Reagan County, Texas
county in Texas, United States
Reagan County is a county on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 3,385. The county seat is Big Lake. The county is named after John Henninger Reagan (1818–1905), who was the postmaster general of the Confederate States and also a U.S. senator, U.S. representative, and first chairman of the Railroad Commission of Texas.
History
The region was first inhabited by Paleo-Indian, Suma-Jumano, Kiowa and Comanche peoples. Captains Hernán Martín and Diego del Castillo explored the region in 1650. In 1684, Juan Domínguez de Mendoza and Nicolás López reported on local indigenous groups.
Butterfield Overland Mail, which operated from 1858 to 1861, crossed through the center of the county. In 1878, Camp Grierson's Spring was established as a subpost of Fort Concho and named in honor of Col. Benjamin H. Grierson.
The public source identifies “Reagan County, Texas” as county in Texas, United States. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Reagan, County and Texas.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Reagan County, Texas”, the useful work is to connect “county in Texas, United States” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 17, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q111851. VIAF identifies the subject as 146588522. The Library of Congress control number is n81041842. Authority coordinates are 31.360, -101.520. 5 of 6 selected statements include explicit references; 2 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2020, 1818, 1905 and 1650.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. 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 “Reagan County, Texas”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Reagan County, Texas primary sources, Reagan County, Texas archive and Reagan 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 “Reagan County, Texas”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Reagan 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.