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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

Bowie County, Texas

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

County Seat: New Boston
Year Organized: 1840
Square Miles: 888

Court House:

P.O. Box 248
County Courthouse
New Boston, TX 75570-0248

Etymology - Origin of County Name

James Bowie, the legendary knife fighter who died at the Battle of the Alamo

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Bowie County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. Its county seat is Boston. Bowie is named for James Bowie, the legendary knife fighter who died at the Battle of the Alamo.

Bowie County was demarked in December of 1840 and named for James Bowie.^qv As originally delineated, the county included all or part of the territories of present Cass, Titus, and Morris counties. In 1846 the county was reduced to its present size and boundaries with the establishment of Cass and Titus counties. DeKalb, in the western part of the county, was designated temporary county seat, while a commission was appointed to choose a more appropriate permanent site. The commission chose the town then named Boston (see OLD BOSTON, TEXAS), which became the county seat in 1841. In the mid-1880s the citizens of Texarkana conducted a successful campaign to make Texarkana the county seat. About five years later residents of the western and central parts of the county campaigned successfully for yet another county seat, this one to be at the geographic center of the county. The new courthouse was constructed in 1890, and the town that grew up around it was named Boston. The county seat has remained at this location. Shortly before Texarkana ceased being the county seat, the courthouse burned and almost all the county records were destroyed.

More at Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "," http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/BB/hcb11.html (accessed November 4, 2008).

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 923 square miles (2,390 km²), of which, 888 square miles (2,300 km²) of it is land and 35 square miles (90 km²) of it (3.78%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

McCurtain County, Oklahoma (north)
Little River County, Arkansas (northeast)
Miller County, Arkansas (southeast)
Cass County (south)
Morris County (southwest)
Red River County (west)

Cities and Towns:

- De Kalb	city	Incorporated Area
- Hooks	city	Incorporated Area
- Leary	city	Incorporated Area
- Maud	city	Incorporated Area
- Nash	city	Incorporated Area
- New Boston (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Oak Ridge	town	Incorporated Area
- Red Lick	city	Incorporated Area
- Redwater	city	Incorporated Area
- Texarkana	city	Incorporated Area
- Wake Village	city	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

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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