| Brazoria County, Texas | |
Location in the state of Texas |
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Texas's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | 1836 |
|---|---|
| Seat | Angleton |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
1,597 sq mi (4,136 km²) 1,386 sq mi (3,590 km²) 211 sq mi (546 km²), 13.21% |
| Population - (2010) - Density |
313,166 226/sq mi (87/km²) |
| Website | www.brazoria-county.com |
Brazoria County[p] is a county in the U.S. state of Texas, located on the Gulf Coast within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. Regionally, parts of the county are within the extreme southern-most fringe of the regions locally known as Southeast Texas. Brazoria County is among a number of counties that are part of the region known as the Texas Coastal Bend. Its county seat is Angleton, and its largest city is Pearland. Brazoria County, like nearby Brazos County, takes its name from the Brazos River. The county also includes what was once Velasco, Texas, which was the first capital of the Republic of Texas. It served as the first settlement area for Anglo-Texas, whereby the Old Three Hundred immigrated from the United States in 1821. As of the 2010 census, the population of the county is 313,166.[1]
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Brazoria County, like nearby Brazos County, takes its name from the Brazos River, which flows through it. Anglo-Texas began in Brazoria County when the first of Stephen F. Austin's authorized 300 American settlers arrived at the mouth of the Brazos River in 1821. Many of the events leading to the Texas Revolution developed in Brazoria County. In 1832, Brazoria was organized as a separate municipal district by the Mexican government, and so became one of Texas original counties at independence in 1836. Stephen F. Austin's original burial place is located at a church cemetery Gulf Prairie Cemetery in the town of Jones Creek, but was exhumed in 1910 and brought to the state capital in Austin. Also, the town of West Columbia served as the first capital of Texas, dating back to pre-revolutionary days.
Congressman and 2008 Presidential Candidate Ron Paul lives in Brazoria County, in Lake Jackson.
Brazoria County resembles both rural and suburban life, as it is part of the Greater Houston area.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,597 square miles (4,136.2 km2), of which 1,386 square miles (3,589.7 km2) is land and 211 square miles (546.5 km2) (13.2%) is water.
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1850 | 4,841 |
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| 1860 | 7,143 | 47.6% | |
| 1870 | 7,527 | 5.4% | |
| 1880 | 9,774 | 29.9% | |
| 1890 | 11,506 | 17.7% | |
| 1900 | 14,861 | 29.2% | |
| 1910 | 13,299 | −10.5% | |
| 1920 | 20,614 | 55.0% | |
| 1930 | 23,054 | 11.8% | |
| 1940 | 27,069 | 17.4% | |
| 1950 | 46,549 | 72.0% | |
| 1960 | 76,204 | 63.7% | |
| 1970 | 108,312 | 42.1% | |
| 1980 | 169,587 | 56.6% | |
| 1990 | 191,707 | 13.0% | |
| 2000 | 241,767 | 26.1% | |
| 2010 | 313,166 | 29.5% | |
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Texas Almanac: 1850-2010[3] |
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As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 241,767 people, 81,954 households, and 63,104 families residing in the county. The population density was 174 people per square mile (67/km²). There were 90,628 housing units at an average density of 65 per square mile (25/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 77.09% White, 8.50% Black or African American, 0.53% Native American, 2.00% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 9.63% from other races, and 2.22% from two or more races. 22.78% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 12.1% were of German, 11.2% American and 7.2% English ancestry according to Census 2000. 79.0% spoke only English at home, while 18.1% spoke Spanish.
There were 81,955 households, out of which 40.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.20% were married couples living together, 10.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.00% were non-families. 19.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.82, and the average family size was 3.23.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.60% under the age of 18, 8.60% from 18 to 24, 32.40% from 25 to 44, 21.50% from 45 to 64, and 8.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 107 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 107.4 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $48,632, and the median income for a family was $55,282. Males had a median income of $42,193 versus $27,728 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,021. About 8.1% of families and 10.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.6% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.
As of 2010 Brazoria County had a population of 313,166. The racial and ethnic make-up of the population was 53.22% Non-Hispanic white, 12.06% black, 0.57% Native American, 5.50% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.15% Non-Hispanics reporting some other race and 2.63% of the population reporting more than one race. 27.67% of the county population was Hispanic or Latino.
The Brazoria County Jail is located at 3602 County Road 45 in unincorporated central Brazoria County, north of Angleton.[5]
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) operates six prisons for men and its Region III office in unincorporated Brazoria County.[6] As of 2007 there were 1,495 full-time correctional job positions in the county.[7] In 1995, of the counties in Texas, Brazoria had the second highest number of state prisons and jails, after Walker County.[8] In 2003 there were a total of 2,572 employees at the six TDCJ facilities.[9] The 6 TDCJ units are:
(The following 3 are co-located in Otey,[14] near Rosharon.[11])
In 2007, TDCJ officials said that discussions to move the Central Unit from Sugar Land to Brazoria County were preliminary.[7]
| Senators | Name | Party | First Elected | Level | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senate Class 1 | Kay Bailey Hutchison | Republican | 1993 | Senior Senator | |
| Senate Class 2 | John Cornyn | Republican | 2002 | Junior Senator | |
| Representatives | Name | Party | First Elected | Area(s) of Brazoria County Represented | |
| District 14 | Ron Paul | Republican | 1996 (also served 1976-1977 and 1979–1985) | Central and southern areas (Alvin, Lake Jackson, Angleton, Freeport, [also part of Galveston County]) | |
| District 22 | Pete Olson | Republican | 2008 | Northern areas (Pearland) | |
| District | Name | Party | First Elected | Area(s) of Brazoria County Represented | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Mike Jackson | Republican | 1999 | Northern and central areas | |
| 17 | Joan Huffman | Republican | 2008 | Southern areas, Galveston Island and Bolivar Peninsula (Galveston County) | |
| District | Name | Party | First Elected | Area(s) of Brazoria County Represented | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | Dennis Bonnen | Republican | 1996 | Lake Jackson, Angleton, Freeport | |
| 29 | Randy Weber | Republican | 2008 | Pearland, Alvin | |
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A variety of school districts serve Brazoria County students. They include:
Alvin Community College and Brazosport College serve as higher education facilities.
The Brazoria County Library System has branches in Alvin, Angleton, Brazoria, Clute, Danbury, Freeport, Lake Jackson, Manvel, Pearland, Sweeny and West Columbia, and runs the Brazoria County Historical Museum.
Brazoria County Airport, in central unincorporated Brazoria County, is the county's sole publicly owned airport.
The following airports, located in the county, are privately owned and for public use:
The closest airport with regularly scheduled commercial service is Houston's William P. Hobby Airport, located in southern Houston in adjacent Harris County. The Houston Airport System has stated that Brazoria County is within the primary service area of George Bush Intercontinental Airport, an international airport in Houston in Harris County.[20]
[p] ^The word "Brazoria" is pronounced "brah-Zor-ee-ah" in English.
| Fort Bend County | Harris County | Galveston County | ||
| Wharton County | ||||
| Brazoria County, Texas | ||||
| Matagorda County | Gulf of Mexico |
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