The 1928 Texas Almanac and State Industrial Guide Page: 353

                                
THE TEXAS ALMANAC.                 353

Pacific Railroad. The Bankhead Highway
parallels the Texas & Pacific across the
county from  east to west and another
designated highway crosses the county
from north to south. There are about
forty miles of plain gravel roads, and dur-
ing 1925 improvements of the Bankhead
Highway across the county will be com-
pleted.
Barstow is the county seat, situated on
the Texas & Pacific near the Pecos River;
it is the trade center for a large irrigated
territory. Pyote, a small village until the
discovery  of oil in   Winkler County,
jumped to a population of 3,000 or 4,000
within a short time after these fields were
brought in.
Monahans, a town on the Texas & Pa-
cific, has developed rapidly since the dis-
covery of petroleum throughout this ter-
ritory.
WASHINGTON--Organized in 1837 un-
der Republic of Texas; Pop., 1920, 26,624;
*1927, 29,000; Alt., 350 ft.; *rainfall, 38 in.
Situated in Southeast Central Texas.
This is one of the old counties of Texas.
Within its present borders Stephen F.
Austin established his colony.
The soils of the county range from
Houston black clay to Crockett sands and
are particularly well adapted to the grow-
ing of a wide diversity of crops. The
average rainfall is thirty-eight inches,
generally well distributed throughout the
season.
Improved lands of the county comprise
approximately 190,000 acres, divided into
some 4,000 farms, which during the last
twelve years have produced average an-
nual crops of 30,000 bales of cotton, 1,000,-
000 bushels of corn, 15,000 tons of hay,
besides a large amount of other feedstuffs,
vegetables and fruits.
There is a growing live stock industry
devoted largely to stock farming and
dairying. There is also a considerable
poultry raising industry. There is a large
population of German extraction who con-
duct their farms with characteristic thrift.
Brenham, the county seat, had a popu-
lation of 5,066 in 1920, but has grown
appreciably since that date. It has a cot-
ton mill, cottonseed oil mill and other in-
dustries and several wholesale houses and
serves a prosperous farming country as
retail trade center. Chappel Hill and
Burton are other commercial centers.
WEBB-*Created, 1848; organized, 1848;
area, 3,421 sq. mi.; Pop., 1920, 29,159;
*1927, 35,000; Alt., 400 to 500 ft.; *rainfall,
21 in. Situated in Southwest Texas on
the Rio Grande.
Eastern half of the county is compara-
tively level and consists largely of loam
and sandy loam; the western half has
some broken territory, but with    level
areas with heavy loam    soils. Alluvial
soils, however, are found along the Rio
Grande, especially along the river above
Laredo.
Most of this large county is devoted to
cattle raising. There is a large irrigated
acreage along the Rio Grande above La-
redo, intensively cultivated and devoted
to production of truck crops. Bermuda
onions is the leading crop with annual
shipments of more than 1,000 cars, and
there is also a large production of car-
rots, beets, spinach, tomatoes and cab-
bage. Total shipments from Laredo for
the 1926-27 season were 2,300 cars. There

is a tentative project for adding about
65,000 acres to the irrigated area by rais-
ing water from the Rio Grande at a point
thirty miles north of Laredo and utilizing
it on land north, northeast and east of
Laredo and extending down to the Zapata
County line.
There is large oil production from the
Webb County field, production has in-
creased steadily since 1922 when oil was
discovered, and was more than 4,000,000
barrels last year, There is also a great
gas field and lines from   it contribute
largely to the fuel supply of Houston and
intervening points.
Laredo is the county seat and chief city.
It is a leading gateway city to Mexico and
does a large import and export business.
There is considerable industrial activity,
especially in connection with the import
business from Mexico. The population of
Laredo was 22,710 in 1920, but it has
grown to approximately 30,000 at present.
WHARTON-*Created, 1846; organized,
1846; area, 1,137 sq mi.; Pop., 1920, 24,288;
*1927, 29,000; Alt., 50 to 175 ft; *rainfall,
41 in. Situated in southern part of Texas
on the coastal plain.
This county lies largely in the valley
of the Colorado River, one county removed
from the Gulf Coast. It is a level plain,
with some open prairies, but with a large
growth of oak, ash and other hardwoods,
especially along the streams. The soils
are loams and tight clays, all of which
are very fertile. The forming of a raft
in the channel in the Colorado has sub-
jected a large area to overflow in past
years, but with the assistance of remis-
sion of State taxes for a period of twenty-
five years over a district covering most
of the county, bonds have been issued and
considerable work accomplished toward
cutting a new channel around the old raft
which extends for many miles along the
river.
There is a large production of cotton
reaching as high as 50,000 bales a year.
Much corn is grown and it is one of the
leading rice growing counties with arm
average annual acreage of more than 20,-
000 and a production that usually runs in
excess of 1,000,000 bushels. Spinach, po-
tatoes and other truck crops are grown
for market and there is a developing fig
industry. There is an extensive cattle
raising industry.
Wharton, the county seat, is an old
town of considerable historic interest,
having a population of 2,346 in 1920 and
probably 3,000 to 3,500 at present. El
Campo is the principal trade center west
of the Colorado River. Its population was
1,776 in 1920 and probably 2,000 or 2,500
at present.
WHEELER-*Created, 1876; organized,
1879; Pop., 1920, 7,397; *1927, 11,580; Alt.,
2,200 to 3,000 ft.; *rainfall, 24 in. Situated
in the Panhandle on the Oklahoma border.
The surface slopes sharply from west to
east, the county lying under the edge of
the high plains. Loam soils prevail, but
there is much sandy land. Most of the
county lies in the watershed of the north
fork of the Red River and is drained by
this stream and its tributary creeks.'
Cotton grows well, for although the lati-
tude is rather far north, the county lies
below the cap rock. The production is
*See page 358 for explanatory notes and references
to additional information on counties and cities.