Freestone County, Texas

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County in Texas, United States

title: "Freestone County, Texas" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["freestone-county,-texas", "1851-establishments-in-texas", "populated-places-established-in-1851"] description: "County in Texas, United States" topic_path: "general/freestone-county-texas" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freestone_County,_Texas" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary County in Texas, United States ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox U.S. county"]

FieldValue
countyFreestone County
stateTexas
founded
seat wlFairfield
largest city wlTeague
area_total_sq_mi892
area_land_sq_mi878
area_water_sq_mi14
area percentage1.6
census yr2020
pop19435
density_sq_miauto
ex imageFreestone County Courthouse, Fairfield, TX 2010.jpg
ex image size250
ex image capThe Freestone County Courthouse in Fairfield
webhttp://www.co.freestone.tx.us/
time zoneCentral
district6th
district217th
::

| county = Freestone County | state = Texas | founded = | seat wl = Fairfield | largest city wl = Teague | area_total_sq_mi = 892 | area_land_sq_mi = 878 | area_water_sq_mi = 14 | area percentage = 1.6 | census yr = 2020 | pop = 19435 | density_sq_mi = auto | ex image = Freestone County Courthouse, Fairfield, TX 2010.jpg | ex image size = 250 | ex image cap = The Freestone County Courthouse in Fairfield | web = http://www.co.freestone.tx.us/ | time zone = Central | district = 6th | district2 = 17th

Freestone County is a county in the east-central part of the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 19,435. Its county seat is Fairfield. The county was created in 1850 and organized the next year.

History

Native Americans

Archeological evidence of the farming Kichai band of the Caddoan Mississippian culture dates to 200 BC in the area.

The Hernando de Soto expedition of 1541 resulted in violent encounters with the Caddo Native Americans who occupied the area. Spanish and French missionaries carried smallpox, measles, malaria, and influenza as endemic diseases; the Caddo suffered epidemics, as they had no acquired immunity to these new diseases. Eventually, the Caddo were forced to reservations.

The Tawakoni branch of Wichita Indians originated as a tribe north of Texas, but migrated south into East Texas. From 1843 onward, the Tawakoni were part of treaties made by both the Republic of Texas and the United States. The name of the Tawakoni was also sometimes spelled as Tehuacana.

County established

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/Old_Freestone_County_Jail_--_Fairfield,_Texas.jpg" caption="Old Freestone County Jail, [[Fairfield, Texas"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6a/Val_Verde_Battery,_C.S.A.jpg" caption="This cannon was taken at the Civil War battle of Val Verde. It is on the courthouse grounds"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Freestone_County,_TX_sign_IMG_2301.JPG"] ::

In 1826, empresario David G. Burnet received a grant from the Coahuila y Tejas legislature to settle 300 families. By contracting how many families each grantee could settle, the government sought to have some control over colonization.

The threat of Indian hostilities kept most from homesteading in Freestone County until the Treaty of Bird's Fort. Within three years of the treaty, colonization, primarily from Southern states, had been so successful that the counties surrounding Freestone had already been organized. In 1850, the Texas Legislature formed Freestone County from Limestone County. Freestone is a descriptive name referring to the quality of the soil. The county was organized in 1851. Fairfield was designated as the county seat. Of the county's total 1860 population of 6,881, more than half (3,613) were slaves.

Freestone County voted 585–3 in favor of secession from the Union. After the Civil War, while the loss of slave labor may have hurt the planters in the local county economy, by the end of Reconstruction, the number of farms doubled, with more smaller farms than before the war. Continuing economic and social tensions after Reconstruction resulted in Whites lynching Blacks to keep them in place as second-class citizens. Freestone County had nine such lynchings from 1877 into the early 20th century, most around the turn of the century. This was the fifth-highest total in the state, tied with that of Grimes County, Texas.

The Houston and Texas Central Railway was constructed to skirt the county to the west and south in 1870, giving the local economy a boost. and the International – Great Northern Railroad The Trinity and Brazos Valley Railway, laid track across the county in 1906, helping the growing economy.

The Prohibition Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution took effect in 1920, banning the sale, manufacturing, and transportation of alcoholic beverages for public consumption. In the period until its repeal by the Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1933, some enterprising individuals in Freestone followed a national trend and began bootlegging for profit. This illegal activity put food on the table for some people during a period when the local economy was in a downward slide.

In 1969, the Texas Utilities Generating Company located a new power plant near Fairfield called Big Brown Power Plant. A dam was built to create Fairfield Lake to provide stored water for a cooling system for the plant. Fairfield Lake State Park was established around the lake and opened to the public in 1976. Big Brown was shut down in February 2018.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 892 sqmi, of which 878 sqmi are land and 14 sqmi (1.6%) are covered by water.

Major highways

  • [[Image:I-45 (TX).svg|20px]] I-45
  • [[Image:US 79.svg|20px]] US 79
  • [[Image:US 84.svg|20px]] US 84
  • [[Image:US 287.svg|25px]] US 287
  • [[Image:Texas 14.svg|20px]] SH 14
  • [[Image:Texas 75.svg|20px]] SH 75
  • [[Image:Texas 164.svg|20px]] SH 164
  • [[Image:Texas 179.svg|20px]] SH 179

Adjacent counties

Demographics

|1860= 6881 |1870= 8139 |1880= 14921 |1890= 15987 |1900= 18910 |1910= 20557 |1920= 23264 |1930= 22589 |1940= 21138 |1950= 15696 |1960= 12525 |1970= 11116 |1980= 14830 |1990= 15818 |2000= 17867 |2010= 19816 |2020= 19435 |estyear= 2024 |estimate= 20645 |estref={{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/freestonecountytexas/PST045224|title=QuickFacts: Freestone County, Texas |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=June 13, 2025}} |align-fn=center |footnote=U.S. Decennial Census 1850–2010 2010 2020 | align = right

Racial and ethnic composition

::data[format=table title="'''Freestone County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition'''
{{nobold|''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 may be of any race.''}}"] | Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | title=P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Freestone County, Texas|url=https://data.census.gov/table?g=0500000US48161&tid=DECENNIALSF12000.P004|website=United States Census Bureau |access-date= }} | title=P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Freestone County, Texas|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=p2&g=0500000US48161&tid=DECENNIALPL2010.P2|website=United States Census Bureau}} | % 2000 | % 2010 | |---|---|---|---|---| | White alone (NH) | 12,823 | 13,656 | 12,817 | 71.77% | | Black or African American alone (NH) | 3,359 | 3,164 | 2,740 | 18.80% | | Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 48 | 77 | 64 | 0.27% | | Asian alone (NH) | 44 | 50 | 66 | 0.25% | | Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 3 | 5 | 11 | 0.02% | | Other Race alone (NH) | 12 | 8 | 46 | 0.07% | | Mixed Race or Multiracial (NH) | 113 | 162 | 536 | 0.63% | | Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 1,465 | 2,694 | 3,155 | 8.20% | | Total | 17,867 | 19,816 | 19,435 | 100.00% | ::

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 19,435. The median age was 44.0 years. 21.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older.

For every 100 females there were 109.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 110.9 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 68.6% White, 14.2% Black or African American, 0.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 9.8% from some other race, and 6.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 16.2% of the population.

There were 7,256 households in the county, of which 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 52.2% were married-couple households, 17.0% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 26.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 9,030 housing units, of which 19.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 77.2% were owner-occupied and 22.8% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.4%.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, 19,816 people, 6,588 households, and 4,664 families were residing in the county. The population density was 20 /mi2. The 8,138 housing units averaged 9 /mi2.

The racial makeup of the county was 73.1% White, 16.1% African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 8.1% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. About 13.6% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 7,259 households, 28% had children under 18 living with them, 54.5% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.6% were not families. About 27% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.51, and the average family size was 3.05.

In the county, the age distribution was 23.6% under 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 23.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.4% who were 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 110.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 110.80 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $44,560, and for a family was $59,696. Males had a median income of $30,633 versus $19,214 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,338. About 9.80% of families and 14.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.80% of those under age 18 and 14.30% of those age 65 or over.

Media

Freestone County is currently listed as part of the Dallas-Fort Worth DMA, although it is located in eastern Central Texas, geographically closer to the Waco metropolitan area. Local media outlets include: KDFW-TV, KXAS-TV, WFAA-TV, KTVT-TV, KERA-TV, KTXA-TV, KDFI-TV, KDAF-TV, and KFWD-TV, and all of the Waco/Temple/Killeen market stations also provide coverage for Freestone County. They include: KCEN-TV, KWTX-TV, KXXV-TV, KAKW-TV and KWKT-TV.

The Freestone County Times and The Freestone County Recorder-Chronicle newspapers serve the county.

Communities

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated communities

Ghost town

Notable people

Politics

Education

School districts include:

The entire county is in the service area of Navarro College, according to the Texas Education Code.

References

References

  1. "Freestone County, Texas".
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
  3. (2008). "Texas: Individual County Chronologies". [[Newberry Library.
  4. "Kichai Indian History". Access Genealogy.
  5. "Caddo Timeline".
  6. "Caddo (Kadahadacho)". Oklahoma Historical Society.
  7. {{Handbook of Texas. Krieger, Margery H
  8. "Empresario Contracts in the Colonization of Texas 1825–1834". Texas A & M University.
  9. "Treaty Negotiations 1825–1834". Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
  10. Gannett, Henry. (1905). "The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States". Govt. Print. Off..
  11. {{Handbook of Texas. Leffler, John
  12. (2017). "Lynching in America, Third Edition: Supplement by County". Equal Justice Initiative.
  13. {{Handbook of Texas. Werner, George C
  14. {{Handbook of Texas. Werner, George C
  15. "Trinity and Brazos Valley Railway". Don's Depot.
  16. "Freestone Bootlegging". Fairfield Chamber of Commerce.
  17. "Fairfield Lake (Trinity River Basin)". Texas Water Development Board.
  18. "Fairfield Lake State Park History". Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.
  19. Zhou, Jeff. (November 6, 2017). "ERCOT OKs Vistra's plan to retire 2,400 MW coal capacity in Texas". Platts.
  20. (August 22, 2012). "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
  21. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". [[US Census Bureau]].
  22. "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010". Texas Almanac.
  23. "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Freestone County, Texas".
  24. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Freestone County, Texas".
  25. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Freestone County, Texas".
  26. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)".
  27. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)".
  28. (2023). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)".
  29. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
  30. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections".
  31. (November 5, 2024). "2024 Senate Election (Official Returns)".
  32. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Freestone County, TX". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
  33. Texas Education Code, "[https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ED/htm/ED.130.htm Sec. 130.189. NAVARRO COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.]

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freestone-county,-texas1851-establishments-in-texaspopulated-places-established-in-1851