Built on the site of an earlier Grist Mill, the Gruene Cotton Gin was constructed in 1878 by H.D. Gruene. Powered by the Guadalupe River, he gin was steam-operated and served to process the vast amounts of cotton grown in the area. The gin played an important part in the economic development of Gruene, a community dependent upon the cotton crop. The gin was destroyed in a 1922 fire, and only part of th boiler room remains. A new electric gin was built at another location and served the community until the cotton crop was lost to a boll weevil infestation in 1925. [Texas Historical Commission 1989] Since 1977, the site has been operated as the Gristmill River Restaurant & Bar.