Austin County, Texas Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids

Austin County

U.S. county

The Austin County Courthouse in Bellville

Flag

Location within the U.S. state of Texas

Texas's location within the U.S.

Country

United States

State

Texas

Founded

1837

Largest city

Area

• Total

656 sq mi (1,700 km²)

• Land

647 sq mi (1,680 km²)

• Water

9.9 sq mi (26 km²) 1.5%

Population

(2020)

• Total

30,167

• Density

45.99/sq mi (17.755/km²)

Time zone

UTC−6 (Central)

• Summer (DST)

UTC−5 (CDT)

Congressional district

10th

Austin County is a county located in the state of Texas in the United States. It's mostly a rural area with lots of farms. In 2020, about 30,167 people lived there. The main town and county seat is Bellville. Many German families moved to this area in the 1800s.

Austin County is part of the larger Houston area, which is a big group of cities and towns.

Both Austin County and the state capital city of Austin are named after Stephen F. Austin. He was a very important person in helping people from America settle in Texas. The city of Austin is in a different county called Travis County, about 110 miles away.

History
Geography
- Neighboring Counties
Communities
Population Information
Education
Transportation
See also

History

In 1836, the government of Texas created Austin County. They named it after Stephen F. Austin, who helped many Anglo-American settlers come to Texas.

Geography

Austin County covers a total area of about 656 square miles. Most of this area, 647 square miles, is land. The rest, about 9.9 square miles, is covered by water like rivers and lakes.

Neighboring Counties

Austin County shares its borders with several other counties:

Washington County (to the north)
Waller County (to the east)
Fort Bend County (to the southeast)
Wharton County (to the south)
Colorado County (to the southwest)
Fayette County (to the west)

Communities

Austin County has several towns and cities where people live.

Cities

Bellville (This is the main town and where the county government is located)
Brazos Country
Sealy
South Frydek
Wallis

Towns

Small Communities

These are smaller places that are not officially cities or towns:

Bleiblerville
Buckhorn
Burleigh
Cat Spring
Cochran
Frydek
Kenney
Millheim
Nelsonville
New Wehdem
New Ulm
Peters
Post Oak Point
Raccoon Bend
Rockhouse
Shelby
Wehdem
Welcome

Ghost Town

Rexville (A place where people used to live, but now it's mostly empty)

Population Information

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1850	3,841	—
1860	10,139	164.0%
1870	15,087	48.8%
1880	14,429	−4.4%
1890	17,859	23.8%
1900	20,676	15.8%
1910	17,699	−14.4%
1920	18,874	6.6%
1930	18,860	−0.1%
1940	17,384	−7.8%
1950	14,663	−15.7%
1960	13,777	−6.0%
1970	13,831	0.4%
1980	17,726	28.2%
1990	19,832	11.9%
2000	23,590	18.9%
2010	28,417	20.5%
2020	30,167	6.2%
2023 (est.)	31,677	11.5%
U.S. Decennial Census 1850–2010 2010 2020

In 2020, Austin County had a population of 30,167 people. The population has grown quite a bit over the years. For example, in 1850, there were only 3,841 people living here.

The people living in Austin County come from many different backgrounds. In 2000, most people were White, but there were also many African American and Hispanic or Latino residents. Many families in the county have German, Czech, English, or Irish roots.

The average age of people in Austin County in 2000 was 38 years old. About 27% of the population was under 18 years old.

Education

Students in Austin County attend schools in several different school districts:

Bellville Independent School District
Brazos Independent School District (part of it)
Brenham Independent School District (part of it)
Columbus Independent School District (part of it)
Sealy Independent School District
Burton Independent School District (part of it)

For college, most of the county is served by Blinn Junior College District. Some areas in the Brazos school district are part of the Wharton County Junior College District.