Jack County

Jack County, Texas

Jack County, Texas

Eastern Jack County, Texas. Photograph by Netherlandish Yankee.
Jack County, Texas

Jack County, Texas

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

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.

Before White settlement Jack County was a borderland between the Caddo Indians to the east and the Comanches to the west. The first Europeans to visit the area may have been Spaniards under Francisco Vásquez de Coronado in the sixteenth century, but they made no permanent settlements. Jack County was included in the Texan Emigration and Land Company, more commonly known as the Peters colony. Settlers began arriving in the future county by 1855, and by 1856 the first settlement, Keechi, was established. Early settlers entering Jack County came mainly from the middle South states, primarily Alabama, North Carolina, Arkansas, Missouri, and Kentucky, many by way of Smith County or other parts of Texas.

Continue Reading

Robert Wayne McDaniel | © 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

Jack County is classified as a County

Altitude Range

836 ft – 1510 ft

Size

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

  • Land Area: 910.7 mi²
  • Total Area: 920.1 mi²

Temperature

January mean minimum: 29.7°F
July mean maximum: 94.4°F

Rainfall, 2019

32.9 inches

Population Count, 2019

8,935

Civilian Labor Count, 2019

3,234

Unemployment, 2019

8.2%

Property Values, 2019

$2,393,031,650 USD

Per-Capita Income, 2019

$44,061 USD

Retail Sales, 2019

$43,839,350 USD

Wages, 2019

$34,737,041 USD

Jack County

Highlighted:
  • Jack County
Loading...
Place Type Population (Year/Source) Currently Exists
Town
Town 65 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 447 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 45 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 20 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 4,209 (2021) Yes
Town
Town
Town 75 (2009) Yes
Town 15 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Lake Yes
Town
Town
Town
Lake Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town 7 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town 75 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 54 (2021) Yes
Town
Lake Yes
Town 20 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 20 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town
Town 19 (2009) Yes
Town
Town
Town
Town 69 (2009) Yes

Proud to call Texas home?

Put your name on the town, county, or lake of your choice.


Search Places »