The territory that is now Colorado County has been continually inhabited by humans for at least 12,000 years. The Coco branch of theKaraknawa are said to have hunted in the area, whileTonkawa crossed the area from the south.
The first record of a European coming through the area that is now Colorado County was January 20, 1687, whenRené Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, camped along Skull Creek. The party located an Indian village and named it Hebemes. The fourth expedition of Alonso De León may have crossed into the area while looking for Fort St. Louis in 1689.[6]
The area was settled by Anglo colonists who were part ofStephen F. Austin'sOld Three Hundred starting in 1821. Some families settled near Beeson's Ford, a few miles south of Columbus' present day location. The area was active during the days of theTexas Revolution.[6]Dilue Rose Harris wrote her memoir of theRunaway Scrape from within the boundaries of Colorado County.[7]
The county was one of the original Republic of Texas counties when it formed in 1836.[6] Following the American Civil War, the county had one of the larger populations of African-American freedmen in the state, and was granted aFreedmen's Bureau office in Columbus.[8]
Many European settlers, particularly Germans, as well asMoravians andBohemians from what becameCzechoslovakia, began to settle in the county after the Civil War, although Germans had settled in the area as early as 1830.[6]
Colorado County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition 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.
As of thecensus[16] of 2000, 20,390 people, 7,641 households, and 5,402 families were residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 21 people/sq mi (8.1 people/km2). The 9,431 housing units averaged 10 per square mile (3.9/km2). Theracial makeup of the county was 72.79% White, 14.80% African American, 0.37% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 10.06% from other races, and 1.78% from two or more races. About 19.74% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race.
Of the 7,641 households, 31.1% had children under 18 living with them, 56.3% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.3% were not families. About 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.56, and the average family size was 3.08.
In the county, the age distribution was 25.6% under 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and % who were 65 or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.40 males.
Themedian income for a household in the county was $32,425, and for a family was $41,388. Males had a median income of $30,063 versus $20,014 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $16,910. About 12.3% of families and 16.2% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 21.0% of those under age 18 and 15.80% of those age 65 or over.
Like many southern counties,[citation needed] Colorado County was predominantly Democratic prior to the 1960s and predominantly Republican since then. The last Democrat to carry the state wasJimmy Carter in 1976;George W. Bush,Mitt Romney andDonald Trump all received more than 70 percent of the vote in the county.
United States presidential election results for Colorado County, Texas[17]
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