History
The area known as Westlake was originally settled in 1847 by Charles and Matilda Medlin with about 20 other families. In the mid-twentieth century, what is now Westlake was known as Circle T Ranch. Despite its name, Westlake is actually located south of Lake Grapevine. When incorporated in the late 1950s, the name Southlake, Texas already existed, so ranchers and homeowners took the name Westlake.
During the late 1990s, the City Council attempted to disband the city. The large Solana development was annexed by Southlake, while several large tracts of land were annexed by Fort Worth, Texas. A local district judge ruled the annexations in violation of state law, and the properties returned under Westlake jurisdiction.
In 2000, the radio program This American Life featured a story about the battle to disband the town in the face of development by Ross Perot, Jr..
Westlake is known, among other things, for having by far the highest per-capita revenue from traffic tickets of any town in Texas.
Read more about this topic: Westlake, Texas
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