Formed August 21, 1876 (176th county)
Carson County (5,799), Panhandle (2,368)
The Modern and Art Deco looking tan brick courthouse was built in 1950 at the corner of Main and 5th Streets. Its site is north of United States Highway 60 on Texas State Highway 207. J. C. Berry, Kerr and Kerr, the architects, attempted to give contours to the rectangular design. Two previous courthouses (one in 1909) were also in Panhandle since the August 21, 1876 county founding. The county was originally part of Bexar County as the 176th county. Samuel P. Carson, Texas and United States Statesman, gave Carson County its name. Panhandle is named for its location in the Texas panhandle.
Carson County government consists of a sheriff, a County Judge, and 4 Commissioners. One District Court Judge serves Carson, Childress, Collingsworth, Donley, and Hall counties and One County Court Judge serves Carson County. The county is in just to the east of Amarillo, Texas. The county center is 10.2 miles North-Northeast of Panhandle. The county is surrounded clockwise by Hutchinson, Roberts, Gray, Donley, Armstrong, Randall, Potter, and Moore counties.
The area of the county is 923 square miles. It is 106 out of 254 in the state. It ranks 193 out of 254 in population in the state. It has a density of 6.3 persons per square mile making it 186 out of 254 in the state. Carson County has 73.0% of its population in its incorporated areas. Interstate Highway 40 comes from the east (Gray County) and goes to the west (Potter County). United States Highway 60 enters from Gray County in the northeast and diagonally crosses into Potter County on the southwest. United States Highway 287 cuts the far southwest corner from Potter County into Armstrong County. The county is square with Panhandle southwest of center. Panhandle is the county seat and the largest city. It is 40.8% of the county population. This county is in the Amarillo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Groom
Panhandle
Skellytown
White Deer