Gause is an unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in Milam County, Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. According to the Handbook of Texas

Handbook of Texas

The Handbook of Texas is a comprehensive encyclopedia of Texas geography, history, and historical persons published by the Texas State Historical Association .-History:...

, the community had an estimated population of 400 in 2000.

Geography

Gause is located at 30°47′07"N 96°43′17"W (30.7851923, -96.7213641 ). It is situated along U.S. Highway 79

U.S. Route 79

U.S. Route 79 is a north–south United States highway. The route is a northeast-southwest diagonal, with both east–west segments and north–south segments equally mixed. The highway's northern terminus is in Russellville, Kentucky, at an intersection with U.S. Highway 68 and KY 80...

/190

U.S. Route 190

U.S. Route 190, also known as the Ronald Reagan Memorial Highway, is an east–west United States highway in Louisiana and Texas. It evolved from the shortest of intrastate routes in 1926 to a length comparable to a main Interstate Highway route, leading from the swamps and pine forests of...

, sixteen miles southeast of Cameron

Cameron, Texas

Cameron is a city in Milam County, Texas, United States. The population was 5,634 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Milam County.-Geography:Cameron is located at . It is situated at the junction of U.S...

 and twenty-nine miles west of Bryan

Bryan, Texas

Bryan is a city in Brazos County, Texas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 76,201. It is the county seat of Brazos County and is located in the heart of the Brazos Valley . It shares its border with the city of College Station, which lies to its south...

/College Station

College Station, Texas

College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley. The city is located within the most populated region of Texas, near three of the 10 largest cities in the United States - Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio...

.

History

The community is named for William J. Gause, a settler who moved to the area in 1872 and built a home out of lumber hauled from Montgomery. In 1873, he gave right-of-way and 100 acre (0.404686 km²) of land to the International-Great Northern Railroad

International-Great Northern Railroad

The International – Great Northern Railroad was a railroad that operated in the U.S. state of Texas. It was created on September 30, 1873, when International Railroad and Houston and Great Northern Railroad merged....

 (I&GN). This caused the area to grow and a post office opened in 1874. A schoolhouse that doubled as a church was built in 1876. Gause had approximately 300 residents in 1884 as well as two steam-powered cotton gins and two churches. Gause was a shipping point for Milam County farmers who shipped corn, cotton, and cottonseed oil. The Gause Independent School District

Gause Independent School District

Gause Independent School District is a public school district based in the community of Gause, Texas .Gause ISD was founded in 1905. The district has one school that serves students in grades pre-kindergarten through eight....

 was established in 1905.

The population reached its peak around 1915, when 1,000 people lived in the community. Gause slowly declined over the next few decades. Its bank was discontinued in 1927 after 17 years in operation. The combination of a decline in the number of businesses in Gause and the introduction of the automobile precipitated further downturns in the local economy. By the 1960s, the community had 278 residents, down from 750 in the 1940s. The population began to rebound in the late 1980s as more people chose to live in Gause and commute to jobs in nearby industrial plants. In 1990, Gause had 400 residents and eight businesses. The population remained unchanged as of 2000. Despite its unincorporated status, Gause continues to have a functioning post office (zip code:77857).

Education

Public education in the community of Gause is provided by the Gause Independent School District

Gause Independent School District

Gause Independent School District is a public school district based in the community of Gause, Texas .Gause ISD was founded in 1905. The district has one school that serves students in grades pre-kindergarten through eight....

. The district operates a single campus that serves an estimated 150 students in grades pre-kindergarten through eight.