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Texas Counties

Texas is divided into 254 counties, more than any other U.S. state Texas was originally divided into municipalities, a unit of local government under Spanish and Mexican rule. When the Republic of Texas gained its independence in 1836, there were 23 municipalities, which became the original Texas counties. Many of these would later be divided into new counties. The most recent county to be created was Kenedy County in 1921. The most recent county to be organized was Loving County in 1931

Bandera County, Texas

Bandera County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Bandera
Year Organized: 1856
Square Miles: 792

Court House:

P.O. Box 877
County Courthouse
Bandera, TX 78003-0877

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Bandera is Spanish for "flag," and there are a number of colorful accounts as to how the county was named. One has it that a Spanish general named Bandera led a punitive expedition in the area against the Apaches after the Indians raided San Antonio de Béxar. Another relates that after pursuing the Indians to Bandera Pass the Spanish left a flag or flags to warn them against future raids. And a third legend claims that in 1752 (or 1732) a council was held between Spanish and Indian leaders, during which the Spanish pledged never to go north of the pass if the Indians agreed to cease their raids in the south, and a red flag was placed on the pass as a symbol of the treaty.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Bandera County, formed in 1856 from Bexar and Uvalde counties, is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. Its county seat is Bandera. Bandera is named for the Spanish word for flag.

In February 1855 sixteen Polish families arrived in Bandera to work in James and DeMontel's sawmill, and in August of the same year August Klappenbach opened the first store and post office. On January 25, 1856, the legislature marked off Bandera County from portions of Bexar County; the new county was formally organized on March 10, 1856.
More at Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "," http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/BB/hcb2.html (accessed November 4, 2008).

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 798 square miles (2,066 km²), of which, 792 square miles (2,051 km²) of it is land and 6 square miles (15 km²) of it (0.73%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Kerr County (north)
Kendall County (northeast)
Bexar County (southeast)
Medina County (south)
Uvalde County (southwest)
Real County (west)

Cities and Towns:

- Bandera (County Seat)

city

Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

Online High Schools

County Resource Guide

Counties: US Map

The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of our country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."

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