Click Image to Enlarge
Texas Counties
Texas is divided into two hundred and fifty-four counties, more than any other state. Texas was originally divided into municipalities, a unit of local government under Spanish and Mexican rule. When the Republic of Texas gained its independence in 1836, there were 23 municipalities, which became the original Texas counties. Many of these would later be divided into new counties. The most recent county to be created was Kenedy County in 1921. The most recent county to be organized was Loving County in 1931Garza County, Texas
Garza County Education, Geography, and History
Garza County is a county located in the state of Texas. Based on the 2010 census, its population was 6,461. Its county seat is Post. The county was created in 1876 and later organized in 1907. Garza is named for a pioneer Bexar County family, as it was once a part of that county. It is located southeast of Lubbock.
Etymology - Origin of Garza County Name
a pioneer Bexar County family
Demographics:
County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts
Garza County History
Garza County is a county located in the US state of Texas southeast of Lubbock. Its county seat is Post. Garza is named for a pioneer Bexar County family, as it was once a part of that county.
Handbook of Texas Online
Garza County was formed from Bexar County in 1876. It began to be
settled by ranchmen during the mid-1870s, when buffalo hunting had nearly
devastated the herds. Two of the earliest ranchers in the county were Andy and Frank Long, who stocked the range
south of the Double Mountain Fork of the Brazos for their OS Ranch. In 1879 W.
C. Young and Ben Galbraith established the Llano Cattle Co in the northwest part of Garza County. The ubiquitous
West Texas rancher John B. Slaughter used Garza County rangeland during the
1870s. In 1880 the census counted thirty-six residents in the county. The last Indian raid in the county occurred in
1883 at the Curry Comb Ranch, owned by the Llano Cattle Company; in 1884, the
Square and Compass Ranch put up the first barbed wire
fence in the county. The disastrous winter of 1885-86 (see BIG DIE-UP) and the drought of 1886 discouraged
some of the early ranchers, and by 1890 only fourteen residents remained. During the 1890s, however, other ranchers
and a few farmers began to move in and drilled wells to help ensure their water supply. By 1900 thirty-eight farms
and ranches had been established in Garza County and the population had risen to 185, but at the turn of the century
the county's economy was still almost entirely devoted to cattle production. The agricultural census for 1900
reported only 545 improved acres in the county, with only twenty-one acres planted in corn, but the cattle herds
that year comprised 29,094 head. More at
John Leffler, "GARZA COUNTY," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hcg03),
accessed January 23, 2016. Uploaded on June 15, 2010. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.
Geography: Land and Water
As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 896 square miles (2,321 km2), of which, 895
square miles (2,319 km2) of it is land and 1 square miles (2 km2) of it (0.07%) is water.
Neighboring Counties
Bordering counties are as follows:
- Crosby County (north)
- Kent County (east)
- Scurry County (southeast)
- Borden County (south)
- Lynn County (west)
Education
Click Image to Enlarge
