Bowie County, Texas

{{Short description|County in Texas, United States}} {{Distinguish|Bowie, Texas}} {{Use American English|date=June 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}} {{Infobox U.S. county | county = Bowie County | state = Texas | seal = | founded = 1840 | named for = James Bowie | seat = Boston (legal); New Boston (courthouse) | largest city wl = Texarkana | area_total_sq_mi = 923 | area_land_sq_mi = 885 | area_water_sq_mi = 38 | area percentage = 4.1 | census yr = 2020 | pop = 92893 | pop_est_as_of = 2025 | population_est = 92696 {{decrease}} | density_sq_mi = auto | ex image = BowieCountyCourthouse.jpg | ex image size = 200 | ex image cap = The Bowie County Courthouse | website = {{Official URL}} | district = 1st | district2 = 4th | time zone = Central }}

'''Bowie County''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|uː|i}} {{respell|BOO|ee}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.texastripper.com/pronounce/locations-b.html|title=How to Pronounce: B Cities|date=September 23, 2014|website=texastripper.com|access-date=November 28, 2012|archive-date=September 21, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921235401/http://www.texastripper.com/pronounce/locations-b.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. Its legal county seat is Boston, though its courthouse is located in New Boston.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx|access-date=June 7, 2011|title=Find a County|publisher=National Association of Counties}}</ref> As of the 2020 census, the population was 92,893.<ref name="QF">{{cite web|title=U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Bowie County, Texas|url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/bowiecountytexas/PST120221|access-date=January 31, 2022|publisher=United States Census Bureau}}</ref> Bowie County is part of the Texarkana metropolitan statistical area. The county is named for James Bowie, the legendary knife fighter who died at the Battle of the Alamo.<ref>{{Cite web |title=TSHA {{!}} Bowie County |url=https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/bowie-county |access-date=May 10, 2023 |website=www.tshaonline.org}}</ref>

==History==

===Native Americans===

The farming Caddoan Mississippian culture dates as early as the Late Archaic Period 1500 BCE in Bowie County.<ref name="Caddo Timeline">{{Cite web | title=Caddo Timeline | publisher=Texas Beyond History| url=http://www.texasbeyondhistory.net/tejas/fundamentals/timeline.html| access-date=May 14, 2010}} UT Texas at Austin</ref> The Hernando de Soto expedition of 1541 resulted in violent encounters. Spanish and French missionaries brought smallpox, measles malaria, and influenza epidemics.<ref name="Caddo">{{Cite web| title=Caddo| publisher=Oklahoma Historical Society| url=http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/C/CA003.html| access-date=May 14, 2010| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100719220154/http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/C/CA003.html| archive-date=July 19, 2010| url-status=dead}} Oklahoma Historical Society</ref> Eventually, these issues and problems with the Osage, forced the Caddo to abandon their homelands. Settlers had peaceful relations with the 19th century Shawnee, Delaware and Kickapoo in the area.

===Explorations and county established=== French explorer Jean Baptiste Bénard de La Harpe founded the military fort Le Poste des Cadodaquious in 1719.<ref name="Le Poste des Cadodaquious">{{Handbook of Texas |name=Le Poste des Cadodaquious|id=qbl08|author=Britton, Morris L |retrieved=May 14, 2010}} Texas State Historical Association</ref> The fort remained in continuous use until 1770. The Red River Expedition of 1806 which passed through Bowie County,<ref name="Red River Expedition">{{Handbook of Texas |name=Red River Expedition|id= upr02|author=Flores, Dan L. |retrieved=May 14, 2010}} Texas State Historical Association</ref> headed by Thomas Freeman and Peter Custis, was of great diplomatic and economic importance to President Thomas Jefferson. Bowie County was established in December 1840 and reduced to its present size in 1846. DeKalb was the temporary county seat, with Boston becoming the permanent county seat in 1841.<ref name="DeKalb, Texas">{{cite web |title=DeKalb, Texas |publisher=Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC. |url=http://www.texasescapes.com/EastTexasTowns/DeKalb-Texas.htm |access-date=May 14, 2010}} Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC.</ref><ref name="Boston, Texas">{{cite web |title=Boston, Texas |publisher=Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC. |url=http://www.texasescapes.com/EastTexasTowns/Boston-Texas.htm |access-date=May 14, 2010}} Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC.</ref>

Bowie County, in the years leading up to the American Civil War, was settled mostly by Southerners who brought their slave labor to work the cotton fields. By 1860, slaves outnumbered whites 2,651 to 2,401. The county voted 208–15 in favor of secession from the Union.<ref name="Bowie County" /> While Bowie was never a battlefield in that war, it was occupied during Reconstruction. Between 1860 and 1870, the population declined. The occupation, and the new legal equality of blacks, became a hostile situation that fostered Cullen Baker.

Cullen Montgomery Baker (b. ''circa'' 1835 – d. 1869)<ref name="Ten Deadly Texans">{{cite book |last =Anderson |first =Dale |last2=Yadon |first2=Laurence |pages=29–51 |title =Ten Deadly Texans |publisher=Pelican Publishing|year=2009 |isbn=978-1-58980-599-6}}</ref> was a twice-widowed, mean-spirited drunk who killed his first man before he was 20. When Thomas Orr married Baker's late wife's sister, thereby denying Baker that opportunity, Baker attempted to hang Orr. Legends abound as to his activities in Bowie and Cass Counties, including a rumored tie to the Ku Klux Klan. His exploits turned him into a folk hero dubbed "The Swamp Fox of the Sulphur River".<ref name="Sulphur River, Texas">{{Handbook of Texas |name=Sulphur River, Texas|id=rns19|retrieved=May 14, 2010}} Texas State Historical Association</ref><ref name="Cullen Montgomery Baker, Reconstruction Desperado">{{cite book |last=Crouch |first=Barry A |last2=Brice |first2=Donaly E |title=Cullen Montgomery Baker, Reconstruction Desperado |publisher=Louisiana State University Press|year=1997 |isbn=978-0-8071-2140-5}}</ref> He was a Confederate States Army veteran who joined two units, designated as a deserter from the first, and receiving a disability discharge from the second.<ref name="Cullen Montgomery Baker">{{Handbook of Texas |name=Cullen Montgomery Baker|id=fba23|author=Crouch, Barry A |retrieved=May 14, 2010}} Texas State Historical Association</ref> Reconstruction allowed him to focus his anger toward what many at the time believed was a Union intrusion into their lives. Baker and his gang conducted a vicious rampage against citizens he perceived as being on the wrong side of the black labor issue, at William G. Kirkman and the Freedman's Bureau in Bowie County, and at the soldiers of the Union occupation. Kirkman unsuccessfully pursued Baker, killing one of Baker's men in the second attempt. Like Swamp Fox Francis Marion, Baker always managed to elude capture, often with the help of local citizens. Kirkland was murdered by "person or persons unknown",<ref name="Bowie County">{{Handbook of Texas |name=Bowie County|id=hcb11|author=Harper Jr., Cecil |retrieved=May 14, 2010}} Texas State Historical Association</ref> but Baker boasted of having done the deed. In December 1869, Thomas Orr and a group of neighbors killed Baker.<ref name="Cullen Montgomery Baker" /> A local legend has it the deed was accomplished with strychnine-laced whiskey.

When the Texas and Pacific Railway was constructed through the county, a new town named Texarkana was founded.<ref name="Texas and Pacific Railway ">{{cite web |title=Texas and Pacific Railway |publisher=Texas and Pacific Railway|url=http://www.texaspacificrailway.org/structures/tx/el-paso |access-date=May 14, 2010}}</ref><ref name="Texarkana, Texas">{{cite web |title=Texarkana, Texas |publisher=Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC. |url=http://www.texasescapes.com/EastTexasTowns/Texarkana-Texas-Arkansas.htm |access-date=May 14, 2010}} Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC.</ref>

Bowie was hit hard by the Great Depression. Measurable relief came late when the Lone Star Army Ammunition Plant was established in 1942. The base was active until 2009.<ref name="Lone Star Army Ammunition Plant Deactivates">{{cite web |title=Lone Star Army Ammunition Plant Deactivates |last=Montgomery |first=Rebecca J |publisher=United States Army |url=https://www.army.mil/article/28379/lone-star-army-ammunition-plant-deactivates/ |access-date=May 14, 2010}} =United States Army</ref> The Red River Army Depot,<ref name="Defense Distribution Depot Red RiverRed River Army Depot (RRAD)">{{cite web |title=Defense Distribution Depot Red RiverRed River Army Depot (RRAD) |publisher=GlobalSecurity.org|url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/red-river.htm |access-date=May 14, 2010}} GlobalSecurity.org</ref> opened in 1941, remains active. The two installations occupied almost {{convert|40000|acre|km2}} and provided job opportunities for thousands.

==Geography== According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of {{convert|923|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|885|sqmi}} is land and {{convert|38|sqmi}} (4.1%) is covered by water.<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_48.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 19, 2015|date=August 22, 2012|title=2010 Census Gazetteer Files}}</ref>

Bowie County, Texas is one of only three counties in Texas to border two other U.S. states (the others being Dallam and Cass). Bowie County forms part of the tripoint of Texas-Oklahoma-Arkansas.

===Adjacent counties=== * Cass County south * Morris County southwest * Red River County west * Miller County, Arkansas east * Little River County, Arkansas northeast * McCurtain County, Oklahoma northwest

===Communities===

====Cities==== {{div col|colwidth=18em}} * De Kalb * Hooks * Leary * Maud * Nash * New Boston (courthouse in city) * Red Lick * Redwater * Texarkana (largest city) * Wake Village {{div col end}}

====Unincorporated communities==== {{div col|colwidth=18em}} * Bassett * Beaver Dam * Boston * Burns * Carbondale * College Hill * Corley * Dalby Springs * Hubbard * Malta * Oak Grove * Old Boston * Old Salem * Old Union * Red Bank * Siloam * Simms * Spring Hill * South Texarkana * Victory City * Wamba * Ward Creek {{div col end}}

====Ghost towns==== * Darden * Eylau * Hartman * Hodgson * Sulphur

==Transportation== Major highways present in Bowie County include the following:  * {{jct|state=TX|I|30}} * {{jct|state=TX|I|49}} * {{jct|state=TX|I|369}} * {{jct|state=TX|US|59}} * {{jct|state=TX|US|67}} * {{jct|state=TX|US|71}} * {{jct|state=TX|US|82}} * {{jct|state=TX|US|259}} * {{jct|state=TX|TX|8}} * {{jct|state=TX|TX|93}} * {{jct|state=TX|TX|98}} * {{jct|state=TX|Loop|151}}

==Demographics== {{US Census population | 1850 = 2912 | 1860 = 5052 | 1870 = 4684 | 1880 = 10965 | 1890 = 20267 | 1900 = 26676 | 1910 = 34827 | 1920 = 39472 | 1930 = 48563 | 1940 = 50208 | 1950 = 61966 | 1960 = 59971 | 1970 = 67813 | 1980 = 75301 | 1990 = 81665 | 2000 = 89306 | 2010 = 92565 | 2020 = 92893 | estyear = 2025 | estimate = 92696 | estref =<ref name="USCensusEst2025">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-counties-total.html|title=County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2025|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=April 16, 2026}}</ref> {{decrease}} | align-fn = center | footnote = U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade.html|title=Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades|publisher=US Census Bureau|access-date=}}</ref> 1850–2010<ref>{{cite web|url=http://texasalmanac.com/sites/default/files/images/topics/ctypophistweb2010.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://texasalmanac.com/sites/default/files/images/topics/ctypophistweb2010.pdf |archive-date=October 9, 2022 |url-status=live|title=Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010|publisher=Texas Almanac|access-date=April 19, 2015}}</ref> 2010–2020<ref name=2020CensusP2/> | align = right }}

===Racial and ethnic composition=== {| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;" |+'''Bowie County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition''' {{nobold|''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.''}} !Race / Ethnicity (''NH = Non-Hispanic'') !Pop 1980<ref name=1980CensusRaceStats>{{Cite web|title= 1980 Census of Population - General Population Characteristics- Texas - Table 15. Persons by Race and Table 16. Total Persons and Spanish Origin Persons by Type of Spanish Origin and Race |url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1980a_txAB-03.pdf|website=United States Census Bureau|page=21-46|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221007094958/https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1980a_txAB-03.pdf| archive-date=October 7, 2022}}</ref> !Pop 1990<ref name=1990CensusRaceStats>{{Cite web|title= 1990 Census of Population - General Population Characteristics- Texas - Table 3. Race and Hispanic Origin: 1990|page=29-138 |url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/cp-1/cp-1-45-1.pdf|website=United States Census Bureau|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260203162919/https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/cp-1/cp-1-45-1.pdf| archive-date=February 3, 2026}}</ref> !Pop 2000<ref name=2000CensusP004>{{Cite web|title=P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Bowie County, Texas|url=https://data.census.gov/table?g=050XX00US48037&tid=DECENNIALSF12000.P004|website=United States Census Bureau |access-date= }}</ref> !Pop 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>{{Cite web|title=P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Bowie County, Texas|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=p2&g=050XX00US48037&tid=DECENNIALPL2010.P2|website=United States Census Bureau |access-date= }}</ref> !style="background-color: #ffffb3;" | Pop 2020<ref name=2020CensusP2>{{Cite web|title=P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Bowie County, Texas|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=p2&g=050XX00US48037&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|website=United States Census Bureau |access-date= }}</ref> !% 1980 !% 1990 !% 2000 !% 2010 !style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020 |- |White alone (NH) |57,565 |61,964 |62,712 |61,343 |style='background: #ffffe6; |55,855 |76.45% |75.88% |70.22% |66.27% |style='background: #ffffe6; |60.13% |- |Black or African American alone (NH) |16,322 |17,697 |20,787 |22,230 |style='background: #ffffe6; |23,084 |21.68% |21.67% |23.28% |24.02% |style='background: #ffffe6; |24.85% |- |Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) |172 |401 |487 |572 |style='background: #ffffe6; |554 |0.23% |0.49% |0.55% |0.62% |style='background: #ffffe6; |0.60% |- |Asian alone (NH) |199 |258 |372 |721 |style='background: #ffffe6; |1,082 |0.26% |0.32% |0.42% |0.78% |style='background: #ffffe6; |1.16% |- |Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) |x <ref>included in the Asian category in the 1980 Census</ref> |x <ref>included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census</ref> |33 |45 |style='background: #ffffe6; |69 |x |x |0.04% |0.05% |style='background: #ffffe6; |0.07% |- |Other race alone (NH) |50 |11 |50 |88 |style='background: #ffffe6; |332 |0.07% |0.01% |0.06% |0.10% |style='background: #ffffe6; |0.36% |- |Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) |x <ref>not an option in the 1980 Census</ref> |x <ref>not an option in the 1990 Census</ref> |873 |1,504 |style='background: #ffffe6; |4,315 |x |x |0.98% |1.62% |style='background: #ffffe6; |4.65% |- |Hispanic or Latino (any race) |993 |1,334 |3,992 |6,062 |style='background: #ffffe6; |7,602 |1.32% |1.63% |4.47% |6.55% |style='background: #ffffe6; |8.18% |- |'''Total''' |'''75,301''' |'''81,665''' |'''89,306''' |'''92,565''' |style='background: #ffffe6; |'''92,893 ''' |'''100.00%''' |'''100.00%''' |'''100.00%''' |'''100.00%''' |style='background: #ffffe6; |'''100.00%''' |}

===2020 census===

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 92,893. The median age was 39.7 years. 23.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 17.7% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.0 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.3 males age 18 and over.<ref name="Census2020DP">{{cite web|title=2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/dp?get=NAME,DP1_0021P,DP1_0024P,DP1_0025C,DP1_0049C,DP1_0045C,DP1_0069C,DP1_0073C,DP1_0125P,DP1_0126P,DP1_0129P,DP1_0133P,DP1_0137P,DP1_0138P,DP1_0139P,DP1_0141P,DP1_0142P,DP1_0143P,DP1_0145P,DP1_0146P,DP1_0147C,DP1_0148C,DP1_0149C,DP1_0156C,DP1_0157C,DP1_0158C,DP1_0159P,DP1_0160P&for=county%3A037&in=state%3A48|website=United States Census Bureau|year=2021|access-date=January 9, 2026|df=mdy}}</ref>

The racial makeup of the county was 61.9% White, 25.0% Black or African American, 0.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 4.6% from some other race, and 6.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 8.2% of the population.<ref name="Census2020PL">{{cite web|title=2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/pl?get=NAME,P1_001N,P1_003N,P1_004N,P1_005N,P1_006N,P1_007N,P1_008N,P1_009N,P2_001N,P2_002N,H1_001N,H1_002N&for=county%3A037&in=state%3A48|website=United States Census Bureau|year=2021|access-date=January 9, 2026|df=mdy}}</ref>

62.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 37.9% lived in rural areas.<ref name="Census2020DHC">{{cite web|title=2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/dhc?get=NAME,P2_002N,P2_003N&for=county%3A037&in=state%3A48|website=United States Census Bureau|year=2023|access-date=January 9, 2026|df=mdy}}</ref>

There were 35,518 households in the county, of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 43.0% were married-couple households, 18.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 32.6% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.<ref name="Census2020DP"/>

There were 39,536 housing units, of which 10.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 62.0% were owner-occupied and 38.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.9%.<ref name="Census2020DP"/>

===2000 census===

As of the 2000 census, 89,306 people, 33,058 households, and 23,438 families resided in the county. The population density was {{convert|101|PD/sqmi|/km2}}. The 36,463 housing units averaged {{convert|41|/mi2|/km2|adj=pre|units }}. The racial makeup of the county was 73.26% White, 23.42% Black or African American, 0.58% Native American, 0.43% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.12% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. About 4.47% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. ==Government and politics== Barry Telford Unit, a Texas Department of Criminal Justice prison for men, is in an unincorporated area of the county, near New Boston.<ref name="Unitprof">[http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/unit_directory/to.html "Telford TO"], Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Accessed January 8, 2014</ref> Federal Correctional Institution, Texarkana, is a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility in unincorporated Bowie County, near Texarkana, Texas.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.bop.gov/DataSource/execute/dsFacilityAddressLoc?start=y&facilityCode=tex|title= FCI Texarkana Contact Information|publisher= Federal Bureau of Prisons|access-date= June 2, 2010|archive-date= May 27, 2010|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100527190750/http://www.bop.gov/DataSource/execute/dsFacilityAddressLoc?start=y&facilityCode=tex|url-status= dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.ci.texarkana.tx.us/departments/citycouncil/wardmap.html|title= Ward Map|publisher= City of Texarkana, Texas|access-date= July 2, 2010|url-status= dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110127013114/http://www.ci.texarkana.tx.us/departments/citycouncil/wardmap.html|archive-date= January 27, 2011}}</ref>

Bowie County is no longer one of the seven dry counties in the state of Texas. Both the city of Nash and the city of Texarkana (on November 6, 2013, and November 5, 2014, respectively)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.arklatexhomepage.com/story/nash-texas-legalizes-alcohol-sales/d/story/iWtv0YAAKU6UY3gTFmCbOw |title=Nash, Texas legalizes alcohol sales - ArkLatexHomepage.com |access-date=January 19, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150119213912/http://www.arklatexhomepage.com/story/nash-texas-legalizes-alcohol-sales/d/story/iWtv0YAAKU6UY3gTFmCbOw |archive-date=January 19, 2015 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://txktoday.com/news/texarkana-texas-voters-approve-beer-wine-sales/|title=Texarkana, Texas Voters Approve Beer and Wine Sales - Texarkana Today|first=Field|last=Walsh|date=November 5, 2014|website=txktoday.com}}</ref> have passed laws that allow the sale of beer and wine.

===Politics=== {{PresHead|place=Bowie County, Texas|source=<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS|title=Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections|first=David|last=Leip|website=uselectionatlas.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://results.texas-election.com/contestdetails?officeID=1001&officeName=PRESIDENT%2FVICE-PRESIDENT&officeType=FEDERAL%20OFFICES&from=race|title=PRESIDENT/VICE-PRESIDENT|last=Nelson|first=Jane|author-link=Jane Nelson|date=November 5, 2024|work=Secretary of State of Texas|access-date=January 28, 2026}}</ref>}}  {{PresRow|1912|Democratic|317|1,542|233|Texas}} {{PresRow|1916|Democratic|414|1,941|279|Texas}} {{PresRow|1920|Democratic|1,032|2,396|423|Texas}} {{PresRow|1924|Democratic|740|3,455|269|Texas}} {{PresRow|1928|Democratic|2,225|3,002|0|Texas}} {{PresRow|1932|Democratic|541|5,269|19|Texas}} {{PresRow|1936|Democratic|472|5,030|19|Texas}} {{PresRow|1940|Democratic|1,107|6,937|5|Texas}} {{PresRow|1944|Democratic|790|7,045|1,067|Texas}} {{PresRow|1948|Democratic|1,161|7,028|2,154|Texas}} {{PresRow|1952|Democratic|6,501|10,437|16|Texas}} {{PresRow|1956|Democratic|6,823|7,675|104|Texas}} {{PresRow|1960|Democratic|5,927|9,198|68|Texas}} {{PresRow|1964|Democratic|7,018|10,368|24|Texas}} {{PresRow|1968|American Independent|5,966|6,468|7,165|Texas}} {{PresRow|1972|Republican|14,722|5,227|66|Texas}} {{PresRow|1976|Democratic|9,590|12,445|179|Texas}} {{PresRow|1980|Republican|13,942|11,339|369|Texas}} {{PresRow|1984|Republican|18,244|10,077|88|Texas}} {{PresRow|1988|Republican|15,454|12,331|156|Texas}} {{PresRow|1992|Democratic|11,776|11,825|6,764|Texas}} {{PresRow|1996|Democratic|12,750|13,657|2,863|Texas}} {{PresRow|2000|Republican|18,325|11,662|333|Texas}} {{PresRow|2004|Republican|21,791|11,880|89|Texas}} {{PresRow|2008|Republican|24,162|10,815|209|Texas}} {{PresRow|2012|Republican|24,869|10,196|339|Texas}} {{PresRow|2016|Republican|24,924|8,838|840|Texas}} {{PresRow|2020|Republican|27,116|10,747|398|Texas}} {{PresRow|2024|Republican|27,122|9,282|240|Texas}} {{PresFoot}} {{U.S. SenHead|place=Bowie County, Texas|Seat=1|source=<ref>{{cite news |title=2024 Senate Election (Official Returns) |website=Commonwealth of Texas by county |date=November 5, 2024 |access-date=December 5, 2024 |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-elections/texas-senate-results}}</ref>}}  {{U.S. SenRow|2024|Republican|26,219|9,405|573|Texas}} {{U.S. SenFoot}} {{U.S. SenHead|place=Bowie County, Texas|Seat=2|source=<ref>{{cite news |title=Texas Senate Election Results 2020 |website=NBCNews.com |date=November 3, 2020 |access-date=April 10, 2026 |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-elections/texas-senate-results}}</ref>}}  {{U.S. SenRow|2020|Republican|26,908|10,406|617|Texas}} {{U.S. SenFoot}} {{T.X. GovHead|place=Bowie County|Seat=|source=}}  {{T.X. GovRow|2022|Republican|20,206|6,060|610}} {{T.X. GovFoot}} Bowie County had voting patterns similar to the Solid South up until 1976. The county has consistently voted for the GOP in each 21st century president election. The last Democrat to win this county was Bill Clinton of neighboring Arkansas, with which the county shares the Texarkana metropolitan area, in both of his national victories.

Bowie County is located within District 1 of the Texas House of Representatives. Bowie County is located within District 1 of the Texas Senate.

==Education== These school districts serve Bowie County:<ref>{{cite map|author=Geography Division|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st48_tx/schooldistrict_maps/c48037_bowie/DC20SD_C48037.pdf|title=2020 Census - School District Reference Map: Bowie County, TX|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|place=Suitland, Maryland|date=December 22, 2020|access-date=August 31, 2023}} - [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st48_tx/schooldistrict_maps/c48037_bowie/DC20SD_C48037_SD2MS.txt Text list of districts]</ref> {{div col|colwidth=18em}} * De Kalb ISD * Hooks ISD * Hubbard ISD * Leary ISD * Liberty-Eylau ISD * Malta ISD * Maud ISD * New Boston ISD * Pleasant Grove ISD * Red Lick ISD * Redwater ISD * Simms ISD * Texarkana ISD {{div col end}}

All of Bowie County is in the service area and taxation area of Texarkana College.<ref name=servicearea>[https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ED/htm/ED.130.htm Texas Education Code, "Sec. 130.203. TEXARKANA COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA."]</ref>

==Notable people== * Jean Baptiste Brevelle (1698-1754), early 18th century explorer, trader and soldier of Fort Saint Jean Baptiste des Natchitoches and Le Poste des Cadodaquious, the first European settlement in the county. Namesake of nearby Brevelle Lake.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Summary Report: Brevelle Lake |url=https://edits.nationalmap.gov/apps/gaz-domestic/public/search/names/2831284 |website=United States Geological Service |access-date=April 10, 2024}}</ref>

==See also== {{Portal|Texas}} * Le Poste des Cadodaquious, a French fort established in Bowie County in 1719 * Brevelle Lake, a North Texas lake named for French soldier and explorer of Le Poste des Cadodaquious * National Register of Historic Places listings in Bowie County, Texas * Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Bowie County

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{Commons category}}

* {{Official website}} * {{Handbook of Texas|id=hcb11|name=Bowie County}} * [http://texasalmanac.com/topics/government/bowie-county Bowie County] from the Texas Almanac * {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20160822182009/http://www.hiddenancestors.com/Bowietx/index.html Bowie County]}} from the TXGenWeb Project

{{Geographic location |Centre = Bowie County, Texas |North = McCurtain County, Oklahoma |Northeast = Little River County, Arkansas |East = |Southeast = Miller County, Arkansas |South = Cass County |Southwest = Morris County |West = Red River County |Northwest = }}

{{Bowie County, Texas}} {{Texas counties}} {{Texas}} {{Authority control}} {{Coord|33.45|-94.42|display=title|type:adm2nd_region:US-TX_source:UScensus1990}}

Category:Bowie County, Texas Category:1840 establishments in the Republic of Texas Category:Populated places established in 1840 Category:Counties in the Texarkana metropolitan area