Galveston County
| Galveston County, Texas | ||
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Galveston County Courts Building
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 Location in the U.S. state of Texas |
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 Texas's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | 1838 | |
| Named for | City of Galveston | |
| Seat | Galveston | |
| Largest city | League City | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 874 sq mi (2,264 km2) | |
| • Land | 378 sq mi (979 km2) | |
| • Water | 495 sq mi (1,282 km2), 57% | |
| Population | ||
| • (2010) | 291,309 | |
| • Density | 770/sq mi (297/km²) | |
| Congressional district | 14th | |
| Time zone | Central: UTC-6/-5 | |
| Website | www |
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Galveston County (/ˈɡælvᵻstən/ GAL-viss-tən) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 census, the population was 291,309. Its county seat is Galveston. League City is the most populous city in Galveston County; between 2000 and 2005 it surpassed Galveston as the county's largest city. The county was founded in 1838.
Galveston County is part of the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area.
One of the first major settlements in the area that is now Galveston County was the town of Campeche on Galveston Island, created by the pirate Jean Lafitte. Lafitte created a prosperous pirate kingdom around the Galveston Bay until the United States Navy ousted him from the area. The area came under Mexican rule where Galveston became a significant port through the Texas Revolution.
Galveston County was formally established under the Republic of Texas on May 15, 1838. The county was formed from territory taken from Harrisburg, Liberty, and Brazoria counties, with governmental organization taking place in 1839. The island and city of Galveston was by far the most important population center. The city of Galveston was the republic's largest city and its center of commerce and culture. Port Bolivar on the Bolivar Peninsula was a port of secondary importance. Other development in the area was initially mostly ranching interests and small farming communities. Texas soon joined the United States and Galveston's importance continued to grow as it came to dominate the worldwide cotton trade. As railroads between Galveston, Harrisburg, Houston and other towns were built during the 19th century, small communities grew up along the rail lines. Nevertheless, Galveston still dominated. At the end of the 19th century, a group of investors established Texas City directly across the West Bay from Galveston with the hope of making it a competing port city. The port began operations just before the start of the 20th century.
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