Wadsworth, Texas, Matagorda County. (original) (raw)

Horses near Wadsworth
Photo courtesy Ken Rudine, July 2008

History in a Pecan Shell

Named to honor early settler William Wadsworth, the town was formed by the Colonial Land Company sometime after the land was purchased in the fall of 1902.

It became a stop on the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railroad and by 1907 it had been granted its own post office. Seven years later the population was reported as 150 and the town had a telephone system in place.

By the mid 1920s the population had swelled to nearly 900 although the town had no businesses. By the mid 1930s Wadsworth established its own school district which consolidated with the Bay City ISD 1949.

The population had declined to just 400 by 1940 although three businesses were still in operation. By 1949 the population had declined to a low of 80 residents which grew slowly back to 152 for the 1990 and 2000 census. In 2010 and 2019 the population was estimated to be 160.

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