How Bell County was settled and who was here first

Before Anglo settlers came, the area that is now Bell County was home to the Tonkawa, a hunting people who followed the buffalo and worked flint. Lipan Apaches and Comanches also lived in the region. The Lipans camped along the rivers and streams. Early Anglo settlers had peaceful relations with some groups at first. Anglo settlement began in the early 1830s, when the land was part of Robertson's Colony — a land grant organized by Sterling C. Robertson that drew settlers mostly from Tennessee.

The Texas Legislature formally created Bell County on January 22, 1850. It was named for Governor Peter H. Bell. The county seat was platted that same year at a location called Nolan Springs and named Nolanville. The name was changed to Belton on December 16, 1851. By the late 1840s, disease and forced displacement had greatly reduced the Indigenous populations who had lived there for generations. Comanche raiding parties continued to reach into Bell County until about 1870.

After the Civil War, the county's economy shifted to cotton farming and cattle ranching. Cotton production peaked around 1910. Bell County also has an important African American history. The county had an enslaved population before the Civil War. After emancipation, a Freedmen's Bureau agent was stationed in Belton to help people through the transition. The Texas State Historical Association's Handbook at tshaonline.org covers this history in full.