Pierce, Texas
Unincorporated community in Wharton County · Not an incorporated municipality
About Pierce
Pierce is an unincorporated community in Wharton County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, Pierce had an estimated population of 49 in 2000. It is located within the Greater Houston metropolitan area.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How Pierce is governed
Pierce appears to be an unincorporated community or a census-designated place, so it may have no city government of its own — services usually come from Wharton County and its elected officials. The chart below is a generic template; readers can correct it if Pierce does have local officials.
Form of government not yet listed.
0 of 14 positions listed. Gray dashed boxes are placeholders waiting for a name.
Residents of Pierce
Registered voters elect the officials below.
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Mayor
Executive
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The city's chief elected official. Presides over the executive branch, proposes the budget and represents the city.
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City Manager / Administrator
Executive
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The professional administrator who runs day-to-day operations (in some cities appointed by the council instead of the mayor).
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Police Chief
Administration & departments
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Leads the police department.
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Fire Chief
Administration & departments
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Leads the fire and emergency services department.
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Public Works Director
Administration & departments
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Streets, water, sewer, and city buildings.
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Finance Director
Administration & departments
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The budget, taxes, and city accounts.
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Planning & Zoning Director
Administration & departments
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Land use, zoning, building permits.
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Parks & Recreation Director
Administration & departments
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Parks, programs, and public facilities.
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City Council
Legislative
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The elected body that passes ordinances, sets the tax rate and approves the budget.
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City Clerk
Administration & departments
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Keeps the official records, runs meeting agendas and, often, local elections.
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City Attorney
Administration & departments
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The city's lawyer; advises officials and prosecutes ordinance violations.
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Boards & Commissions
Legislative
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Citizen advisory bodies, such as planning, zoning appeals and library boards.
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Municipal Court
Judicial
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Hears traffic, ordinance and other minor cases.
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Municipal Judge
Judicial
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Presides over the municipal court.
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History
The community was originally called Pierce's Station in 1881. The New York, Texas and Mexican Railway built a track 91 mi (146 km) long. It traveled from Richmond to Victoria across the upper section of Abel Head "Shanghai" Pierce's land. He gave the railroad permission to build if he could choose where to build depots to load cattle. Despite the railroad building one near his home, Pierce then built one himself, at his expense. Since it was located close to the geographic center of Wharton County, he encouraged residents to make Pierce the county seat. In March 1894, 160 acres (65 ha) of land was divided into 64 240 square feet (2.2×10−5 km2) blocks for the townsite. When the streets were donated to the public, a courthouse, a park, and a cemetery were built on top of them. A post office was established in 1886 and the community's name was changed to Pierce in 1895. Forty people were living in Pierce in 1890. Shanghai Pierce wanted another railroad track to be built from Eagle Lake to Bay City, which would be on the west side of the Colorado River and would travel through the community to make it a crossroads community, but it did not happen. He also built a three-story hotel, but it also failed. It was eventually knocked down in 1980. Pierce then built a church and some houses for the people who worked for him. There were six livestock brokers, several stores, a gin, and 50 people living in Pierce in 1892. From 1914 to 1926, the population grew to 100 and Shanghai's nephew, A.P. Borden, was the "mayor" of the community. The population further rose to 150 in the 1940s and the community had five businesses. The majority of the homes in the community were gone by 1980. The population declined from 125 in 1967 to 49 two years later. It also had one business that year. The Texas Department of Public Safety and the Wharton County Youth Fair were housed in Pierce for a short time with Precinct No. 4 serving as the county commissioner's headquarters. A grocery store, post office, and church were located here, with the population remaining at 49 from 1990 through 2000.
In June 1921, Pierce was struck by a Category 1 hurricane.
Shanghai Pierce's ranch house in the community is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.