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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

Burleson County, Texas

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

County Seat: Caldwell
Year Organized: 1846
Square Miles: 666

Court House:

100 W. Buck
County Courthouse
Caldwell, TX 77836-0000

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Edward Burleson, a general and statesman of the Texas Revolution

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Burleson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. Its county seat is Caldwell. Burleson is named for Edward Burleson, a general and statesman of the Texas Revolution.

Population increase soon produced demands for the organization of local government. In 1830 the territory of present Burleson County south of the Old San Antonio Road was included in the Precinct of Viesca, while the area of the future county north of the road, part of Robertson's colony, was incorporated into Viesca Municipality. In 1835 the region north of the road became part, first, of Milam Municipality, and then of Milam County, after the foundation of the republic in 1836. The territory south of the road and north of Yegua Creek was initially included in Washington Municipality, organized in 1835, and then in Washington County in 1836. In 1840 the area of the present county south of the Old San Antonio Road was transferred from Washington to Milam County. A small settlement and trading post established by Lewis L. Chiles by 1840 at the place where the Old San Antonio Road crossed Davidson Creek in what is now Burleson County was chosen to become the seat of the newly constituted Milam County. A new townsite, soon known as Caldwell, was platted in 1840 by George B. Erath.^qv Finally, on March 24, 1846, the state's First Legislature established Burleson County, named for Gen. Edward Burleson,^qv and designated Caldwell the county seat. The county acquired its present boundaries in 1874, when its western reaches beyond East Yegua Creek were given to the new Lee County, thus reducing Burleson County by some 31 percent.

More at Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "," http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/BB/hcb18.html (accessed November 4, 2008).

Judicial Burleson County

Burleson County was established for judicial and other purposes on January 15, 1842. It included all of what is now Burleson County and the northwest portion of what is now Lee County. Caldwell was named the county seat. A few weeks afterwards a Texas Supreme Court decision, Stockton v. Montgomery (1842), declared all judicial counties unconstitutional. The present Burleson County was established in 1846.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: James Wilmer Dallam, A Digest of the Laws of Texas (Baltimore: Toy, 1845). Hans Peter Nielsen Gammel, comp., Laws of Texas, 1822-1897 (10 vols., Austin: Gammel, 1898).

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 678 square miles (1,755 km²), of which, 666 square miles (1,724 km²) of it is land and 12 square miles (32 km²) of it (1.81%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Robertson County (north)
Brazos County (northeast)
Washington County (southeast)
Lee County (southwest)
Milam County (northwest)

Cities and Towns:

- Caldwell (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Snook	city	Incorporated Area
- Somerville	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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