Cameron County is the southernmost county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 421,017. Its county seat is Brownsville.

The county was founded in 1848 and is named for Ewen Cameron, a Captain during the Texas Revolution and in the ill-fated Mier Expedition. During the later 19th century and through World War II, Fort Brown was a US Army outpost here, stimulating the development of the city of Brownsville.

Cameron County comprises the Brownsville–Harlingen metropolitan area, as well as the Brownsville-Harlingen-Raymondville combined statistical area, which itself is part of the larger Rio Grande Valley region.

The second-largest city in the county is Harlingen.

The county is home to the SpaceX Starbase spaceport, situated in Boca Chica; it is also the residence of Elon Musk.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which are land and (30%) are covered by water. To the east, the county borders the Gulf of Mexico.

Major highways

  • 20px Interstate 2
  • 25px 20px Interstate 69E/U.S. Highway 77
  • 25px 20px Interstate 169/State Highway 550
  • 20px U.S. Highway 83
  • 25px U.S. Highway 281
  • 20px State Highway 4
  • 20px State Highway 48
  • 20px State Highway 100
  • 20px State Highway 107
  • 20px State Highway 345

Adjacent counties and municipalities

  • Willacy County (north)
  • Gulf of Mexico (east)
  • Matamoros Municipality, Tamaulipas, Mexico (south)
  • Hidalgo County (west)

National protected areas

  • Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge (part)
  • Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge (part)
  • Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park

Demographics

<!-- PresRow should be -->

<!-- U.S. SenRow should be -->

<!-- U.S. SenRow should be -->

<!-- T.X. GovRow should be -->

County government

{| class=wikitable

|-

! colspan="2" style="text-align:center; vertical-align:bottom;"| Position

! style="text-align:center; vertical-align:bottom;"| Name

! style="text-align:center; vertical-align:bottom;"| Party

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| County Judge

| Eddie Treviño

| Democratic

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| Commissioner, Precinct 1

| Sofia Benavides

| Democratic

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| Commissioner, Precinct 2

| Joey Lopez

| Democratic

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| Commissioner, Precinct 3

| David A. Garza

| Democratic

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| Commissioner, Precinct 4

| Gus Ruiz

| Democratic

|-

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| District Attorney

| Luis V. Saenz

| Democratic

|-

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| District Clerk

| Laura Perez-Reyes

| Democratic

|-

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| County Clerk

| Sylvia Garza-Perez

| Democratic

|-

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| Sheriff

| Manuel "Manny" Trevino

| Democratic

|-

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| Tax Assessor-Collector

| Eddie Garcia

| Democratic

|-

|-

| style="background:blue;"|

| Treasurer

| David A. Betancourt

| Democratic

|-

|}

Education

Cameron County is served by several school districts. They include:

  • Brownsville Independent School District
  • Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District
  • La Feria Independent School District
  • Los Fresnos Consolidated Independent School District
  • Lyford Consolidated Independent School District (partially)
  • Point Isabel Independent School District
  • Rio Hondo Independent School District
  • San Benito Consolidated Independent School District
  • Santa Maria Independent School District
  • Santa Rosa Independent School District

In addition, residents are eligible to apply to South Texas Independent School District's magnet schools.

All of the county is in the service area of Texas Southmost College.

Economy

Cameron County has been considered one of the poorest urban counties in the US.

The FAA approved a SpaceX private spaceport east of Brownsville on the Gulf Coast.

The SpaceX South Texas Launch Site was originally projected to employ 75–100 full-time workers in the early years with up to 150 full-time employees/contractors by 2019. In 2014, SpaceX acquired additional land near Boca Chica, which they consolidated into a subdivision called "Mars Crossing", possibly named after the novel by science-fiction writer Geoffrey A. Landis.<gallery mode="nolines" widths="168" heights="269">

File:SpaceX Starbase launch facility (51438071556).jpg|View of SpaceX's launch pad at Starbase

File:USA - Texas - Boca Chica - Starbase (51286054441).jpg|SN15 and SN16

File:USA - Texas - Boca Chica - Starbase (51285307187).jpg|Starship and SuperHeavy production site

</gallery>

The southern cattle tick (Rhipicephalus microplus) is invasive here.

Media

Radio stations

  • KFRQ 94.5FM
  • KKPS 99.5FM
  • KNVO 101.1FM
  • KVLY 107.9FM
  • KVMV 96.9FM

Newspapers

  • The Brownsville Herald (A Freedom Communications, Inc. newspaper based in Brownsville, TX)
  • Valley Morning Star (A Freedom Communications, Inc. newspaper based in Harlingen, TX)
  • El Nuevo Heraldo (AIM Media Texas newspaper based in Brownsville, TX)

Communities

Cities

  • Brownsville (county seat)
  • Harlingen
  • La Feria
  • Los Fresnos
  • Palm Valley
  • Port Isabel
  • Rio Hondo
  • San Benito
  • Starbase

Towns

thumb|right|180px|A picture of the [[Cameron County Courthouse (1912), the Dancy Building, in Brownsville, Texas, which served as the County Courthouse until the construction of a replacement: It was restored in 2006 and houses County Court at Law No 1, as well as some county offices.]]

  • Bayview
  • Combes
  • Indian Lake
  • Laguna Vista
  • Los Indios
  • Primera
  • Rancho Viejo
  • Santa Rosa
  • South Padre Island

Village

  • Rangerville

Census-designated places

  • Arroyo Colorado Estates
  • Arroyo Gardens
  • Bixby
  • Bluetown
  • Cameron Park
  • Chula Vista
  • Del Mar Heights
  • El Camino Angosto
  • Encantada-Ranchito-El Calaboz
  • Green Valley Farms
  • Iglesia Antigua
  • Juarez
  • La Feria North
  • La Paloma
  • La Tina Ranch
  • Lago
  • Laguna Heights
  • Las Palmas II
  • Lasana
  • Laureles
  • Lozano
  • Olmito
  • Orason
  • Palmer
  • Ratamosa
  • Reid Hope King
  • Rice Tracts
  • San Pedro
  • Santa Maria
  • Solis
  • South Point
  • Tierra Bonita
  • Villa del Sol
  • Villa Pancho
  • Yznaga

Former census-designated places

  • Arroyo Gardens-La Tina Ranch (split into the Arroyo Gardens and La Tina Ranch CDPs)
  • Bluetown-Iglesia Antigua
  • Chula Vista-Orason
  • Grand Acres
  • Las Palmas-Juarez

Other unincorporated communities

  • Adams Gardens
  • Arroyo Alto
  • Arroyo City
  • Buena Vista
  • Carricitos
  • Cavazos
  • Holly Beach
  • La Penusca
  • Landrum
  • Lantana
  • Las Yescas
  • Los Cuates
  • Monte Grande
  • Russelltown
  • Villa Nueva

Ghost towns

  • Del Mar
  • La Leona
  • Las Rusias
  • Santa Rita
  • Stuart Place

See also

  • List of museums in the Texas Gulf Coast
  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Cameron County, Texas
  • Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Cameron County

References