La Grange (/lə ˈɡreɪndʒ/ lə GRAYNJ) is a city in Fayette County, Texas, United States, near the Colorado River.

The earliest Anglo-American settlers in the area were Aylett C. Buckner and Peter Powell, who lived slightly to the west.

The building is known as Moore's Fort and can be found today in nearby Round Top, having been moved there for restoration.

La Grange became the home of many Jewish immigrants in the late 19th century, who entered the region through the port of Galveston.

[citation needed] After independence, Texas continued to have armed confrontations with Mexican forces over control of the territory between the Rio Grande and the Nueces River.

Several years later, the remains of those dead and of those from the black bean death lottery (Mier Expedition), were exhumed and reinterred in La Grange in a large common tomb with a sandstone vault.

This took place in a ceremony on September 18, 1848, at the location now known as Monument Hill; more than 1,000 people attended, including former president of the Republic of Texas, Sam Houston.

[citation needed] On January 17, 1849, Heinrich Ludwig Kreische, a recent German immigrant, purchased 172 acres (70 ha) of land which included the tomb.

[citation needed] The Kreische family asked the city to remove the tomb from their property, as it was frequently vandalized.

On April 15, 1905, the Texas Legislature passed a bill to authorize acquisition, by purchase or condemnation, of the 0.36 acres (0.15 ha) of land occupied by the tomb.

In 1956, the citizens of Fayette County purchased 3.54 acres (1.43 ha) around Monument Hill and deeded the land to the state for parkland.

It closed in 1973 after its operations were revealed, largely through the investigative and reporting efforts of Houston television journalist Marvin Zindler.

[11] The Chicken Ranch also served as the basis for the 1978 Broadway musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas and its 1982 movie adaptation.

The Texas Czech Heritage and Cultural Center is located at 250 Fair Grounds Road in La Grange.

[13] The center constructed a new archives building, aided by a seed donation in 2007 from the estate of Adolph R. Hanslik of Lubbock.

Hanslik was known as the "dean of West Texas cotton producers" and was a native of Hallettsville in Lavaca County.