Jack County

Jack County, in north central Texas, is bordered by Clay, Archer, and Montague counties to the north, Young County to the west, Palo Pinto and Parker counties to the south, and Wise County to the east. Jacksboro, the county seat and the largest town in the county, is sixty miles southeast of Wichita Falls and seventy miles northwest of Fort Worth. The county's center is at 98°10' west longitude and 33°12' north latitude. Other communities in the county include Bryson, Jermyn, Perrin, Antelope, Wizard Wells, Post Oak, Bartons Chapel, Cundiff, Gibtown, Joplin, Newport (also in Clay County), Truce, and Vineyard. Jack County is situated in the North Central Prairies region. The land is undulating to hilly, with light-colored, loamy soils over very deep reddish clayey subsoils, shale, and sandstone. The county's 920 square miles is forested mainly by mesquite, live oak, blackjack oak, and post oak, with pecan, elm, walnut, and cottonwood trees along the waterways. The altitude increases from east to west and ranges from 800 feet to 1,350 feet. The West Fork of the Trinity River cuts across Jack County diagonally from northwest to southeast and provides the main drainage for the county. Among other creeks are East Rock, Howard, Lost, Crooked, the North Fork of Crooked, Little Cleveland, the West Fork of Keechi, Two Bush, and Henderson. Lake Bridgeport and Lake Jacksboro are in the county. Mineral resources include petroleum, natural gas, and stone. The climate is subtropical-subhumid, generally mild and dry. Temperatures in January range from an average low of 31° F to an average high of 57° and in July from 73° to 97°. The average rainfall is about thirty inches a year, and the growing season extends for 218 days.

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.