Bosque County ( ) is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

located on the

Edwards Plateau The Edwards Plateau is a geographic region at the crossroads of Central Texas, Central, South Texas, South, and West Texas. It is bounded by the Balcones Fault to the south and east, the Llano Uplift and the Llano Estacado to the north, and the ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 18,235. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

Meridian Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to Science * Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon * ...

, while

Clifton Clifton may refer to: People *Clifton (surname) *Clifton (given name) Places Australia * Clifton, Queensland, a town **Shire of Clifton *Clifton, New South Wales, a suburb of Wollongong *Clifton, Western Australia Canada *Clifton, Nova Scotia ...

is the largest city and the cultural/financial center of the county. The county is named for the

Bosque River The Bosque River ( ) is a long river in Central Texas fed by four primary branches. The longest branch, the North Bosque, forms near Stephenville, and flows toward Waco through Hamilton, Bosque and McLennan counties. It is subsequently joined ...

, which runs through the center of the county north to south. The Brazos River makes up the eastern border along with the Lake Whitney reservoir it feeds. Since 2015, Bosque County has been represented in the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abou ...

by the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

DeWayne Burns. The previous 10-year representative was the Republican Rob Orr of Burleson.

History

In 1721, while traveling from

San Antonio de Béxar ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

to a mission in East Texas, the Marqués de San Miguel de Aguayo ventured north from the

Old San Antonio Road The Old San Antonio Road was a historic roadway located in the U.S. states of Texas and Louisiana. Parts of it were based on traditional Native American trails. Its Texas terminus was about southeast of Eagle Pass at the Rio Grande in Maverick ...

, and camped along the Brazos River. Near his camp was also a tributary of the Brazos, which he named the Bosque, Spanish for forest. This was the first recorded European expedition through the region. Until the 1850s, settlement of the region that was to become Bosque County remained sparse. About a decade previous, some members of the ill-fated Texan Santa-Fe Expedition of 1841, which passed through the area, chose to stay. One particularly noteworthy attempt at settlement was the town of Kent. In 1850, the Universal Immigration Company of England purchased land for a townsite on the west side of the Brazos. After several years, 30 families were sent over by the company to settle the land, but the newly established community barely survived the first winter, suffering a number of fatalities. The following spring, the settlers planned to right the course of the settlement by purchasing some cattle and seed corn. This plan, too, would go awry, as the cattle would eat the corn before it could be harvested, because no fence was built around the corn. Eventually, the town of Kent dissolved, with most of the settlers choosing to go elsewhere, including some who returned to England. Bosque County was officially created in 1854, being separated from

McLennan County McLennan County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in Central Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 260,579 . Its county seat and largest city is Waco. The U.S. census 2021 county population estimate is 263,115. The county i ...

. The first election included 3 ballot boxes: one at the junction of Steele Creek and the Brazos River, one in Meridian, and another at a live oak between Clifton and Valley Mills. This live oak became known as the Bosque County Oak. Locally the oak is known as the "Election Oak".https://tfsweb.tamu.edu/websites/FamousTreesOfTexas/TreeLayout.aspx?pageid=15840 The voters at the first election were L. H. Scrutchfield, J. K. Helton, J. N. Mabray, Capt. Underhill, James Mabray, William Gary, Gafey Gary, Isaac Gary, Matt Gary, John Robertson, John Thomas, F. M. Kell, Archie Kell, William McCurry, Jack McCurry, Lum McCurry, Samuel Locker, Nathaniel Morgan, R. S. Barnes, J. P. Locker. They elected the following county officers: L. H. Scrutchfield, Judge; P. Bryant, Sheriff; J. N. Mabray, Clerk; Isaac Gary, Assessor and Collector; Archabal Kell, Treasurer.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which are land and (2.0%) are covered by water.

Major highways

State Highway 6 * Texas 22

State Highway 22 * Texas 144

State Highway 144 * Texas 174

State Highway 174

Adjacent counties

* Somervell County (north) * Johnson County (northeast) * Hill County (east) *

(southeast) * Coryell County (south) * Hamilton County (west) * Erath County (northwest)

Demographics

''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.'' As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, 17,204 people, 6,726 households, and 4,856 families were residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 17 people/sq mi (7/km²). The 8,644 housing units averaged 9/sq mi (3/km²). The

racial makeup A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

of the county was 90.75% White, 1.92% African American, 0.55% Native American, 0.11% Asian, 5.2% from other races, and 1.47% from two or more races. About 12.23% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 6,726 households, 29.5% had children under 18 living with them, 60.6% were married couples living together, 8.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.8% were not families. About 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.1% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.48, and the average family size was 2.95. A

Williams Institute The Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law and Public Policy, usually shortened to Williams Institute, is a public policy research institute based at the UCLA School of Law focused on sexual orientation and gender ident ...

analysis of 2010 census data found about 2.5

same-sex couples A same-sex relationship is a romantic or sexual relationship between people of the same sex. ''Same-sex marriage'' refers to the institutionalized recognition of such relationships in the form of a marriage; civil unions may exist in countries ...

per 1,000 households in the county. In the county, the age distribution was 24.4% under 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.5% who were 65 or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $34,181, and for a family was $40,763. Males had a median income of $31,669 versus $21,739 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $17,455. About 8.9% of families and 12.7% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 16.8% of those under 18 and 14.6% of those 65 or over.

Media

Bosque County is currently listed as part of the

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

- Fort Worth DMA. Local media outlets include:

KDFW-TV KDFW (channel 4) is a television station licensed to Dallas, Texas, United States, broadcasting the Fox network to the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside MyNe ...

KXAS-TV KXAS-TV (channel 5) is a television station licensed to Fort Worth, Texas, United States, broadcasting NBC programming to the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division along ...

WFAA-TV WFAA (channel 8) is a television station licensed to Dallas, Texas, United States, serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex as an affiliate of ABC. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside Decatur-licensed Estrella TV affiliate KMPX (channel 29) ...

, KTVT-TV,

KERA-TV KERA-TV (channel 13) is a PBS member television station licensed to Dallas, Texas, United States, serving the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex. Owned by North Texas Public Broadcasting, Inc., it is sister to National Public Radio (NPR) member stati ...

KTXA-TV KTXA (channel 21) is an independent television station in Fort Worth, Texas, United States, serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside Fort Worth–based CBS station KTVT (channel 11). ...

KDFI-TV KDFI (channel 27), branded on-air as Fox 4 More or More 27, is a television station licensed to Dallas, Dallas, Texas, United States, broadcasting MyNetworkTV to the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is owned-and-operated station, owned and opera ...

KDAF-TV KDAF (channel 33) is a television station licensed to Dallas, Texas, United States, serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex with programming from The CW. It is owned and operated by network majority owner Nexstar Media Group (based in near ...

, and KFWD-TV. Although located in Central Texas and a neighboring county of the

Waco Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the st ...

and

Killeen – Temple – Fort Hood metropolitan area Killeen may refer to: Places ;Northern Ireland * Killean, County Armagh, a village in County Armagh * Killeen, County Down, a townland in County Down * Killeen, County Tyrone, a townland in County Tyrone ;Ireland * Killeen, County Cork, a vill ...

s. Meaning all of the Waco/

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

/ Killeen market stations also provide coverage for Bosque County. They include:

KCEN-TV KCEN-TV (channel 6) is a television station licensed to Temple, Texas, United States, serving Central Texas as an affiliate of NBC. Owned by Tegna Inc., the station maintains studios on North 3rd Street in downtown Temple, with a news bureau and ...

KWTX-TV KWTX-TV (channel 10) is a television station in Waco, Texas, United States, serving Central Texas as an affiliate of CBS. It is owned by Gray Television alongside Belton-licensed CW affiliate KNCT (channel 46). Both stations share studios on ...

KXXV-TV KXXV (channel 25) is a television station in Waco, Texas, United States, serving Central Texas as an affiliate of ABC. Owned by the E. W. Scripps Company, the station maintains studios on South New Road in Waco, and its transmitter is located nea ...

KDYW KDYW, virtual channel 34 (ultra high frequency, UHF digital terrestrial television, digital channel 20), was a non-commercial educational station, non-commercial educational television station city of license, licensed to Waco, Texas, United States ...

, and

KWKT-TV KWKT-TV (channel 44) is a television station in Waco, Texas, United States, serving as the Fox affiliate for Central Texas. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Bryan-licensed MyNetworkTV affiliate KYLE-TV (channel 28). Both stations ...

. Newspapers include The Clinton Record and Meridian Tribune, both run by BosqueCountyToday.com, whose publisher is Rita Hamilton.

Politics

Communities

Cities

Cranfills Gap Cranfills Gap is a city located in Bosque County in central Texas, United States. It was founded by Norwegian Emigrants and to this day most residents can trace their lineage to those Norwegian Founders. The population was 281 at the 2010 census. ...

(small part in Hamilton County) * Iredell *

(county seat) * Morgan * Valley Mills (small part in

) * Walnut Springs

Census-designated places

* Kopperl * Laguna Park * Mosheim

Unincorporated communities

* Cayote * Cedar Shores *

Eulogy A eulogy (from , ''eulogia'', Classical Greek, ''eu'' for "well" or "true", ''logia'' for "words" or "text", together for "praise") is a speech or writing in praise of a person or persons, especially one who recently died or retired, or as ...

* Lakeside Village * Norse * Smith Bend * Womack

Notable residents

Jacob De Cordova Jacob Raphael De Cordova (6 June 1808 – 26 January 1868) was the founder of the ''Jamaica Gleaner''. He settled in Texas in 1839 and lived in Galveston. After living in Galveston, De Cordova moved to Houston, Texas where he was elected ...

, land agent, member of Texas House of Representatives, 1808–1868 *

Calvin Maples Cureton Calvin Maples Cureton (September 1, 1874 – April 8, 1940) was the chief justice of the Texas Supreme Court from 1921 to 1940. Born near Walnut Springs in Bosque County, Texas, Cureton's father was a rancher and his grandfather was a pioneer so ...

Texas attorney general The Texas attorney general is the chief legal officer
of the

from 1919 to 1921, Texas chief justice 1921–1940 * James T. Draper Jr., Texas Southern Baptist

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

man was a pastor in Iredell in Bosque County in the late 1950s. * James E. Ferguson 26th

governor of Texas The governor of Texas heads the state government of Texas. The governor is the leader of the executive and legislative branch of the state government and is the commander in chief of the Texas Military. The current governor is Greg Abbott, who ...

Miriam A. Ferguson Miriam Amanda Wallace "Ma" Ferguson (June 13, 1875 – June 25, 1961) was an American politician who served two non-consecutive terms as the governor of Texas: from 1925 to 1927, and from 1933 to 1935. She was the first female governor of Texas, ...

, James' wife and the 29th and 32nd governor of Texas *

Earle Bradford Mayfield Earle Bradford Mayfield (April 12, 1881June 23, 1964) was a Texas lawyer who, from 1907 to 1913, was a Texas State Senator. In 1922, he was elected to the U.S. Senate as a Democrat. He was the first U.S. Senator to be widely considered by the vo ...

, Texas state senator, United States senator *

John Lomax John Avery Lomax (September 23, 1867 – January 26, 1948) was an American teacher, a pioneering musicologist, and a folklorist who did much for the preservation of American folk music. He was the father of Alan Lomax, John Lomax Jr. and Bess Lo ...

, American musicologist and folklorist

References

Bibliography

* Bosque County History Book Committee, Bosque County, Land and People (Dallas: Curtis Media, 1985). * Bosquerama, 1854-1954: Centennial Celebration of Bosque County, Texas (Meridian, Texas: Bosque County Centennial Association, 1954). * William C. Pool, A History of Bosque County (San Marcos, Texas: San Marcos Record Press, 1954). * William C. Pool, Bosque Territory (Kyle, Texas: Chaparral, 1964).

External links

Official website for Bosque County
*
Bosque County
from the

Texas Almanac The Texas Almanac is a biennially published reference work providing information for the general public on the history of the US state of Texas and its people, government and politics, economics, natural resources, holidays, culture, education, rec ...

Bosque County
from the TXGenWeb Project
Bosque County Collection
The Archives of the Bosque County Historical Commission.
View historic materials from the Bosque County Historical Commission
hosted by th
Portal to Texas History
{{authority control 1854 establishments in Texas Populated places established in 1854