Bowie County, Texas
Bowie County | |
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UTC−5 (CDT) | |
Congressional districts | 1st, 4th |
Website | www |
Bowie County (/ˈbuːi/ BOO-ee[1]) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. Its legal county seat is Boston, though its courthouse is located in New Boston.[2] As of the 2020 census, the population was 92,893.[3] Bowie County is part of the Texarkana metropolitan statistical area. The county is named for James Bowie, the legendary knife fighter who died at the Battle of the Alamo.[4]
History
Native Americans
The farming
Explorations and county established
French explorer
Bowie County, in the years leading up to the American Civil War, was settled mostly by Southerners who brought their slave labor to work the cotton fields. By 1860, slaves outnumbered whites 2,651 to 2,401. The county voted 208–15 in favor of secession from the Union.[11] While Bowie was never a battlefield in that war, it was occupied during Reconstruction. Between 1860 and 1870, the population declined. The occupation, and the new legal equality of blacks, became a hostile situation that fostered Cullen Baker.
When the Texas and Pacific Railway was constructed through the county, a new town named Texarkana was founded.[16][17]
Bowie was hit hard by the Great Depression. Measurable relief came late when the Lone Star Army Ammunition Plant was established in 1942. The base was active until 2009.[18] The Red River Army Depot,[19] opened in 1941, remains active. The two installations occupied almost 40,000 acres (160 km2) and provided job opportunities for thousands.
Geography
According to the
Bowie County, Texas is one of only three counties in Texas to border two other U.S. states (the others being Dallam and Cass). Bowie County forms part of the tripoint of Texas-Oklahoma-Arkansas.
Communities
Cities
|
Unincorporated communities
Ghost towns
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1850 | 2,912 | — | |
1860 | 5,052 | 73.5% | |
1870 | 4,684 | −7.3% | |
1880 | 10,965 | 134.1% | |
1890 | 20,267 | 84.8% | |
1900 | 26,676 | 31.6% | |
1910 | 34,827 | 30.6% | |
1920 | 39,472 | 13.3% | |
1930 | 48,563 | 23.0% | |
1940 | 50,208 | 3.4% | |
1950 | 61,966 | 23.4% | |
1960 | 59,971 | −3.2% | |
1970 | 67,813 | 13.1% | |
1980 | 75,301 | 11.0% | |
1990 | 81,665 | 8.5% | |
2000 | 89,306 | 9.4% | |
2010 | 92,565 | 3.6% | |
2020 | 92,893 | 0.4% | |
U.S. Decennial Census[21] 1850–2010[22] 2010–2020[23] |
Race / Ethnicity | Pop 2010[24] | Pop 2020[23] | % 2010 | % 2020 |
---|---|---|---|---|
White alone (NH)
|
61,343 | 55,855 | 66.27% | 60.13% |
Black or African American alone (NH)
|
22,230 | 23,084 | 24.02% | 24.85% |
Alaska Native alone (NH)
|
572 | 554 | 0.62% | 0.60% |
Asian alone (NH) | 721 | 1,082 | 0.78% | 1.16% |
Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 45 | 69 | 0.05% | 0.07% |
Some Other Race alone (NH) | 88 | 332 | 0.10% | 0.36% |
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH) | 1,504 | 4,315 | 1.62% | 4.65% |
Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 6,062 | 7,602 | 6.55% | 8.18% |
Total | 92,565 | 92,893 | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.
At of the
Government and politics
Barry Telford Unit, a Texas Department of Criminal Justice prison for men, is in an unincorporated area of the county, near New Boston.[26] Federal Correctional Institution, Texarkana, is a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility in unincorporated Bowie County, near Texarkana, Texas.[27][28]
Bowie County is no longer one of the seven
Politics
Bowie County had voting patterns similar to the Solid South up until 1976. The county has trended steadily towards the GOP with each election in the 21st century. The last Democrat to win this county was Bill Clinton of neighboring Arkansas, with which the county shares the Texarkana metropolitan area, in both of his national victories.
Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
2020 | 27,116 | 70.87% | 10,747 | 28.09% | 398 | 1.04% |
2016 | 24,924 | 72.03% | 8,838 | 25.54% | 840 | 2.43% |
2012 | 24,869 | 70.24% | 10,196 | 28.80% | 339 | 0.96% |
2008 | 24,162 | 68.67% | 10,815 | 30.74% | 209 | 0.59% |
2004 | 21,791 | 64.55% | 11,880 | 35.19% | 89 | 0.26% |
2000 | 18,325 | 60.44% | 11,662 | 38.46% | 333 | 1.10% |
1996 | 12,750 | 43.56% | 13,657 | 46.66% | 2,863 | 9.78% |
1992 | 11,776 | 38.78% | 11,825 | 38.94% | 6,764 | 22.28% |
1988 | 15,454 | 55.31% | 12,331 | 44.13% | 156 | 0.56% |
1984 | 18,244 | 64.22% | 10,077 | 35.47% | 88 | 0.31% |
1980 | 13,942 | 54.35% | 11,339 | 44.21% | 369 | 1.44% |
1976 | 9,590 | 43.17% | 12,445 | 56.02% | 179 | 0.81% |
1972 | 14,722 | 73.55% | 5,227 | 26.12% | 66 | 0.33% |
1968 | 5,966 | 30.44% | 6,468 | 33.00% | 7,165 | 36.56% |
1964 | 7,018 | 40.31% | 10,368 | 59.55% | 24 | 0.14% |
1960 | 5,927 | 39.01% | 9,198 | 60.54% | 68 | 0.45% |
1956 | 6,823 | 46.73% | 7,675 | 52.56% | 104 | 0.71% |
1952 | 6,501 | 38.34% | 10,437 | 61.56% | 16 | 0.09% |
1948 | 1,161 | 11.22% | 7,028 | 67.95% | 2,154 | 20.83% |
1944 | 790 | 8.87% | 7,045 | 79.14% | 1,067 | 11.99% |
1940 | 1,107 | 13.75% | 6,937 | 86.18% | 5 | 0.06% |
1936 | 472 | 8.55% | 5,030 | 91.11% | 19 | 0.34% |
1932 | 541 | 9.28% | 5,269 | 90.39% | 19 | 0.33% |
1928 | 2,225 | 42.57% | 3,002 | 57.43% | 0 | 0.00% |
1924 | 740 | 16.58% | 3,455 | 77.40% | 269 | 6.03% |
1920 | 1,032 | 26.80% | 2,396 | 62.22% | 423 | 10.98% |
1916 | 414 | 15.72% | 1,941 | 73.69% | 279 | 10.59% |
1912 | 317 | 15.15% | 1,542 | 73.71% | 233 | 11.14% |
Education
These school districts serve Bowie County:[32]
|
All of Bowie County is in the service area and taxation area of Texarkana College.[33]
Notable People
- Jean Baptiste Brevelle (1698-1754), early 18th century explorer, trader and soldier of Fort Saint Jean Baptiste des Natchitoches and Le Poste des Cadodaquious, the first European settlement in the county. Namesake of nearby Brevelle Lake.[34]
Transportation
Major highways present in Bowie County include the following:
- I-30
- I-49
- I-369
- US 59
- US 67
- US 71
- US 82
- US 259
- SH 8
- SH 93
- SH 98
- Loop 151
- FM 44
- FM 558
- FM 559
- FM 560
- FM 989
See also
- Le Poste des Cadodaquious, a French fort established in Bowie County in 1719
- Brevelle Lake, a North Texas lake named for French soldier and explorer of Le Poste des Cadodaquious
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Bowie County, Texas
- Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Bowie County
References
- ^ "How to Pronounce: B Cities". texastripper.com. September 23, 2014. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ a b "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Bowie County, Texas". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
- ^ "TSHA | Bowie County". www.tshaonline.org. Retrieved May 10, 2023.
- ^ "Caddo Timeline". Texas Beyond History. Retrieved May 14, 2010. UT Texas at Austin
- ^ "Caddo". Oklahoma Historical Society. Archived from the original on July 19, 2010. Retrieved May 14, 2010. Oklahoma Historical Society
- ^ Britton, Morris L: Le Poste des Cadodaquious from the Handbook of Texas Online. Retrieved May 14, 2010. Texas State Historical Association
- ^ Flores, Dan L.: Red River Expedition from the Handbook of Texas Online. Retrieved May 14, 2010. Texas State Historical Association
- ^ "DeKalb, Texas". Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved May 14, 2010. Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC.
- ^ "Boston, Texas". Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved May 14, 2010. Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC.
- ^ a b Harper Jr., Cecil: Bowie County from the Handbook of Texas Online. Retrieved May 14, 2010. Texas State Historical Association
- ISBN 978-1-58980-599-6.
- ^ Sulphur River, Texas from the Handbook of Texas Online. Retrieved May 14, 2010. Texas State Historical Association
- ISBN 978-0-8071-2140-5.
- ^ a b Crouch, Barry A: Cullen Montgomery Baker from the Handbook of Texas Online. Retrieved May 14, 2010. Texas State Historical Association
- ^ "Texas and Pacific Railway". Texas and Pacific Railway. Retrieved May 14, 2010.
- ^ "Texarkana, Texas". Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved May 14, 2010. Texas Escapes – Blueprints For Travel, LLC.
- ^ Montgomery, Rebecca J. "Lone Star Army Ammunition Plant Deactivates". United States Army. Retrieved May 14, 2010. =United States Army
- ^ "Defense Distribution Depot Red RiverRed River Army Depot (RRAD)". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved May 14, 2010. GlobalSecurity.org
- ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
- US Census Bureau.
- ^ "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010" (PDF). Texas Almanac. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved April 19, 2015.
- ^ a b c "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Bowie County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
- ^ "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Bowie County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 14, 2011.
- ^ "Telford TO", Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Accessed January 8, 2014
- ^ "FCI Texarkana Contact Information". Federal Bureau of Prisons. Archived from the original on May 27, 2010. Retrieved June 2, 2010.
- ^ "Ward Map". City of Texarkana, Texas. Archived from the original on January 27, 2011. Retrieved July 2, 2010.
- ^ "Nash, Texas legalizes alcohol sales - ArkLatexHomepage.com". Archived from the original on January 19, 2015. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
- ^ Walsh, Field (November 5, 2014). "Texarkana, Texas Voters Approve Beer and Wine Sales - Texarkana Today". txktoday.com.
- ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org.
- U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved August 31, 2023. - Text list of districts
- ^ Texas Education Code, "Sec. 130.203. TEXARKANA COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA."
- ^ "Summary Report: Brevelle Lake". United States Geological Service. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
External links
- Bowie County government
- Bowie County from the Handbook of Texas Online
- Bowie County from the Texas Almanac
- Bowie County from the TXGenWeb Project