Rowlett, Texas

Rowlett (/raʊˈlɛt/, traditionally /ˈraʊlɪt/) is a city in Dallas and Rockwall Counties in Texas, United States, and an eastern suburb of Dallas. It is a growing, upscale community with nearly $1.5 billion in development in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, located on Lake Ray Hubbard.

The population was 62,535 at the 2020 census, and according to 2023 census estimates, the city is estimated to have a population of 66,813.

Rowlett derives its name from Rowlett Creek, which flows into Lake Ray Hubbard and is a major tributary of the east fork of the Trinity River. The creek in turn was named for a waterway running through the property of Daniel Rowlett who moved from Kentucky to Bonham, Texas, in 1835. Daniel, who was a member of the Smoot-Rowlett political family, had no direct dealings with the town that now bears his name.

The first post office opened on April 5, 1880, and it was called "Morris" after Postmaster Austin Morris.

The town was later renamed "Rowlett". The Dallas and Greenville Railway passed through the town in 1886, connecting Dallas with Greenville, Texas, and the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad. Shortly after its opening, the line was formally sold to the MKT.

In 1921, the town was a stop on the Bankhead Highway.

The town incorporated in 1952 when its population was 250. In the 1960s, the town languished as Interstate 30 bypassed Rowlett.

The town has had a building boom since the completion of Lake Ray Hubbard in 1971 – growing to 1,600 by 1973; 10,573 by 1989; 23,260 by 1990; and 44,503 by 2000.