Jackson County is a county in Texas, United States, on the Gulf Coastal Plain roughly midway between Houston and Corpus Christi. It had a population of 14,988 at the 2020 census and covers 857 square miles (2,220 km2) centred near 28°56′N 96°35′W.
Edna is the county seat and its postal code is 77957. The county has three incorporated cities, two census-designated places, and several unincorporated communities. It observes Central time.
Towns & Villages in Jackson County
Jackson County has three incorporated cities — Edna, Ganado and La Ward — plus two census-designated places (Lolita and Vanderbilt) and a scatter of unincorporated communities and rural place names, some dating to the county’s 19th-century settlement. “Unincorp.” below covers both active hamlets and a handful of near-vanished crossroads communities.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Edna | City · seat | — | 77957 |
| Ganado | City | — | 77962 |
| La Ward | City | — | 77970 |
| Lolita | CDP | — | 77971 |
| Vanderbilt | CDP | — | 77991 |
| Francitas | Unincorp. | — | 77961 |
| La Salle | Unincorp. | — | 77969 |
| Texana (ghost town) | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Carancahua | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Cordele | Unincorp. | — | — |
| El Toro | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Manson | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Matilda | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Morales | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Mount Olive | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Navidad | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Red Bluff | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Weedhaven | Unincorp. | — | — |
| White Hall | Unincorp. | — | — |
ZIP Codes
- 77957 — Edna (largest ZIP by population in the county)
- 77962 — Ganado
- 77970 — La Ward
- 77971 — Lolita
- 77991 — Vanderbilt
- 77961 — Francitas
- 77969 — La Salle
Smaller unincorporated communities without their own ZIP code use the code of their nearest post-office town above.
Geography
Jackson County sits on flat-to-gently-rolling Gulf Coastal Plain, drained by the Navidad and Lavaca rivers, which join near the old townsite of Texana and flow on into Lavaca Bay. Land use is a mix of rice and row-crop farming, cattle ranching and coastal prairie. The county borders Colorado County to the north, Wharton County to the northeast, Matagorda County to the southeast, Calhoun County to the south, Victoria County to the southwest and Lavaca County to the northwest.
Demographics
Jackson County had 14,988 residents at the 2020 census, with population concentrated in and around its two largest towns, Edna and Ganado. Median household income in the county runs below the Texas median of $75,780, reflecting its largely agricultural economy. With 829 square miles of land, overall density is about 18 people per square mile — a rural county even by Texas standards.
Economy & Local Life
Agriculture anchors the county economy: rice, grain sorghum, corn and cotton farming alongside cattle ranching on the coastal prairie that stretches south toward Lavaca Bay. Oil and gas production in the surrounding fields, along with county and school-district government based in Edna, are other significant employers. Ganado’s schools and long-running FFA program are locally well known, reflecting the county’s farm-town character. Hunting leases on the coastal prairie and river bottoms are a further, seasonal source of local income each fall.
History
Jackson County was created in 1835 as a municipality of Mexico and organized as a county of the Republic of Texas in 1836, making it one of the state’s original counties, formed before Texas even joined the United States in 1845. It is named for Andrew Jackson, U.S. president from 1829 to 1837. The riverport of Texana, on the Navidad River, served as an early county hub and briefly as county seat, trading cotton and cattle downriver toward Lavaca Bay, before declining after being bypassed by the railroad. Edna later became the seat and remains the county’s governmental and commercial center, while Texana itself is now a ghost town remembered mainly in local histories and on county maps.
Getting There
U.S. Highway 59 runs through the county (with a future Interstate 69 designation under construction along the corridor), joined by State Highways 35, 111 and 172.
- Victoria — about 30 miles southwest
- Houston — about 100 miles northeast
- Corpus Christi — about 90 miles south
- El Campo — about 25 miles north
Victoria Regional Airport is the nearest commercial airport.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Jackson County, Texas?
It lies on the Gulf Coastal Plain of southeast Texas, roughly midway between Houston and Corpus Christi.
What is the population of Jackson County?
14,988 people, per the 2020 census.
How big is Jackson County?
857 square miles (2,220 km2), of which 829 square miles is land and 27 square miles is water.
What is the county seat of Jackson County?
Edna is the county seat.
How many towns are in Jackson County?
Three incorporated cities (Edna, Ganado, La Ward), two census-designated places (Lolita, Vanderbilt), and a number of smaller unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Jackson County?
The main ZIP codes are 77957 (Edna), 77962 (Ganado), 77970 (La Ward), 77971 (Lolita), 77991 (Vanderbilt), 77961 (Francitas) and 77969 (La Salle).
Who is Jackson County named for?
Andrew Jackson, president of the United States from 1829 to 1837.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Texas.