Smith County, Texas

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Smith County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 233,479.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Its county seat is Tyler.<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref> Smith County is named for James Smith, a general during the Texas Revolution. Smith County is part of the Tyler metropolitan statistical area and the Tyler–Jacksonville combined statistical area.

History

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File:Wall of Memories, Tyler, TX IMG 0472.JPG

Smith County veterans display, the Wall of Memories, in Tyler Plaza

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Confederate States of America memorial in Tyler Plaza

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Korean War Memorial in Tyler Plaza

For thousands of years, indigenous peoples occupied this area of present-day Texas. The first known inhabitants of the area now known as Smith County were the Caddo Indians, who were recorded here until 1819. That year, a band of Cherokee, led by their chief, "The Bowl" (also known as Chief Bowles), migrated from Georgia and settled in what are now Smith and Rusk counties.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Treaty of Bowles Village on February 23, 1836, between the Republic of Texas and the Cherokee and 12 affiliated tribes, gave all of Smith and Cherokee counties, as well as parts of western Rusk County, southern Gregg (formed from Rusk County in 1873) and southeastern Van Zandt counties to the tribes.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Native Americans remained on these lands until the Cherokee War in the summer of 1839, as part of European-American conflicts with Native Americans in Texas. The Cherokee were driven out of Smith County. In this period, Cherokee and other Native American nations were forced from the Southeast United States to west of the Mississippi River to Indian Territory during Indian Removal.

After 1845, some Cherokee returned when Benjamin Franklin Thompson, a white man married to a Cherokee, purchased 10,000 acres of land in Rusk County and allowed them to settle. The Mount Tabor Indian Community developed here,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> some six miles south of present-day Kilgore. The community later grew and incorporated areas near Overton, Arp, and Troup, Texas.

In July 1846, Smith County separated from the Nacogdoches District and was named for James Smith, a general of the Texas Revolution. At this time, Tyler was designated as the county seat.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

During the American Civil War, Camp Ford was the largest Confederate prisoner-of-war camp west of the Mississippi River. Here, Sheriff Jim Reed of Collin County and Judge McReynolds, former chief justice of the district, were seized and lynched by "Regulators".

The original site of the camp stockade is now a public historic park owned by Smith County, as such it is exempted from making any County property tax contribution, and is managed by the Smith County Historical Society. The park contains a kiosk, a paved trail, interpretive signage, a cabin reconstruction, and a picnic area. To date, it has never been the site of a paid venue, nor public event. It is located on Highway 271, 0.8 miles north of Loop 323.

20th century to present

Camp Fanin, a World War II US army replacement training facility, was located in the area known as Owentown, northeast of Tyler along US Hwy 271. Many of its original buildings still exist.

The Smith County Historical Society, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was founded in 1959 by individuals and business firms dedicated to discovering, collecting, and preserving data, records, and other items relating to the history of Smith County. More information can be found at the Smith County Historical Society Website.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert are land and Template:Convert (3.0%) are covered by water.<ref name="GR1">Template:Cite web</ref>

The county infrastructure includes some Template:Convert of two-lane county road.

Major highways

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Adjacent counties

Wood County (north)
Upshur County (northeast)
Gregg County (east)
Rusk County (southeast)
Cherokee County (south)
Henderson County (southwest)
Van Zandt County (northwest)

Communities

Ghost towns

Demographics

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**Smith County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition**
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Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2000<ref name=2000CensusP004>Template:Cite web</ref>	Pop 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref>	Template:Partial<ref name=2020CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref>	% 2000	% 2010	Template:Partial
White alone (NH)	118,598	130,246	134,452	67.88%	62.11%	57.59%
Black or African American alone (NH)	33,129	37,195	38,003	18.96%	17.74%	16.28%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	562	734	746	0.32%	0.35%	0.32%
Asian alone (NH)	1,201	2,550	4,129	0.69%	1.22%	1.77%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	29	63	77	0.02%	0.03%	0.03%
Other race alone (NH)	119	225	695	0.07%	0.11%	0.30%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	1,547	2,613	8,096	0.89%	1.25%	3.47%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	19,521	36,088	47,281	11.17%	17.21%	20.25%
Total	174,706	209,714	233,479	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

In the 2010 U.S. census, Smith County had a population of 209,714, up from its 1850 population of 4,292.<ref name="2010CensusP2" /> By the 2020 census, its population increased to 233,479.<ref name="2020CensusP2" /> Among its population in 2010, the racial and ethnic makeup was 62.11% non-Hispanic white, 17.74% Black or African American, 0.35% American Indian or Alaska Native, 1.22% Asian alone, 0.03% Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, 0.11% some other race, 3.47% multiracial, and 17.21% Hispanic or Latino of any race. In 2020, its racial and ethnic makeup was 57.59% non-Hispanic white, 16.28% Black or African American, 0.32% American Indian or Alaska Native, 1.77% Asian alone, 0.03% Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, 0.30% some other race, 3.47% multiracial and 20.25% Hispanic or Latino of any race; 2020's census statistics reflected state and nationwide demographic trends of greater diversification within the U.S. overall.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

At the 2021 American Community Survey, Smith County had a median household income of $63,115; its mean household income was $86,661.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Among the owner-occupied housing units of the county, the median value was $169,600, and there was a median real estate tax of $2,634.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Owner-occupied housing units without a mortgage had a median value of $173,700 and median real estate tax of $2,203.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Throughout the county, an estimated 12.51% of the population lived at or below the poverty line.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Politics

Smith County was one of the first areas of Texas to break off from a Solid South voting pattern. The last Democrat to carry Smith County was incumbent President Harry S. Truman in 1948.<ref>The Political Graveyard; Smith County, Texas</ref> The county's conservative white voters began splitting their tickets as early as the next election, when it swung from a 29-point win for Truman to a 17-point win for Dwight Eisenhower. In 1964, it rejected Democratic President and Texas native Lyndon B. Johnson in favor of Barry Goldwater, albeit by fewer than 500 votes. It was one of three East Texas counties, along with Panola and Gregg, to vote for Goldwater. At that time, most Blacks and Latinos in the county were still disenfranchised due to the state's discriminatory use of certain barriers.<ref>"5.3 Historical Barriers to Voting", Texas Politics, University of Texas website, 2018</ref> Underscoring how rapidly it swung Republican, the Democrats have only managed 40 percent of the county's vote four times since Truman, the last being Jimmy Carter in 1976. No Democrat has managed even 30 percent of the county's vote in the past seven elections, though Barack Obama and Joe Biden came close in 2008 and 2020, respectively.

Smith County is represented in the Texas House of Representatives by Matt Schaefer (R) of Tyler and the Texas Senate by Senator Bryan Hughes (R). Its U.S. Representative is Nathaniel Moran (R).

Government and infrastructure

The county is governed by a Commissioners Court, made up of four members elected from single-member districts and a county judge elected at-large.

Smith County ranks 10th in the State of Texas for road miles. The county has 1,170 miles – about the distance from Tyler, Texas to Paradise, Nevada – of roads it maintains. The Smith County Road & Bridge Department maintains the county's bridges and roads, including mowing the rights of way.

The $39.5 million Smith County Road Bond passed with 73% of the vote on November 7, 2017. The issuance of bonds was for road and bridge construction and major improvements. Road work around the county is well underway. For a list of road projects in the two-phase, six-year bond program, visit www.smith-county.com.

Officials

Twenty-eight elected officials serve Smith County citizens (county auditor is not an elected position):


Official	Function
County judge	County administration (as presiding member of the commissioners court) and judicial jurisdiction
Commissioners (four, one per precinct)	County administration (commissioners court)
Sheriff	Security and law enforcement
District attorney	Law enforcement and criminal prosecution
Constables (five, one per precinct)	Law enforcement
Justices of the peace (five, one per precinct)	Judicial/legal jurisdiction
District clerk	Judicial support to district courts
County clerk	Clerk of record for the county
County tax assessor-collector	Collector of property taxes and special fees
County treasurer	County's chief banker
County court at law judges (three)	Judicial/Legal jurisdiction
District judges (four)	Judicial/legal jurisdiction

Education

These school districts serve school-aged children in Smith County:

Arp Independent School District
Bullard Independent School District (also partially in Cherokee County)
Chapel Hill Independent School District
Gladewater Independent School District (also partially in Gregg County and Upshur County)
Lindale Independent School District (also partially in Van Zandt County)
Troup Independent School District (also partially in Cherokee County)
Tyler Independent School District
Van Independent School District (also partially in Van Zandt County)
Whitehouse Independent School District
Winona Independent School District

Those wishing to attend institutions of higher learning in the area can attend:

Media

Smith County is part of the Tyler/Longview/Jacksonville DMA. Local media outlets are: KLTV, KTRE-TV, KYTX-TV, KFXK-TV, KCEB-TV, and KETK-TV.

KTBB, an AM radio station based in Tyler, provides a news-talk format to the area.

The daily Tyler Morning Telegraph is the primary newspaper in the county, based in Tyler. Coverage of the area can also be found in the Longview News-Journal, published in Longview, in Gregg County.

References

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External links

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