Van Vleck, Texas. (original) (raw)

Van Vleck Texas

By Clint Skinner

Van Vleck is a small city located in the northeastern portion of Matagorda County near Bay City. It currently has 2,387 residents living on 3.2 square miles of land. One of the signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence, Bailey Hardeman first settled the area sometime during the the early 1830s. Unfortunately, he died the same year that Texas won the revolution. The settlers started calling their town Hardeman during the 1840s to honor him.

The Texas and New Orleans Railroad, a subsidiary of the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, arrived in Matagorda County in 1899 and built a station at Hardeman. In 1901, the residents named the town after W. G. Van Vleck, the superintendent of the parent company. In 1930, the construction of Highway 35 forced the town to move southeast where it currently stands. First Baptist Church of Van Vleck was built in 1955 and a Methodist Church followed suit three years later.

The city acquired some attention and fame in 1996 as the home of Charles Austin, a high jumper who won a gold medal at the Summer Olympics that year. The population reached 1,411 in 2000. A decade later, the first doctor's clinic opened, First Baptist Church moved to a new location, and the number of residents increased to 1,844.

Today, Van Vleck has its own fire department and school district. The education system consists of one elementary school, two middle schools, and one high school. However, there is no local hospitals. When it comes to law enforcement, the city relies upon the county police.

Bibliography
Tshaonline.org
Wikipedia.org