Galveston County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas, located along the Gulf Coast adjacent to Galveston Bay. As of the 2020 census, its population was 350,682. The county was founded in 1838. The county seat is the City of Galveston, founded the following year, and located on Galveston Island. The most-populous municipality in the county is League City, a suburb of Galveston at the northern end of the county, which surpassed Galveston in population during the early 2000s.

Galveston County is part of the nine-county Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area.

History Sixteenth-century Spanish explorers knew Galveston Island as the Isla de Malhado, the "Isle of Misfortune", or Isla de Culebras, the "Isle of Snakes". In 1519, an expedition led by Alonso Álvarez de Pineda actually sailed past Galveston Island while charting the route from the Florida peninsula to the Pánuco River. The information gathered from the expedition enabled the Spanish government to establish control over the entire Gulf Coast, including Galveston Island. In 1783, José Antonio de Evia, a Spanish navigator, surveyed the area and named the bay "Galveston" to honor Bernardo de Gálvez, who supported the United States in the Revolutionary War.

Galveston County was formally established under the Republic of Texas on May 15, 1838. The county was formed from territory taken from Harrisburg, Liberty, and Brazoria Counties, with governmental organization taking place in 1839. The island and city of Galveston by far formed the most important population center. The city of Galveston was the republic's largest city and its center of commerce and culture. The Galveston County Bar Association, first formed in 1846, is the oldest in Texas. Port Bolivar on the Bolivar Peninsula was a port of secondary importance. Other development in the area was initially mostly ranching interests and small farming communities. Texas soon joined the United States, and Galveston's importance continued to grow as it came to dominate the worldwide cotton trade. As railroads between Galveston, Harrisburg, Houston, and other towns were built during the 19th century, small communities grew up along the rail lines. Nevertheless, Galveston continued to remain a prominent destination for the shipping and trade industries. A bridge was completed in 1859, when the Galveston, Houston, and Henderson Railroad built a wooden trestle that was used by all other railway lines to the island until 1875, when the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway built its own bridge. At the end of the 19th century, a group of investors established Texas City directly across the West Bay from Galveston, with the hope of making it a competing port city. The port began operations just before the start of the 20th century.

The 1900 Galveston Hurricane devastated the county, killing an estimated 6000 people on the island alone and numerous others in the rest of the county. The Port of Galveston was closed for a time during reconstruction, but recovery was swift and profound. By 1910, the county's citizens had developed the commission form of government, constructed the seawall, and raised the merit of the whole city.

Investors had worried that the Texas coast was a dangerous place to establish major commercial operations because of the threat of hurricanes, and the 1900 disaster seemed to prove that. Though Galveston rebuilt its port and other major operations quickly, major investment moved inland, largely to Houston. Soon, Houston and Texas City had outpaced Galveston as major ports.

The oil boom in Texas began in 1901, and pipelines and refineries soon were built in Texas City. Industrial growth blossomed, especially during World War II. Galveston's manufacturing sector, however, was more stagnant during the 20th century.

Galveston, traditionally an attractive tourist destination even before the storm, transformed itself into a major, nationally known destination. Around this time, entrepreneur, power broker, and racketeer Sam Maceo rose to power and transformed the island in what was known as the Free State of Galveston. During this time, the city was home to many casinos, whorehouses, and speakeasies, in addition to becoming a center of culture, economy, and nightlife, all due to the free availability of gambling and alcohol. The city's entertainment business spread throughout the county with major casino districts in Kemah and Dickinson enabled by a lax attitude among law enforcement in the county (Houstonians often humorously referred to the Galveston County line as the "Maceo-Dickinson line"). The county prospered as oil fueled Texas City's industrial growth, and wealthy tourists flocked to Galveston and the other entertainment districts.

The gambling empire was destroyed in the 1950s, as state law enforcement dismantled its establishments. Galveston's economy crashed, as did the economies of some other county municipalities that were dependent on tourism. Texas City's economy weathered the storm because of its strong industry.

The establishment on NASA's Johnson Space Center in 1963 soon created new growth opportunities for the county municipalities near Clear Lake and Harris County. The Clear Lake area communities in Harris and Galveston Counties soon became more tied together, while the island of Galveston languished for many years as businesses increasingly left for the mainland.

Tourism has gradually resurged, both on the island and on the mainland, and today has become a major industry in the county. Aerospace and related service industries continue to be important in the Clear Lake area of the county. Texas City has become an important petrochemical center.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which (57%) is covered by water.

Galveston County is located on the plains of the Texas Gulf Coast in the southeastern part of the state. The county is bounded on the northeast by Galveston Bay and on the northwest by Clear Creek and Clear Lake. Much of the county covers Galveston Bay, and is bounded to the south by the Galveston Seawall and beaches on the Gulf of Mexico.

Adjacent counties Harris County (north) Chambers County (northeast) Gulf of Mexico (southeast) Brazoria County (west)

Communities Galveston County has several unincorporated areas; most of them are on the Bolivar Peninsula. Others are outside of Hitchcock and Santa Fe along Texas State Highway 6, and the three communities in the "Bayshore" area: Bacliff, San Leon, and Bayview.Evans, Thayer. "Crime numbers go down - Figures drop 26.4 percent in unincorporated Galveston County." Houston Chronicle. Thursday February 3, 2005. ThisWeek p. 1. "Other unincorporated areas are along Texas 6 outside Hitchcock and Santa Fe and in the Bayshore area, which includes Bacliff, Bayview and San Leon." Available at NewsBank Record Number: 3841079.

Cities

Bayou Vista Clear Lake Shores Dickinson Friendswood (small part in Harris County) Galveston (county seat) Hitchcock Jamaica Beach Kemah La Marque League City (small part in Harris County) Santa Fe Texas City

Villages Tiki Island

Census-designated places Bacliff Bolivar Peninsula San Leon

Unincorporated communities

Algoa Bayview Caplen Crystal Beach Gilchrist High Island Port Bolivar

Alta Loma, previously unincorporated,"Community Plan 2010-2011 ." Galveston County. p. 3 (PDF 3/41). Retrieved on January 5, 2015. became a part of Santa Fe in 1978."ALTA LOMA, TX." Handbook of Texas. Retrieved on January 5, 2015.

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition +Galveston County, Texas – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980 Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)133,898144,852157,851172,652191,35868.34%66.63%63.10%59.27%54.57%Black or African American alone (NH)35,89537,41438,17939,22943,12018.32%17.21%15.26%13.47%12.30%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)5256328931,0521,0360.27%0.29%0.36%0.36%0.30%Asian alone (NH)1,7623,3575,1528,51512,2020.90%1.54%2.06%2.92%3.48%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census88128223xx0.04%0.04%0.06%Other race alone (NH)3031822684261,4550.15%0.08%0.11%0.15%0.41%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census2,7884,03712,652xx1.11%1.39%3.61%Hispanic or Latino (any race)23,55730,96244,93965,27088,63612.02%14.24%17.96%22.41%25.28%Total195,940217,399250,158291,309350,682 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 350,682. The median age was 39.0 years. 23.8% of residents were under the age of 18 and 15.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.7 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 61.2% White, 12.6% Black or African American, 0.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 3.6% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 8.4% from some other race, and 13.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 25.3% of the population.

95.9% of residents lived in urban areas, while 4.1% lived in rural areas.

There were 132,819 households in the county, of which 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 48.9% were married-couple households, 18.1% 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 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 156,191 housing units, of which 15.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 66.5% were owner-occupied and 33.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 11.8%.

2000 census

According to the census of 2000, 250,158 people, 94,782 households, and 66,157 families resided in the county. The population density was . The 111,733 housing units averaged . The racial makeup of the county was 72.69% White, 15.44% Black or African American, 0.47% Native American, 2.10% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 7.18% from other races, and 2.08% from two or more races. About 18% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 94,782 households at the 2000 census, 33.80% had children under 18 living with them, 52.40% were married couples living together, 13.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.20% were not families. Around 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.60, and the average family size was 3.12.

In the county, the age distribution was 26.7% under 18, 8.70% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 11.1% who were 65 or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.90 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 93.10 males.

In 2000, the median income for a household in the county was $42,419, and for a family was $51,435. Males had a median income of $41,406 versus $28,703 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,568. About 10.10% of families and 13.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.60% of those under age 18 and 10.20% of those age 65 or over. Politics