The Texas legislature formed Crockett County from Bexar County in 1875, naming it for American frontiersman and Alamo martyr David Crockett. Surveyor and landowner E. L. Powell platted a town site in 1891 called Powell Well and attracted residents with free land and a well and a windmill at its center. He deeded parkland and sites for a town hall and a courthouse. Many buildings from Emerald, Ozona’s major competitor for county seat, were moved to Ozona, including several houses and a church. Emerald and other communities gradually faded away, leaving Ozona, named for the healthy air, as the only town in the county.
Ranching, first for cattle and then overwhelmingly for sheep and angora goats, dominated the local economy. But without rail service, access to markets was limited until highway connections to the rest of the state developed in the 1930s. Oil was discovered in the area in the 1920s, and oil royalties and tax revenues led to the construction of a number of substantial houses and civic buildings in Ozona.
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