San Patricio County is 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 so ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. As of the 2020 census, its population was 68,755. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Sinton. San Patricio County is part of the Corpus Christi metropolitan statistical area.

History

In 1828, 200 Irish Catholic families, recruited from Ireland and the Irish population of New York City, contracted with the Mexican government to settle on 80 leagues of land in this area. By 1836, about 500 people lived in the colony on 84 Mexican land grants. During the

Texas Revolution The Texas Revolution (October 2, 1835 – April 21, 1836) was a rebellion of colonists from the United States and Tejanos (Hispanic Texans) against the Centralist Republic of Mexico, centralist government of Mexico in the Mexican state of ...

, most fled from the colony because of fighting in the area. By 1841, a small number of permanent residents had returned. When Texas was admitted by treaty to the United States in 1845, the area was stabilized by the presence of U.S. troops under General

Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military officer and politician who was the 12th president of the United States, serving from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States ...

. In 1845, the county was formed (San Patricio is Spanish for

Saint Patrick Saint Patrick (; or ; ) was a fifth-century Romano-British culture, Romano-British Christian missionary and Archbishop of Armagh, bishop in Gaelic Ireland, Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Irelan ...

, the primary

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

of the colonists' home country of Ireland), and Corpus Christi was designated as the county seat. The following year, the county south of the

Nueces River The Nueces River ( ; , ) is a river in the U.S. state of Texas, about long. It drains a region in central and southern Texas southeastward into the Gulf of Mexico. It is the southernmost major river in Texas northeast of the Rio Grande. ''Nu ...

was reorganized as Nueces County, and the town of San Patricio became the county seat of San Patricio County. In 1848, additional counties were formed out of San Patricio, which further reduced its size. The 1850 U.S. census listed only 200 people in the county, including three slaves. The local economy was based on cattle raising. In the mid-1860s, more settlers moved, drawn by the cheap land. By 1870, 602 people lived in the county, and the agricultural census reported 51 farms and ranches, totaling , in the area, with about described as "improved". Development of the county intensified during the early 20th century, as hundreds of farmers moved in from

North Texas North Texas is a term used primarily by residents of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex to refer to a geographic area of Texas, generally considered to include the area south of Oklahoma, east of Abilene, Texas, Abilene, west of Paris, Texas, Par ...

and other states. The population reached 7,307 by 1910, and was 11,386 by 1920; 470 farms were counted in 1910, and 757 farms in 1920. Cattle ranching remained important, but vegetables and cotton also became important. The acres planted in the cotton increased from about in 1910 to by 1930.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, 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 U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the county has a total area of , of which are land and (2.0%) are covered by water. The

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

forms the eastern border of the county.

Major highways

* Interstate 37 * U.S. Highway 77 ** Interstate 69E is currently under construction and will follow the current route of U.S. 77 in most places. * U.S. Highway 181 * State Highway 35 * State Highway 188 * State Highway 359 * State Highway 361 * Farm to Market Road 136

Adjacent counties

* Bee County (north) * Refugio County (north) * Aransas County (northeast) * Nueces County (south) * Jim Wells County (southwest) * Live Oak County (northwest)

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, 68,755 people, 23,422 households, and 16,838 families were residing in the county. As of the 2000

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

67,138 people, 22,093 households, and 17,232 families resided in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

was . The 24,864 housing units averaged . The racial makeup of the county was 76.76% White, 2.81% African American, 0.70% Native American, 0.63% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 15.94% from other races, and 3.05% from two or more races. About 49.42% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 22,093 households, 41.6% had children under 18 living with them, 60.6% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.0% were not families. About 18.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.0% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.97, and the average family size was 3.40. In the county, the age distribution was 31.1% under 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.5% who were 65 or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.30 males. The median income for a household in the county was $34,836, and for a family was $40,002. Males had a median income of $31,132 versus $20,730 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $15,425. About 14.60% of families and 18.00% 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 ...

, including 23.50% of those under age 18 and 16.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities (multiple counties)

* Aransas Pass (partly in Aransas and Nueces Counties) * Corpus Christi (mostly in Nueces County, with small parts in Kleberg and Aransas Counties) * Ingleside (small part in Nueces County) *

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

(small part in Nueces County) * San Patricio (small part in Nueces County)

Cities

* Gregory * Ingleside on the Bay * Mathis * Odem * Sinton (county seat) * Taft

Towns

* Lake City * Lakeside

Census-designated places

* Del Sol * Edgewater Estates * Edroy * Falman * La Paloma Addition * Lakeshore Gardens-Hidden Acres * Loma Linda * Morgan Farm * Paisano Park * Rancho Chico * St. Paul * Taft Southwest * Tradewinds

Former census-designated places

* Del Sol-Loma Linda * Doyle * Country Acres (annexed in 2022 by city of Aransas Pass) * Edgewater-Paisano * Falman-County Acres

Unincorporated community

* Sodville

Education

School districts include: * Aransas Pass Independent School District * Gregory-Portland Independent School District * Ingleside Independent School District * Mathis Independent School District * Odem-Edroy Independent School District * Sinton Independent School District * Skidmore-Tynan Independent School District * Taft Independent School District Del Mar College is the designated community college for all of San Patricio County.

Government and politics

Government

San Patricio County, like all counties in Texas, is governed by a

commissioners' court Commissioners' court, or in Arkansas a quorum court, is the governing body of county government in three US states: Arkansas, Texas and Missouri. It is similar in function to a board of county commissioners. A similar system was in place in the ...

. This court consists of the county judge (the chairperson of the court), who is elected county-wide, and four commissioners who are elected by the voters in each of four precincts. The commissioners' court is the policy-making body for the county; in addition, the county judge is the senior executive and administrative position in the county. The Commissioners' Court sets the county tax rate, adopts the budget, appoints boards and commissions, approves grants and personnel actions, and oversees the administration of county government. Each commissioner also supervises a Road and Bridge District.

County commissioners

County officials

Constables

Justices of the peace

County courts

District Courts

Politics

Despite bein
majority-minority
San Patricio county leans overwhelmingly Republican. The GOP does better than average among Latino residents in Texas, particularly south Texas. In 2022, Republicans won 40% of the Latino vote. This has been as high as 48% in 2014. These margins help Republicans win majority-minority districts, while Republicans in other parts of the country struggle - only garnering between 21% and 30% of the vote. Republicans appear to be increasing their Latino support from picking off specific segments: Men, rural Latinos, Rio Grande Valley, devout Catholics, Tejano and pro-life voters.

References

External links

San Patricio County government's website
*
Historic San Patricio County materials
hosted by th
Portal to Texas History.

"San Patricio County Profile" from the Texas Association of Counties
* {{coord, 28.01, -97.52, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-TX_source:UScensus1990 1836 establishments in the Republic of Texas Populated places established in 1836 Irish-American history and culture in Texas Hurricane Ike