BRYAN, TEXAS

Brazos County Seat, Central Texas South

30°39'56"N 96°22'00"W (30.665547, -96.366745)
U.S. 190
Hwy 6 and 21
FMs 158, 1179, 1687, and 1688
Adjoining College Station
85 miles SE of Waco
95 miles NW of Houston
30 miles North of Navasota
Population: 83,260 est. (2010)
76,201 (2010) 65,660 (2000) 55,002 (1990)

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TE Photo

History in a Pecan Shell

Bryan was named after William Joel Bryan, a nephew of Stephen F. Austin.

A timeline of significant events in Bryan's history:
1820s and 1830s: settled by members of Stephen F. Austin's colony.
1859: the Houston and Texas Central Railroad came through the area and the town was platted.
1866: a post office was granted and Bryan replaced Boonville as the county seat.
1867: The railroad that had been stalled at Millican because of the Civil War came to Bryan.
1868: The Bryan News-Letter became the first newspaper to be published.
1871: the first courthouse in Bryan was built.
1872: Bryan is incorporated.
1876: Texas A&M College opens in nearby College Station.
1877: The Bryan Independent School District was established.
1880: Bryan's first school was opened.
1884: Population reaches 3,000.
1889: Bryan obtained electric lighting and a waterworks.
1892: The fifth Brazos County Courthouse, designed by Eugene Heiner, was built
1900: Bryan has a population of 3,589 and the International-Great Northern Railroad arrived.
1902: Bryan's Carnegie Library was opened with a 10,000 grant from Andrew Carnegie
1910: Bryan builds an interurban railroad to College Station, which is abandoned in 1923.
1930s: North Oakwood merges with Bryan and Bryan and College Station become "twin" cities.
1936: State Highway 6 is built through Bryan.
1942: Bryan Air Air Field is opened.
1950: population of Bryan reaches 18,072.

The building of shopping centers and the growth of A & M University drew population and especially businesses away from downtown Bryan in the 1950s and 60s.

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Bryan Landmarks / Attractions

Brazos County Courthouse
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, January, 2014

The Brazos County Courthouse is a forgettable building just East of downtown Bryan. The cornerstone of the 1892 Courthouse sits in the sparse shade of the Courthouse Cedar a tree that has stood beside the 5 courthouses of Brazos County.

The Brazos County Courthouses

The 1892 (Fifth) Brazos County Courthouse
How to Demolish a Texas Courthouse in 14 Days
Brazos County Hires an Iowan to Raze their 1892 Building
by Brewster Hudspeth

The Courthouse Cedar
On the South side of the Brazos County Courthouse

The Carnegie Center of Brazos Valley History
The 1902 Carnegie Library

The Brazos Valley Museum of Natural Science

The Brazos County Children's Museum:
In the Old Bryan Municipal Building (late 2001).

Bryan Hotels › Book Hotel Here

TX - Bryan Municipal Bldg Childrens Museum

The Carnegie Center of Brazos Valley History
The 1902 Carnegie Library
TE Photo

The Old Masonic Lodge Building
TE Photo
More Texas Lodges

The former Queen Theater

The former Palace Theater ( A recycled theater )
More Texas Theatres

Austin Marshall and Texas Outlaw Ben Thompson
once owned a saloon in Bryan
TE Photo

"Drive In" sign

Faded signs on the side of a building

Once an icehouse c.1912
More Pitted Dates

The mysterious Tremont Building

Bryan / College Station Tourist Informatiom

Bryan / College Station Chamber of Commerce
979.260.5200
Website - http://www.b-cs.com/

Take a road trip

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