Houston County Celebrates Heritage
Houston County celebrated April’s County Government Month with two special events including an open house for the community and a hamburger cookout for county employees.
The county hosted an open house for the public following the Houston County Commissioners Court meeting on April 13. Officials unveiled a historic 1866 map of Houston County given by Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson. Also displayed was a copy of the original order establishing the county, signed by Sam Houston in 1837. The second event was a hamburger cookout on the courthouse lawn on April 16.
“County Government Month is a good time to encourage our citizens to take an active interest in their county government and to focus on the important role the county plays in their lives,” said Houston County Judge Lonnie Hunt.
When Texas won its independence in 1836, its 23 municipalities became counties. Houston County was the first new county created by the Congress of the Republic of Texas, established on June 12, 1837, and named for President Sam Houston. Originally, Houston County was much larger than it is today, encompassing all of present-day Anderson and Trinity counties, most of present-day Henderson County, and portion of present-day Polk County.
When Texas became a state in 1845, there were 36 counties. By the time Texas entered the Confederacy in 1861, there were 122 counties. Following the Civil War, a new Constitution was adopted, and the number of counties increased steadily until there were 254 counties in 1931.