Waxahachie is the seat of Ellis County, Texas, located about 30 miles south of downtown Dallas at the junction of Interstate 35E and US 287. The county, organized in 1850, is named for Richard Ellis, president of the convention that produced the Texas Declaration of Independence. Waxahachie grew as a cotton and agricultural center, and that prosperity is still visible in its historic core: the city is nicknamed the Gingerbread City for its abundance of restored Queen Anne Victorian homes, and its downtown square holds one of the finest concentrations of 19th- and early 20th-century commercial architecture in Texas. The Ellis County Courthouse is the city's centerpiece — a red sandstone and granite Romanesque Revival building designed by James Riely Gordon and completed in 1897, often cited as one of the most photographed historic landmarks in the state. The annual Gingerbread Tour of Homes celebrates the city's Victorian residential heritage, while Waxahachie's designation as the Crape Myrtle Capital of Texas reflects the flowering trees that line its streets. With roughly 50,000 residents, Waxahachie has grown well beyond its historic core into a substantial southern Dallas-Fort Worth suburb. The city balances a preserved, walkable downtown with newer subdivisions spreading across the surrounding Ellis County landscape. Its location less than 35 minutes from Dallas makes it a practical commuter base, while its cultural identity — the courthouse, the Victorian homes, and the Scarborough Renaissance Festival, held here since 1981 — gives it a distinct character among metroplex suburbs. The economy spans retail, healthcare, education, and manufacturing, with the historic square's shops and restaurants complementing the larger commercial corridors along the highways. For homebuyers, Waxahachie offers a rare combination of historic charm and modern suburban growth, with the county seat's civic institutions and a self-contained downtown at its center.