Formed January 22, 1858 (143rd county)
Stephens County (9,104), Breckenridge (5,192)
The Renaissance Revival courthouse in Breckenridge was built in 1926. It is sited at the Walker and Rose. Walker is United States Highway 180 crossing through the city and United States Highway 183 is two blocks east of the courthouse. Since its January 22, 1858 organizing, Breckenridge has been the site for all three courthouses, the previous one was built in 1883. The county was cut from Bosque County as the 143rd county. David S. Castle designed this limestone and concrete version of the courthouse. Stephens County is named for Confederate Vice President Alexander Stephens. Stephenville in Erath County has a different namesake. Breckenridge gets its name from a United States Senator from Kentucky.
Stephens County government consists of a sheriff, a County Judge, and 4 Commissioners. One District Court Judge serves Stephens and Young counties and One County Court Judge serves Stephens County. The county is located in north central Texas. Abilene, Texas is southwest and Fort Worth, Texas is east of the county. The county center is 4.9 miles East-Southeast of Breckenridge. The county is surrounded clockwise by Young, Palo Pinto, Eastland, Shackelford, and Throckmorton counties.
The area of the county is 895 square miles. It is 161 out of 254 in the state. It ranks 171 out of 254 in population in the state. It has a density of 10.2 persons per square mile making it 166 out of 254 in the state. Stephens County has 57.0% of its population in its incorporated areas. United States Highway 180 crosses east to west, Palo Pinto County to Shackelford County. United States Highway 183 goes from Throckmorton County on the north into Eastland County on the south. The county is square with the Brazos River occupying the majority of the northwest section of the county. Breckenridge is slightly west of the county center. Breckenridge is the county seat and the largest city since it is the only incorporated city. It is 57.0% of the county population.
Breckenridge
