Living in Rockdale, Thorndale, Thrall & Milano, TX

Thrall, Thorndale, Rockdale and Milano are four small towns strung along US 79 east of Taylor. If you want land, quieter roads and lower price points while staying within reach of Austin and Round Rock, this stretch is worth a look.

Getting around

US 79 ties all four towns together. Thrall is in Williamson County, about 35 miles northeast of Austin. Thorndale, mostly in Milam County, is about 40 miles out and 12 miles west of Rockdale. Rockdale sits at US 79 and FM 908, about 13 miles south of Cameron, and Milano is at US 79 and SH 36, about 12 miles southeast of Cameron. Heading west on US 79 gets you to Taylor, Hutto and SH 130.

Things to do

Apache Pass, an amphitheater and festival grounds on the San Gabriel River about 7 miles north of Thorndale
Downtown Rockdale, Milam County's first major railroad town, with its historic main street
Downtown Taylor and Granger Lake, a short drive west for barbecue, shopping, fishing and camping

Schools

Each town has its own district: Thrall ISD, Thorndale ISD, Rockdale ISD and Milano ISD. Rural properties can fall in a different district than the nearest town, so I always confirm the school assignment for a specific address.

Homes and acreage

You'll find older homes in each town, some newer subdivisions (especially around Rockdale), and a lot of rural land: small acreage, farm and ranch properties and homes with room for animals and shops. With rural properties, I also check things like well and septic, easements and county taxes.

A little history

All four towns grew up along the International-Great Northern Railroad in the 1870s. Rockdale later boomed with lignite mining and, starting in the 1950s, a large Alcoa aluminum plant.