23,022 people (2024 Census estimate, +2.3% since 2020)
811 square miles of land · 28 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
18 active community water systems list Panola County in the area they serve, reporting 23,339 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| CITY OF CARTHAGE surface water · local government · TX1830001 | 6,770 served |
| PANOLA-BETHANY WSC groundwater · local government · TX1830011 | 2,334 served |
| HOLLANDS QUARTER WSC buys surface water · local government · TX1830009 | 1,605 served |
| DEADWOOD WSC groundwater · local government · TX1830025 | 1,176 served |
| CITY OF BECKVILLE groundwater · local government · TX1830002 | 1,152 served |
| CLAYTON WSC PLANT 2 buys surface water · local government · TX1830029 | 1,137 served |
| DEBERRY WSC groundwater · local government · TX1830006 | 1,101 served |
| REHOBETH WSC buys surface water · local government · TX1830012 | 1,095 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 74 people were held in Panola County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2026). In 2021 it was about 37.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
3 school districts have their office in Panola County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $70.2 million — $36.5 million to run schools, about $13,912 per student, plus $18.7 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $35.9 million local (mostly property tax), $6.3 million state, $5.1 million federal. Long-term debt: $11.7 million.
Spent $11.6 million — $9.5 million to run schools, about $13,894 per student, plus $1.3 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $7.3 million local (mostly property tax), $4.6 million state, $929,000 federal. Long-term debt: $15.2 million.
Spent $6.9 million — $6.3 million to run schools, about $12,781 per student, plus $332,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $2.5 million local (mostly property tax), $4.5 million state, $658,000 federal. Long-term debt: $6.5 million.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Relatively Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Panola County about $12.9 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Low; social vulnerability: Very High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
142 bridges in Panola County: 59 in good condition, 78 fair, and 5 poor (3.5%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| CR 201 over HOGGS BAYOU · built 1995 | 358 vehicles a day |
| CR 127 over BRUSHY CREEK · built 1997 | 155 vehicles a day |
| CR 129 over BRUSHY CREEK · built 1993 | 97 vehicles a day |
| CR 430 over MCFADDIN CREEK TRIB · built 1993 | 75 vehicles a day |
| CR 4354 over MCFADDIN CREEK · built 1995 | 9 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $17.5 million of work in Panola County in fiscal 2025, about $778 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-05. Early voting: 2026-10-19 to 2026-10-30. Mail ballot application must be received: 2026-10-23. Election Day: 2026-11-03.
Source: Texas Secretary of State, Sept. 28, 2026 · VoteTexas.gov — early voting · VoteTexas.gov
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Panola County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Panola County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of Texas: the state government and every county in Texas.
Nearby counties: Rusk County (27 mi) · Harrison County (27 mi) · Shelby County (27 mi) · De Soto Parish, LA (34 mi) · Gregg County (37 mi) · Caddo Parish, LA (38 mi).