page_title: Presidio County, Texas
section_title: County established and growth
hierarchical_section_title: Presidio County, Texas / History / County established and growth
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of Presidio County, Texas and the counties of Brewster, Buchel, Foley, and Jeff Davis created from Presidio in 1887. This map conforms with the boundary descriptions of the legislation creating the new counties.
context_page_description: Presidio County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 census, its population was 7,818. Its county seat is Marfa. The county was created in 1850 and later organized in 1875. Presidio County is in the Trans-Pecos region of West Texas and is named for the ancient border settlement of Presidio del Norte. It is on the Rio Grande, which forms the Mexican border.
context_section_description: Presidio County was established from Bexar County on January 3, 1850. Fort Leaton became the county seat.  The county was organized in 1875 as the largest county in the United States, with 12,000 square miles (31,000 km²). Fort Davis was named the county seat. The boundaries and seat of Presidio County were changed in the 1880s. Marfa was established in 1883, and the county seat was moved there from Fort Davis in 1885.
  In 1854, the army built Fort Davis in northern Presidio County.
  Fort Davis closed during the Civil War and reopened in 1867.  The black population increased to 489 when Buffalo Soldiers were stationed at Fort Davis.
  John W. Spencer, a local rancher and trader, found a silver deposit in the Chinati Mountains in 1880 that resulted in the opening of Presidio Mine and the beginning of the company town of Shafter.  From 1883 until 1942, the mine produced over 32.6 million ounces of silver.
  The railroad reached Presidio County in 1882, when the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway laid tracks through its northeastern corner.
  W. F. Mitchell built the first barbed wire fence in the county at Antelope Springs in 1888. The widespread use of barbed wire resulted in the refinement of cattle breeds, improvement of ranges, and innovative use of water supplies.
  Windmills, water wells, and earthen tanks were introduced on Presidio County ranches in the late 1880s.
  Elephant Butte Dam was built in 1910 on the Rio Grande, creating a large, reliable irrigation source for the county.
  The growth of Presidio County's population in the 1910s reflected the impact of the Mexican Revolution on border life. Refugees migrated to the county from Chihuahua as the fighting moved into northern Mexico. The United States Army established several posts in the county. Marfa became the headquarters for the Big Bend Military District, and in 1917, the Army established Camp Marfa, later called Fort D. A. Russell, at Marfa to protect the border. As Presidio County entered the 1930s the people faced a drought and a population decline. Low silver prices closed Presidio Mine at Shafter. Economic recovery began by 1936.  During World War II, Presidio County enjoyed economic prosperity as the home for two military installations-Fort Russell and Marfa Army Airfield.
  In late January 1918, during a period of tension between the US and Mexico, Texas Rangers and citizens of the village of Porvenir murdered 15 local Hispanic residents.
  The economy of the county in 1982 was based primarily on agriculture, with 83% of the land in farms and ranches.
caption: Map of Presidio County, Texas, and the counties of Brewster, Buchel, Foley, and Jeff Davis created from Presidio in 1887: Buchel and Foley were abolished and joined to Brewster in 1897.
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