On Tuesday, Nov. 15, the Williamson County’s Commissioners Court recognized Nov. 14 through Nov. 18 as Geography Awareness Week. Additionally, the Commissioners Court proclaimed Wednesday, Nov. 16, as Geographic Information System (GIS) Day in Williamson County.

GIS is a software tool that allows users to take different types of data formats, analyze it spatially and then visualize it through maps and web applications for decision-making. It is a tool used in a variety of industries including health care, transportation, real estate, utilities and public safety.

Williamson County’s Geographic Information System (GIS) Division was created within the Information Technologies Services (ITS) Department in 2005 when the county hired a GIS manager to centralize Williamson County GIS efforts. At the time, several GIS managers across cities in Williamson County requested that the position be created in order to help coordinate the flow of 911 data, address, street and city boundaries datasets from city jurisdictions to the Capital Area Council of Governments (CAPCOG).

In 2008, the Williamson County Addressing Department was merged into the GIS Department to become GIS and 911 Addressing. Currently, the department consists of seven people.

Recent GIS projects in Williamson County have had an impact at the state and federal levels. These include preparing data for the Census 2020 and subsequent state redistricting, the redrawing of county commissioner, justice of the peace and constable precincts, and the election voting precincts.

More information on the county’s GIS Division, including county maps, is available at www.wilco.org/GIS.