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Texas Counties

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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

Jim Wells County, Texas

Jim Wells County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Alice
Year Organized: 1911
Square Miles: 865

Court House:

200 North Almond
County Courthouse
Alice, TX 78332-0000

Etymology - Origin of County Name

James Babbage Wells Jr., a powerful politician in southern Texas

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

Jim Wells County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. Its county seat is Alice. The county is named for James Babbage Wells Jr., a political boss in southern Texas.

Because of the long distance residents had to travel in order to conduct business at the county seat in Corpus Christi, they petitioned for the formation of a separate county. The request was approved by the legislature in early 1911, and the county's first commissioners' court meeting was held on March 18, 1911. The new county was formally organized in 1912, and named for James B. Wells, Jr.,^qv who played an important role in the economic development of the lower Rio Grande valley. When the county was established, its population of 887 was chiefly resident in Alice, which was made county seat. Jim Wells County was divided into school districts in 1914. By 1920 the population was estimated at 6,587

More at Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "," http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/JJ/hcj7.html (accessed November 6, 2008).

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 868 square miles (2,249 km²), of which, 865 square miles (2,239 km²) of it is land and 3 square miles (10 km²) of it (0.43%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Live Oak County (north)
San Patricio County (northeast)
Nueces County (east)
Kleberg County (east)
Brooks County (south)
Duval County (west)

Cities and Towns:

- Alice (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Orange Grove	city	Incorporated Area
- Pernitas Point	village	Incorporated Area
- Premont	city	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resources

The history of our nation was a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names given the counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of this 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."