Bastrop County

Bastrop County, Texas

Bastrop County, Texas

Bastrop County, Texas. Photograph by Larry D. Moore.
Bastrop County, Texas

Bastrop County, Texas

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

Bastrop County, located on State highways 71, 95, 21, and 304, on the upper Gulf coastal plains just below the Balcones Escarpment, encompasses 895 square miles of southeast central Texas. Its seat of government, Bastrop, is situated in the center of the county at approximately 30°04' north latitude and 97°22'west longitude, a location about thirty miles southeast of downtown Austin. The terrain throughout most of the county is characterized by rolling uplands and broken hills with surface layers of primarily sandy, loamy soils, and woods where post oaks predominate but where cedar, hickory, elm, and walnut also occur. In the northwestern corner of the county and along the central southeastern border, the topography changes to blackland prairie with waxy clay soil and tall grass cover. The Colorado River bisects the county from northwest to southeast; along this waterway and its tributaries can be found rich alluvial silts and clays. Near the river, the Lost Pine Forest extends through an east central section of the county. Elevations range from 400 to 600 feet above sea level. The county's climate has been described as subtropical humid, with a low average January temperature of 40° F, a high average July temperature of 96° F, and an average annual rainfall of 36.82 inches; the growing season is 270 days long. Mineral resources include clay, oil, gas, lignite, sand, gravel, and surface and underground water.

The McCormick site near McDade has produced archeological evidence of human life in the area during the Neo-American period, a thousand years ago. By the beginning of the nineteenth century, Tonkawa Indians inhabited the area, and Comanche Indians came to hunt along the river each autumn. With an early road between Nacogdoches and San Antonio running through the region, in 1804 Spanish governor Manuel Antonio Cordero y Bustamante established a fort at the Colorado River crossing where the town of Bastrop now stands. The Baron de Bastrop planned a German community at the site, but it was not until after Stephen F. Austin obtained a grant for a "Little Colony" from the Mexican government in 1827 that settlement began. Pioneers met with intense Indian resistance, but by 1830 the town of Bastrop, named for the baron, had been founded and settlers from Austin's lower colonies were clearing farms over the southern portion of the county.

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Paula Mitchell Marks | © 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

Bastrop County is classified as a County

Altitude Range

300 ft – 729 ft

Size

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

  • Land Area: 888.2 mi²
  • Total Area: 895.6 mi²

Temperature

January mean minimum: 37.6°F
July mean maximum: 95.4°F

Rainfall, 2019

37.6 inches

Population Count, 2019

88,723

Civilian Labor Count, 2019

41,830

Unemployment, 2019

7.2%

Property Values, 2019

$9,047,889,615 USD

Per-Capita Income, 2019

$36,561 USD

Retail Sales, 2019

$1,339,762,271 USD

Wages, 2019

$204,951,110 USD

Bastrop County

Highlighted:
  • Bastrop County
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Place Type Population (Year/Source) Currently Exists
Town 70 (2009) Yes
Town
Town 10,434 (2021) Yes
Town 12 (2009) Yes
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Town 40 (2009) Yes
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Town 6,901 (2021) Yes
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Town 4,076 (2021) Yes
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Town 2,450 (2021) Yes
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Town 10,549 (2021) Yes
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Lake Yes
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Town 1,376 (2021) Yes
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Town 142 (2021) Yes
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Town 397 (2021) Yes
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Town 190 (2009) Yes
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Town 1,488 (2021) Yes
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Town 4,047 (2021) Yes
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Town 50 (2009) Yes
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Town 40 (2009) Yes
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Town 25 (2009) Yes
Town 30 (2009) Yes
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Town
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Town 3,718 (2021) Yes
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Town

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