Cities in Texas A--Z | Cities in Texas That Start With O

City	Population	Schools	Crime Rate	Cost of Living	Median Income
Odessa	112,483	C	31.9	B+	34,226
Orange	19,169	C+	19.25	A-	27,821
Ovilla	4,349	B+	17.53	B+	51,124
Onalaska	3,143	B+	9.55	B+	24,945

The crime rate is per 1,000 people

Cities in Texas that start with O are overflowing with southern hospitality, Texas- Style! Are you considering moving to Texas? Well, you’re not alone. Texas has become a very popular destination for people moving from other states and abroad.

With so much to offer, Texas is not only attracting newcomers but is also retaining its proud local residents. With a large percentage, more than 80%, choosing to stay in Texas.

Big or small, all of our Texas cities that start with ‘O’ are good choices for people looking to relocate their home, family, or business. Low cost of living, affordable housing, no state income tax, a thriving job market, and great schools are just some of the reasons that Texas is so appealing.

Top Texas Cities That Start With O

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

Odessa
Orange
Ovilla
Onalaska

Odessa

Odessa is located on U.S. Highways 80 and 385 and on Interstate Highway 20, 280 miles east of El Paso. Odessa was established on the Texas and Pacific Railroad route during its construction as a campsite and water stop for the railroad. Odessa also served as a cattle shipping point.

The town was established in 1886 by the Odessa Land and Townsite company and it became the county seat after the creation of Ector County in 1891. The city of Odessa was incorporated in 1927.

The origins of the city’s name are unclear and several stories persist as to where the name came from. One report says it was named after an Indian princess, and another says it was named after the first settler. Most, however, believe it to be named after Odesa, Ukraine for its resemblance to the local terrain.

For the first forty years of its existence, Odessa was a small cow town with a population of only 750 in 1925. That all changed with the discovery of oil first on the W.E. Connell Ranch in 1926 and then at Penn and Cowden fields in 1929 and 1930, respectively.

Since then, Odessa’s economy and growth have been tied to the boom and bust cycle of the petroleum industry. The population rose to 5,000 by 1929 and by 1960 there were over 80,000 people living there.

The city has been home to many notable people including both President George H.W. Bush and President George W. Bush, as well as Larry King, Ty Murray, and Chris Kyle. The latest estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau put the population at 112,483.

From its cowboy culture and lively nightlife to its array of historical attractions, Odessa, Texas offers plenty for visitors of all ages to explore. Located in West Texas, the city is known for its vibrant music scene, delicious cuisine, and welcoming locals who will offer you a truly memorable experience during your stay.

No trip to Odessa, Texas is complete without experiencing the city’s deep-rooted cowboy culture. You don’t even have to leave town to experience it — just wander through downtown streets lined with former turn-of-the-century hot rod showrooms or explore one of the many lively honky tonks and music venues. Whether you’re looking for a square dance hall or an old-fashioned stable, you can find them all in Odessa.

Today, you will find in Odessa the University of Texas of the Permian Basin and the annual Sand Hills Hereford Quarter Horse Show and Rodeo. This rodeo is the first of the year for those following the rodeo circuit.

Orange

Orange is located on U.S. Highway 90 at the junction of the Sabine River and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. It is the county seat of Orange County and is the easternmost city in Texas on the Louisiana border.

What is now the city of Orange was originally known as Green’s Bluff named after Resin ( pronounced ‘Reason’) Green who was a Sabine River Boatman that arrived in the area sometime before 1830. Before this, the area was inhabited by Native Americans, the French, and the Spanish.

From the 1840s to the 1890s, the city exported lumber and cotton by steamboat on the Sabine River. The city was served by the Texas and New Orleans Railroad in 1860 but the track was destroyed during the Civil War.

Orange experienced a Victorian “Golden Age” thanks to the success of the lumber industry in the late 1800s through the beginning of the twentieth century. In 1896, Orange had six schools, two banks, four hotels, an ice factory, and two newspapers.

In 1916 the harbor was dredged and turned into a deep-water port to accommodate large ships and the city became a shipbuilding center during World War I. After the war ended and during the Great Depression, the population dropped until shipbuilding again increased with the start of World War II.

After World War II, Orange, along with Beaumont and Port Arthur, became a center for manufacturing and a major seaport. Today the city of Orange has a population of 19,169.

When in Orange, be sure to check out the Shangri La Botanical Gardens & Nature Center, and the Stark Museum of Art, as well as many other natural areas and museums.

Ovilla

Ovilla is a small town in northern Ellis County on the upper Red Oak Creek and it is the oldest town in the county. It was originally a fortified settlement built in 1844.

The Shiloh Cumberland Presbyterian Church held brush arbor meetings there which brought more people to the area. The church held its meetings at this brush arbor until a log cabin was built which served as a church and schoolhouse.

A frame building was built for the church and the church was later instrumental in moving Trinity University to Waxahachie in 1902. Trinity University was founded in 1869 in Tehuacana, Texas from the remnants of three small Cumberland Presbyterian colleges that saw enrollment drop significantly during the Civil War.

Proponents of the move believed that the university needed the support of a larger community. This was again the case after the Great Depression when the school took over the campus and alumni of the Methodist-affiliated University of San Antonio where they are located today.

Today, the old Waxahachie campus, in Ellis County, is the home of the Southwestern Assemblies of God University. The community was a thriving agricultural center but was yet unnamed until M.M. Molloy, wife of Rev. D.G. Molloy, formed the name from the Spanish word villa.

By the early 1900s, the town had a post office, a bank, a cotton gin, a pharmacy, a blacksmith shop, and several dry goods stores. Two fires, one in 1918, and another one in 1926 destroyed most of the downtown buildings. These fires, combined with the fact that the town was bypassed by railroads and major highways, contributed to a decline in the growth of the community.

However, with the growth of Dallas and surrounding cities, Ovilla has once again started to grow in recent decades. Today the city has a population of 4,349.

Onalaska

Onalaska is located in western Polk County on Farm Road 356 by Lake Livingston. The city is ninety miles north of Houston in the East Texas Piney Woods. It was an agricultural area settled during the Republic of Texas period.

Over the next several decades the population remained small until William Carlisle, a lumberman, began developing the area in 1904. It was by Carlisle the town received its name, taken from the poem “The Pleasures of Hope” by Scottish poet Thomas Campbell.

Carlisle had established lumber mills in other areas of the U.S. that were also named Onalaska in Wisconsin, Washington, and Arkansas. The Carlisle Lumber Company, with the largest sawmill in Texas, made Onalaska an instant boom town.

The Beaumont and Great Northern Railway reached Onalask in 1907. By 1908, there were 2000 people living there, more than in the nearby county seat of Livingston. Also by this time, there were two hotels, a movie theater, a hospital, a cold storage plant, many stores, and an electric power plant.

The boom period of Onalaska was short-lived, however, thanks to the depletion of local timber. As a result, the mill was closed in 1928. While the city was still an active agriculture center, the population steadily decreased until, by 1948, there were only eighty people still residing there.

The city of Onalaska found renewed interest with the building and completion of Lake Livingston. The Trinity River Authority, under contract with the city of Houston, built and operates this endeavor.

The lake is the second-largest located wholly within the State of Texas. It is of extreme importance in the lower Trinity River Basin and the Houston/Galveston metropolitan area. It provides much-needed water for municipal, industrial, and agricultural uses for much of the upper Texas Gulf Coast area.

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

Oak Grove
Oakhurst
Oak Island
Oak Leaf
Oak Point
Oak Ridge town
Oak Ridge town
Oak Ridge North
Oak Trail Shores
Oak Valley
Oakwood
O’Brien
Odem

Odessa
O’Donnell
Oglesby
Oilton
Oklaunion
Old River-Winfree
Olivarez
Olivia Lopez de Gutierrez
Olmito
Olmito and Olmito
Olmos Park
Olney
Olton

Omaha
Onalaska
Opdyke West
Orange
Orange Grove
Orason
Orchard
Ore City
Overton
Ovilla
Owl Ranch
Oyster Creek
Ozona

In Conclusion, Cities in Texas that start with O

Texas has a booming state economy with one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, offering good employment prospects for those looking for work. Cities in Texas have an abundance of unique experiences and attractions ranging from the hustle and bustle of big city life to the wide-open countryside.