Harris County

Harris County, originally Harrisburg County, is located on the upper Gulf Coast in Southeast Texas and is bounded by Waller County on the north and west, Montgomery County on the north, Liberty and Chambers counties on the east, Galveston and Brazoria counties on the south, and Fort Bend County on the west. The center point is at 95°27' west longitude and 29°50' north latitude. The county comprises 1,778 square miles (1,729 in land) and is the largest Texas county east of the Nueces River. Its southern half is level coastal prairie, and the northern half touches the rolling East Texas timberlands. Central Harris County is fifty-five feet above sea level. The land rises gradually to more than 200 feet on the northern borders, while the smallish bluffs around upper Galveston Bay descend to sea level. The soil is heavy black coastal clay in the south and sandy loam north of Buffalo Bayou. This stream, better known in its last sixteen miles as the Houston Ship Channel, almost bisects the county from west to east before joining the north-to-south San Jacinto River just above its estuary at Morgan's Point on upper Galveston Bay. The eastern third of the county is drained also by Cedar Bayou on its eastern border and by Clear Creek and Clear Lake on the south. Spring Creek forms its northern boundary and, joined by parallel Cypress Creek, becomes the West Fork of the San Jacinto River. A dam below the East and West forks of the San Jacinto River impounded Lake Houston in 1954. This reservoir for the city of Houston lessened dependence on subsurface water, the use of which has caused up to nine feet of subsidence around the confluence of Buffalo Bayou and the San Jacinto River. The lake is a popular recreational spot. Addicks and Barker dams provide flood control in western Harris County. The average annual rainfall in Harris County is 48.19 inches, and the mean temperature is 69.1 degrees. The growing season lasts 300 days. Native trees include pine and such hardwoods as oak, ash, and hickory.

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.