![Howe flag (2)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/Howe_flag_%282%29.jpg)
Howe is a town in
Grayson County, Texas
Grayson County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, its population was 135,543. The county seat is Sherman, Texas, Sherman. The county was founded in 1846 and is named ...
, United States. The population was 3,451 in the
2020 U.S. 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 ...
. It is part of the
Sherman
Sherman most commonly refers to:
*Sherman (name), a surname and given name (and list of persons with the name)
** William Tecumseh Sherman (1820–1891), American Civil War General
*M4 Sherman, a tank
Sherman may also refer to:
Places United St ...
–
Denison metropolitan statistical area
In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...
.
History
![1910 Howe Texas Map](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/1910_Howe_Texas_Map.jpg)
The first settlers in the area arrived around the time of the
Texas Revolution in 1836. In 1843, the last Indian battle in Grayson County was said to have been fought in the area. The first settlers of Howe were Jabez and Harriet Haning, and Jabez's brother John. They received land through the Peters colony after their arrival from
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
before 1850. The
Houston and Texas Central Railway
The Houston and Texas Central Railway (H&TC), was an 872-mile (1403-km) railway system chartered in Texas in 1848, with construction beginning in 1856. The line eventually stretched from Houston northward to Dallas and Denison, Texas. with branch ...
built through the area in 1873, and a
railroad switch
A railroad switch (), turnout, or ''set ofpoints () is a mechanical installation enabling railway trains to be guided from one track to another, such as at a railway junction or where a spur or siding branches off.
The most common ty ...
was located in the community. It was called "Summit" because at above sea level, it was supposed to be the highest point between the
Red River and the
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...
. In 1873, when Summit received a post office, two businesses were located at the switch—a general store and a saloon. Several houses were built to the east of the switch. Jabez Haning persuaded the railroad to establish a depot on his land by donating every second lot in his newly platted town to the railroad. The names of the depot, the store, and the post office were changed in 1876 to "Howe", after F. M. Howe, who worked for the Houston and Texas Central. Howe had three saloons until around 1900, when the town voted to go
dry. Its first one-room school building opened in 1877 and was replaced by a two-story building in 1884.
In 1884, Howe was incorporated, with George M. McCrary as mayor. By the late 1880s, the town had become a major
grain shipping center and was the home of red rust-proof oats. A number of seed companies had their beginnings there in that decade. Howe became home to a Farmers' Alliance Cooperative Association, which was absorbed by the Howe Grain and Mercantile Company in 1894. In 1890, Howe had a population of 450, a steam
gristmill
A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...
, a Farmers' Alliance Cooperative, and
Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...
and
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...
churches, as well as a number of hotels, doctors, druggists, and barbers. Several newspapers were published in Howe, such as the ''Howe Herald'' from 1890 to the 1910s and the ''Howe Messenger'' in the late 1930s and early '40s. During the 1930s, the ''Howe Chronicle'' was published by former Governor
James E. Ferguson and his brother A. M. Ferguson. The ''Howe Enterprise'' was established in 1963 by A.P. "Pop" Sloan.
On May 15, 1896, an F5 category tornado passed through the west side of Howe and the Farmington community, sweeping away around 17 homes. On October 6, 1904, ''The Arlington Journal'' reported a fire through Howe's business district and named four stores it destroyed.
By 1914, the Texas Traction Company, better known as the Interurban, was providing service to Howe. This electric train ran between
Denison and
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
with a stop in Howe. By 1914, Howe also had the Farmers National Bank, the ''Howe Herald'', three
grain elevator
A grain elevator is a facility designed to stockpile or store grain. In the grain trade, the term "grain elevator" also describes a tower containing a bucket elevator or a pneumatic conveyor, which scoops up grain from a lower level and deposits ...
s, and an ice plant. The community's population had grown from 521 in 1904 to 680 in the early 1960s. After then, it rose rapidly through the early 1980s, reaching 2,173 by 1990. By 2000, the population was 2,478.
Throughout most of its history, Howe remained primarily an agricultural center, but some oil has been produced in the area. During the early 1980s, Howe reported some 30 businesses. In 1981, local industries included a shirt manufacturer and a hydraulics company, and by 1991, the number of manufacturers in Howe had risen to five, including makers of plastics, electronics, and agricultural equipment.
On April 26, 2016, an F1 category tornado struck Howe around 10:00 pm, injuring three people and damaging over 20 homes. It started in a field behind the Summit Hill housing division, where a home was destroyed off Smith Road, then it proceeded northeast and crossed US Hwy 75, where trucker Gene Marshall was filming it; the storm tossed his truck and semitrailer to the other side of the road along with three cars. It then hit the north side of the high school before going directly through Stark Lane. It then proceeded to the Luella/Ida area before it dissipated.
Geography
Howe is located in southern Grayson County at (33.505089, –96.614239).
It is at the intersection of
U.S. Highway 75
U.S. Route 75 is a major north–south U.S. Highway that extends in the central United States. The highway's northern terminus is in Noyes, Minnesota, at the Canadian border, where it once continued as Manitoba Highway 75 on the other sid ...
,
Texas State Highway 5
State Highway 5 (SH 5) runs along the old route of U.S. Highway 75 (Texas), U.S. Highway 75 at Howe, Texas, Howe into the city of Allen, Texas, Allen. SH 5 parallels US 75 along its length and runs alongside the former Houston and Texas Central ...
, and Farm Road 902, and it is bordered to the north by
Sherman
Sherman most commonly refers to:
*Sherman (name), a surname and given name (and list of persons with the name)
** William Tecumseh Sherman (1820–1891), American Civil War General
*M4 Sherman, a tank
Sherman may also refer to:
Places United St ...
, the
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 ...
.
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 town has a total area of , all of it land.
Howe's elevation of is the highest point along US 75 between the Red River and the Gulf of Mexico.
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 ...
, there were 3,571 people, 1,069 households, and 775 families residing in the town.
2000 census
At the 2000
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 ...
,
2,478 people, 924 households, and 693 families resided in the town. 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 641.2 per square mile (247.9/km). The 997 housing units averaged 258.0 per square mile (99.7/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 town was 94.87% White, 0.52% African American, 0.52% Native American, 0.12% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 2.10% from other races, and 1.78% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 4.56% of the population.
Of the 924 households, 44.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% were married couples living together, 15.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.0% were not families. About 21.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68, and the average family size was 3.14.
The population was distributed as 31.9% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 32.1% from 25 to 44, 17.8% from 45 to 64, and 8.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.6 males.
The
median household income
The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two equal groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of ...
was $34,963, and the median family income was $41,125. Males had a median income of $34,625 versus $22,829 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 town was $15,664. About 9.9% of families and 12.4% 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 12.4% of those under age 18 and 20.9% of those age 65 or over.
Traditions
Founders Day
![2015 0425 Founders Day, Howe (12)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/2015_0425_Founders_Day%2C_Howe_%2812%29.jpg)
Howe celebrates its history and origins every May with a Founders Day celebration. The first Founders Day in 1986 featured a professional rodeo along with many festival events. Each year, vendors line up in the downtown parking spaces with items for sale. The festival features food, shaved ice, bounce houses, and the like. It is a product of the Howe Area Chamber of Commerce. The city celebrated the 30th anniversary of Founders Day in on May 7, 2016, with live music most of the evening.
Education
The city is served by the
Howe Independent School District
Howe Independent School District is a public school district based in Howe, Texas ( USA). In addition to Howe, the district serves the nearby town of Dorchester.
In 2009, the school district was rated " recognized" by the Texas Education Ag ...
and is home to the
Howe High School Bulldogs.
Media
Newspapers
* ''
The Howe Enterprise''
* ''
The Herald Democrat
''The Herald Democrat'' is a daily newspaper located in the twin cities of Sherman and Denison, Texas, in the United States. The ''Herald Democrat'' serves all of Grayson and Fannin County, Texas; parts of Collin, Cooke, Denton, Delta, La ...
''
Radio stations
*
KLAK
KLAK (97.5 FM) is a radio station licensed to Tom Bean, Texas, serving the Texoma region and the northeast portions of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The station broadcasts an adult contemporary format, with current-day music and re-curren ...
Adult Contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
97.5
*
KMAD Mad Rock 102.5
*
KMKT Katy Country 93.1
* KDOC Doc FM 107.3
Television stations
*
KTEN
KTEN (channel 10) is a television station licensed to Ada, Oklahoma, United States, serving the Sherman, Texas–Ada, Oklahoma market as an affiliate of NBC, The CW Plus, and ABC. The station is owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group, and maintain ...
Channel 10 – (NBC)
*
KTEN
KTEN (channel 10) is a television station licensed to Ada, Oklahoma, United States, serving the Sherman, Texas–Ada, Oklahoma market as an affiliate of NBC, The CW Plus, and ABC. The station is owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group, and maintain ...
DT Channel 10.2 – (The CW Texoma)
*
KTEN
KTEN (channel 10) is a television station licensed to Ada, Oklahoma, United States, serving the Sherman, Texas–Ada, Oklahoma market as an affiliate of NBC, The CW Plus, and ABC. The station is owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group, and maintain ...
DT Channel 10.3 – (ABC)
*
KXII
KXII (channel 12) is a television station licensed to Sherman, Texas, United States, serving the Sherman, Texas–Ada, Oklahoma market as an affiliate of CBS, MyNetworkTV, and Fox. Owned by Gray Television, the station maintains studios on Te ...
Channel 12 – (CBS)
*
KXII
KXII (channel 12) is a television station licensed to Sherman, Texas, United States, serving the Sherman, Texas–Ada, Oklahoma market as an affiliate of CBS, MyNetworkTV, and Fox. Owned by Gray Television, the station maintains studios on Te ...
DT Channel 12.2 (My Texoma)
*
KXII
KXII (channel 12) is a television station licensed to Sherman, Texas, United States, serving the Sherman, Texas–Ada, Oklahoma market as an affiliate of CBS, MyNetworkTV, and Fox. Owned by Gray Television, the station maintains studios on Te ...
DT Channel 12.3 (Fox Texoma)
Notable people
*
Dale Milford,
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 ...
, was a resident of Howe at the time of his death
MILFORD, Dale, (1926 - 1997)
at Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
The ''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress'' (Bioguide) is a biographical dictionary of all present and former members of the United States Congress and its predecessor, the Continental Congress. Also included are Delegates from ...
References
External links
City of Howe official website
Howe Development Alliance
Howe Area of Commerce
Howe Independent School District
Texas State Historical Association
{{authority control
Towns in Grayson County, Texas
Towns in Texas