History
Texas A&M: Brazos County's land-grant university
Texas A&M University opened in College Station in 1876 on land donated by Brazos County residents. It was the first public college in Texas.
The Texas Legislature authorized the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas on April 17, 1871. That law followed the federal Morrill Act of 1862. Brazos County residents donated 2,416 acres for the campus. The college opened October 4, 1876. It had 106 students and a faculty of six. It was the first public college in Texas.
A post office named College Station opened near the railroad tracks in 1877. The community around it took that name. The Texas Legislature renamed the school Texas A&M University on August 23, 1963. The school was racially desegregated in 1963 and became fully coeducational in 1971.
Today Texas A&M is one of the largest universities in the United States by enrollment. It is central to the Brazos County economy. In fiscal year 2022–23, Texas A&M University added an estimated $22.3 billion in income to the Texas economy. The university shapes the character of both Bryan and College Station.
Source to confirm: TSHA – History of Texas A&M University