Briscoe County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

located in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,435. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

is Silverton. The county was created in 1876 and later organized in 1892. It is named for

Andrew Briscoe Andrew Briscoe (November 25, 1810 – October 4, 1849) was a merchant, revolutionary, soldier, and jurist. He was an organizer of the Texas Revolution, attending the Convention of 1836 and signing the Texas Declaration of Independence. He foug ...

, a soldier during the Texas Revolution. At one time, the large JA Ranch, founded by Charles Goodnight and

John George Adair John George Adair (3 March 1823– 4 May, 1885), sometimes known as Jack Adair, born in County Laois, Ireland, was a Scots-Irish businessman and landowner, financier of JA Ranch in the Texas Panhandle. Adair had made his fortune in Ireland bu ...

, reached into Briscoe County. After he left the JA, Goodnight owned the Quitaque Ranch. The prominent

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

and college

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

Gene Mayfield Clurel Eugene Mayfield, known as Gene Mayfield (January 31, 1928 – October 2, 2009), was an American football coach in Texas high schools and at West Texas A&M University. In May 2005, Mayfield was inducted into the Texas High School Coaches Ha ...

was born in Briscoe County in 1928.

Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway is a Texas state park located along the eastern edge of the Llano Estacado in Briscoe County, Texas, United States, approximately southeast of Amarillo. The state park opened in 1982 and is in size, mak ...

is located in Briscoe County.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.2%) is water.

Tule Canyon

Mackenzie Reservoir formed after water on Tule Creek was impounded. In 1972 the project was begun, just east of the site of the slaughter of the Indian ponies by Col.

Ranald S. Mackenzie Ranald Slidell Mackenzie, also called Bad Hand, (July 27, 1840 – January 19, 1889) was a career United States Army officer and general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was described by General Ulysses S. Grant as its ...

's Fourth Cavalry in 1874.

Major highways

State Highway 86 * Texas 207

State Highway 207

Adjacent counties

* Armstrong County (north) * Donley County (northeast) * Hall County (east) * Motley County (southeast) * Floyd County (south) * Swisher County (west)

Demographics

''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.'' As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 1,790 people, 724 households, and 511 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 2 people per square mile (1/km²). There were 1,006 housing units at an average density of 1 per square mile (0/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 83.35%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 2.29%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.39% Native American, 0.06%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 11.45% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 2.46% from two or more races. 22.74% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race. There were 724 households, out of which 29.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.30% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 7.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.40% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.03. In the county, the population was spread out, with 27.10% under the age of 18, 6.80% from 18 to 24, 22.00% from 25 to 44, 24.80% from 45 to 64, and 19.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 95.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.80 males. The median income for a household in the county was $29,917, and the median income for a family was $35,326. Males had a median income of $25,854 versus $17,500 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $14,218. About 11.50% of families and 16.00% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 23.00% of those under age 18 and 12.50% of those age 65 or over.

Education

* Silverton Independent School District * Clarendon Independent School District partial *

Turkey-Quitaque Independent School District Turkey-Quitaque Independent School District is a public school district based in Turkey, Texas (USA). Located mostly in Hall County, the district extends into portions of Briscoe, Floyd, and Motley Counties, and serves the communities of Turk ...

partial

Communities

* Quitaque * Silverton (county seat)

Politics

References

External links

Briscoe County

Briscoe County in ''Handbook of Texas Online''
at the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

Briscoe County Profile from the Texas Association of Counties

Mackenzie Reservoir in Texas Parks & Wildlife

Mackenzie Reservoir in ''Handbook of Texas Online''

{{coord, 34.53, -101.21, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-TX_source:UScensus1990 1892 establishments in Texas Populated places established in 1892 Texas Panhandle