42,035 people (2024 Census estimate, +1.1% since 2020)
1,086 square miles of land · 39 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.
13 active community water systems list Wharton County in the area they serve, reporting 26,657 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| CITY OF EL CAMPO groundwater · local government · TX2410002 | 12,095 served |
| CITY OF WHARTON groundwater · local government · TX2410005 | 8,756 served |
| WHARTON COUNTY WCID 2 groundwater · local government · TX2410001 | 2,200 served |
| WHARTON COUNTY WCID 1 LOUISE groundwater · local government · TX2410008 | 1,206 served |
| BOLING MWD groundwater · local government · TX2410006 | 800 served |
| ISAACSON MUD buys groundwater · local government · TX2410055 | 729 served |
| HUNGERFORD MUD 1 groundwater · local government · TX2410052 | 390 served |
| PYSSENS LIVE OAK ESTATES SUBDIVISION groundwater · private · TX2410010 | 159 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 139 people were held in Wharton County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2026). In 2021 it was about 118.
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.
5 school districts have their office in Wharton County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $48 million — $44.7 million to run schools, about $13,351 per student, plus $2.5 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $18 million local (mostly property tax), $18.9 million state, $10.3 million federal. Long-term debt: $25.1 million.
Spent $44.7 million — $29.5 million to run schools, about $16,015 per student, plus $12.8 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $21.3 million local (mostly property tax), $6.1 million state, $8.1 million federal. Long-term debt: $70.3 million.
Spent $14.3 million — $12.7 million to run schools, about $11,120 per student, plus $1.5 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $5.5 million local (mostly property tax), $7.5 million state, $2.1 million federal.
Spent $12.6 million — $11.4 million to run schools, about $11,741 per student, plus $337,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $8.2 million local (mostly property tax), $6.1 million state, $1.1 million federal. Long-term debt: $21.9 million.
Spent $8.6 million — $8 million to run schools, about $15,032 per student, plus $424,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $5.9 million local (mostly property tax), $3.8 million state, $1.2 million federal. Long-term debt: $930,000.
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 Moderate compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Wharton County about $35 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Moderate; social vulnerability: Very High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
373 bridges in Wharton County: 204 in good condition, 148 fair, and 21 poor (5.6%). “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.
| CO RD 125 over DRAW · built 1988 | 798 vehicles a day |
| CR 130 over JARVIS CREEK · built 1993 | 277 vehicles a day |
| PINCHOT ST over TRES PALACIOS RIVER · built 1985 | 267 vehicles a day |
| CR 424 over DRAW · built 1970 | 215 vehicles a day |
| CR 267 over DRAW · built 1990 | 141 vehicles a day |
| CO RD 215 over WEST BERNARD CREEK · built 1982 | 120 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $40.5 million of work in Wharton County in fiscal 2025, about $973 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 Wharton 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 Wharton County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of Texas: the state government and every county in Texas.
Nearby counties: Colorado County (28 mi) · Jackson County (31 mi) · Fort Bend County (32 mi) · Matagorda County (37 mi) · Lavaca County (42 mi) · Austin County (42 mi).