Crockett County, Texas

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Crockett County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 3,098.<ref name="QF">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The county seat is Ozona.<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref> The county was founded in 1875 and later organized in 1891.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It is named in honor of Davy Crockett, the legendary frontiersman who died at the Battle of the Alamo.

History

Prehistoric people lived in Gobbler Shelter, located on a small tributary canyon of Live Oak Creek. The earliest known Native American tribes were the Tonkawa, Lipan Apache, and Comanche.<ref name="Crockett County">Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1590, Spanish explorer Gaspar Castaño de Sosa led a mining expedition of 170 who passed through the western section of Crockett County to reach the Pecos River.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On May 22, 1684, Juan Domínguez de Mendoza and his expedition crossed the Pecos River and camped at San Pantaleón.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

John Coffee Hays's 1849 expedition charted waterholes for transporting people and freight.,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and three years later, U.S. Army Colonel Joseph K. Mansfield recommended establishing a new post on Live Oak Creek to protect travelers.<ref name="Crockett County"/> Fort Lancaster was established on August 20, 1855, in response to Mansfield's recommendation.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In 1866, the Texas legislature provided three battalions of Texas Rangers to protect settlers in the area.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Camp Melvin was established in 1868.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

On January 12, 1875, Crockett County, named for Davy Crockett, was formed from Bexar County.<ref name="Crockett County"/> Crockett County became a subsidiary of Val Verde County in 1885, and in 1887 was reduced further as Sutton and Schleicher counties were formed from part of its territory.<ref name="Crockett County"/> In 1889, Emerald became the first town in Crockett County.<ref name="Crockett County"/> Crockett County was organized in 1891, with Ozona serving as the county seat. The first water well was drilled at the First Baptist Church in Ozona that same year.<ref name="Crockett County"/>

One of the first settlers was W. P. Hoover, who settled on the Pecos River in 1885.<ref name="Crockett County"/> Throughout the next decade, sheep and cattle ranchers established themselves in the county. The Kirkpatrick Hotel was built to serve stagecoach passengers and cowboys.<ref name="Crockett County"/> Stagecoach services began running in 1900, and contemporary county reports listed seven manufacturing firms.<ref name="Crockett County"/> The Crockett County Courthouse was built in 1902 by architect Oscar Ruffini. The building does multiple duty for courtroom and county offices, as well as a community center and dance hall.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1925, the first producing oil well within the world, on L. P. Powell's ranch in north central Crockett County, by Chester R. Bunker's World Oil Company.<ref name="Crockett County"/><ref name=oo>Template:Cite book</ref> Ozona erected a statue of Davy Crockett in the town square in 1938<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and opened the Crockett County Museum the following year. In 1958, it was moved to its current location on the town square.<ref>Brochure, Crockett County Museum, Ozona, Texas</ref>

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, virtually all of which is land.<ref name="GR1">Template:Cite web</ref>

Major highways

Adjacent counties

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Upton County (north)
Reagan County (north)
Irion County (northeast)
Schleicher County (east)
Sutton County (east)
Val Verde County (south)
Terrell County (south)
Pecos County (west)
Crane County (northwest)

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Crockett County is among the few counties in the United States to border as many as nine counties.

Demographics

Template:US Census population

**Crockett 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)	1,792	1,312	1,080	43.72%	35.28%	34.86%
Black or African American alone (NH)	18	13	18	0.44%	0.35%	0.58%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	17	8	9	0.41%	0.22%	0.29%
Asian alone (NH)	10	11	10	0.24%	0.30%	0.32%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	0	0	0	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
Other race alone (NH)	4	4	9	0.10%	0.11%	0.29%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	16	19	52	0.39%	0.51%	1.68%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	2,242	2,352	1,920	54.70%	63.24%	61.98%
Total	4,099	3,719	3,098	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the census<ref name="GR8">Template:Cite web</ref> of 2000, there were 4,099 people, 1,524 households, and 1,114 families residing in the county. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 2,049 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the county was 76.34% White, 0.68% Black or African American, 0.59% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 19.71% from other races, and 2.39% from two or more races. 54.70% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 1,524 households, out of which 36.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.30% were married couples living together, 9.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.90% were non-families. 24.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.80% 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 3.19.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.90% under the age of 18, 7.10% from 18 to 24, 26.40% from 25 to 44, 24.70% from 45 to 64, and 12.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 98.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $29,355, and the median income for a family was $34,653. Males had a median income of $29,925 versus $14,695 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,414. About 14.90% of families and 19.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.30% of those under age 18 and 18.20% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Census-designated place

Ozona (county seat)

Ghost town

Emerald

Politics

References

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External links

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