Rising Star, Texas (Houston, Abilene, Commerce: city hall, house, elementary school)

[tgannaway89]

That village is tiny and has nothing. It is very run down... almost looks like a ghost town. The nearest decent size city would be Brownwood.

Good luck is all I can say.

[catman]

Only people who have lived in Rising Star, or near to it, would know enough about it to vote in the poll. That isn't many. I have to admit that I like the name.

[NOTAM]

TOTALLY 100% AGREE on Gatesville. Great small town with everything you need, and still within proximity of Killeen's diverse dining options (all kinds of ethnic restaurants thanks to the diversity of the military, and a great big oriental grocery store-i can get everything i buy in Hawaii there!)
Gatesville is safe, quiet, friendly, and VERY low cost of living. Real estate is cheap cheap cheap. Land prices aint that high. I love Gatesville. (dont let the 5 prisons scare you away-they are all locked up!)
And also, the town has a VERY good small hospital, and probably one of the best nursing homes anywhere-so good it has a waiting list, and within close proximity to Level I and II Trauma Centers in Temple, Waco, and Austin.
It don't get much better than this!
I have heard of Rising Star. Know where it is. But cant vote cuz I aint spent time there, to formulate any opinion.

quote=WillysB;7005775]Rising Star is one of those places that most have left and is now a drive thru on the way somewhere else. I've been thru there dozens of times, traveling between Houston and Abilene. I have an aunt born there but left before the 1920's. Most people in Texas probly don't know where it is and I suspect you're not going to find many replies to your inquiry.

I've found that home owners in these small remote towns know that big city folks are gonna want to buy there houses so they can escape the big city, and they know what big city prices are.

You might try taking a look at Gatesville. It's also on Hiway 36 but is more centrally located. Guess that's why they call it central Texas. Gatesville has it going on.[/quote]

[psychodos]

Originally Posted by ChristieP

I had a college roommate from there, and she was SO glad to have left. She said it was totally a podunk town and she never went back! Her parents even moved away...

I don't guess they have a house there for rent, do they?

[psychodos]

Originally Posted by NOTAM

TOTALLY 100% AGREE on Gatesville. Great small town with everything you need, and still within proximity of Killeen's diverse dining options (all kinds of ethnic restaurants thanks to the diversity of the military, and a great big oriental grocery store-i can get everything i buy in Hawaii there!)
Gatesville is safe, quiet, friendly, and VERY low cost of living. Real estate is cheap cheap cheap. Land prices aint that high. I love Gatesville. (dont let the 5 prisons scare you away-they are all locked up!)
And also, the town has a VERY good small hospital, and probably one of the best nursing homes anywhere-so good it has a waiting list, and within close proximity to Level I and II Trauma Centers in Temple, Waco, and Austin.
It don't get much better than this!
I have heard of Rising Star. Know where it is. But cant vote cuz I aint spent time there, to formulate any opinion.

quote=WillysB;7005775]Rising Star is one of those places that most have left and is now a drive thru on the way somewhere else. I've been thru there dozens of times, traveling between Houston and Abilene. I have an aunt born there but left before the 1920's. Most people in Texas probly don't know where it is and I suspect you're not going to find many replies to your inquiry.

I've found that home owners in these small remote towns know that big city folks are gonna want to buy there houses so they can escape the big city, and they know what big city prices are.

You might try taking a look at Gatesville. It's also on Hiway 36 but is more centrally located. Guess that's why they call it central Texas. Gatesville has it going on.

[/quote]
Thanks for the advice. Sounds like you know what you are talking about. I'll give it a look, too.

[psychodos]

Originally Posted by catman

Only people who have lived in Rising Star, or near to it, would know enough about it to vote in the poll. That isn't many. I have to admit that I like the name.

I like the name, too. If you look on its website you'll see why it was named Rising Star. A fun bit of trivia.

[psychodos]

Originally Posted by WillysB

Rising Star is one of those places that most have left and is now a drive thru on the way somewhere else. I've been thru there dozens of times, traveling between Houston and Abilene. I have an aunt born there but left before the 1920's. Most people in Texas probly don't know where it is and I suspect you're not going to find many replies to your inquiry.

I've found that home owners in these small remote towns know that big city folks are gonna want to buy there houses so they can escape the big city, and they know what big city prices are.

You might try taking a look at Gatesville. It's also on Hiway 36 but is more centrally located. Guess that's why they call it central Texas. Gatesville has it going on.

Good thoughts on the remote owners, thanks. Also will look into Gatesville. Thanks for the helpful note.

[psychodos]

Originally Posted by Cowboybootnut

Probably not too many people on the Forum have spent much time in Rising Star to vote on the poll.

I think that you should spend some time there before you move. There are nearby hotels in DeLeon and Cross Plains that you could stay at then travel to Rising Star and spend the time there to visit people, go to the trade days, stop at the cafe, etc.

Personally I think a lot about a small town is what the person makes of it.

Everything you wrote is absolutely true. Actually, that is what I am looking for - setting aside a year to go back to small town living to see if I can get my soul back. Thanks for the thoughtful and excellent advice.

[junebugs1013]

I moved to Rising Star almost 12 years ago from Dallas....when I first started coming out here I thought it was a nothing town just like some of you said. Well, I found out that there are some of the most honest people in the world that live in this little town. It might look like it has nothing to offer to some of you but you were just like me and did not see how big a heart this town has. After coming here to hunt for about a year we bought land and a house....fixed that house up like you do all of the excisting homes here but while working on the weekends we would find watermelons or cantalope or beans on our front porch when we went out to drink our coffee....my goodness where are you going to find people like that anymore. I am now part of the EDC that is trying to bring some life back into our town. And yes, the people are all there to help....wanna come live in a place you can leave your house unlocked? Then welcome to Rising Star. But just remember that we don't allow just anyone to live here...you have to be special in your heart.

[jtur88]

Originally Posted by Muhnay

I am shocked to see such a poor turn out on your poll.. you may need to talk to TEXASREB to get some pointers on how to do a more attractive poll for the Texans.

Yes, like offering poll choices like:

[ ] I've never heard of Rising Star

[ ] I don't care if there is anything to do there or not---I'm not a party animal