Ellis

Formed January 1, 1849 (79^th county)

Ellis County (192,441), Waxahachie (41,133)

The castle appearance of the 1896 Romanesque Revival courthouse makes it stand out in the center of the city.  On the square, where United States Highways 77 and 287 intersect, the courthouse is one of the classics of the state.  J. Riely Gordon designed this sandstone and granite building.  It was restored in 2002.  Four courthouses have been in the county since its January 1, 1849 founding, all in Waxahachie.  A Courts Building was added in 2010.  The county was carved from Navarro County as the 79^th county.  Ellis County was named for Richard Ellis who was President of the Texas Constitutional Convention.  Waxahachie is Native American for “cow or buffalo.”  The nearby creek gave its name to the city. 

Ellis County government consists of a sheriff, a County Judge, and 4 Commissioners.  Three District Court Judges and Three County Court Judges serve Ellis County.  The county is located just south of Dallas, Texas and many residents transition into the larger city for employment.  The county center is 10.3 miles South of Waxahachie nearer Forreston.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Dallas, Kaufman, Navarro, Hill, Johnson, and Tarrant counties. 

The area of the county is 940 square miles.  It is 89 out of 254 in the state.  It ranks 25 out of 254 in population in the state.  It has a density of 204.7 persons per square mile making it 31 out of 254 in the state.  Ellis County has 69.4% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 35 East crosses diagonally from Dallas County on the north into Hill County on the southwest.  Interstate Highway 45 comes in from Dallas County and travels southeast into Navarro County.  United States Highway 67 cuts the northwest corner from Dallas County, north, into Johnson County, northwest.  United States Highway 77 parallels Interstate Highway 35 East from Waxahachie into Hill County.  United States Highway 287 enters in from Johnson County in the northwest and joins Interstate Highway 45 before exiting into Navarro County in the southeast.  The county is a rectangle that is straight on top but bent in the middle to a 45-degree skew.  The Trinity River forms its eastern border.  The county seat is located west and north of center.  Waxahachie is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 21.4% of the county population.  It is pronounced WAX-A-HACH-EE.  This county is in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Metropolitan Statistical Area.