In
Robertson County, Hearne is located southeast of
Waco toward
Bryan on Hwy 6 where it meets US 190.
With mixed beginnings, Hearne's population grew from 2,129 in 1900 to 3,511 in 1940. German prisoners of war were housed at a camp built just west of the Hearne city limits in 1942. The camp housed up to 8,000 men, and closed in 1946.
By the 1960s Hearne had an airstrip and businesses involved in manufacturing and agricultural industries. In 1991 it had a factory that manufactured steel tanks and cotton gin machinery, a vitreous sanitary ware plant, an oil mill, and a door factory.
In addition, the town serves as a terminal for the distribution of petroleum products, operated dehydration facilities, and was a regional center for the marketing of cotton and other agricultural products. The population in 1990 was 5,132.