Business 380), the enigma was lost from view. I couldn't let it go, however, so after we checked out the courthouse we headed off in the general direction where we had seen the building. As it turns out, if you go directly east from the courthouse, you will find what we did at the top of a hill at the end of a dead end road.... I won't give you anymore details on finding it.... I have to leave just a little adventure of YOU! :)
What we saw as we approached the end of the road took my breath away. There is no way that pictures can capture the beauty of this place.... the regal quality that it has... and the little bit of sadness at its current lonely state. We approached a grove of trees and saw the top of it first, just as we had from the highway only closer this time.
If you are as curious as I was upon seeing this little glimpse, ... then follow this link to see what the rest of it looked like and what we found out about it ----> The Mystery of the Victorian Mansion
Directions:
There are lots of alternate routes that you can take to and from Decatur. Many of them using the winding FM Roads that I love so much. However, when we went to Decatur it was as part of a longer trip when we didn't have time to snake around through the country. Thats why there is so much "hiway" in this course. Rest assured, though, that Hiway 380 is nothing like an expressway..... you'll still see plenty of the country.
1. Custer Road north from Plano until you reach Hiway 380.
2. Go West on Hiway 380 toward Denton. Not alot of curves or character to the ride here, but you've got a long way to go. A few miles after you pass the intersection of Hiway 289, keep your eyes open for the Navo Grill on the south side of the road. This old place used to be a gas station when I was a kid, and someone did a nice job on the reproduction Dr. Pepper advertising murals on the side of the building. I don't think its open anymore. At least it hasn't been the last few times I've been out that way.
3. You'll stay on Westbound Hiway 380 through Denton, and continue on to Decatur.
