Altair is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

Colorado County Colorado County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 20,557. Its county seat is Columbus. It is named for the Colorado River of Texas. The county was founded in 1836 and organized the next ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, United States. It is located at the four-way stop sign junction of U.S. Route 90 Alternate and State Highway 71. The community had an estimated population of 30 in 2000.

History

The settlement was established in the late 1880s. In 1888, a post office was opened there. Originally named Stafford's Ranch, the town honored a prominent local rancher. Residents of Stafford, Texas approved the name Altair for the star in 1890 because there was another town that already had a post office by that name. In the same year, Altair secured service from a

Texas and New Orleans Railroad The Texas and New Orleans Railroad (TNO) was an American rail company in Texas and Louisiana. It operated of railroad in 1934; by 1961, remained when it merged with parent company Southern Pacific Railroad, Southern Pacific. Morgan's Louisian ...

branch. Sometimes people refer to Stafford's Ranch incorrectly as Spafford's Ranch. In the 1960s, 200 people were living in Altair. Eighty was the estimated population between 1974 and 1986. The community helped a few shops and rice-drying establishments in 1986. Thirty was the population in 1990 and 2000. Altair has a post office with the ZIP code 77412. The Garwood spur of the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

is a

Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...

crossing in Altair (see

List of crossings of the Colorado River (Texas) This is a list of bridges and other crossings of the Colorado River (Texas), Colorado River from the Gulf of Mexico upstream to West Texas. Crossings References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crossings of the Colorado River (Texas) Crossings of the Col ...

Geography

Altair is located along

U.S. Highway 90A U.S. Highway 90 Alternate is an alternate route to U.S. Highway 90 in Texas, United States, running from west of Seguin east via Seguin, Gonzales, Hallettsville, Eagle Lake, Rosenberg and Sugar Land to northeastern Houston. South of Dow ...

and

Texas State Highway 71 State Highway 71 (SH 71) is a Texas state highway that runs . The western terminus is at US 87 and US 377 south of Brady and its eastern terminus is at SH 35 near Blessing. This highway is designated the "10th Mountain Division Highway" from ...

in south central Colorado County, about south of Columbus, north of El Campo, and east of Hallettsville.

Education

Public education in the community of Altair is provided by the

Rice Consolidated Independent School District Rice Consolidated Independent School District is a public school district based in the community of Altair, Texas (USA). In addition to Altair, the district serves the city of Eagle Lake, the communities of Garwood and Sheridan, as well as ...

. The district, which serves southern Colorado County, is headquartered in Altair and home to the Rice High School Raiders. The designated community college for Rice CISD is

Wharton County Junior College Wharton County Junior College (WCJC) is a public community college with its main campus in Wharton, Texas. The college also has campuses in Richmond, Sugar Land, and Bay City. WCJC offers a range of postsecondary educational prog ...

Notable people

* Ryan Trahan, YouTube star.

Gallery

File:Altair TX Sign.JPG, Beyond the Altair sign on US 90A is the Highway 71 junction and the rice dryer, Kallina Dryer Inc. The view is east. File:Altair TX Rice Mill.JPG, The rice dryer, Kallina Dryer Inc., is a prominent landmark in Altair. File:Altair TX Rice Junior High.JPG, Rice CISD Junior High School is located on US 90A between Altair and Rock Island.

References

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Colorado County, Texas Unincorporated communities in Texas