Brazos County

Brazos County, between the Navasota and Brazos rivers in southeast central Texas, is bounded on the northwest by Robertson County, on the east by Madison and Grimes counties, on the south by Washington County, and on the southwest by Burleson County. The center point of the county is at 30°40' north latitude and 96°18' west longitude. The county was named for the nearby Brazos River. Bryan is the county seat, and College Station is the other major community in the county. Brazos County is crossed by U.S. Highway 190 and State highways 6, 21, and 30, as well as the Union Pacific railroad. It comprises 588 square miles of rolling prairie and woodland with elevations that range from 200 to 350 feet above sea level. The average annual rainfall is thirty-nine inches. The average minimum temperature in January is 39° F; the average maximum in July, the hottest month, is 95°. The county has a growing season of 268 days, its soils are alluvial to sandy, and between 11 and 20 percent of the land is considered prime farmland. The northern third of the county is in the Blackland Prairie area and is vegetated by elm, oak, pecan, and mesquite trees along streams. The remainder of the county is in the Post Oak Savannah vegetation area, which features post oak, walnut, and pecan trees.

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