Georgetown, the county seat of Williamson County, is on Interstate Highway 35 and the San Gabriel River in the center of the county. It was founded in 1848 and named for George Washington Glasscock, who, with his partner, Thomas B. Huling, donated land for the site. Pioneers were attracted by the abundance of timber and good, clear water, as were the Tonkawa Indians, who had a village there. In addition, the land was inexpensive and extremely fertile.

Population growth and industrial expansion continued modestly in the twentieth century until about 1960, when residential, commercial, and industrial development greatly accelerated. Since then adaptive restoration has been widely practiced, with special emphasis on a Main Street program and private restoration of older homes.

Also since then Georgetown has added several heavy manufacturing plants, light and cottage industry, and crushed-stone quarries; parks at Lake Georgetown and in the center of town; retirement and nursing homes; a new hospital; low-cost housing that has been a model for similar projects over Texas; Mood-Heritage Museum; a public library; and Inner Space Cavern. The population in 1980 was 9,468, and 4,500 more lived in the area. In 1990 the population was 14,842.