The town was first settled by two Indian tribes the Comanche’s and the Coahuiltecans. Anglo-Americans came to settle in this town but did not stay for very long because of the numerous raids by the tribes, people were forced to leave their houses. Until about 1837 when Republican veterans came because of the land-bill that was passed. W. R. Wiseman of Mississippi, who organized a Presbyterian church at the site around 1851, is said to have named the place Live Oak Grove for a grove nearby. In 1853, a man named William Claiborne Rector was the post master at the local post office named Post Oak, which was changed to La Vernia in 1859. The origin came from the town’s people that noticed the land was full of green oaks and in Spanish “La Vernia“ means green oaks. The Brahan Masonic lodge was established at La Vernia in 1859; when it was built it was made for three different purposes: the first floor was made for a school, and the second floor was made to be used for important meetings and church services. German and Polish immigration brought the population to 110 by 1885, when the community had three churches, a steam gristmill, and a cotton gin. H. Suhre, owner of the general store. Also at this time the major crop grown was corn, because it was so universal; meaning you could make it to feed your family or sell to make money or used to feed your animals. In present day La Vernia they still grow a lot of corn but cotton has become another major crop. In 1890, La Vernia had a population of 200. Construction of the San Antonio and Gulf Railroad across the area in 1893 brought the population to 343 by 1900. A two-teacher school was in operation by 1896, they had to move out of the Masonic lodge because the enrollment grew to sixty-six children. In 1915 ,the town had two gins, a bank, four churches, a pottery plant, a brick works, and a population of 500. In 1947, it had seventeen businesses and that attracted more people over the years. In 1965, it had 700 residents and twenty-five businesses. The community incorporated around 1980, and in 1990, had a population of 639 and thirty-six businesses. The reason the population dropped was due to the growth of San Antonio and its other up and coming towns like Floresville and Canyon Lake. Many towns like that were getting very popular about this time. In 2000, La Vernia had 136 businesses and a population of 931. The census  of 2005 La Vernia had a population of 1,087 of people.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 931 people, 317 households, and 239 families residing in the city. The population density was 482.8 people per square mile (186.2/km²). There were 344 housing units at an average density of 178.4/sq mi (68.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.48% White, 0.11% African American, 0.75% Native American, 0.64% Asian, 4.19% from other races, and 1.83% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 19.98% of the population.

There were 317 households out of which 40.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.4% were married couples living together, 15.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.6% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.08.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.1% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 17.1% from 45 to 64, and 23.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 81.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 72.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $38,500, and the median income for a family was $46,912. Males had a median income of $35,625 versus $24,844 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,931. About 12.5% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.1% of those under age 18 and 12.6% of those ages 65 or over.

Geography

La Vernia is located at 29°21′19″N 98°7′5″W / 29.35528, -98.11806 (29.355187, -98.118122.  It is just about 30 minutes south-east of the city of San Antonio. La Vernia is 489 feet (149 m) above sea level.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.9 square miles (5.0 km²), all of it land. latest census of 2005 the population of La Vernia is 1,087 people. 

La Vernia Chamber of Commerce