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History & Culture
Local Notes
History & Culture notes
Cochran County · Agriculture
Cotton and Farming Drive the Local Economy
Cochran County shifted from open-range ranching to crop farming in the 1920s, and cotton remains the backbone of the local economy today.
Cochran County · County History
The County Is Named for an Alamo Defender
Cochran County was named after Robert Cochran, who died defending the Alamo in 1836.
Coke County · Historic Site
Fort Chadbourne is a preserved 1850s frontier post in Coke County
Fort Chadbourne, established by the U.S. Army in 1852 on what is now Coke County, became a frontier post and a stop on the Butterfield Overland stage route.
Coke County · County History
Robert Lee became the county seat after a contested 1891 vote
Coke County was formed in 1889 from Tom Green County, with Hayrick as its first county seat, but Robert Lee won a close election in 1891 and has been the county seat ever since.
Coleman County · County History
Coleman County is named for a signer of Texas independence
Coleman County was formed in 1858 and named for Robert M. Coleman, who signed the Texas Declaration of Independence and fought at San Jacinto.
Collin County · Growth & Demographics
Collin County Has Grown from 150 People to Nearly One Million in 180 Years
Collin County started with about 150 residents in 1846 and grew to over 885,000 by 2014, making it one of the most densely populated counties in Texas.
Collin County · Land & Agriculture
Collin County Sits on the Blackland Prairie — Some of Texas's Most Fertile Soil
Collin County is part of the Blackland Prairie. The dark, clay-heavy soil made the county great farmland, and it still affects home foundations today.
Collin County · County Origins
Collin County Was Named for a Signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence
Collin County was created in 1846 and named for Collin McKinney, who signed the Texas Declaration of Independence.
Collin County · County Seat
McKinney Grew from a Donated Townsite into the County Seat
McKinney became the county seat of Collin County in 1848 after a landowner donated 120 acres for the original townsite.
Collin County · Local Museum
Myers Park Has a Free Farm Museum That Shows Early Collin County Rural Life
Collin County runs a free Farm Museum at Myers Park. It preserves tools, equipment, and buildings from the county's farming past.
Collin County · Economic History
Railroads in the 1870s–1890s Opened Collin County to Large-Scale Farming
Before 1872, Collin County farmers had no good way to ship crops far away. The railroads changed that and transformed the county's economy.
Collin County · Historic Building
The Old Collin County Courthouse Served the County from 1876 to 1979
The 1876 Collin County Courthouse in McKinney is a Texas Historical Commission landmark — it was built from local stone and renovated significantly in the 1920s.
Collingsworth County · County History
Collingsworth County Grew From Open Range to Cotton Fields
Collingsworth County started as open-range cattle country in the 1870s and shifted to farming after 1890, becoming a significant producer of cotton, wheat, and peanuts.
Colorado County · County History
Colorado County: One of Texas's Original Counties
Colorado County was created in 1836 as one of the Republic of Texas's first counties, with Columbus as its seat since the beginning.
Colorado County · Historic Courthouse
The 1891 Courthouse Is Columbus's Most Visible Landmark
The Colorado County Courthouse in Columbus was built in 1891, lost its tower in a hurricane, and was fully restored in 2014.
Comal County · Local History
Canyon Lake Began Filling on a June Day in 1964
A 6,830-foot earthfill dam turned a Guadalupe River valley into Canyon Lake for flood control, water, and recreation.
Comal County · Population & Growth
Comal County Has Grown Rapidly Since the 1990s
Comal County has gone from a small rural county to one of the fastest-growing counties in Texas over the past few decades.
Comal County · County History
Comal County Was Founded by German Immigrants in 1846
New Braunfels began with an 1845 German immigrant settlement; Comal County followed one year later.
Comal County · Local Culture
New Braunfels Still Carries Strong German Roots
German settlement survives in New Braunfels through its town plan, fachwerk buildings, music, and an annual salute to sausage.
Comal County · Geography
The Balcones Escarpment Gives Comal County Two Landscapes
Rocky plateau country drops across the Balcones Escarpment toward the lower coastal plain in eastern Comal County.
Comanche County · Local History
Comanche County Built Its Economy on Cattle, Then Peanuts
After the boll weevil wiped out cotton farming in the early 1900s, Comanche County farmers turned to peanuts, which became a major local crop for decades.
Comanche County · County History
The County Seat Moved from Cora to Comanche in 1859
Comanche County was created in 1856 with Cora as its first county seat, but the seat moved to the town of Comanche just three years later.
Concho County · Rock Art
The Paint Rock Pictographs
A limestone cliff two miles northwest of Paint Rock holds around 1,500 painted images, one of the largest rock art sites in Texas.
Cooke County · Historic Trails
Major historic routes crossed Cooke County — and shaped Gainesville
Cooke County was crossed by a branch of the Chisholm Trail, the Butterfield Overland Mail route, and the Mormon Trail, making Gainesville a key supply stop in the 1800s.
Cooke County · Immigrant History
Muenster and Lindsay are German Catholic communities founded in the 1890s
German Catholic immigrants founded Muenster in 1889 and Lindsay in 1891 in western Cooke County, and both towns retain that cultural identity today.
Cooke County · Civil War History
The Great Hanging of 1862 is a defining and painful chapter of Cooke County history
In October 1862, about 42 men suspected of Union loyalty were executed in Gainesville in what is known as the Great Hanging at Gainesville.
Coryell County · Military History
Fort Gates Came Before Gatesville
The U.S. Army built Fort Gates in 1849 on the Texas frontier, and its presence led directly to the founding of the county seat.
Coryell County · Historic District
Gatesville's Downtown Is a National Historic District
The Gatesville downtown was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in early 2026, covering 87 buildings from the late 1800s through the 1970s.
Coryell County · County Origins
How Coryell County Got Its Name
The county is named for James Coryell, an early Texas frontiersman, and was created by the state legislature in 1854.
Coryell County · Stage stop
Ogletree Gap Is Where Copperas Cove Started Moving
The stone stagestop at Ogletree Gap ties Copperas Cove to the stagecoach road, an early post office, and the railroad shift that pulled the town center downhill.
Coryell County · Historic bridge
The Old Leon River Bridge Shows How Gatesville Crossed the Water
The 1904 Leon River Bridge on West Leon Street turns an old river crossing into one of Gatesville's clearest pieces of civic hardware.
Cottle County · County History
Cottle County Was Cattle Country Before It Was Cotton Country
Cottle County was organized in 1892 and built its early economy on large cattle ranches before cotton farming took over in the early 1900s.
Crane County · County History
Crane County went from near-empty to oil boomtown in one decade
Crane County had fewer than 100 residents in 1900, but oil discovered in 1926 brought thousands of workers almost overnight.
Crane County · Historic Sites
Horsehead Crossing on the Pecos River is a historic landmark in Crane County
Horsehead Crossing, on the Pecos River near the county's southern boundary, was a key ford used by cattle drives and travelers heading west in the 1800s.
Crockett County · County History
Ozona Is the Only Town in Crockett County
Crockett County has one incorporated place, Ozona, and the rest of the county is open ranch land.
Crosby County · Local History
Crosby County's Deep History: Comanches, Quakers, and Cowboys
Crosby County has a layered past that runs from ancient Paleo-Indian camps to a Quaker colony, major cattle ranches, and a railroad that built the county seat.
Culberson County · Local History
Van Horn: how Culberson County's seat got its name
Culberson County was carved out of El Paso County in 1911, and its seat Van Horn traces its name to a Civil War-era Army officer stationed at a desert water source.
Dallam County · Local History
Dalhart Grew from Two Railroads and the XIT Ranch
Dalhart was founded in 1901 where two railroads crossed, and became a major shipping point for the legendary XIT Ranch.
Dallas County · Agricultural History
Cotton Once Drove Dallas County's Economy
Dallas County was a major cotton producer by 1900, but the crop declined every year afterward as the county urbanized.
Dallas County · Historic Preservation
Dallas County Has a Local Historical Commission
The Dallas County Historical Commission (DCHC) advises the county on historic preservation and reviews applications for Texas historical markers.
Dallas County · Demographics
Dallas County Is One of the Most Diverse in Texas
By 2014, Dallas County's population was roughly 39 percent Hispanic, 31.7 percent Anglo, and 23 percent African American.
Dallas County · County History
Dallas County Was Created in 1846
Texas formed Dallas County on March 30, 1846, from parts of Nacogdoches and Robertson counties, and the city of Dallas became county seat after a close vote in 1850.
Dallas County · Historic District
Fair Park Carries Dallas's Art Deco and State Fair Story
Fair Park is a Dallas Landmark District, National Register property, and National Historic Landmark tied to the State Fair and the 1936 Texas Centennial Exposition.
Dallas County · Black History
Freedman's Cemetery Marks a Deep North Dallas Community Story
Freedman's Cemetery is an official Dallas landmark tied to the city's early African American community and the historic North Dallas neighborhood.
Dallas County · Oak Cliff
Lake Cliff Park Connects Oak Cliff to Amusement-Park and WPA History
Lake Cliff Historic District includes an old Oak Cliff park landscape, early neighborhood structures, and city park features shaped by New Deal-era work.
Dallas County · Architecture
Swiss Avenue Shows Dallas's Early Historic-District Architecture
Swiss Avenue is a Dallas historic district with roughly 200 homes in revival, Prairie, and Bungalow styles, and the first local historic district designated in the city.
Dallas County · Historic Courthouse
The Old Red Courthouse Is a Dallas Landmark from 1892
The 1892 Dallas County Courthouse, known as Old Red, was restored and rededicated as a history museum in 2007.
Dallas County · Railroad History
The Railroad Made Dallas County a Commerce Hub
Two major railroads arrived in the early 1870s, transforming Dallas County from a farm settlement into a regional trade center.
Dallas County · Historic Sites
The THC Atlas Lists Historic Sites Across Dallas County
The Texas Historical Commission's online Atlas database catalogs historic markers, cemeteries, and landmark sites across Dallas County.
Dawson County · Agriculture History
Cotton built Dawson County and still shapes its land and economy
Dawson County's identity was built on cotton farming, and the flat High Plains terrain that made that possible still defines the landscape today.
Deaf Smith County · Local History
A WWII prisoner-of-war camp once stood just outside Hereford
During World War II, a large military camp near Hereford held about 5,000 Italian prisoners of war; a restored chapel and state historical marker are the main physical reminders today.
Deaf Smith County · County Origins
Deaf Smith County was cattle country first; the railroad built Hereford
The county is named for a Texas Revolution scout, started as open-range ranch land, and only got its permanent county seat after the railroad arrived in the late 1890s.
Delta County · County History
Why Delta County Is Shaped Like a Triangle
Delta County got its name from its triangular shape. It sits in a wedge of land between the North and South Sulphur rivers in northeast Texas.
Denton County · County Origins
Denton County was created in 1846 and named for a preacher killed in a raid
The Texas legislature carved Denton County out of Fannin County in 1846 and named it for John Bunyan Denton, a preacher-lawyer who died in an 1841 raid.
Denton County · Growth & Development
Denton County's population has grown dramatically since the 1960s
Denton County went from about 47,000 residents in 1960 to over 750,000 by the mid-2010s, driven by suburban expansion from the Dallas-Fort Worth metro.
Denton County · University Town
Denton is home to two major state universities
The University of North Texas (founded 1890) and Texas Woman's University (founded 1901 as Girls Industrial College) both anchor Denton's identity as a college town.
Denton County · Historic Courthouse
Denton's 1896 stone courthouse still stands on the downtown square
The Denton County Courthouse on the downtown square was built in 1896 from stone quarried a few miles north of Denton.
Denton County · Economic History
Railroads in the 1880s turned Denton County into a major wheat producer
When railroads reached Denton County in the 1880s, wheat production surged and the county ranked among the state leaders in wheat output for decades.
Denton County · County Seat History
The county seat moved three times before settling in Denton in the 1850s
Denton County's county seat shifted from Pinckneyville to Alton to a temporary site and finally to Denton, which was founded in 1857 on donated land.
DeWitt County · Cattle History
DeWitt County Was the Starting Point of the First Chisholm Trail Drive
The area near present-day Cuero is where the first commercial cattle drives up the Chisholm Trail began in 1866, shaping this county's identity for generations.