West Texas is a loosely defined
region 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 sove ...
of
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
, generally encompassing the
arid and
semiarid
A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi- ...
lands west of a line drawn between the cities of
Wichita Falls
Wichita Falls ( ) is a city in and the seat of government of Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the principal city of the Wichita Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay, and Wichita counties. According ...
,
Abilene, and
Del Rio.
No consensus exists on the boundary between
East Texas and West Texas. While most Texans understand these terms, no boundaries are officially recognized and any two individuals are likely to describe the boundaries of these regions differently.
Walter Prescott Webb
Walter Prescott Webb (April 3, 1888 in Panola County, Texas – March 8, 1963 near Austin, Texas) was an American historian noted for his groundbreaking work on the American West. As president of the Texas State Historical Association, he la ...
, American historian and geographer, suggested that the
98th meridian separates East and West Texas; Texas writer A.C. Greene proposed that West Texas extends west of the
Brazos River. Use of a single line, though, seems to preclude the use of other separators, such as an area—
Central Texas. Unlike East Texas, West Texas is not generally considered to be part of the
American South, and the dry, desert climate is often more associated with the
American Southwest
The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado ...
.
West Texas is often subdivided according to distinct physiographic features. The portion of West Texas that lies west of the
Pecos River is often referred to as "Far West Texas" or the "
Trans-Pecos
The Trans-Pecos, as originally defined in 1887 by the Texas geologist Robert T. Hill, is the portion of Texas that lies west of the Pecos River. The term is considered synonymous with Far West Texas, a subdivision of West Texas. The Trans-Peco ...
", a term first introduced in 1887 by Texas geologist
Robert T. Hill. The Trans-Pecos lies within the
Chihuahuan Desert, and is the most arid portion of the state. Another part of West Texas is the
Llano Estacado, a vast region of high, level plains extending into
Eastern New Mexico and the
Texas Panhandle
The Texas Panhandle is a region of the U.S. state of Texas consisting of the northernmost 26 counties in the state. The panhandle is a square-shaped area bordered by New Mexico to the west and Oklahoma to the north and east. It is adjacent to ...
. To the east of the Llano Estacado lies the “
redbed country” of the
Rolling Plains and to the south of the Llano Estacado lies the
Edwards Plateau. The Rolling Plains and the Edwards Plateau subregions act as transitional zones between eastern and western Texas.
Climate
West Texas receives much less rainfall than the rest of Texas and has an arid or semiarid climate, requiring most of its scant
agriculture to be heavily dependent on
irrigation. This irrigation, and water taken out farther north for the needs of El Paso and
Juarez, Mexico, has reduced the once mighty
Rio Grande to a stream in some places, even dry at times. Much of West Texas has rugged terrain, including many small mountain ranges, while most parts of the state are near sea level. The northern parts of West Texas (notably the Texas Panhandle) and the higher elevations of the mountain ranges of the Trans-Pecos region are prone to occasional heavy snowfall during winter, while snow is less common in other areas of West Texas.
File:Guadalupe Mountains El Capitan 2006.jpg, Guadalupe Mountains
The Guadalupe Mountains ( es, Sierra de Guadalupe) are a mountain range located in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. The range includes the highest summit in Texas, Guadalupe Peak, , and the "signature peak" of West Texas, El Capitan, both ...
File:Davis Mts Nima (2).JPG, Davis Mountains
The Davis Mountains, originally known as Limpia Mountains, are a range of mountains in West Texas, located near Fort Davis, after which they are named. The fort was named for then United States Secretary of War and later Confederate President J ...
File:Big Bend National Park PB122635.jpg, Chisos Mountains
The Chisos Mountains, also known as the Chisos, are a mountain range located in the Big Bend area of the Trans-Pecos region of Texas, United States. The mountain system covers 40 square miles (104 square km) and is contained entirely within the ...
File:North-franklin-south-tx1.jpg, Franklin Mountains
File:Big Bend National Park PB112564.jpg, Santa Elena Canyon
File:Palo Duro Canyon State Park 2002.jpg, Palo Duro Canyon
File:Caprock Canyons Butte 2005.jpg, Caprock Canyons
File:Rita Blanca National Grassland.jpg, Rita Blanca National Grassland
File:Monahans Sandhills at Sunrise.jpg, Monahans Sandhills State Park
The Monahans Sandhills State Park is a state park located in the southern Llano Estacado in Ward County and Winkler County, Texas. The closest major town is Monahans, Texas, and the closest limited-access highway ingress is Exit 86 on Interstat ...
File:Caprock Escarpment Garza County Texas 2010.jpg, Llano Estacado
Counties
The counties included in the West Texas region vary depending on the organization. The ''Texas Counties.net'' website acknowledges the variations, and includes 70 counties in its definition, based on the five principal metropolitan areas it contains:
El Paso,
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 northw ...
,
Abilene,
Midland/
Odessa, and
San Angelo
San Angelo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Tom Green County, Texas, United States. Its location is in the Concho Valley, a region of West Texas between the Permian Basin to the northwest, Chihuahuan Desert to the southwest, Osage Pl ...
.
The counties included are
Andrews,
Bailey,
Borden,
Brewster,
Brown,
Callahan,
Castro,
Cochran,
Coke,
Coleman,
Comanche,
Concho,
Crane,
Crockett,
Crosby Crosby may refer to:
Places
;Canada
*Crosby, Ontario, part of the township of Rideau Lakes, Ontario
*Crosby, Ontario, a neighbourhood in the city of Markham, Ontario
;England
*Crosby, Cumbria
*Crosby, Lincolnshire
*Crosby, Merseyside
** Crosby (U ...
,
Culberson,
Dawson,
Deaf Smith,
Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
,
Eastland,
Ector,
El Paso,
Fisher,
Floyd,
Gaines,
Garza,
Glasscock,
Hale,
Haskell
Haskell () is a general-purpose, statically-typed, purely functional programming language with type inference and lazy evaluation. Designed for teaching, research and industrial applications, Haskell has pioneered a number of programming lan ...
,
Hockley
Hockley is a large village and civil parish in Essex in the East of England located between Chelmsford and Southend-on-Sea, or, more specifically, between Rayleigh and Rochford. It came to prominence during the coming of the railway in the 189 ...
,
Howard,
Hudspeth,
Irion,
Jeff Davis,
Jones,
Kent,
Kimble,
King,
Knox,
Lamb
Lamb or The Lamb may refer to:
* A young sheep
* Lamb and mutton, the meat of sheep
Arts and media Film, television, and theatre
* ''The Lamb'' (1915 film), a silent film starring Douglas Fairbanks Sr. in his screen debut
* ''The Lamb'' (1918 ...
,
Loving,
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 northw ...
,
Lynn,
Martin,
Mason,
McCulloch
McCulloch is a Scottish surname. It's a variation of the Northern Irish surname McCullough. It's commonly found in Galloway.
Notable people with the surname include:
*Alan McCulloch (politician), New Zealand politician
*Alan McLeod McCulloch ( ...
,
Menard
Menard may refer to:
Places
Canada
*Menard River, a tributary of the Wawagosic River in Quebec, Canada
United States
* Menard County, Illinois
** Menard, Illinois
* Menard County, Texas
** Menard, Texas
* Menard–Hodges site, archaeological s ...
,
Midland,
Mitchell
Mitchell may refer to:
People
*Mitchell (surname)
*Mitchell (given name)
Places Australia
* Mitchell, Australian Capital Territory, a light-industrial estate
* Mitchell, New South Wales, a suburb of Bathurst
* Mitchell, Northern Territo ...
,
Motley,
Nolan,
Parmer,
Potter
A potter is someone who makes pottery.
Potter may also refer to:
Places United States
*Potter, originally a section on the Alaska Railroad, currently a neighborhood of Anchorage, Alaska, US
* Potter, Arkansas
*Potter, Nebraska
* Potters, New Je ...
,
Pecos,
Presidio
A presidio ( en, jail, fortification) was a fortified base established by the Spanish Empire around between 16th century, 16th and 18th century, 18th centuries in areas in condition of their control or influence. The presidios of Captaincy Genera ...
,
Randall,
Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
,
Reeves
Reeves may refer to:
People
* Reeves (surname)
* B. Reeves Eason (1886–1956), American director, actor and screenwriter
* Reeves Nelson (born 1991), American basketball player
Places
;Ireland
* Reeves, County Kildare, townland in County K ...
,
Runnels Runnels is a surname, and may refer to:
* Cody Garrett Runnels (born 1985), American wrestler and actor known as Cody Rhodes
* Dustin Patrick Runnels (born 1969), American wrestler known as Goldust or Dustin Rhodes
*Hardin Richard Runnels (1820–1 ...
,
Schleicher,
Scurry,
Shackelford,
Stephens,
Sterling,
Stonewall,
Sutton
Sutton (''south settlement'' or ''south town'' in Old English) may refer to:
Places
United Kingdom
England
In alphabetical order by county:
* Sutton, Bedfordshire
* Sutton, Berkshire, a location
* Sutton-in-the-Isle, Ely, Cambridgeshire
* ...
,
Taylor
Taylor, Taylors or Taylor's may refer to:
People
* Taylor (surname)
** List of people with surname Taylor
* Taylor (given name), including Tayla and Taylah
* Taylor sept, a branch of Scottish clan Cameron
* Justice Taylor (disambiguation)
Pl ...
,
Terrell
Terrell, Terell, Terrel, or Terrelle may refer to:
Places United States
*Terrell, Georgia, unincorporated community
*Terrell, North Carolina, unincorporated community in Catawba County, North Carolina, United States
*Terrell, Texas, city in Kau ...
,
Terry
Terry is a unisex given name, derived from French Thierry and Theodoric. It can also be used as a diminutive nickname for the names Teresa or Theresa (feminine) or Terence (given name), Terence or Terrier (masculine).
People
Male
* Terry Albrit ...
,
Throckmorton,
Tom Green
Michael Thomas Green (born July 30, 1971) is a Canadian-American comedian, show host, actor, filmmaker, podcaster, and rapper. After pursuing stand-up comedy and music as a young adult, Green created and hosted ''The Tom Green Show'', which a ...
,
Upton,
Val Verde,
Ward
Ward may refer to:
Division or unit
* Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward
* Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...
,
Winkler, and
Yoakum.
Major cities
File:Downtown El Paso at sunset.jpeg, El Paso
File:Downtown Lubbock from I-27 2005-09-10.jpeg, 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 northw ...
File:Amarillo Texas Downtown.jpg, Amarillo
Amarillo ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "yellow") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat, seat of Potter County, Texas, Potter County. It is the List of cities in Texas by population, 14th-most populous city in Texas and th ...
File:Midland44 Skyline.jpg, Midland
File:Abilene, TX skyline.JPG, Abilene
File:Odessa IMG 0319.JPG, Odessa
File:Big Spring 1.jpg, Big Spring
File:Dwntwnsa.jpg, San Angelo
San Angelo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Tom Green County, Texas, United States. Its location is in the Concho Valley, a region of West Texas between the Permian Basin to the northwest, Chihuahuan Desert to the southwest, Osage Pl ...
File:Socorro mission front.jpg, Socorro
Some of the smaller West Texas cities and towns include:
Alpine
Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to:
Places Europe
* Alps, a European mountain range
** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range
Australia
* Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village
* Alpine National Pa ...
,
Andrews,
Anthony
Anthony or Antony is a masculine given name, derived from the '' Antonii'', a ''gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton, ...
,
Brownfield
In urban planning, brownfield land is any previously developed land that is not currently in use. It may be potentially contaminated, but this is not required for the area to be considered brownfield. The term is also used to describe land prev ...
,
Canutillo,
Canyon
A canyon (from ; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), or gorge, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosion, erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tenden ...
,
Coyanosa,
Crane,
Dalhart
Dalhart is a city in Dallam and Hartley counties in the U.S. state of Texas, and the county seat of Dallam County. The population was 7,930 at the 2010 census.
History
Founded in 1901, Dalhart is named for its location on the border of Dalla ...
,
Fort Davis,
Fabens,
Fort Bliss
Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in New Mexico and Texas, with its headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Named in honor of William Wallace Smith Bliss, LTC William Bliss (1815–1853), a mathematics professor who was the son-in-law of President ...
,
San Elizario
San Elizario is a city in El Paso County, Texas, United States. Its population was 13,603 at the 2010 census. It is part of the El Paso metropolitan statistical area. It lies on the Rio Grande, which forms the border between the United States an ...
,
Fort Stockton
Fort Stockton is a city in and the county seat of Pecos County, Texas, United States. It is located on Interstate 10 in Texas, Interstate 10, future Interstate 14, U.S. Highways U.S. Route 67 (Texas), 67, U.S. Route 285 (Texas), 285, and U.S. R ...
,
Hale Center,
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 ...
,
Iraan,
Kermit,
Lamesa,
Levelland,
Littlefield,
Marathon
The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...
,
Marfa Marfa may refer to:
Music
* Marfa (instrument), an African percussion instrument
* Marfa (music), celebratory music of the Hyderabadi Muslims Places
* Márfa, a village in Baranya county, Hungary
* Marfa, Chad
* Marfa, Texas, a city in the hi ...
,
McCamey,
Mertzon,
Monahans,
Muleshoe,
Ozona,
Pampa
The Pampas (from the qu, pampa, meaning "plain") are fertile South American low grasslands that cover more than and include the Argentine provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Santa Fe, Entre Ríos, and Córdoba; all of Uruguay; and Brazil ...
,
Pecos,
Horizon City
Horizon City is a city in El Paso County, Texas, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 22,489, reflecting an increase of 5,754 from the 16,735 counted in the 2010 United States Census, 2010 Census.
Climate
*Annual ...
,
Post
Post or POST commonly refers to:
*Mail, the postal system, especially in Commonwealth of Nations countries
**An Post, the Irish national postal service
**Canada Post, Canadian postal service
**Deutsche Post, German postal service
**Iraqi Post, Ira ...
,
Rankin,
Seminole
The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, an ...
,
Slaton,
Snyder,
Sweetwater, and
Van Horn.
Economy
Major industries include
livestock
Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...
,
petroleum
Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crud ...
and
natural gas
Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...
production,
textiles
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...
such as
cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...
,
grain
A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and legum ...
, and because of very large military installations such as
Fort Bliss
Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in New Mexico and Texas, with its headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Named in honor of William Wallace Smith Bliss, LTC William Bliss (1815–1853), a mathematics professor who was the son-in-law of President ...
, the
defense industry
The arms industry, also known as the arms trade, is a global industry which manufactures and sells weapons and military technology. It consists of a commercial industry involved in the research and development, engineering, production, and servi ...
.
West Texas has become notable for its numerous
wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each year. ...
s producing
clean and alternative electricity.
As of 2018, the West Texan economy was in a prosperous
economic period, which has been described as the "West Texas oil boom".
File:West Texas Pumpjack.JPG, Pumpjack
A pumpjack is the overground drive for a reciprocating piston pump in an oil well.
It is used to mechanically lift liquid out of the well if there is not enough bottom hole pressure for the liquid to flow all the way to the surface. The arr ...
s, like this one south of Midland, are a common sight in West Texas oil fields.
File:Farm in west texas Nima.JPG, Irrigated agriculture in West Texas
File:GreenMountainWindFarm Fluvanna 2004.jpg, The Brazos Wind Farm
The Brazos Wind Farm, also known as the Green Mountain Energy Wind Farm at Brazos, is located in Borden County, Texas, Borden and Scurry County, Texas, Scurry counties in Texas. It has 160 wind turbines, each rated at one megawatt (MW) and supplie ...
near Fluvanna is one of many wind farms in West Texas.
File:Abrams Tank at the Dona Anna Range.jpg, Fort Bliss
Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in New Mexico and Texas, with its headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Named in honor of William Wallace Smith Bliss, LTC William Bliss (1815–1853), a mathematics professor who was the son-in-law of President ...
is the number one employer in the El Paso region
Sports
West Texas does not have major league sports teams. Instead, the region has college teams such as
Texas Tech Red Raiders
The Texas Tech Red Raiders and Lady Raiders are the athletic teams that represent Texas Tech University, located in Lubbock, Texas. The women's basketball team uses the name Lady Raiders, while the school's other women's teams use the "Red Raider ...
,
UTEP Miners
The UTEP Miners is the name given to the sports teams of the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). They are informally referred to as the Miners, UTEP, or Texas–El Paso. UTEP was a member of the Western Athletic Conference from 1967 to 2005, ...
, and
Abilene Christian University Wildcats, which play in
NCAA Division I
NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...
, and
NCAA Division II
NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...
teams of the
West Texas A&M Buffaloes
The West Texas A&M Buffaloes, also known as the WTAMU Buffaloes or WT Buffaloes, and formerly West Texas State Buffaloes and WTSU Buffaloes, are the athletic teams that represent West Texas A&M University, located in Canyon, Texas, in NCAA Divi ...
, the
Texas–Permian Basin Falcons
The Texas–Permian Basin Falcons (also UTPB Falcons) are the athletic teams that represent the University of Texas Permian Basin, located in Odessa, Texas, United States, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the Division II level of the Nat ...
, and the
Lubbock Christian Chaparrals and Lady Chaps
The Lubbock Christian Chaparrals and Lady Chaps (also LCU Chaparrals and LCU Chaps) are the athletic teams that represent Lubbock Christian University, located in Lubbock, Texas, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division II ra ...
. El Paso also hosts the
El Paso Chihuahuas
The El Paso Chihuahuas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. They are located in El Paso, Texas, and play their home games at Southwest University Park, which opened ...
, a AAA baseball team, and
El Paso Locomotive FC
El Paso Locomotive FC is an American professional soccer team based in El Paso, Texas. Founded in 2018, the team made its debut in the USL Championship in 2019.
Club crest and colors
The Locomotive brand was unveiled on October 4, 2018, beatin ...
which plays in the
USL Championship
The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...
, the second tier of the
American soccer pyramid. The
Midland RockHounds
The Midland RockHounds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Midland, Texas. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics major league club. The RockHounds play in Momentum Bank Ballpark, w ...
and
Amarillo Sod Poodles
The Amarillo Sod Poodles, nicknamed the Soddies, are a Minor League Baseball team of the Texas League and the Double-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are located in Amarillo, Texas, and play their home games at Hodgetown in downtown ...
represent the region in double-A baseball. In 2019, the
West Texas Rumbleweeds of the
U.S. Arena Professional Soccer League began play. Junior hockey is also present in the region, with the
Odessa Jackalopes of the Tier II North American Hockey League.
Politics
Except for the Trans-Pecos region, West Texas has become well known as a stronghold for
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
politics. Some of the most heavily
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
counties in the United States are located in the region. Former U.S. President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
spent most of his childhood in West Texas.
The Panhandle and several counties in the Midland-Odessa area were some of the first parts of Texas to abandon the state's "
Solid South
The Solid South or Southern bloc was the electoral voting bloc of the states of the Southern United States for issues that were regarded as particularly important to the interests of Democrats in those states. The Southern bloc existed especial ...
"
Democratic roots; nine counties have not supported a Democrat for president since
1948. The Rolling Plains to the east remained Democratic for substantially longer: although
Walter Mondale
Walter Frederick "Fritz" Mondale (January 5, 1928 – April 19, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 42nd vice president of the United States from 1977 to 1981 under President Jimmy Carter. A U.S. senator from Minnesota ...
's
1984 campaign lost Texas by 27.50%, he won five counties in this region. However, since 2000 this region has swung very rapidly towards the Republican Party due to its population's intransigent opposition to the liberal social policies of the Democratic Party
[Cohn, Nate]
'Demographic Shift: Southern Whites' Loyalty to G.O.P. Nearing That of Blacks to Democrats'
''New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', April 24, 2014 and by 2016, has nearly the same
Cook PVI as the Panhandle.
West of the Pecos in popular culture
"West of the Pecos" has become a
metaphor
A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide (or obscure) clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are often compared wit ...
for the universe of
Westerns
The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...
. "Fastest
draw
Draw, drawing, draws, or drawn may refer to:
Common uses
* Draw (terrain), a terrain feature formed by two parallel ridges or spurs with low ground in between them
* Drawing (manufacturing), a process where metal, glass, or plastic or anything ...
west of the Pecos" and similar superlatives are a cliche, and the title character of ''
Chisum
''Chisum'' is a 1970 American Western film directed by Andrew McLaglen, starring John Wayne in the titular role, and adapted for the screen by Andrew J. Fenady from his short story "Chisum and the Lincoln County War." The supporting cast featu ...
'' observed "There’s no law west of Dodge, and no God west of the Pecos”.
See also
*
List of geographical regions in Texas
Texas is the second-largest state in the United States, with an area of and a population of 29.14 million in 254 counties. This covers an area wide by long. Due to its location and size, it is a part of a large number of unique geological reg ...
*
Llano Estacado
*
Beach Mountains
The Beach Mountains are located on privately owned land roughly north of Van Horn in southwestern Culberson County, Texas. The maximum elevation reached is above sea level. The Beach Mountains occupy a roughly circular area with a diameter of a ...
*
Chalk Mountains
*
Chamizal National Memorial
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Davis Mountains
The Davis Mountains, originally known as Limpia Mountains, are a range of mountains in West Texas, located near Fort Davis, after which they are named. The fort was named for then United States Secretary of War and later Confederate President J ...
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Franklin Mountains State Park
Franklin Mountains State Park is a Texas state park in El Paso, Texas, in the United States. Park headquarters are located at an elevation of with the highest peak reaching . It is one of the largest urban parks in the nation lying completely ...
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Palo Duro Canyon
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Hueco Tanks State Historic Site
Hueco Tanks is an area of low mountains and historic site in El Paso County, Texas, in the United States. It is located in a high-altitude desert basin between the Franklin Mountains to the west and the Hueco Mountains to the east. ''Hueco'' is a ...
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Guadalupe Mountains
The Guadalupe Mountains ( es, Sierra de Guadalupe) are a mountain range located in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. The range includes the highest summit in Texas, Guadalupe Peak, , and the "signature peak" of West Texas, El Capitan, both ...
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McKittrick Canyon
McKittrick Canyon is a scenic canyon within the Guadalupe Mountains of West Texas and Eddy County, New Mexico. The steep, towering walls of McKittrick Canyon protect a rich riparian oasis in the midst of the Chihuahuan Desert.
The majority of ...
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Big Bend National Park
Big Bend National Park is an American national park located in West Texas, bordering Mexico. The park has national significance as the largest protected area of Chihuahuan Desert topography and ecology in the United States, and was named after ...
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Ysleta del Sur Pueblo
Ysleta del Sur Pueblo (also Tigua Pueblo) is a Puebloan Native American tribal entity in the Ysleta section of El Paso, Texas. Its members are Southern Tiwa people who had been displaced from Spanish New Mexico from 1680 to 1681 during the Pueblo ...
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Mount Blanco
Mount Blanco is a small white hill — an erosional remnant — located on the eastern border of the Llano Estacado within Blanco Canyon in Crosby County, Texas. With Blanco Canyon, it is the type locality of the Blanco Formation of Texas and Kan ...
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Wind power in Texas
Wind power in Texas, a portion of total energy in Texas, consists of over 150 wind farms, which together have a total nameplate capacity of over 30,000 MW (as of 2020).
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Farm to Market Road 669
A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...
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West Texas Intermediate
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is a grade or mix of crude oil; the term is also used to refer to the spot price, the futures price, or assessed price for that oil. In colloquial usage, WTI usually refers to the WTI Crude Oil futures contract tr ...
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Wyler Aerial Tramway
Wyler Aerial Tramway is an aerial tramway in El Paso, Texas, United States. The tramway is operated by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and is located in Franklin Mountains State Park. The tramway complex covers on the east side of the Fran ...
References
We Wanna Know: Where Does West Texas Begin?
Notes
External links
- Texas Outside
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{{Texas
Regions of Texas