Dimmitt ( ) is a city and

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 ...

Castro County, Texas Castro County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 7,371. Its county seat is Dimmitt, Texas, Dimmitt. The county was named for Henri Castro, ...

, United States. Its population was 4,393 at the 2010 census.

History

Dimmitt is located on the old Ozark Trail, a road system from

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

, to

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...

. The Ozark Trail is marked at the courthouse. In 1942, a

meteorite A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the surface of a planet or Natural satellite, moon. When the ...

was discovered in Castro County and named after the town of Dimmitt. It is one of 311 approved meteorites from Texas.

Geography

Dimmitt is located slightly west of the center of Castro County at (34.549052, –102.315355). According to the

United States 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 city has a total area of , of which , or 3.26%, is covered by water.

U.S. Route 385 U.S. Route 385 (US 385) is a spur of U.S. Route 85 that runs for 1,206 miles (1,941 km) from Deadwood, South Dakota to Big Bend National Park in Texas. Route description , - , TX , 545 , 877 , - , OK , 36 , 58 , - , CO , 317 , 510 ...

passes through the city, leading north to

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...

, the seat of Deaf Smith County, and south to Springlake.

Texas State Highway 86 State Highway 86 (SH 86) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Texas that runs from Texico to Estelline. This route was designated on August 21, 1923 as the renumbered SH 5A. On September 17, 1923, the section from Estelline to Turkey was ...

crosses US 385 near the center of town and leads east to Tulia and west to Bovina.

Climate

Demographics

2020 census

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, 4,171 people, 1,458 households, and 1,016 families were residing in the city.

2010 census

As of the

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

, 4,393 people were living in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 68.8% Hispanic or Latino, 27.6% White, 2.3% Black, 0.3% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.1% from some other race, and 0.3% from two or more races.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, 4,375 people, 1,464 households, and 1,124 families were living in the city. The population density was 2,116.4 people per square mile (816.0/km). The 1,692 housing units had an average density of 818.5 per square mile (315.6/km). The

racial makeup A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

of the city was 75.02% White, 2.99% African American, 1.69% Native American, 18.10% from other races, and 2.19% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 56.94% of the population. Of the 1,464 households, 39.6% had children under 18 living with them, 60.7% were married couples living together, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.2% were not families. About 22.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.94 and the average family size was 3.46. In the city, the age distribution was 33.4% under 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 22.2% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $27,454, and for a family was $33,885. Males had a median income of $24,575 versus $20,162 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,228. About 19.0% of families and 23.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.1% of those under age 18 and 16.4% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Dimmitt is served by the Dimmitt Independent School District. The district has a history in sports, mainly basketball. The Bobcats and Bobbies have won several state championships. ;Bobbies * 1953–1954 1A-2A Dimmitt * 1954–1955 1A Dimmitt * 1992–1993 3A Dimmitt ;Bobcats * 1951–1952 1A-2A Division 2 Dimmitt * 1974–1975 2A Dimmitt * 1981–1982 3A Dimmitt * 1982–1983 3A Dimmitt

Healthcare

Dimmitt is served by the Castro County Healthcare System. It also serves the surrounding county and the cities of

Nazareth Nazareth ( ; ar, النَّاصِرَة, ''an-Nāṣira''; he, נָצְרַת, ''Nāṣəraṯ''; arc, ܢܨܪܬ, ''Naṣrath'') is the largest city in the Northern District of Israel. Nazareth is known as "the Arab capital of Israel". In ...

and

Hart Hart often refers to: * Hart (deer) Hart may also refer to: Organizations * Hart Racing Engines, a former Formula One engine manufacturer * Hart Skis, US ski manufacturer * Hart Stores, a Canadian chain of department stores * Hart's Reptile W ...

Notable people

Junior Coffey Junior Lee Coffey (March 21, 1942 – August 30, 2021) was an American professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) with the Green Bay Packers, Atlanta Falcons, and New York Giants. Early years Born ...

, former NFL football player *

Kent Hance Kent Ronald Hance (born November 14, 1942) is an American politician and lawyer who is the former Chancellor of the Texas Tech University System. In his role, he oversaw Texas Tech University, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and Ange ...

, former

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from the Texas South Plains, former member of the

Texas Railroad Commission The Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC; also sometimes called the Texas Railroad Commission, TRC) is the state agency that regulates the oil and gas industry, gas utilities, pipeline safety, safety in the liquefied petroleum gas industry, and su ...

, and the chancellor of

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sys ...

Lubbock Lubbock ( ) is the 10th-most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of government of Lubbock County. With a population of 260,993 in 2021, the city is also the 85th-most populous in the United States. The city is in the northwe ...

since 2006; born in Dimmitt and graduated in 1961 from Dimmitt High School * Herbert E. Mayfield (1920–2008), Bluegrass musician; grew up in Dimmitt. Herb Mayfield lived there through adulthood and was a former president of the Dimmitt

Rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working va ...

Association * Smokey Mayfield (1924–2008), Bluegrass musician * Thomas Edward "Edd" Mayfield (1926–1958), bluegrass musician *

Lometa Odom Lometa Ruth Odom (November 29, 1933 – January 27, 2017) was an American women's basketball player and coach. Odom played for Wayland Baptist from 1953 to 1956 during which the team began a streak of 131 consecutive victories (the longest streak ...

(1933–2017) basketball player and coach, member of the

Women's Basketball Hall of Fame The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame honors those who have contributed to the sport of women's basketball. The Hall of Fame opened in 1999 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. It is the only facility of its kind dedicated to all levels of women's bask ...

Gallery

Image:Dimmitt, TX, welcome sign IMG 4819.JPG, Dimmitt welcome sign Image:Sheep feeder lot south of Dimmitt, TX IMG 4812.JPG, Sheep

feed lot A feedlot or feed yard is a type of animal feeding operation (AFO) which is used in intensive animal farming, notably beef cattle, but also swine, horses, sheep, turkeys, chickens or ducks, prior to slaughter. Large beef feedlots are called conc ...

south of Dimmitt Image:Ozark Trail marker in Dimmitt, TX IMG 4829.JPG, Ozark Trail in Dimmitt Image:Gazebo at courthouse square, Dimmitt, TX IMG 4824.JPG,

Gazebo A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal or turret-shaped, often built in a park, garden or spacious public area. Some are used on occasions as bandstands. Etymology The etymology given by Oxford Dictionaries (website), Oxford D ...

at courthouse square in Dimmitt Image:Former Carlile Theater in Dimmitt, TX IMG 4820.JPG, Former Carlile Theater in Dimmitt

References

External links

Dimmitt Chamber of Commerce