City of Pearland, TX

Pearland is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, within HoustonThe WoodlandsSugar Land metropolitan area. Most of the city is in Brazoria County, with portions extending into Fort Bend and Harris counties. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 91,252, up from a population of 37,640 at the 2000 census. Pearland's population growth rate from 2000 to 2010 was 142 percent, which ranked Pearland as the 15th fastest growing city in the U.S. during that time period, compared to other cities with a population of 10,000 or greater in 2000. Pearland is the third largest city in the Houston MSA, and from 2000 to 2010, ranked as the fastest growing city in the Houston MSA and the second fastest growing city in Texas. The area that is now Pearland had its humble beginnings near a siding switch on the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway in 1882. When a post office was established in 1893, the community was originally named Mark Belt. On September 24, 1894, the plat of "Pear-Land" was filed with the Brazoria County courthouse by Witold von Zychlinski, a man of Polish nobility. At the time Pearland had many fruits harvested by residents. Zychlinski saw the pear trees and decided that "Pearland" would make a good name for the community.