{"product_id":"smithville-9781531646288","title":"Smithville","description":"Smithville's reputation is that of a railroad town, yet it offers an even richer history. Fertile land and the Colorado River attracted pioneers with energy, dreams, and a hunger to build. After Thomas Gazley chose head-right land in Stephen F. Austin's Second Colony in 1827, area settlers joined the fray to secure a Texas free from Mexico's supremacy. Some represented Bastrop County in the new Republic of Texas's legislature. Others stayed home and built a village on the banks of the Colorado. Businessmen influenced the growth of Smithville by attracting the railroad, and soon Smithville was the largest city in the county, offering a place for businesses and families to thrive. Smithville's fortunes have risen and fallen with the railroad, the river, and the Central Texas economy, and it has again become a vital community, this time nurturing scientists, artists, filmmakers, and antique lovers.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Arcadia Publishing Library Editions","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50418440405266,"sku":"9781531646288","price":23.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_e241fff6-656e-4295-b57e-f25d23298931.jpg?v=1729474156","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/smithville-9781531646288","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}