Travis is one of the counties on the south-central side of Texas. The largest city in Travis County is Austin, with an approximate area of 1,023 square miles. Travis County had a population of 1,290,188 during the 2020 census.

The county consists of cities such as; Bee Cave, Jonestown, Austin, Manor, Sunset Valley, Lago Vista, Creedmoor, Pflugerville, Lakeway, and Rollingwood. The county seat is Austin.

History of Travis County

During the 14th century, Lipan Apache Indians and Tonkawa settled in Central Texas, including Travis County. As of the 18th century, the Comanche and Kiowa groups settled in the region. Domingo Terán de Los Ríos was the first European to arrive in the East Texas region by 1691.

Spanish missionaries relocated from the Eastern side of Texas in 1730. The Mexican government gave Stephen Austin a small settlement in 1827. The little colony was on the eastern side of River Colorado and to the western & northern part of the Old San Antonio Road. At the time, the settlement headquarters was at Mina.

In the early 1830s, some of the settlers that relocated into the area included Mathias Wilbarger, Josiah, John Webber, Jacob Harrell, and Reuben Hornsby. However, settlers fled during the start of the Texas Revolution. Threats from Comanche and Indians also led to the slow settlement progress after the Texas Revolution settlement activities resumed.

On 19th January 1840, settlers established Travis County from Bastrop County. The 4th Congress of the Republic of Texas named the county Travis after Barret William Travis.

Austin, the new capital, became the county seat after settlers renamed it after Stephen F. Austin. The organization of Austin county was founded in 1843.

Geography of Travis County

Travis County has 989 square miles of land east of Edward Plateau. It is 30°18′ on the northern latitude and 97°45′ on the western latitude.

The terrain elevates from 400 – 1,300 feet above sea level. The Colorado River drains throughout the county.

The following counties border Travis County:

Williamson County borders it to the northern side
Burnet to the northwestern side
Bastrop to the eastern side
Caldwell to the southern side
Blanco to the western side
Hays to the southwest

Travis County Demographics

According to the 2019 Census, approximately 1,273,954 individuals were living within the county’s borders. Of those people, about 79.7% identify themselves as white, 8.9% black or African American, 48.9% white but not Hispanic and Latinos, 7.4% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, and 2.7% of more than two races.

About 21.2% of the households have children under the age of 18 years old. Approximately 6.1% of the population consists of children under five years of age.

Around 10.2% of persons are 65 years & above, 50.5% male, and 49.5% female. About 68.8% of the population aged 5+ years speaks English at home. Meaning 31.2% of the population speaks another language at home apart from English. Fifty-one thousand three hundred sixty-one veterans were residing in the county between 2015 – 2019.

Travis County Offices

Several county departments serve different purposes for people who reside in Travis County. You can find these offices throughout the county. These county offices include;

County Judge

Judge Andy Brown is the county judge who serves as the Travis County judicial branch head. He oversees the meeting agendas, court calendars, and all legal matters about the county.

His office is at 700 Lavaca, St. #2.300 Austin, TX 78701. You can contact him via phone at (512) 854-9555.

Sheriff’s Office

Sheriff Sally Hernandez is the Travis County sheriff who oversees law enforcement activities in the area. You can reach her via phone at 512-854-9770. Contact the sheriff’s office at the following addresses:

Jim Collier Building 7811 Burleson Manor Rd. Manor, TX 78653 to the East command.
Keith G. Ruiz Building 5555 Airport Blvd. Austin, TX 78751 to the Central command.
Maurice Moore Building 3800 Hudson Bend Rd. Austin, TX 78732 to the West command.

Commissioners Court

This department comprises four precinct commissioners who oversee the jurisdictions of Travis County. You can reach Travis County Commissioner’s Court by contacting them via mail at [email protected]. Their mailing address is PO Box 1748 Austin, TX 78767

Precinct 1 Commissioner: Jeff Travillion’s office address is 700 Lavaca, St. #2.200 Austin, TX 78701. You can contact him at (512) 854-9111 or send a fax at (512) 854-4897.
Precinct 2 Commissioner: Brigid Shea’s office address is 700 Lavaca, St. #2.700 Austin, TX 78701. You can contact her at (512) 854-9222 or send mail at [email protected].
Precinct 3 Commissioner: Ann Howard’s office address is 700 Lavaca, St. #2.400 Austin, TX 78701. You can contact her via phone at 512-854-4844 or send mail at [email protected].
Precinct 4 Commissioner: Margaret Gómez’s office address is 700 Lavaca, St. #1510 Austin, TX 78701. You can contact her via phone at (512) 854-9444 or send a fax at (512) 854-4886.

District Clerk

Velva L. Price is the clerk of Travis county. The office address is 1000 Guadalupe St. Austin, TX 78701. You can contact the clerk’s office at (512) 854-9457, fax (512) 853-4744, or you can also send mail at [email protected].

County Attorney

Delia Garza is the county attorney for Travis county. Her office address is 314 West 11th Street, Room 300 Austin, TX 78701. You can contact her office at (512) 854-9415 or fax (512) 854-9316.

District Attorney

Attorney Jose Garza is the District Attorney of Travis county. He handles criminal cases involving state laws.

Jose Garza’s office address is 416 West 11th Street, Austin, TX 78701. You can send mail at [email protected].

County Tax Assessor-Collector

Bruce Elfant is the Tax Assessor-Collector. His office address is 5501 Airport Blvd Austin, TX 78751. Phone Number (512) 854-9473. Fax Number (512) 854-9233. You can also send him mail at tax-office.traviscountytx.gov.

Travis Major Highways

Several highways pass through Travis County, including:

Interstate Highway 35 – passes through Dallas, Fort Worth, & Waco to the north and San Antonio to the south;
US Highway 183 – passes through Cedar Park – Lampasas in the northern part of the county and Lockhart to the south.
US Highway 290 – passes through Fredericksburg to the west and Houston to the east.
Texas Highway 71 – passes through Marble Falls to the west and Bastrop to the east.
Texas Highway Loop 1 – also known as the Mopac Expressway. It passes through the center of Travis County, running from the northern side to the southern part of the county.
Texas Highway 45 – is a partial highway loop in Austin city.
Texas Highway 130 – an auxiliary to Interstate Highway 35 to avoid traffic in San Antonio and Austin