Lampasas County ( ) is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 21,627. Its county seat is Lampasas. The county is named for the Lampasas River. Lampasas County is part of the Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood metropolitan area.
History
Indigenous peoples were the first inhabitants of the area. Later known tribes in the area included Tonkawa, Lipan Apache, and Comanche. The Aguayo expedition is said to have passed through the county in 1721.
In 1756, a presidio was established by Don Pedro de Terreros with the assistance of elements of the Spanish Army, at the confluence of Lucy Creek and Arroya Cavalto. The effort was abandoned not long after, but the site remained as a base of operations by Thomas Isaac Cox, a member of Terreros' original expedition, for the purpose of obtaining hundreds of Texas mustangs for use by the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.
In 1853, Moses Hughes and his invalid wife, Hannah (Berry), became the first permanent settlers, seeking to take advantage of the medicinal springs. John Patterson was the first man to cultivate land in the county, in 1854. In 1855, Elizabeth and George W. Scott laid out the town of Burleson, named for her father. The town was renamed Lampasas, when it became the county seat; Indian raids increased in 1861, as able-bodied men were off fighting in the war. Henry A. Chadwick and son Milam built a sawmill, flour mill, and cotton gin in 1874.
In 1875, the Farmers' Alliance was formed in Lampasas in reaction against the cattle rustling and illegal land dealings prevalent in the county.
A gunfight occurred at the Lampasas Saloon in 1877.
In 1882, the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway extended its line west from Belton to Lampasas.
Major highways
- 25px U.S. Highway 183
- 25px U.S. Highway 190
- 25px U.S. Highway 281
Adjacent counties
- Hamilton County (north)
- Coryell County (northeast)
- Bell County (southeast)
- Burnet County (south)
- San Saba County (west)
- Mills County (northwest)