Navarro County, Texas

Navarro County is a county in Texas, United States, about 55 miles south of Dallas along Interstate 45. It had a population of 52,624 at the 2020 census and covers 1,010 square miles (2,600 km2) of land, centred near 32°03′N 96°28′W.

Corsicana is the county seat and its postal code is 75110. The county has 9 incorporated cities and towns, 1 additional unincorporated town, and several unincorporated communities. It observes Central Time and comprises the Corsicana micropolitan statistical area, part of the Dallas-Fort Worth combined statistical area.

Towns & Villages in Navarro County

Navarro County has 19 named places on record: 9 incorporated cities and towns plus 10 smaller unincorporated communities. The table below marks incorporated places with a city or town type; the rest are unincorporated (Unincorp.).

A handful of names in older local lists — Bazette, Brushie Prairie, Cheneyboro, Corbet, Cryer Creek, Currie, Drane, Dresden, Eldorado Center, Elm Flat, Goodnight, Lone Oak, Mildred, Mustang, Navarro, Navarro Mills, Oak Valley, Pelham, Pettys Chapel, Pickett, Raleigh, Retreat, Rodney, Round Prairie, Samaria, Silver City, Spring Hill, Streetman, Tupelo, Union High, Valley Farms — are historic post offices, rural crossroads, or lake-area subdivisions rather than current U.S. Census-recognized places; they are not carried into the table above for lack of a verifiable current population or ZIP.

ZIP Codes

• 75110 — Corsicana
• 75109 — Corsicana (also serves the western edge of the city)
• 75151 — Corsicana (PO Box only)
• 75144 — Kerens
• 75155 — Rice
• 76626 — Blooming Grove
• 76641 — Frost
• 76639 — Dawson
• 75102 — Barry
• 76679 — Purdon (also serves Pursley)
• 76681 — Richland
• 75153 — Powell
• 75105 — Chatfield

Angus, Eureka, Goodlow, Emmett, Montfort, Roane, and Rural Shade share a ZIP with a nearby post office town rather than carrying their own code.

Geography

Navarro County sits on the Blackland Prairie of North Central Texas, a belt of dark, fertile clay soil that once supported some of the state’s largest cotton plantations. The terrain is gently rolling, drained by Chambers Creek and Richland Creek, both tributaries of the Trinity River, which forms part of the county’s northwestern edge. Navarro Mills Lake and Richland-Chambers Reservoir, one of the larger water-supply lakes in Texas, cover much of the county’s water area.

Navarro County borders Ellis County to the north, Henderson County to the northeast, Freestone County to the southeast, Limestone County to the south, and Hill County to the southwest. See Ellis County, Henderson County, Freestone County, Limestone County, and Hill County.

Demographics

Navarro County had 52,624 residents at the 2020 census, a density of about 52 people per square mile. Corsicana, the county seat, is by far the largest place with roughly 24,500 residents; Kerens is a distant second at just over 1,600. Navarro County’s median household income runs below the Texas median of $75,780, reflecting the county’s rural, agricultural and manufacturing economic base outside Corsicana itself.

Economy & Local Life

Corsicana anchors the county’s economy with manufacturing, healthcare, and retail/distribution jobs tied to its position on Interstate 45 between Dallas and Houston. The city is historically known as the birthplace of the Texas oil industry (an 1894 water-well drilling accident struck oil) and is home to Collin College’s Navarro campus successor, Navarro College. Outside Corsicana, agriculture — cattle ranching, hay, and some row crops on the Blackland Prairie — and the reservoirs’ recreation and lakefront-home economy drive the smaller towns.

History

Navarro County was created April 25, 1846, from Robertson County, and named for José Antonio Navarro, a Tejano statesman who signed the Texas Declaration of Independence and helped write the Texas Constitution. Corsicana, founded the same year, became the county seat and, in 1894, the site of the first commercial oil discovery west of the Mississippi — found by accident while drilling for municipal water. That strike helped launch the modern Texas oil industry decades before the famous 1901 Spindletop gusher near Beaumont.

Getting There

Interstate 45 runs the length of the county north-south, with U.S. Highway 287 crossing near Corsicana and State Highways 14, 22, 31, 75, and 309 linking the smaller towns.

• Dallas — 55 miles north
• Waco — 45 miles southwest
• Tyler — 60 miles east
• Houston — 175 miles south

The nearest commercial airport is Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, about an hour’s drive north.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Navarro County, Texas?
It is in North Central Texas, about 55 miles south of Dallas along Interstate 45, on the Blackland Prairie.

What is the population of Navarro County?
52,624 at the 2020 census.

How big is Navarro County?
1,010 square miles (2,600 km2) of land, plus 76 square miles (200 km2) of water.

What is the county seat of Navarro County?
Corsicana is the county seat.

How many towns are in Navarro County?
9 incorporated cities, 1 incorporated town (Dawson), and several unincorporated communities.

What ZIP codes are in Navarro County?
13 ZIP codes, led by 75110 and 75109 for Corsicana, plus codes for Kerens, Rice, Blooming Grove, Frost, Dawson, Barry, Purdon, Richland, Powell, and Chatfield.

Why is Corsicana known as an oil-industry birthplace?
An 1894 attempt to drill a municipal water well struck oil instead, starting the first commercial oil field in Texas years before Spindletop.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Texas.