Bartlett

est. 1882

Bartlett, established 1882 when railroad built there, named for John T. Bartlett, early settler.  Postmasters have been Thomas McKnight (1882), James Jeptha Talley (1887), John C. Johnston (1889), Thomas W. Reeves (1890), Charley L. Fowler (1891), Lucas Rowntree (1893); Edward G. Armstrong (1898), Jefferson D. Bell (1905), the office transferred to Bell County on February 8, 1910.

Bartlett is another town in two counties–Williamson and Bell.  Its population in 1998 was 1,648.  The primary source of Barlett’s economy is a prison which was occupied in 1995.  It can be filled with as many as 1,000 inmates.  The school systems includes a new high school, which was being enlarged in 1998, an elementary school, a new gymnasium, and a band hall.

Bartlett has been innovative in planning events that attract visitors in large numbers to town, among them the Friendship Fest, the Country Christmas, a city-wide sale, and other similar promotions.  The Bartlett Tribune is the local newspaper, and the Santa Fe and Amtrak railroads pass through Bartlett and carry considerable freight, including grain and cotton.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Clara Stearns Scarbrough, Land of Good Water: A Williamson County History (Georgetown, Texas: Williamson County Sun Publishers, 1973, Fifth printing, 1998).
Click here for Plat representing the J. E. Pietzsch Addition to the town of Bartlett July 3, 1890

Photo caption: First United Methodist Church of Bartlett Photo Courtesy Nancy Bell May 2017

Additional Information & Resources:
Bartlett, Texas – Texas Escapes