Bee County, Texas

Bee County is in the Rio Grande plain of south central Texas, fifty miles northwest of Corpus Christi and 146 miles southeast of Austin. It is bordered on the north by Karnes and Goliad counties, on the east by Refugio County, on the south by San Patricio County, and on the west by Live Oak County.

Cities, Towns & Communities

Beeville – county seat | Blue Berry Hill | Mineral | Normanna | Pawnee | Pettus | Skidmore | Tuleta | Tulsita | Tynan

History

Bee County was officially organized on January 25, 1858, when the first officers were elected. Beeville, the first county seat, was on Medio Creek, near Medio Hill, where the first post office had been established in 1857. In 1860 Maryville became county seat; this community was later designated Beeville-on-the-Poesta to distinguish it from the former county seat.

The most important economic event in the early postwar period was the great cattle boom. The 1880s saw the beginnings of large-scale agriculture, with corn and oats as the principal crops. The railroads contributed to the rise of the farming economy. The San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway was completed from San Antonio to Pettus and Beeville in 1886. The following year the railroad extended south to Skidmore and Papalote. In 1888 the Gulf, Western Texas and Pacific Railway was built from Victoria to Beeville. The railroads not only opened up new markets outside the county, but also brought large numbers of new settlers

County Histories

Historical Story of Bee County, Texas, 1973, by Camp Ezell.

Bee County Centennial, 1858–1958, by Grace Bauer.

A History of Bee County, 1939, by Mrs. I. C. Madray

History of Bee County, Texas, 1960, by Joseph Gustav Rountree.

Location

Beeville, TX 28° 24′ 2.9952″ N, 97° 44′ 53.9916″ W

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