Huntsville

"Huntsville is an interesting mix between having a small town feel and a city feel. The area along I-45 feels very much like the city, but once you get away from there it feels like a small town. Chet the Daytripper calls it the Waco of I-45, and I think it's a fitting description. It has a square and is the seat of Walker County. Sam Houston State University is here, along with the Sam Houston Museum and Texas Prison Museum. Huntsville is also the headquarters of the Texas Prison System, and you'll see prison units in the surrounding areas, as well as one unit in Huntsville itself...the "Walls" unit. Huntsville is also technically East Texas, but you don't see much of the pine trees until you get outside of town a bit. One last thing...some areas of the town look run down. Like you can tell this is an older town in general. You could spend 2 days here exploring the museums, university, hiking (see AllTrails), and surrounding towns."