Along withHays andKendall Counties, Comal was listed in 2017 of the nation's 10 fastest-growing large counties with a population of at least 10,000. In 2017, Comal County was second on the list; it grew by 5,675 newcomers, or 4.4% from 2015 to 2016. Kendall County was the second-fastest growing county in the nation in 2015 to 2016, growing by 5.16%. Hays County, third on the national list, had nearly 10,000 new residents during the year. As a result of this growth, the counties have experienced new home construction, traffic congestion, and greater demand for public services.Bexar County, which includes San Antonio, grew by 1.75% during the year, but its number of new residents exceeded 33,000.[6]
1842Adelsverein organized in Germany to promote emigration to Texas.[10] Fisher-Miller Land Grant sets aside three million acres (12,000 km2) to settle 600 families and single men ofGerman,Dutch,Swiss,Danish,Swedish, andNorwegian ancestry in Texas.[11]
1845Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels secures title to 1,265 acres (5.12 km2) of the Veramendi grant, including the Comal Springs and River, for the Adelsverein. Thousands of German immigrants are stranded at port of disembarkationIndianaola onMatagorda Bay. With no food or shelters, living in holes dug into the ground, an estimated 50% die from disease or starvation. The living begin to walk to their destinations hundreds of miles away. 200German colonists who walked from Indianola found the town ofNew Braunfels at the crossing of the San Antonio-Nacogdoches Road on theGuadalupe River.John O. Meusebach arrives inGalveston.[13][14][15][16]
1846 March - Texas legislature forms Comal County from the Eighth Precinct ofBexar County.New Braunfels is the county seat.[7][17]
1850 Survey of 130 German farms in Comal reveals no slave laborers.[7]
1852Neu-Braunfelser Zeitung begins publication, initially only in German, deriving its name from 16th-century Germany's prototype of a newspaper titledZeitung.[18]
1854 County is divided into eight public school districts.[7] The Texas State Convention of Germans meet in San Antonio and adopt a political, social and religious platform, including: 1) Equal pay for equal work; 2) Direct election of the President of the United States; 3) Abolition of capital punishment; 4)“Slavery is an evil, the abolition of which is a requirement of democratic principles..”; 5) Free schools – including universities - supported by the state, without religious influence; and 6) Total separation of church and state.[19][20]
1858 Final county boundaries determination with the separation of part of western Comal County toBlanco andKendall counties. New Braunfels votes in a school tax.[7]
1861 Comal County votes forsecession from the Union. Contributes three all-German volunteer companies to the Confederate cause.[7]
1887 Faust Street Bridge built over the Guadalupe River.[21]
Count Castell[27] of theAdelsverein negotiated with the separate Darmstadt Society of Forty to colonize 200 families on theFisher–Miller Land Grant territory in Texas. In return, they were to receive $12,000 in money, livestock, and equipment, and provisions for a year. After the first year, the colonies were expected to support themselves.[28] The colonies attempted wereCastell,[29] Leiningen,Bettina,[30] Schoenburg, and Meerholz inLlano County; Darmstädler Farm in Comal County; and Tusculum inKendall County.[31] Of these, only Castell survives. The colonies failed after the Adelsverein funding expired, and also due to conflict of structure and authorities. Some members moved to other Adelsverein settlements in Texas. Others moved elsewhere, or returned to Germany.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 575 square miles (1,490 km2), of which 15 sq mi (39 km2) (2.7%) are covered by water.[32]
TheBalcones Escarpment runs northeastward through the county, generally just west ofInterstate 35. West of the escarpment are the rocky hills and canyons of theTexas Hill Country; to the east are the rolling grasslands of the coastal plains.
TheGuadalupe River flows generally southeastward through the county, and is impounded byCanyon Lake. TheComal River rises from theComal Springs in New Braunfels, and quickly joins the Guadalupe River.
Comal 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[39] of 2010, there were 108,472 people, 29,066 households, and 21,886 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 139 people per square mile (54 people/km2). There were 32,718 housing units at an average density of 58 units per square mile (22/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 89.08%White, 0.95%Black orAfrican American, 0.53%Native American, 0.46%Asian, 0.03%Pacific Islander, 6.98% fromother races, and 1.96% from two or more races. 22.57% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race.
There were 29,066 households, out of which 33.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.80% weremarried couples living together, 9.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.70% were non-families. 20.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.05.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.50% under the age of 18, 7.00% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 25.20% from 45 to 64, and 14.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.20 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $46,147, and the median income for a family was $52,455. Males had a median income of $36,048 versus $25,940 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $21,914. About 6.40% of families and 8.60% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 11.50% of those under age 18 and 7.30% of those age 65 or over.
Comal is a strongly Republican county: the last Democrat to carry it being TexanLyndon B. Johnson in 1964, and no others have done so sinceFranklin Roosevelt’s 1936 landslide when he won every Texas county bar traditionallyUnionist Gillespie and Kendall and took 87.31 percent of the Lone Star State’s vote. LBJ’s victory in 1964 is the last time a Democrat has managed even 40 percent of the county's vote.
In earlier periods, the county’s German heritage meant it often deviated from a "Solid South" voting pattern. In 1924Robert M. La Follette won 73.96 percent of Comal County’s vote (versus 6.52 percent for all of Texas), which made it his strongest county nationwide,[41] and in 1920 American candidateJames “Pa” Ferguson carried the county with 841 votes to 765 forWarren G. Harding.[42]
United States presidential election results for Comal County, Texas[43]
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^Zeke MacCormack, "Folks flocking to area counties: Kendall, Comal, and Hays are on the top 10 list",San Antonio Express-News, March 24, 2017, pp. 1, A11.
^abcdefghGreene, Daniel P (June 12, 2010)."Comal County".Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Archived fromthe original on December 21, 2010. RetrievedNovember 29, 2010.
^abLadd, Kevin (2009).Gone to Texas: Genealogical Abstracts from The Telegraph and Texas Register, 1835-1841. Heritage Books Inc. p. 68.ISBN978-0-7884-0005-6.
^Brister, Louis E. (June 9, 2010)."Adelsverein".Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Archived fromthe original on November 25, 2010. RetrievedNovember 29, 2010.
^Kohout, Martin Donnell (June 15, 2010)."Gillespie County, Texas".Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Archived fromthe original on December 21, 2010. RetrievedNovember 29, 2010.
^Smith, Cornelia Marshall; Tetzlaff, Otto W (June 15, 2010)."Meusebach, John O".Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Archived fromthe original on November 26, 2010. RetrievedNovember 29, 2010.
^"New Braunfels, Texas".Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Archived fromthe original on May 14, 2011. RetrievedNovember 29, 2010.
^"Faust Street Bridge".Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Archived fromthe original on May 14, 2011. RetrievedNovember 29, 2010.
^"Comal County Courthouse".Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Archived fromthe original on May 20, 2011. RetrievedNovember 29, 2010.
^"Wurstfest History". Greater New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce. Archived fromthe original on July 12, 2001. RetrievedNovember 29, 2010.
^Permenter, Paris; Bigley, John (2006).Day Trips from San Antonio. GPP Travel. p. 27.ISBN978-0-7627-3868-7.
^"Canyon Lake". Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.Archived from the original on January 4, 2011. RetrievedNovember 29, 2010.
^Brister, Louis E (June 12, 2010)."Count Carl of Castell-Castell".Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association.Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. RetrievedJanuary 16, 2011.
^Heckert-Greene, James B (June 12, 2010)."Castell, Texas".Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association.Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. RetrievedJanuary 20, 2011.
^Lich, Glen E (June 12, 2010)."Bettina, Texas".Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association.Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. RetrievedJanuary 20, 2011.
^Lich, Glen E (June 12, 2010)."The Forty".Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association.Archived from the original on July 9, 2011. RetrievedJanuary 20, 2011.
^Leonhardt, David; Quealy, Kevin (June 26, 2015),"Where Same-Sex Couples Live",The New York Times,archived from the original on June 29, 2015, retrievedJuly 6, 2015
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