McLennan County

McLennan County, Texas

McLennan County, Texas

The McLenna County Courthouse is housed in Waco, the county seat. Photograph by Larry D. Moore.
McLennan County, Texas

McLennan County, Texas

Map of McLennan County, Texas. Map Credit: Robert Plocheck.

McLennan County is in east central Texas, 230 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico, bordered by Hill, Limestone, Falls, Bell, Coryell, and Bosque counties. Waco, the county seat, is on the Brazos River at the intersection of Interstate Highway 35 and U.S Highway 84, ninety miles south of Dallas and 100 miles north of Austin. The county's center lies three miles west of Waco at 31°33' north latitude and 97°12' west longitude. Situated partially in the Grand Prairie and partially in the Blackland Prairie, McLennan County comprises 1,031 square miles of flat to rolling terrain at elevations ranging from 400 to 850 feet above sea level. The land in the western section of the county has varied terrain surfaced by shallow, stony soils that support mountain cedar and oak. The eastern section is generally low rolling to flat, with black, waxy soils made up of clay and sand loams that support mesquite, scrub brush, and grasses. The county is bisected from southwest to northeast by the Balcones Fault, and the rolling prairie along the fault line is broken by locally steep slopes. The county lies entirely within the Brazos River basin and is drained primarily by the South and Middle Bosque rivers in the west and by the Tehuacana and Aquilla creeks in the east; the Brazos River crosses the county from northwest to southeast. Wildlife in the area includes deer, coyotes, rabbits, bobcats, beaver, opossums, fox, raccoon, mink, skunks, and squirrels, as well as assorted birds, fish, and reptiles; prior to extensive settlement, the county's wildlife also included antelope, buffalo, bear, and wild hogs. Among the county's mineral resources are limestone, sand, gravel, oil, and gas. The climate is subtropical with an average minimum temperature of 37° F in January and an average high temperature of 97° F in July. The growing season averages 253 days annually, and the rainfall averages thirty-three inches.

The central Texas region, including McLennan County, has supported human habitation for several thousand years. Archeological evidence suggests that hunting and gathering peoples established themselves in the area as early as 11,000 years ago. Some of these may have been ancestors of the Tonkawa Indians, who appear to have been native to the region. The Wichita groups moved south from Oklahoma about 1700, and by the early 1800s some Caddo and Delaware Indians were in the area as well. Athanase de Mézières visited the Tawakoni village of Quiscat on the Brazos River in 1779, and Pedro Vial traveled through the area on an expedition in 1786. In 1824 the Indian village at Waco had 500 to 600 residents, but it was abandoned by the mid-1830s. McLennan County was part of the colonization grant obtained by Robert Leftwich from the Mexican government in 1825 and was later part of Robertson's colony. One of the first land grants made in the area of McLennan County was to Thomas Jefferson Chambers on April 26, 1832. Although several surveying expeditions ventured into the county district through the 1830s, permanent settlement was delayed until the 1840s by the threat of Indian raids. A temporary ranger station called Fort Fisher was built near the former Waco Indian village in February 1837, but it was abandoned in June of that year. The Republic of Texas tried to establish local government in the region in 1842 by establishing a judicial district known as Waco County, but later that year the Texas Supreme Court declared such counties unconstitutional. In 1844 and 1845 representatives of the republic held talks with several Indian groups at a site near the Torrey Trading Houses (see TEHUACANA CREEK COUNCILS). Following the annexation of Texas by the United States, settlement of the area proceeded rapidly. Plans for a permanent townsite at the former Waco Indian village were made in 1848, when Jacob Raphael de Cordova and several others became involved in a project to sell land in the area at a dollar an acre. The townsite was laid out in 1849, and George B. Erath, one of the surveyors for the project, suggested Waco Village as the name of the settlement, in honor of the previous inhabitants. The sale of town lots was very successful, and a small business district began to develop.

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Vivian Elizabeth Smyrl | © TSHA

Handbook of Texas Logo

Adapted from the official Handbook of Texas, a state encyclopedia developed by Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). It is an authoritative source of trusted historical records.

Currently Exists

Yes

Place type

McLennan County is classified as a County

Altitude Range

350 ft – 960 ft

Size

Land area does not include water surface area, whereas total area does

  • Land Area: 1,037.1 mi²
  • Total Area: 1,060.2 mi²

Temperature

January mean minimum: 36.1°F
July mean maximum: 96.3°F

Rainfall, 2019

34.7 inches

Population Count, 2019

256,623

Civilian Labor Count, 2019

118,299

Unemployment, 2019

7.1%

Property Values, 2019

$22,331,813,272 USD

Per-Capita Income, 2019

$41,254 USD

Retail Sales, 2019

$3,895,283,084 USD

Wages, 2019

$1,424,500,382 USD

McLennan County

Highlighted:
  • McLennan County
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Place Type Population (Year/Source) Currently Exists
Town
Town
Town
Town 46 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town 300 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town 100 (2009) Yes
Town 10,575 (2021) Yes
Town
Town 1,876 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 200 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 1,342 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 150 (2009) Yes
Town
Town 903 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town 150 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town 150 (2009) Yes
Town 300 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 1,262 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town 667 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town 433 (2021) Yes
Town
Town 100 (2009) Yes
Town
Town 16,131 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 7,090 (2021) Yes
Town
Lake Yes
Lake Yes
Town
Town 354 (2021) Yes
Town
Town 50 (2009) Yes
Town
Town 1,791 (2021) Yes
Town
Town 1,791 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town 5,522 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town 1,411 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 84 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 35 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town 1,071 (2021) Yes
Town
Town 12,755 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 251 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 1,523 (2009) Yes
Town 1,655 (2009) Yes
Town 400 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 250 (2009) Yes
Town
Town 130 (2009) Yes
Town
Lake Yes
Town
Town
Town 1,243 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town 139,594 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 2,557 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town 2,231 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town 9,474 (2021) Yes

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