Kaufman County, Texas
county in Texas, United States
Kaufman County is a county in the northeastern area of the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 145,310, and was estimated to be 209,235 in 2025. The county seat is Kaufman and the largest city is Forney.
History
Kaufman County was created on February 26, 1848 and was organized on August 7, 1848, and the city were named for David S. Kaufman, a U.S. Representative and diplomat from Texas. Kaufman County is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. Western artist Frank Reaugh moved from Illinois to Kaufman County in 1876, where he was directly inspired for such paintings as The Approaching Herd (1902).
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 807.5 square miles (2,091 km2), of which 26.8 sq mi (69 km2) (3.32%) are covered by water. It is the 203rd-largest county in Texas by total area. Located in the northeast portion of Texas, it is bounded on the southwest by the Trinity River and drained by its east fork.
Major highways
Interstate 20
U.S. Highway 80
U.S. Highway 175
State Highway 34
State Highway 198
State Highway 205
State Highway 243
State Highway 274
Spur 87
Spur 226
Spur 557
Lakes
Cedar Creek Reservoir (small part)
Lake Ray Hubbard (small part)
Kaufman Lake
Adjacent counties
Hunt County – north
Van Zandt County – east
Henderson County – south
Ellis County – southwest
Dallas County – west
Rockwall County – northwest
Communities
Cities (multiple counties)
Cities
Towns
Villages
Grays Prairie
Rosser
Census-designated places
Elmo
Heartland
Travis Ranch
Unincorporated communities
Ghost towns
Cedar Grove
Cedarvale
Jiba
Peeltown
Stubbs
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 145,310.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Kaufman County, Texas” as county in Texas, United States. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as county in Texas, United States. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 17, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q110486. VIAF identifies the subject as 157106982. The Library of Congress control number is n80112817. Authority coordinates are 32.600, -96.280. 6 of 7 selected statements include explicit references; 3 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2020, 2025, 1848 and 1876.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Kaufman County, Texas”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Kaufman County, Texas primary sources, Kaufman County, Texas archive and Kaufman research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Kaufman County, Texas”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Kaufman County, Texas” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.