Cities in Texas That Start With K

Texas has many great places to visit and live in and the cities in Texas that start with K are no exception. Even many smaller communities in Texas have a history of tremendous growth. When it comes to boom or bust, Texas is mostly booming. It contains many industries and sectors that are of national importance. From oil and gas extraction and refinement to aerospace and military armories.

Not to mention Texas agriculture which contributes over $20 million dollars to the economy in products sold annually in recent years. It’s no wonder with 86% of the land in Texas is in use for some sort of agricultural production. 

Top Texas Cities That Start With K

Many cities in Texas start with a K, so we’ve put together a shortlist of our favorite ’K’ Texas cities.

• Killeen
• Kyle
• Keller
• Kingsville

Killeen

Killeen, like many Texas cities, started as a modest farming community and trade center. The city changed in the 1940s with the creation of Camp Hood, which was recommissioned in 1950 as Fort Hood. Killeen is located in Bell County on Highway 190 about 40 miles north of Austin.

Many of the first people to live in the town came from smaller surrounding communities. One of the first communities established in the area was Palo Alto, which had been around since 1872. The Gulf, Colorado, and Santa Fe Railway bought 360 acres 2 ½ miles northwest of there in 1881.  

The railroad platted a seventy-block town on the land and named it after the assistant general manager of the railroad, Frank P. Killeen. Additionally, the railroad sponsored a national promotional campaign to encourage others to move to the new town. The town grew steadily with about three-hundred and fifty people by 1884, and some 780 people by 1900.

From 1901 to 1905, Killeen saw the inception of the First National Bank of Killeen and the town’s first electric-light system and power plant. Also around that time, the Texas legislature voted in favor of building bridges over Cowhouse Creek and other streams, effectively doubling Killeen’s trade area.

By 1914 the population had grown to 1,300 and a public water system began operating there. The population remained steady throughout the next few decades. The Great Depression affected the area as it did much of the nation at that time. 

Some of the hardships were offset by the federal New Deal programs. Federal funding was used to make improvements in the area such as installing a new water and sewage system, widening a number of local bridges, and building U.S. Highway 190 through the area.

Kyle

Kyle is twenty miles south of Austin and eight miles north of San Marcos on Interstate Highway 35 in northeastern Hays County. Kyle is in a unique spot, geologically speaking. It lies where the Blackland Prairie meets the Balcones Escarpment.

Two landowners in the area, Fergus Kyle and David E. Moore deeded 200 acres for a townsite to the International-Great Northern railroad on July 24, 1880, effectively establishing the town. 

Lots were auctioned off under a live oak tree that same year at 204 Sledge Street. The city was incorporated in 1928 with a population of almost 600. The daughter of Fergus Kyle, Mary Kyle Hartson, was elected mayor in 1937. 

By the early 1940s, the mayor and all five city council members were women making Kyle the only all-woman governmental body in Texas at that time. Since then, Kyle’s population has risen steadily until 2000 when it nearly doubled from ten years earlier.

Between 2000 and 2010, the city experienced dramatic growth with the population going from 5,314 to 28,016. A 427% increase with another 63% increase in the next decade totaling 45,697 people.

It’s no wonder Kyle has become such a popular place to live. The many parks with amenities such as the Ash Pavillion, Butterfly Garden, and Lake Kyle combined with its overall family-friendly layout and operation make Kyle well above average.

Only twenty minutes from Austin, there is vibrant nightlife both in and around Kyle. Also, close by are Canyon Lake and the Highland Lakes along the Colorado River as well as many other beautiful natural attractions.

Keller

Fifteen miles north of Fort Worth, Keller is on U.S Highway 377 in northeast Tarrant County. Although the city wasn’t incorporated until 1966, settlers started moving to the area in the early 1850s.

Nearby was the community of Double Springs and the Mount Gilead Baptist Church. When the Texas and Pacific Railway planned to expand into northern Tarrant County, residents moved to a site closer to the planned route of the railroad.

The original settlement was named Athol but it was later changed to Keller, an official with the railroad, in exchange for a permanent stop on the line. Keller is on the eastern edge of the Cross Timbers region and close to the Trinity River.

In the 1960s, the city had a population of fewer than 1,000 people. Since then it has seen substantial growth the same as other areas within the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.

Most recently, the city of Keller has an estimated population of 45,397 calculated by the U.S. Census. The Keller Independent School District is substantially larger than the city itself with more than 34,000 students over 39 campuses.

Kingsville

Kingsville is located on U.S. Highway 77 in the central part of Kleberg County for which it is the county seat. The city owes its name to Captain Richard King.

He founded the nearby King Ranch which covers 825,000 acres, an area larger than the entire state of Rhode Island. Kingsville, like many Texas cities, got its start with the expansion of the railroad.

St. Louis, Brownsville, and Mexico Railway was built through the area, and on July 4, 1904, the first passenger train made its stop in the community. The Kingsville post office was established that same year.

The city was incorporated in 1911 and became the county seat of the newly formed Kleberg County in 1913. Oil and natural gas extraction began locally in the  1920s.

The South Texas Teachers College opened in 1925 and changed its name in 1925 to the Texas College of Arts and Industries as it added increased educational opportunities. In 1993 they, once again, changed their name as they joined the Texas A&M University system. They are now known as Texas A&M University at Kingsville.

Here is a list of cities in Texas that start with K

In Conclusion, Cities in Texas

Texas has many fascinating places with an abundance of fauna, flora, and wildlife. The many regions of Texas all have something special to offer. Texas has the largest herd of whitetail deer in the nation, the largest ranch in the nation, and some of the friendliest people in the world. We hope you enjoy our Cities in Texas Series.

Read more about cities in Texas here.

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Please find out more about Texini, the leading Texas lifestyle brand defined by its celebration of the Lone Star State’s culture, heritage, and values.

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