De Witt

Formed March 1, 1846 (42^nd county)

DeWitt County (19,822), Cuero (8,143)

The classic Romanesque Revival sandstone courthouse is two blocks south of United States Highway 77 at the corner of Courthouse and Gonzalez.  A. O. Watson designed this 1897 facility.  The building was remodeled in 1957 and restored in 2007.  The county was founded on March 1, 1846 and three courthouses have been in the county.  Cameron (1846), Clinton (1850), and Cuero (1876) have all served all the county seat.  The county was originally part of Gonzales, Goliad, and Victoria counties and the 42^nd county.  DeWitt County is named for Green C. DeWitt, who established settlements in the area.  Cuero got its name from a nearby creek.  Cuero is Spanish for “hide” and history says local Native Americans skinned animals at or near the creek. 

The area of the county is 909 square miles.  It is 129 out of 254 in the state.  It ranks 121 out of 254 in population in the state.  It has a density of 21.8 persons per square mile making it 125 out of 254 in the state.  DeWitt County has 62.3% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 77 clips the far east corner of the county from Lavaca County, north, to Victoria County, south.  United States Highway Alternate 77 comes from the northeast, Lavaca County, and goes to the south, Goliad County.  United States Highway 87 crosses from northwest to southeast, Gonzales County to Victoria County.  United States Highway 183 enters from Gonzales County on the north, joins United States Highway Alternate 77 in Cuero, and exits south into Goliad County.  The county is shaped like a right-sided pentagon with nearly flat borders on the north, west, and south.  Cuero is in the southern half of the county.  Cuero is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 41.1% of the county population. 

DeWitt County government consists of a sheriff, a County Judge, and 4 Commissioners.  Three District Court Judges serve DeWitt, Calhoun, Goliad, Jackson, Refugio, and Victoria counties and One County Court Judge serves DeWitt County.  DeWitt County is east of San Antonio, Texas and north of Corpus Christi, Texas.  Guadalupe River crosses through the county from north to south.  Irrigation farming and cattle ranching are the main agriculture means.  The county center is 8.2 miles West-Northwest of Cuero nearer Lindenau.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Lavaca, Victoria, Goliad, Karnes, Wilson, and Gonzales counties.  The county seat is pronounced KOE-ROE.  The county is pronounced DEE-WIT.

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