5 Texas Towns That Have Holiday-Themed Names

Last year, H-E-B had a holiday commercial that ran on local Texas television stations. Set to the tune of “Merry Texas Christmas, You All,” by Gene Autry, the television spot highlighted Texas towns with holiday-themed names. While the famous grocery store chain has a different holiday ad airing this year, (featuring, none other than George Strait!) the “Merry Texas Christmas, You All,” commercial quickly became a fan favorite.

Here are five Texas towns that have holiday-themed names:

1. Holly, Texas

Photo: Flickr/CameliaTWU

Holly, Texas, located in East Texas, had a post office from 1886 to 1914 but its population has fluctuated over the century. As of the last record, the population of Holly was estimated to be 112 in 2000.

2. Garland, Texas

Photo: Flickr/Dave Hensley

Garland is a large city northeast of Dallas and is a part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Smartasset ranked Garland as the “3rd best City for living the American Dream in 2017”. LeAnn Rimes, the two-time Grammy award-winning country singer, moved to Garland with her family when she was six.

3. Blessing, Texas

Photo: Flickr/Nicolas Henderson

Located on the Gulf Coast in Matagorda County, Blessing got its start when the railroad finally was extended to that point. Its settlers accepted the name “Blessing” after their first choice of “Thank God” was deemed unsuitable by postal officials. A post office called Blessing has been in operation since 1903.

4. Bells, Texas

Photo: Flickr/Jack

Bells, located northeast of Dallas, was settled by Daniel Dugan in 1835. Community development, however, did not occur until the early 1870s with the arrival of the Texas and Pacific and Missouri, Kansas, and Texas railways. The community was called Dugansville, for the local pioneer family, from 1871 to 1878, and was renamed Bells, (or Bell’s) perhaps in reference to the area churches, in 1879.

5. Rudolph, Texas

Photo: Flickr/Michael Galkovsky

Rudolph, located in south Texas, was a shipping point on U.S. Highway 77 and the Missouri Pacific line, thirty-eight miles south of Sarita in southwestern Kenedy County. It was named for Rudolph Kleberg, the United States congressman, around 1900.