Kendall County

Kendall County, Texas

Kendall County, Texas

The Kendall County Courthouse is located in the Boerne, Texas, the county seat. Photograph by Larry D. Moore.
Kendall County, Texas

Kendall County, Texas

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

Kendall County is in south central Texas, 170 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico, and is bordered by Gillespie, Blanco, Comal, Bexar, Bandera, and Kerr counties. Boerne, the county seat, is on Cibolo Creek at the intersection of U.S. Highway 87 and Farm Road 475, thirty miles northwest of San Antonio. The county's center lies eleven miles north of Boerne at 29°57' north latitude and 98°43' west longitude. Kendall County comprises roughly 663 square miles of rolling to hilly terrain in the Edwards Plateau region, with elevations ranging from 1,000 to 2,000 feet above sea level. Vegetation native to the alkaline soils of the region consists primarily of tall grasses, live oak, juniper, and mesquite. Most of the area is drained by the Guadalupe River, which crosses the county from west to east. Two other important water courses rise in Kendall County: the Blanco River in the north and Cibolo Creek in the south. Wildlife in the area includes deer, javelina, coyote, bobcat, beaver, badger, fox, raccoon, weasel, squirrel, and a variety of small birds, fish, and reptiles. Among the county's mineral resources are dolomite and limestone. The climate is subtropical subhumid with an average minimum temperature of 35° F in January and an average high of 94° in July. The growing season averages 231 days annually, and the rainfall averages thirty-two inches.

The Central Texas region, including Kendall 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 10,000 years ago. Lipan Apaches, Kiowas, and Comanches became the dominant tribes in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries and were present when Germans began arriving in the 1840s. The Meusebach-Comanche Treaty, signed in 1847, was to permit the settlers to enter Indian territory to settle and the Indians to enter the settlements. German immigrants established Sisterdale in 1847, Tusculum (Boerne) in 1849, Curry's Creek in 1850, and Comfort in 1854. Although relations between settlers and Indians were fairly sympathetic, small groups of Indians did make frequent raids on farms in the area, and in some instances killed settlers and stole children. The threat of raids continued through the mid-1870s but lessened as the frontier was pushed farther west.

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Vivian Elizabeth Smyrl | © TSHA

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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

Kendall County is classified as a County

Altitude Range

1000 ft – 2080 ft

Size

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

  • Land Area: 662.5 mi²
  • Total Area: 663.0 mi²

Temperature

January mean minimum: 35.4°F
July mean maximum: 92.5°F

Rainfall, 2019

38.1 inches

Population Count, 2019

47,431

Civilian Labor Count, 2019

21,397

Unemployment, 2019

5.9%

Property Values, 2019

$8,272,200,347 USD

Per-Capita Income, 2019

$84,270 USD

Retail Sales, 2019

$1,338,093,514 USD

Wages, 2019

$238,482,814 USD

Kendall County

Highlighted:
  • Kendall County
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Place Type Population (Year/Source) Currently Exists
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Town 1,213 (2009) Yes
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Town 19,109 (2021) Yes
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Town 1,955 (2021) Yes
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Town 10,505 (2021) Yes
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Town 149 (2009) Yes
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Town 70 (2009) Yes
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Town 50 (2009) Yes
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Town 110 (2009) Yes
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Town 73 (2009) Yes
Town 10 (2009) Yes
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