Harris County is a county located 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 so ...
of
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 ...
. As of the
2020 census, the population was 4,731,145,
and was estimated to be 5,009,302 in 2024,
making it the
most populous county in Texas and the
third-most populous county in the United States. Its
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
is
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
, the
most populous city in Texas and the
fourth-most populous city in the United States. The county was founded on December 22, 1836 and organized on March 10, 1837.
It is named for
John Richardson Harris, who founded the town of
Harrisburg
Harrisburg ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat, seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50, ...
on
Buffalo Bayou
Buffalo Bayou is a slow-moving river which flows through Houston in Harris County, Texas. Formed 18,000 years ago, it has its source in the prairie surrounding Katy, Texas, Katy, Fort Bend County, Texas, Fort Bend County, and flows approximately ...
in 1826.
It contains over 16.01% of the state's population. Harris County is included in the nine-county
Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area, which is the
fifth-most populous metropolitan area in the United States.
History

Human remains date habitation to about 4000 BC. Other evidence of humans in the area dates from about 1400 BC, 1 AD, and later in the first millennium. The region became
uninhabited
The list of uninhabited regions includes a number of places around the globe. The list changes year over year as human beings migrate into formerly uninhabited regions, or migrate out of formerly inhabited regions.
Definitions
The exact def ...
from 1 AD to European contact. Little European activity predates 1821.
Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca
Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca (; 1488/90/92"Cabeza de Vaca, Alvar Núñez (1492?-1559?)." American Eras. Vol. 1: Early American Civilizations and Exploration to 1600. Detroit: Gale, 1997. 50-51. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 10 December ...
may have visited the area in 1529. French traders recorded passing through in the 18th century. Spaniards attempted to establish a fort in the area around the same time, but did not persist for long.
The first recorded European settlers in Harris County arrived in 1822. Their
schooner
A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...
sailed into
Galveston Bay
Galveston Bay ( ) is a bay in the western Gulf of Mexico along the upper coast of Texas. It is the seventh-largest estuary in the United States, and the largest of seven major estuaries along the Texas Gulf Coast. It is connected to the Gulf of ...
and ran aground on the Red Fish Bar. Some of those passengers traveled further up the bay system, but it is not known whether they settled up
Buffalo Bayou
Buffalo Bayou is a slow-moving river which flows through Houston in Harris County, Texas. Formed 18,000 years ago, it has its source in the prairie surrounding Katy, Texas, Katy, Fort Bend County, Texas, Fort Bend County, and flows approximately ...
or the
San Jacinto River. One of these passengers, a Mr. Ryder, settled at what is now known as
Morgan's Point, Texas
Morgan's Point is located 30 miles southeast of Houston in southeastern Harris County, Texas, United States, located on the shores of Galveston Bay at the inlet to the Houston Ship Channel, near La Porte and Baytown. As of the 2020 census, it ...
. Also in 1822, John Iiams settled his family at
Cedar Point
Cedar Point is a amusement park located on a Lake Erie peninsula in Sandusky, Ohio, United States, owned and operated by Six Flags. It opened in 1870 and is considered the second-oldest operating amusement park in the US behind Lake Compounc ...
after sailing from
Berwick's Bay, Louisiana. Dr. Johnson Hunter arrived just after Iiams. He also wrecked his boat near Galveston. He settled at Morgan's Point and was a grantee of land there. Nathaniel Lynch settled in the area and operated a ferry.
In 1824, the land empresario,
Stephen F. Austin convened at the house of William Scott for the purpose of conveying titles for Mexican headrights. He was joined by the land commissioner, Baron von Bastrop, and Austin's secretary,
Samuel May Williams. About thirty families gained legal titles to land in what would later be known as Harris County. A few immigrants settled on Buffalo Bayou in these early years, including Moses Callahan, Ezekial Thomas, and the Vince brothers.
Nicolas Clopper arrived in the Galveston Bay area from Ohio in the 1820s. He attempted to develop Buffalo Bayou as a trading conduit for the Brazos River valley. He acquired land at Morgan's Point in 1826.
John Richardson Harris (1790–1829), for whom the county was later named, arrived in 1824. Harris had moved his family to Sainte Genevieve, Missouri Territory, where they had been residing until the early 1820s.
Harris was granted a league of land (about 4,428 acres) at Buffalo Bayou. He platted the town of Harrisburg in 1826, while he established a trading post and a grist mill there. He ran boats transporting goods between New Orleans and Harrisburg until his death in the fall of 1829.
The
First Congress of the Republic of Texas established Harrisburg County on December 22, 1836. The original county boundaries included Galveston Island, but were redrawn to its current configuration in May 1838.
The area has had a number of severe weather events, such as the following hurricanes and tropical storms:
Geography
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (3.94%) is water. It is the 14th largest county in Texas by total area. Both its total area and land area are larger than the U.S. state of
Rhode Island
Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...
.
Adjacent counties
*
Montgomery (north)
*
Liberty
Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...
(northeast)
*
Chambers (east)
*
Galveston
Galveston ( ) is a Gulf Coast of the United States, coastal resort town, resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island (Texas), Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a pop ...
(southeast)
*
Brazoria (south)
*
Fort Bend (southwest)
*
Waller (northwest)
Communities
Cities
Multiple counties
*
Baytown (partly in
Chambers County)
*
Friendswood (mostly in
Galveston County)
*
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
(county seat and largest municipality) (small parts in
Fort Bend and
Montgomery counties)
*
Katy (partly in
Fort Bend, Harris, and
Waller counties)
*
League City (mostly in
Galveston County)
*
Missouri City (mostly in
Fort Bend County)
*
Pearland (mostly in
Brazoria County and a small part in
Fort Bend County)
*
Seabrook (some water surface in
Chambers County)
*
Stafford
Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, England. It is located about south of Stoke-on-Trent, north of Wolverhampton, and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 71,673 at the 2021–2022 United Kingd ...
(mostly in
Fort Bend County)
*
Waller (partly in
Waller County
Waller County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 56,794. Its county seat is Hempstead. The county was named for Edwin Waller, a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence and first mayor ...
)
Harris County only
*
Bellaire
*
Bunker Hill Village
*
Deer Park
*
El Lago
*
Galena Park
*
Hedwig Village
*
Hilshire Village
*
Humble
*
Hunters Creek Village
*
Jacinto City
*
Jersey Village
*
La Porte
*
Morgan's Point
*
Nassau Bay
*
Pasadena
Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial d ...
*
Piney Point Village
*
Shoreacres
*
South Houston
*
Southside Place
*
Spring Valley Village
*
Taylor Lake Village
*
Tomball
*
Webster
*
West University Place
Unincorporated areas
Census-designated places
*
Aldine
*
Atascocita
*
Barrett
*
Channelview
*
Cinco Ranch (mostly in
Fort Bend County)
*
Cloverleaf
*
Crosby
*
Highlands
Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau.
Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to:
Places Africa
* Highlands, Johannesburg, South Africa
* Highlands, Harare, Zimbab ...
*
Mission Bend (mostly in
Fort Bend County)
*
Sheldon
*
Spring
*
The Woodlands (mostly in
Montgomery County)
Other communities
*
Alief (Partially annexed by
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
, partially unincorporated)
*
Airline
An airline is a company that provides civil aviation, air transport services for traveling passengers or freight (cargo). Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or Airline alliance, alliances with other airlines ...
*
Bammel
*
Barker
*
Beaumont Place
*
Bridgeland Community
*
Cedar Bayou
*
Champion Forest
*
Cimarron
*
Coady
*
Cypress
Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs from the ''Cupressus'' genus of the '' Cupressaceae'' family, typically found in temperate climates and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America.
The word ''cypress'' ...
*
Dyersdale
*
East Aldine
*
Fall Creek
*
Hockley
Hockley is a large village and civil parish in Essex in the East of England located between Chelmsford and Southend-on-Sea, or, more specifically, between Rayleigh and Rochford. It came to prominence during the coming of the railway in the 189 ...
*
Houmont Park
*
Huffman
*
Hufsmith
*
Kinwood
*
Klein
*
Kleinbrook
*
Kohrville
*
Louetta
*
Lynchburg
*
McNair
*
North Houston
*
Northcliffe
*
Northcliffe Manor
*
Northgate Forest
*
Remington Ranch
*
Rose Hill Rose Hill may refer to:
People
* Rose Hill (actress) (1914–2003), British actress
* Rose Hill (athlete) (born 1956), British wheelchair athlete
Film
* ''Rose Hill'' (film), a 1997 movie
Places Australia
* Rose Hill, New South Wales
* Rose ...
*
Satsuma
*
Traces
*
Westfield
Demographics
As of the third quarter of 2024, the median home value in Harris County was $295,790.
As of the 2023
American Community Survey
The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
, there are 1,728,103 estimated households in Harris County with an average of 2.73 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $73,104. Approximately 16.0% of the county's population lives at or 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 ...
. Harris County has an estimated 67.3% employment rate, with 33.7% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 82.5% holding a high school diploma.
The top five reported ancestries (people were allowed to report up to two ancestries, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (54.7%), Spanish (35.5%), Indo-European (3.1%), Asian and Pacific Islander (4.8%), and Other (1.8%).
The median age in the county was 34.8 years.
Harris County, Texas – racial and ethnic composition
2020 census
As of the
2020 census, there were 4,731,145 people, 1,692,730 households, and 1,156,059 families residing in the county. The
population density
Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...
was . There were 1,842,683 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 36.36%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 19.17%
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 1.16%
Native American, 7.38%
Asian, 0.09%
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 18.92% from some other races and 16.91% from two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 43.01% of the population.
With a poverty rate of 15.6% as of 2020,
Children At Risk—a local nonprofit research organization—estimated 21% of the Harris County children lived in poverty, 6.5 per 1,000 die before age one, and 38% drop out of high school as of 2007.
As of 2023, Harris County had the second largest population of Black Americans in the United States, behind only
Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is the List of counties in Illinois, most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the List of the most populous counties in the United States, second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, C ...
. Harris also has the second largest Hispanic population in the nation, behind only
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...
.
Language
In 2000, 1,961,993 residents of Harris County spoke English only. The five most spoken foreign languages in the county were Spanish or
Spanish Creole (1,106,883 speakers),
Vietnamese
Vietnamese may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia
* Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam
** Overseas Vietnamese, Vietnamese people living outside Vietna ...
(53,311),
Chinese (33,003), French including
Louisiana French
Louisiana French (Louisiana French: ''français louisianais''; ) includes the dialects and varieties of the French language spoken traditionally by French Louisianians in colonial Lower Louisiana. As of today Louisiana French is primarily use ...
and
Patois
''Patois'' (, same or ) is speech or language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in linguistics. As such, ''patois'' can refer to pidgins, creoles, dialects or vernaculars, but not commonly to jargon or sl ...
(33,003), and
Urdu
Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...
(14,595). Among these groups, 46% of Spanish speakers, 37% of Vietnamese speakers, 50% of Chinese speakers, 85% of French speakers, and 72% of Urdu speakers said that they spoke English at least "very well".
In 2020, 55.6% of the county aged five and older spoke English only, while 44.4% spoke another language at home, alone or together with English; Spanish remained the second most spoken language (35%).
Religion
In 2010 statistics, the largest religious group in Harris County was the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston–Houston
The Archdiocese of Galveston–Houston (Latin: ''Archidiœcesis Galvestoniensis–Houstoniensis'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction—an archdiocese—of the Catholic Church in the United States. The archdiocese covers a portion of S ...
, with 1,947,223 Catholics worshiping at 109 parishes, followed by 579,759
Southern Baptists
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), alternatively the Great Commission Baptists (GCB), is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist organization, the largest Protestant, and the second-largest Ch ...
with 811 congregations, 348,461
non-denominational Christian adherents with 577 congregations, 182,624
United Methodists with 124 congregations, an estimated 117,148
Muslims
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
with 47 congregations, 44,472
LDS Mormons with 77 congregations, 39,041
Episcopalians with 43 congregations, 34,957
PC-USA Presbyterians with 49 congregations, 33,525
Churches of Christ
The Churches of Christ, also commonly known as the Church of Christ, is a loose association of autonomous Christian congregations located around the world. Typically, their distinguishing beliefs are that of the necessity of baptism for salvation ...
Christians with 124 congregations, and 30,521
LCMS Lutherans with 46 congregations. Altogether, 58.4% of the population was claimed as members by religious congregations, although members of historically African-American denominations were underrepresented due to incomplete information. In 2014, the county had 1,607 religious organizations, the third most out of all U.S. counties.
Government and politics
County governments serve as agents of the state, with responsibilities defined in the Texas Constitution. Counties are governed by the
commissioners' court
Commissioners' court, or in Arkansas a quorum court, is the governing body of county government in three US states: Arkansas, Texas and Missouri. It is similar in function to a board of county commissioners. A similar system was in place in the ...
. Each Texas county has four precinct commissioners and a county judge. Although this body is called a court, it conducts the general business of the county and oversees financial matters.
The commissioners court may hire personnel to run major departments, such as health and human services.
Besides the county judge and commissioners, the other elective offices found in most counties include the county attorney, county and district clerks, county treasurer, sheriff, tax assessor-collector, justices of the peace, and constables. As a part of the checks and balances system, counties have an auditor appointed by the district courts.
Harris County was one of the earliest areas of Texas to turn Republican. It voted Republican in all but one presidential election from 1952 to 2004, the lone break coming when native Texan
Lyndon Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...
carried it in his 44-state landslide in 1964. In 2008,
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
was the first Democrat to win the county since Texas native
Lyndon Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of John F. Ken ...
in 1964. The city of
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
itself holds one of the highest concentrations of Democratic voters in the state, while suburban areas such as
Cypress
Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs from the ''Cupressus'' genus of the '' Cupressaceae'' family, typically found in temperate climates and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America.
The word ''cypress'' ...
,
Spring, and
Katy in the county's western and northern areas, tend to be strongly Republican. In 2016,
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
won the county by the largest margin for a Democrat since 1964. The Democratic Party performed very strongly in the county during the 2018 elections, as it did nationwide. In 2020,
Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
improved Clinton's performance by two points while Donald Trump only increased his vote share by one point. In 2024, Trump increased his vote share by 4 points to earn 46% to Harris 51%, the closest margin since 2012. Though it has shifted towards Democrats in recent years, Harris County has nevertheless voted to the right of
Dallas
Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
,
Travis,
Bexar, and
El Paso
El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...
, each of which has a smaller population.
In 2013, Allen Turner of the ''
Houston Chronicle
The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. ...
'' said that residents of Harris County were "consistently conservative in elections" and that they were, according to a
Rice University
William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University, is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, the university spans 300 acres.
Rice University comp ...
Kinder Institute for Urban Research opinion poll, "surprisingly liberal on topics such as immigration, gun control and equal matrimonial rights for same-sex couples".
Harris is regarded as a moderate or swing county in Texas, and has been a bellwether in presidential elections, voting for winners of every presidential election from 2000 through 2012 (both Barack Obama and Texas resident
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
won the county twice).
As a result of the Obama sweep in 2008, many Democratic candidates in contests for lower-level offices also benefited, and many Republican incumbents were replaced by Democrats in the Harris County courthouse. Some of the defeated Republican district court judges were later re-appointed to vacant District Court benches by Governor Rick Perry. In 2018, Democrats swept the court capturing all 59 seats on the civil, criminal, family, juvenile and probate courts.
The Kinder Institute's Houston Survey in 2018 found that from 2014 through 2018 the number of Houston residents who supported adoption of children by same-sex couples climbed above 50% and remained there, while in 2017 over 56% of residents reported gay or lesbian persons among their circle of close personal friends. A 2013 opinion poll had found that 46% of Harris County residents supported same-sex marriage, up from 37% in 2001. Just above 82% favored offering illegal immigrants a path to citizenship provided they speak English and have no criminal record, holding from 83% in 2013, which was up from 19% in 2009. In 2013, 87% supported background checks for all firearms, the latest year that question was included in the Kinder Houston Survey. This measure has moved up steadily from 60% in 1985 to 69% in 2000.
County facilities
The 1910 county courthouse was renovated in the 1950s to update its systems. In the 21st century, the facility received another major renovation. Completed in 2011, the $50 million, eight-year project was designed to restore notable historic aspects of the courthouse while providing for contemporary communication and building needs.
The
Texas First Court of Appeals and the
Texas Fourteenth Court of Appeals, since September 3, 2010, are located in the 1910 Harris County courthouse. Previously they were located on the campus of the
South Texas College of Law
South Texas College of Law Houston (STCL or South Texas) is a private law school in Houston, Texas. It was founded in 1923 when the YMCA made the decision to establish a law school with a focus on offering night classes for working professi ...
.
The
Harris County Jail Complex of the
Harris County Sheriff's Office
The Harris County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) is a local law enforcement agency serving the over four million citizens of Harris County, Texas, United States. It is headquartered on the first and second floors in the 1200 Baker Street Jail in Downt ...
(HCSO) is the largest in Texas, and one of the largest in the nation. In July 2012, the facility held 9,113 prisoners. To handle overcrowding in the facility, the county had to ship inmates to other counties and some are housed out of the state.
The county has a
potter's field
A potter's field, paupers' grave or common grave is a place for the burial of unknown, unclaimed or indigent people. "Potter's field" is of Biblical origin, referring to Akeldama (meaning ''field of blood'' in Aramaic), stated to have been pur ...
, the Harris County Cemetery on Oates Road in Houston, which previously had housing for elderly people. It has of land. It was established in 1921 on property taken from police officers who had acted corruptly. The county paid $80,000 for of land, then put in the Harris County Home For the Aged, a
poor farm for elderly people of all races which had a capacity of 100; the poor farm opened in 1922. Around that time, the county cemetery was also established there. The Harris County Commissioners closed the poor farm in August 1958.
In 2014, no more burials were allowed to occur at the Oates Road facility due to overcapacity.
By 2013 the county was building a second potter's field due to overcapacity at the first.
[ Harris County Eastgate Cemetery had started operations in 2014.][ It is near the Crosby ]census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...
and has a Crosby postal address.
The county had a poor farm in what is now West University Place that closed in 1923. The county cemetery was formerly there; the bodies were transferred to the new property.[
]
County government
Harris County elected officials
Courts
There are 67 District Courts — 24 Civil, 29 Criminal, 11 Family, and 3 Juvenile — in Harris County. District court judges are elected official, serving four-year terms. In addition to the 67 presiding judges, there are 20 Associate Judges.
Criminal District Courts
Juvenile District Courts
United States Congress
Texas Legislature
Texas Senate
Texas House of Representatives
The county has an elections administrator and elections office, which was non-partisan but under the oversight of Democrat Lina Hidalgo, the Harris County Judge. The State of Texas Legislature passed a law, SB 1750, that asks for the position to be abolished effective September 2023, as the law states that any county with at least 3,500,000 persons should have elections done by the clerk and tax assessor-collector; of all Texas counties, only Harris would be affected. This was done following failings in the 2022 election, as confirmed by the investigation initiated by Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg's office. In August 2023, Karin Crump, the presiding judge of the 250th civil district court of Travis County, stated that this went against the Texas Constitution, citing how the law only affected one county. Crump's ruling was overturned by the Texas Supreme Court.
County services
The Harris County Flood Control District manages the effects of flooding in the county.
The Harris County Sheriff's Office
The Harris County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) is a local law enforcement agency serving the over four million citizens of Harris County, Texas, United States. It is headquartered on the first and second floors in the 1200 Baker Street Jail in Downt ...
operates jail facilities and is the primary provider of law enforcement services to the unincorporated areas of the county. The sheriff is the conservator of the peace in the county. The Harris County jail facilities are in northern downtown on the north side of the Buffalo Bayou. The 1200 Jail, the 1307 Jail, (originally a TDCJ facility, leased by the county), and the 701 Jail (formed from existing warehouse storage space) are on the same site.
The Community Services Department provides community services. The department maintains the Oates Road Cemetery (also known as the Harris County Cemetery) for indigents in eastern Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
, near the former Southern Bible College. In March 2010, the county adopted a cremation first policy, meaning that the default preference for most indigents is to have them cremated instead of buried. As of 2010, the county authorized the Community Services Department to purchase about of land in the Huffman area so the county will have additional spaces for indigent burials.
The Harris County Housing Authority (HCHA) is a governmental nonprofit corporation which addresses the need for quality affordable housing. The HCHA has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development as the highest performing housing authority in the region and was named one of America's 10 best Public Housing Authorities. Guy R. Rankin, IV is chief executive officer of Harris County Housing Authority (HCHA).
State government
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Texas. The TDCJ is responsible for statewide criminal justice for adult offenders, including managing offenders in state prisons, state jails ...
operates some correctional facilities in Harris County, including:
* Kegans Unit, located in Downtown Houston
Downtown is the largest central business district in the city of Houston and the largest in the state of Texas, located near the geographic center of the metropolitan area at the confluence of Interstate 10 in Texas, Interstate 10, Interstate 45 ...
, is a state jail for men. It is in the north of downtown along the north side of the Buffalo Bayou, next to the county facilities.
* Pam Lychner Unit, named after Pam Lychner and located in unincorporated northeast Harris County, east of the city of Humble, is a state jail for men.
As of 2001, Kegans and Lychner serves male state jail offenders from Harris County, with Kegans getting lower-risk offenders and Lychner getting higher-risk and special-needs offenders. If both of the male state jails in Harris County are full, excess offenders go to the Gist Unit in Jefferson County. Female state jail offenders from Harris County go to the Plane Unit in Liberty County.
The South Texas Intermediate Sanction Facility Unit, a parole confinement facility for males operated by Global Expertise in Outsourcing, is in downtown Houston, west of Daikin Park
Daikin Park (originally Enron Field and formerly Astros Field and Minute Maid Park) is a retractable roof stadium in Houston, Texas, United States. It opened in 2000 and is the home ballpark of the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). ...
.
Law enforcement
there are over 60 law enforcement agencies operating in the county. They include: the Harris County Sheriff's Office
The Harris County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) is a local law enforcement agency serving the over four million citizens of Harris County, Texas, United States. It is headquartered on the first and second floors in the 1200 Baker Street Jail in Downt ...
, the Harris County Constable Office, the Houston Police Department, METRO Police Department, other municipal police departments, and school district police departments.
The combined yearly sum spent by these agencies circa 2018 was $1.6 billion. That year the Rice University
William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University, is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, the university spans 300 acres.
Rice University comp ...
Kinder Institute for Urban Research released a report advocating for consolidating several of these agencies as a way of saving taxpayer money.[
]
Administration by judiciary
The chief administrative officer of a Texas County, as set up in the Texas Constitution, is the County Judge, who sits as the chair of the county's Commissioners' Court
Commissioners' court, or in Arkansas a quorum court, is the governing body of county government in three US states: Arkansas, Texas and Missouri. It is similar in function to a board of county commissioners. A similar system was in place in the ...
(the equivalent of a Board of Supervisors in some other states). In 2019, Judge Lina Hidalgo was sworn in as the County Judge. The county is split into four geographical divisions called precincts. Each precinct elects a Commissioner
A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something).
In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...
to represent them on the commissioners court and oversee county government functions in the precinct.
Other elected positions in Harris County include a County Attorney
In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...
, a County Clerk
A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts record keeping as well as general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keepin ...
, a District Attorney
In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...
, a District Clerk, a Sheriff
A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...
, eight Constable
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an officer within a police service. Other peo ...
s, a Tax Assessor-Collector, a County Treasurer, and every judge in the county except municipal judges, who are appointed by the mayors and confirmed by city councils of their respective cities.
Many of the organs of the Harris County government reside in the Harris County Campus in Downtown Houston
Downtown is the largest central business district in the city of Houston and the largest in the state of Texas, located near the geographic center of the metropolitan area at the confluence of Interstate 10 in Texas, Interstate 10, Interstate 45 ...
.
Economy
In 2000, the largest employers in Harris County were Administaff, Compaq
Compaq Computer Corporation was an American information technology, information technology company founded in 1982 that developed, sold, and supported computers and related products and services. Compaq produced some of the first IBM PC compati ...
, Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines (simply known as Continental) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1934 until it merged with United Airlines in 2012. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers.
Continen ...
, Memorial Hermann Healthcare System
Memorial Hermann Health System is the largest not-for-profit health system in southeast Texas and consists of 17 hospitals, 8 Cancer Centers, 3 Heart & Vascular Institutes, and 27 sports medicine and rehabilitation centers, in addition to other ...
, and Southwestern Bell
Southwestern Bell Telephone Company, LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of AT&T. It does business as other d.b.a. names in its operating region, which includes Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, and portions of Illinois. The company is ...
.
The University of Houston System's annual impact on the Houston-area's economy as of 2011 equates to that of a major corporation: $1.1 billion in new funds attracted annually to the Houston area, $3.13 billion in total economic benefit, and 24,000 local jobs generated. This is in addition to the over 12,500 new graduates the UH System produces every year who enter the workforce in Houston and throughout Texas. These degree-holders tend to stay in Houston; after five years, 80.5% of graduates are still living and working in the region.
In 2009, 20% of the office space in northwest Harris County was vacant. As of that year, more office space was being built; in 2010, northwest Harris will have twice the amount of office space that it had in 2009. The vacancy rate in the area near Farm to Market Road 1960 and Texas State Highway 249 in north Harris County was 53% in 2009.
Various companies are headquartered in incorporated and unincorporated areas throughout Harris County.
Academy Sports and Outdoors
Academy Sports + Outdoors is an American sporting-goods store chain with corporate offices in the Katy Distribution Center in unincorporated western Harris County, Texas, United States, near Katy and west of Houston. For 74 years, it was a priv ...
, a sporting goods retailer, has its corporate offices and product distribution center in unincorporated western Harris County. Hewlett-Packard
The Hewlett-Packard Company, commonly shortened to Hewlett-Packard ( ) or HP, was an American multinational information technology company. It was founded by Bill Hewlett and David Packard in 1939 in a one-car garage in Palo Alto, California ...
formerly operated its United States region office in a complex northwest unincorporated Harris County; the complex formerly belonged to Compaq
Compaq Computer Corporation was an American information technology, information technology company founded in 1982 that developed, sold, and supported computers and related products and services. Compaq produced some of the first IBM PC compati ...
prior to Compaq's merger with HP. The HP offices, which are now occupied by Hewlett Packard Enterprise
The Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (HPE) is an American multinational information technology company based in Spring, Texas. It is a business-focused organization which works in servers, storage, networking, containerization software and ...
, are now in a limited purpose annexation in Houston. Smith International
Smith International was a Fortune 500
The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune (magazine), Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States Joint-stock company#Closely held corporations and publicl ...
has its headquarters in the Greenspoint district and in an unincorporated area in Harris County. BJ Services Company
BJ Energy Solutions (known as "BJ") was founded in 1872 as the Byron Jackson Company in Woodland, California, by inventor Byron Jackson.
History
BJ Services Company was a leading worldwide provider of pressure pumping and oilfield services for ...
has its headquarters in the Spring Branch district and in unincorporated Harris County.[Boundary Map]
" ''Spring Branch Management District''. Retrieved on December 8, 2009. Cybersoft Technologies has its headquarters in an unincorporated area. In 2012, Noble Energy
Noble Energy, Inc. was a company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration headquartered in Houston, Texas. In October 2020, the company was acquired by Chevron Corporation.
The company was known as Noble Affiliates, Inc. until 2002.
As of December ...
announced that it was consolidating its headquarters and two other Greater Houston
Greater Houston, designated by the Office of Management and Budget, United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–Pasadena–The Woodlands, is the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical ...
offices into a 10-story building on the former Compaq
Compaq Computer Corporation was an American information technology, information technology company founded in 1982 that developed, sold, and supported computers and related products and services. Compaq produced some of the first IBM PC compati ...
headquarters property in unincorporated Harris County.[Noble Energy to move HQ to former HP building]
" ''Houston Business Journal
American City Business Journals, Inc. (ACBJ) is an American newspaper publisher based in Charlotte, North Carolina. ACBJ publishes ''The Business Journals'', which contains local business news for 44 markets in the United States with each market ...
''. January 20, 2012. Retrieved on January 22, 2012. In 2022, ExxonMobil
Exxon Mobil Corporation ( ) is an American multinational List of oil exploration and production companies, oil and gas corporation headquartered in Spring, Texas, a suburb of Houston. Founded as the Successors of Standard Oil, largest direct s ...
announced it was moving its headquarters to Harris County from Irving, Texas
Irving is a city in Dallas County, Texas, United States. It is part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and is an Inner suburb, inner city suburb of Dallas. Irving is noted for its #Demographics, racial and ethnic diver ...
. Goya Foods
Goya Foods, Inc., is a private company, private American multinational corporation, multinational producer and distributor of foods and beverages sold in the United States and many Spanish-speaking countries. The company operates facilities in the ...
previously had its Texas offices in an unincorporated area in the county.
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston.
Over the year ...
operates an aeroderivative division facility on Jacintoport in unincorporated Harris County. Randall's Food Markets, a subsidiary of Safeway Inc.
Safeway, Inc. is an American supermarket chain. The chain provides grocery items, food and general merchandise and a variety of specialty departments, such as bakery, delicatessen, floral and pharmacy, as well as Starbucks coffee shops, and veh ...
, has its distribution center in unincorporated Harris County.
In 2008, KBR announced that it will open a new office facility in an unincorporated area in western Harris County. In December KBR said that it would not continue with the plans due to a weakened economy. In January 2009 KBR announced that it will not open the new office facility.
Education
Primary and secondary schools
The Harris County Department of Education, a county division overseeing education by local school districts, with a 2011 budget around $100 million, is headquartered in the Ronald W. Reagan Building in the Northside district in Houston. It has an Adult Education Center in the Northside and an office in the North Post Oak Building in Spring Branch.
Several school district
A school district is a special-purpose district that operates local public Primary school, primary or Secondary school, secondary schools or both in various countries. It is not to be confused with an attendance zone, which is within a school dis ...
s serve Harris County communities. Among the 26 districts are:
On July 1, 2013, the North Forest Independent School District closed and its territory became a part of Houston ISD.
In addition, state-operated charter schools are in the county. Charter schools in unincorporated area
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 ...
s include:
* Jamie's House Charter School (6–12)
* Richard Milburn Academy Houston (high school) – Of Milburn Schools
* YES Prep North Central of YES Prep Public Schools
YES Prep Public Schools, Inc. is a network of public, open-enrollment charter schools located in Greater Houston. Its headquarters are located at its Southside campus. The YES program is a university-preparatory program for grades K-12.
Hist ...
The department of education of the county operates the Highpoint Schools.
Colleges and universities
Four separate and distinct state universities are located in Harris County. The University of Houston
The University of Houston (; ) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas, United States. It was established in 1927 as Houston Junior College, a coeducational institution and one of multiple junior colleges formed in ...
is a nationally recognized Tier One research university, and is the flagship institution of the University of Houston System. The university in Texas, the University of Houston counted 43,774 (fall 2016) students on its 667-acre campus in southeast Houston. The University of Houston–Clear Lake
The University of Houston–Clear Lake (UHCL) is a public university in Pasadena, Texas, Pasadena and Houston in Texas, with branch campuses in Pearland, Texas, Pearland and Texas Medical Center. It is part of the University of Houston System, U ...
and the University of Houston–Downtown are universities; they are not branch campuses of the University of Houston. Located in the historic community of Third Ward is Texas Southern University
Texas Southern University (Texas Southern or TSU) is a Public university, public Historically black colleges and universities, historically Black university in Houston. The university is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund an ...
, one of the largest historically black colleges and universities in the United States.
Several private institutions of higher learning—ranging from liberal arts colleges to a nationally recognized research university—are located within Harris County. Rice University
William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University, is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, the university spans 300 acres.
Rice University comp ...
is one of the leading teaching and research universities of the United States and ranked the nation's 17th best overall university by ''U.S. News & World Report''.
Five community college districts exist with campuses in and around Harris County:
* The Houston Community College System serves Houston ISD (including the former North Forest ISD), Katy ISD, Spring Branch ISD, Alief ISD, and Stafford MSD. This includes most of the City of Houston.
* The Lone Star College System (formerly North-Harris Montgomery Community College District) serves Aldine ISD, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, Tomball ISD, Humble ISD, and Klein ISD. This constitutes the northwestern through northeastern parts of the county.
* San Jacinto College serves Pasadena ISD, Galena Park ISD, Sheldon ISD, Channelview ISD, Deer Park ISD, La Porte ISD, and the Harris County part of Clear Creek ISD. This constitutes southeastern and eastern portions of the county
* Lee College
Lee College is a public community college in Baytown, Texas. Lee College's main campus occupies near downtown Baytown and extension campuses throughout its service area. The school has an enrollment of over 7,773 total students as of Fall 2018 ...
serves Goose Creek ISD, Crosby ISD, and Huffman ISD, far east to northeast sections
* Blinn College is the community college for portions of Waller ISD in Harris County, far northwestern parts.
The Houston Community College and Lone Star College systems are within the 10 largest institutions of higher learning in the United States.
Public libraries
Harris County operates its own public library
A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...
system, the Harris County Public Library.
In addition, Houston has the Houston Public Library
Houston Public Library is the public library system serving Houston, Texas, United States.
History Houston Lyceum and the Carnegie Library
The Houston Public Library system traces its founding to the creation of the second Houston Lyceum in ...
, a city-controlled public library system.
The cities of Baytown, Bellaire, Deer Park, and Pasadena
Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial d ...
have their own city-controlled libraries.
Emergency services
Police services
Incorporated cities operate their own police departments, though Harris County operates the Harris County Sheriff's Office
The Harris County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) is a local law enforcement agency serving the over four million citizens of Harris County, Texas, United States. It is headquartered on the first and second floors in the 1200 Baker Street Jail in Downt ...
, which serves unincorporated areas and supplements police forces of incorporated areas.
Harris County also has a constable for each of its eight precincts and hundreds of deputies assigned to each. They mainly serve in a patrol function, established to maintain peace in the county as well as providing security to county buildings such as court houses and district attorney's offices.
Municipal fire/EMS services
The Harris County Fire Marshal's Office operates an Investigative Branch, an Emergency Response Branch (Hazardous Materials Response) and Prevention Branch (Inspections). The office is headquartered at 2318 Atascocita Road in an unincorporated area
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 ...
. Incorporated cities operate their own fire departments. The city of Houston operates the Houston Fire Department
City of Houston Fire Department (HFD) is the agency that provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of Houston, Texas, United States, the fourth largest city in the United States. HFD is responsible for preserving life a ...
which provides fire and emergency medical coverage to the city of Houston.
Emergency services districts
Areas outside of municipal city limits (and some smaller municipalities) have fire and emergency medical services provided by Emergency Service Districts, distinct governmental units with the ability to levy property and sales taxes. ESD's may provide fire service, EMS service or both (dual services) and the services they provide determine the limits on their adoptable tax rate.
ESD's may provide services directly or may contract with an agency or agencies for services. ESD's may overlap one another to ensure both fire and EMS services are provided.
Hospital services
Within Harris County, hospital services for the indigent and needy are provided by the Harris Health System (Harris County Hospital District), a separate governmental entity. Harris Health System operates two hospitals: LBJ General Hospital and Ben Taub General Hospital, as well as many clinics and the former Quentin Mease Community Hospital.
Numerous private and public hospitals operate in Harris County, including institutions in Texas Medical Center
The Texas Medical Center (TMC) is a List of neighborhoods in Houston, neighborhood in south-central Houston, Texas, United States. It is immediately south of the Houston Museum District, Museum District and west of Texas State Highway 288.
Over 6 ...
and throughout the county, for example the Harris County Psychiatric Center.
Transportation
Harris County is a key hub for both traditional and emerging transportation systems, including public transit, highways, and autonomous vehicle technology. With its proximity to major cities and a rapidly expanding infrastructure, the county plays a significant role in shaping the future of transportation in Texas.
Public Transportation and Transit Services
Harris County is served by multiple transit agencies that aim to make commuting more accessible and sustainable for residents.
* Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Texas
The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) is a major public transportation agency based in Houston, Texas, United States. It operates bus, light rail, bus rapid transit, HOV and HOT lanes, and paratransit service (under the n ...
(METRO) provides bus and rail services across the county.
* Harris County Transit offers services to communities outside of METRO’s coverage area, such as Baytown and Channelview, ensuring that more rural parts of the county have access to reliable transportation.
Transportation Trends
As of recent reports, the average one-way commute for a Harris County resident using an automobile is approximately 25 minutes, while those relying on public transportation face a commute of 44 minutes—a significant disparity that emphasizes the importance of continued investment in mass transit infrastructure. In fact, the county has seen a steady increase in the adoption of autonomous vehicles (AVs), which are expected to play a key role in future transportation patterns, offering safer and more efficient alternatives to traditional methods. As autonomous vehicles become more integrated into the county's transportation network, it will be essential to track safety, traffic, and incident data. A recent study on Texas autonomous vehicle crash analysis (2023-2024) found that Harris County accounts for 28% of all reported AV crashes in Texas, indicating the county’s prominence in AV testing and integration.
Major highways
Mass transit
Many areas in Harris County are served by Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Texas
The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) is a major public transportation agency based in Houston, Texas, United States. It operates bus, light rail, bus rapid transit, HOV and HOT lanes, and paratransit service (under the n ...
(METRO), a public transportation agency headquartered in Downtown Houston
Downtown is the largest central business district in the city of Houston and the largest in the state of Texas, located near the geographic center of the metropolitan area at the confluence of Interstate 10 in Texas, Interstate 10, Interstate 45 ...
.
Some communities outside of METRO's service area, such as Baytown, Texas
Baytown is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, within Harris County, Texas, Harris and Chambers County, Texas, Chambers counties. Located in the Greater Houston, Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area, it lies on the nor ...
, and Channelview, Texas, are served by Harris County Transit.
Intercity buses
Greyhound Bus Lines operates various stations throughout Harris County.
Airports
Two commercial airports, George Bush Intercontinental Airport
George Bush Intercontinental Airport is an international airport in Houston, Texas, United States, serving the Greater Houston metropolitan area. Initially named Houston Intercontinental Airport upon its opening in 1969, it was renamed in ho ...
and William P. Hobby Airport, are located in Houston and in Harris County. The Houston Airport System
Houston Airport System (HAS) is a department of the Houston, City of Houston, Texas, United States that manages city airports. Its administrative offices are on the property of George Bush Intercontinental Airport. defines Harris County as a part of Bush Intercontinental's service region.[Master Plan Executive Summary]
." ''George Bush Intercontinental Airport Master Plan''. Houston Airport System
Houston Airport System (HAS) is a department of the Houston, City of Houston, Texas, United States that manages city airports. Its administrative offices are on the property of George Bush Intercontinental Airport. . December 2006. 2-1 (23/130). Retrieved on December 14, 2010. The city of Houston operates Ellington Field
Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base is a joint installation shared by various active component and reserve component military units, as well as aircraft flight operations of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) under the aegi ...
, a general aviation and military airport in Harris County.
General aviation airports for fixed-wing aircraft
A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using aerodynamic lift. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft (in which a rotor mounted on a spinning shaft generate ...
outside of Houston include:
* Publicly owned
** La Porte Municipal Airport in La Porte
** Baytown Airport in unincorporated east Harris County, north of Baytown
* Privately owned, public use
** West Houston Airport is a general aviation airport located in unincorporated western Harris County, west of the Houston city limits.
** Dan Jones International Airport in unincorporated northwestern Harris County
** Weiser Air Park in unincorporated northern Harris County
** David Wayne Hooks Memorial Airport, a general aviation airport, is located outside of the Tomball city limits in unincorporated northwest Harris County.
** Sack-O-Grande Acroport (also known as Harbican Airport) is located in western unincorporated Harris County.
* Privately owned, private use
** Hoffpauir Airport is located in western unincorporated Harris County.
See also
* Braeburn Terrace, Houston
* Greater Houston
Greater Houston, designated by the Office of Management and Budget, United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–Pasadena–The Woodlands, is the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical ...
* List of museums in the Texas Gulf Coast
*
* North Channel Sentinel
* Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Harris County
* USNS ''Harris County'' (T-LST-822)
References
External links
Harris County government's website
''The Handbook of Texas Online:'' Harris County
Account of the early days of Harris County, 1824 – 1838
fro
Indian Wars and Pioneers of Texas
by John Henry Brown, hosted b
The Portal to Texas History
Accepted design illustration of Court House from the University of Houston Digital Library (1920–1924)
{{Authority control
1837 establishments in the Republic of Texas
Populated places established in 1837
Greater Houston
Majority-minority counties in Texas