Menard County, Texas

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File:Pioneer Rest Cemetery, Menard, TX IMG 4366.JPG

Historic Pioneer Rest Cemetery in Menard has graves dating to the 19th century.

Menard County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,962.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The county seat is Menard.<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref> The county was created in 1858 and later organized in 1871.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It is named for Michel Branamour Menard, the founder of Galveston, Texas.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

History

Around 8000 BC, Native American inhabitants arrived. Later Native Americans included Comanche and Lipan Apache.<ref name="Menard County, Texas">Template:Cite web</ref> In 1757, Father Alonso Giraldo de Terreros founded Presidio San Luis de las Amarillas, as a support for Santa Cruz de San Sabá Mission, for the Apache Indians.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In the 1830s, James Bowie and Rezin P. Bowie scoured the San Saba valley seeking a silver mine that the Spanish had believed to be in the area. They were unsuccessful, but the legend of the Lost Bowie Mine, also known as the Lost San Saba Mine or the Los Almagres Mine, fed the imaginations of treasure-seekers for the next 150 years.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Camp San Saba was established in 1852 to protect settlers from Indian attacks.<ref name="Fort McKavett">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The state legislature formed Menard County from Bexar County in 1858. The county was named for Michel Branamour Menard, the founder of Galveston. Menardville, later known as Menard, became the county seat.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

By 1870, the county population was 667: 295 were white, and 372 were black, possibly due to the Buffalo Soldiers at Fort McKavett.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/><ref name="Fort McKavett"/> The next year, county residents elected their own officials.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/> The county had an immigrant influx from Mexico.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/> In 1911, the Fort Worth and Rio Grande Railroad Company arrived.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/> Gas deposits were tapped in 1929, but plugged for lack of a market.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/> The local Parent-Teacher Association offered free lunches for needy children in 1931.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/>

In 1934, the Texas Relief Cannery was in operation. The Drought Relief Program bought cattle and sheep from area ranchers.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A gas well was redrilled in 1941, and produced about seven million cubic feet of gas.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/> In 1946, a small oilfield was discovered northeast of Fort McKavett, but was abandoned the following year.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/> By the 1960s, oil and gas production had an average annual yield more than Template:Convert.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/> In the 1980s, of the county's 40 oilfields, about 20 were still active, producing 132,000 to Template:Convert annually.<ref name="Menard County, Texas"/>

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 (0.03%) is covered by water.<ref name="GR1">Template:Cite web</ref>

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Concho County (north)
McCulloch County (northeast)
Mason County (east)
Kimble County (south)
Schleicher County (west)
Sutton County (southwest)
Tom Green County (northwest)

Demographics

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**Menard 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)	1,567	1,425	1,231	66.40%	63.56%	62.74%
Black or African American alone (NH)	10	11	12	0.42%	0.49%	0.61%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	13	6	7	0.55%	0.27%	0.36%
Asian alone (NH)	8	3	5	0.34%	0.13%	0.25%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	1	0	3	0.04%	0.00%	0.15%
Other race alone (NH)	3	1	8	0.13%	0.04%	0.41%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	10	6	34	0.42%	0.27%	1.73%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	748	790	662	31.69%	35.24%	33.74%
Total	2,360	2,242	1,962	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the census<ref name="GR8">Template:Cite web</ref> of 2000, 2,360 people, 990 households, and 665 families resided in the county. The population density was Template:Convert. The 1,607 housing units averaged Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the county was 87.54% White, 0.51% African American, 0.64% Native American, 0.34% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 9.79% from other races, and 1.14% from two or more races. About 31.69% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 990 households, 28.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.00% were married couples living together, 8.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.80% were not families. Around 30.40% of all households was made up of individuals, and 17.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the county, the population was distributed as 24.20% under the age of 18, 5.30% from 18 to 24, 21.90% from 25 to 44, 26.60% from 45 to 64, and 21.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $24,762, and for a family was $30,872. Males had a median income of $21,953 versus $20,000 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,987. About 20.00% of families and 25.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 39.90% of those under age 18 and 19.10% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

Menard (county seat)

Unincorporated communities

Ghost towns

Politics

In popular culture

The 1968 movie Journey to Shiloh features a group known as the "Concho County Comanches," and mentions Menard County.

References

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External links

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