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Brazos County TX
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BRYAN, TEXAS

Brazos County Seat, Central Texas South

30°39'56"N 96°22'00"W (30.665547, -96.366745)
U.S. 190
Hwy 6 and 21
FMs 158, 1179, 1687, and 1688
Adjoining College Station
85 miles SE of Waco
95 miles NW of Houston
30 miles North of Navasota
Population: 83,260 est. (2010)
76,201 (2010) 65,660 (2000) 55,002 (1990)


Book Hotel Here › Bryan Hotels
TX - Bryan downtown
TE Photo

History in a Pecan Shell

Bryan was named after William Joel Bryan, a nephew of Stephen F. Austin.

A timeline of significant events in Bryan's history:
1820s and 1830s: settled by members of Stephen F. Austin's colony.
1859: the Houston and Texas Central Railroad came through the area and the town was platted.
1866: a post office was granted and Bryan replaced Boonville as the county seat.
1867: The railroad that had been stalled at Millican because of the Civil War came to Bryan.
1868: The Bryan News-Letter became the first newspaper to be published.
1871: the first courthouse in Bryan was built.
1872: Bryan is incorporated.
1876
: Texas A&M College opens in nearby College Station.
1877: The Bryan Independent School District was established.
1880: Bryan's first school was opened.
1884: Population reaches 3,000.
1889: Bryan obtained electric lighting and a waterworks.
1892: The fifth Brazos County Courthouse, designed by Eugene Heiner, was built
1900: Bryan has a population of 3,589 and the International-Great Northern Railroad arrived.
1902: Bryan's Carnegie Library was opened with a 10,000 grant from Andrew Carnegie
1910: Bryan builds an interurban railroad to College Station, which is abandoned in 1923.
1930s: North Oakwood merges with Bryan and Bryan and College Station become "twin" cities.
1936: State Highway 6 is built through Bryan.
1942: Bryan Air Air Field is opened.
1950: population of Bryan reaches 18,072.

The building of shopping centers and the growth of A & M University drew population and especially businesses away from downtown Bryan in the 1950s and 60s.

Bryan Hotels > Book Here

Bryan Landmarks / Attractions

TX - 1955 Brazos County Courthouse
Brazos County Courthouse
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, January, 2014
The Brazos County Courthouse is a forgettable building just East of downtown Bryan. The cornerstone of the 1892 Courthouse sits in the sparse shade of the Courthouse Cedar a tree that has stood beside the 5 courthouses of Brazos County.

  • The Brazos County Courthouses

  • The 1892 (Fifth) Brazos County Courthouse
    How to Demolish a Texas Courthouse in 14 Days
    Brazos County Hires an Iowan to Raze their 1892 Building
    by Brewster Hudspeth

  • The Courthouse Cedar
    On the South side of the Brazos County Courthouse

  • The Carnegie Center of Brazos Valley History
    The 1902 Carnegie Library

  • The Brazos Valley Museum of Natural Science

  • The Brazos County Children's Museum:
    In the Old Bryan Municipal Building (late 2001).

  • Bryan Hotels › Book Hotel Here
  • TX - Bryan Municipal Bldg Childrens Museum
     
    Bryan Texas Carnegie Library
    The Carnegie Center of Brazos Valley History
    The 1902 Carnegie Library
    TE Photo
    Bryan Texas Masonic Lodge
    The Old Masonic Lodge Building
    TE Photo
    More Texas Lodges
    Queen Theatre, Bryan, Texas
    The former Queen Theater
    Palace Theatre, Bryan, TExas
    The former Palace Theater ( A recycled theater )
    More Texas Theatres
    Saloon sign, Bryan Texas
    Austin Marshall and Texas Outlaw Ben Thompson
    once owned a saloon in Bryan
    TE Photo
    Bryan TX - Drive in sign
    "Drive In" sign
    Bryan TX Coca Cola  ghost signs
    Faded signs on the side of a building
    Bryan TX - 1912 date on building
    Once an icehouse c.1912
    More Pitted Dates
    Tremont Building, Bryan, Texas
    The mysterious Tremont Building

    Bryan / College Station Tourist Informatiom

    Bryan / College Station Chamber of Commerce
    979.260.5200
    Website - http://www.b-cs.com/

    Take a road trip
    Bryan, Texas Nearby Towns:
    College Station | Waco | Navasota
    See Brazos County | Central Texas South

    Book Hotel Here:
    Bryan Hotels | College Station Hotels | More Hotels
    Texas Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history and vintage/historic photos, please contact us.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     


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