Colorado County

Colorado County, Texas

Colorado County, Texas

Santa Claus Museum in the city of Columbus, the county seat of Colorado County. Photograph by Billy Hathorn.
Colorado County, Texas

Colorado County, Texas

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

Colorado County, located about sixty miles above the Gulf of Mexico in south central Texas, is bounded on the northeast by Austin County, on the southeast by Wharton County, on the south by Jackson County, on the southwest by Lavaca County, and on the northwest by Fayette County. It is roughly rectangular in shape except for a small strip extending to the southwest. The center point of the county is at 29°38' north latitude and 96°32' west longitude. The county was named for the Colorado River, which bisects it northwest to southeast. Columbus is the county seat. Colorado County is crossed by Interstate Highway 10, U.S. highways 90 and 90A, and State Highway 71, as well as by the Union Pacific railroad. The county includes 964 square miles of level to rolling land with elevations that range from 150 to 425 feet above sea level. The annual rainfall is forty-one inches. The average minimum temperature in January is 41° F, and the average maximum in July is 96°. The growing season lasts 280 days. From 11 to 20 percent of the land is considered prime farmland. Colorado County has several different soil sections: light-colored soils with clayey subsoils predominate in the southwest and northeast; poorly drained soils with cracking, clayey subsoils are found along the Colorado River; and loamy soils with cracking, clayey subsoils characterize the center. The northwest part of the county, in the Blackland Prairie area, supports elm, oak, pecan, and mesquite trees along streams. The remainder is a post oak savanna, where post oak, blackjack oak, and elm grow, with walnuts and pecans along streams.

Colorado County has been the site of human habitation for some 12,000 years. Archaic-age hunters and gatherers lived in the county on deer, bison, roots, and nuts. Within the historic period, the Coco branch of the Karankawa tribe hunted through the area, and Tonkawa Indians ranged up into the area from the south. When La Salle's party camped on Skull Creek on January 20, 1687, the Frenchmen found an Indian village that they called the Hebemes. It is probable that the fourth expedition of Alonso De León crossed the county in search of Fort St. Louis in 1689. Martín de Alarcón traversed the area on his way to La Bahía del Espíritu Santo in 1718, and in 1766 and 1767 the Marqués de Rubí crossed the Colorado near the site of present Columbus on his tour of inspection of East Texas.

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Mark Odintz | © 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

Colorado County is classified as a County

Altitude Range

125 ft – 450 ft

Size

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

  • Land Area: 960.3 mi²
  • Total Area: 973.7 mi²

Temperature

January mean minimum: 40.8°F
July mean maximum: 94.3°F

Rainfall, 2019

43.9 inches

Population Count, 2019

21,493

Civilian Labor Count, 2019

9,345

Unemployment, 2019

6.3%

Property Values, 2019

$5,397,132,413 USD

Per-Capita Income, 2019

$46,821 USD

Retail Sales, 2019

$315,381,916 USD

Wages, 2019

$82,801,564 USD

Colorado County

Highlighted:
  • Colorado County
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Town 50 (2009) Yes

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