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Texas Counties
 Click Image to Enlarge Texas CountiesTexas 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 |
Somervell County, TexasSomervell County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education
Etymology - Origin of County NameAlexander Somervell, a soldier in the Texas Revolution and leader of the Somervell Expedition, a military strike into Mexico that failed during the days of the Republic of Texas Demographics:County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts County HistorySomervell County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. Its county seat is Glen Rose. The county is named for Alexander Somervell, Secretary of War for the Republic of Texas. The county contains the Comanche Peak Nuclear Generating Station, one of two nuclear power plants in Texas. More than 100 million years ago dinosaurs roamed the area that is now Somervell County. The Paluxy River has some of the best-preserved tracks found in the continental United States. Much of the excavation on these tracks was done by Roland T. Bird of the American Museum of Natural History in New York. That museum, the University of Texas, the Smithsonian Institution, and several local museums retain samples. Local efforts to protect and preserve tracks imbedded along the river resulted in the foundation of Dinosaur Valley State Park,qv a 1,523-acre facility formally dedicated in 1970. Prior to European settlement of North America, the area was inhabited by American Indians, particularly members of the Caddo groups and Tonkawas. The southern edge of the Wichita Confederacy of Caddos extended into this area, although the Tonkawas were the major tribal group. Apaches and Comanches came into the area periodically. The first permanent Anglo settler was Charles E. Barnard,qv who established an Indian trading post in the late 1840s with his brother, George Barnard,qv for whom George's Creek was named. Charles's wife, Juana Cavasos Barnard,qv was the granddaughter of Don Narciso Cavasos, recipient of the largest Spanish land grant in Texas. She had been captured by Comanches in South Texas and ransomed by the Barnards. Barnard's Mill, built in 1860, was the first building at the site that is now Glen Rose. The mill is still standing and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. During most of the 1850s and early 1860s the Barnard's Mill settlement was a part of Johnson County. In 1866 the area was included in a new county, Hood, marked off entirely from Johnson County. Somervell County was established in 1875, when residents in southern Hood and northern Bosque counties petitioned for a new county because of their separation from markets and seats of government. The county, taken completely from Hood County, was named for Alexander Somervell,qv who led an expedition to Mexico under the Republic of Texas.qv The first and only county seat is Glen Rose, named in 1872. Other early communities included Wilcox, Rainbow, Nemo, and Glass. The census of 1880 indicated a population of 2,649, with only 132 in Glen Rose. At that time Somervell County had a black population of twenty-four. More at Handbook of Texas Online, s.v. "," http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/SS/hcs12.html (accessed November 9, 2008). GeographyAccording to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 192 square miles (497 kmē), of which, 187
square miles (485 kmē) of it is land and 5 square miles (12 kmē) of it (2.46%) is water. It is the third-smallest
county in Texas. Neighboring Counties:
Cities and Towns:
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." |
