Wichita County ( ) is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers 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 of

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, its population was 129,350. 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 ...

is Wichita Falls. The county was created in 1858 and organized in 1882. Wichita County is part of the

Wichita Falls, Texas 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. Accordi ...

, TX

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 ...

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.8%) is water. The county is drained by the Wichita River and other streams.

Major highways

* Interstate 44 * U.S. Highway 82 *

U.S. Highway 277 U.S. Route 277 (US 277, US-277) is a north–south United States Highway that is a spur route of U.S. Route 77. It runs for 633 miles (1,019 km) across Oklahoma and Texas. US 277's northern terminus is in Newcastle, Oklahoma at Inter ...

U.S. Highway 281 U.S. Route 281 (US 281) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway. At it is the longest continuous three-digit U.S. Route. The highway's northern terminus is at the International Peace Garden, north of Dunseith, North Dakota, at t ...

U.S. Highway 287 U.S. Route 287 (US 287) is a north–south (physically northwest–southeast) United States highway. At long, it is the second longest three-digit U.S. Route, behind US 281. It serves as the major truck route between Fort Worth and Ama ...

* State Highway 25 * State Highway 79 * State Highway 240 * State Highway 258

Adjacent counties

* Tillman County, Oklahoma (north) * Cotton County, Oklahoma (northeast) *

Clay County Clay County is the name of 18 counties in the United States. Most are named for Henry Clay, U.S. Senator and statesman: * Clay County, Alabama * Clay County, Arkansas (named for John Clayton, and originally named Clayton County) * Clay County, Fl ...

(east) * Archer County (south) * Wilbarger County (west) *

Baylor County Baylor County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 3,465. Its county seat is Seymour. History In 1858, the Texas Legislature established Baylor County, naming it for Henry Weidner Baylor, ...

(southwest)

Geology

Wichita County is part of the Texas Red Beds, which are

strata In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as e ...

of red-colored sedimentary rock from the

Early Permian 01 or '01 may refer to: * The year 2001, or any year ending with 01 * The month of January * 1 (number) Music * 01'' (Richard Müller album), 2001 * ''01'' (Son of Dave album), 2000 * ''01'' (Urban Zakapa album), 2011 * ''O1'' (Hiroyuki Sawano ...

. The fossils of Permian period vertebrates in the Texas Red Beds were first discovered by

Edward Drinker Cope Edward Drinker Cope (July 28, 1840 – April 12, 1897) was an American zoologist, paleontologist, comparative anatomist, herpetologist, and ichthyologist. Born to a wealthy Quaker family, Cope distinguished himself as a child prodigy intereste ...

in 1877. Subsequent research has revealed rare fossils of Permian period amphibians like Trimerorhachis, as well as rich deposits of other Permian

tetrapod Tetrapods (; ) are four-limb (anatomy), limbed vertebrate animals constituting the superclass Tetrapoda (). It includes extant taxon, extant and extinct amphibians, sauropsids (reptiles, including dinosaurs and therefore birds) and synapsids (p ...

s such as

Dimetrodon ''Dimetrodon'' ( or ,) meaning "two measures of teeth,” is an extinct genus of non- mammalian synapsid that lived during the Cisuralian (Early Permian), around 295–272 million years ago (Mya). It is a member of the family Sphenacodo ...

and Diadectes.

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 in ...

of 2000, there were 131,664 people, 48,441 households, and 32,891 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical ...

was 210 people per square mile (81/km²). There were 53,304 housing units at an average density of 85 per square mile (33/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 78.76%

White White is the lightness, 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 diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

, 10.23%

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 ha ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

, 0.89% Native American, 1.84% Asian, 0.09%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of Ocea ...

, 5.51% from other races, and 2.68% from two or more races. 12.23% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race. There were 48,441 households, out of which 33.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.30% 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, 11.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.10% were non-families. In 2000, there were 1,869 unmarried partner households: 1,677 heterosexual, 94 same-sex male, and 98 same-sex female. 27.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.04. In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.20% under the age of 18, 13.70% from 18 to 24, 29.00% from 25 to 44, 19.50% from 45 to 64, and 12.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.40 males. The median income for a household in the county was $33,780, and the median income for a family was $40,937. Males had a median income of $28,687 versus $21,885 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 $16,965. About 10.30% of families and 13.20% 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 17.40% of those under age 18 and 9.80% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

The

Texas Department of Criminal Justice The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Texas. The TDCJ is responsible for statewide criminal justice for adult offenders, including managing offenders in state prisons, state jai ...

James V. Allred Unit The James V. Allred Unit''Texas Department of Criminal Justice''. Turner Publishing Company, 200450 , . is a prison for males located on Farm to Market Road 369 in Wichita Falls, Texas, United States, northwest of downtown Wichita Falls.

is located in Wichita Falls.Allred Unit
."

. Retrieved on May 10, 2010. Wichita County Commissioner Court members: County Judge Woodrow “Woody” Gossom, Commissioner Pct. 1 Mark Beauchamp, Commissioner Pct. 2 Mickey Fincannon, Commissioner Pct. 3 Barry Mahler, and Commissioner Pct. 4 Jeff Watts The Sheriff of Wichita County is David Duke. He first took office on January 1, 2009.

Politics

Wichita County is represented in the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abou ...

by the Republican James Frank, a businessman from Wichita Falls. Wichita County has about 77% of the population of Texas' 69th state house district, 18% of the population of the 13th congressional district, and 15% of the population of the 30th state senate district.

Presidential elections

In 2008, Wichita County cast the majority of its votes for Republican John McCain. He won 69% of the vote and 31,673 votes. Democrat

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

received 30% of the vote and 13,828 votes. Other candidates received 1% of the vote. In 2004, Republican George W. Bush did better than John McCain and won 71% of the vote and 32,472 votes. Democrat

John F. Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party (Unite ...

won 28% of the vote and 12,819 votes.

Communities

Cities

* Cashion Community * Burkburnett * Electra * Iowa Park * Wichita Falls (county seat)

Town

* Pleasant Valley

Unincorporated communities

* Haynesville * Kamay * Valley View

Ghost Towns

* Clara

Education

School districts serving the county include: * Burkburnett Independent School District * City View Independent School District * Electra Independent School District *

Holliday Independent School District Holliday Independent School District is a public school district based in Holliday, Texas, Holliday, Texas (United States, USA). Located in Archer County, Texas, Archer County, a small portion of the district extends into Wichita County, Texas, ...

Iowa Park Consolidated Independent School District Iowa Park Consolidated Independent School District is a public school district based in Iowa Park, Texas ( USA). Located in central Wichita County, the district extends into a small portion of northwestern Archer County. In Wichita County th ...

* Wichita Falls Independent School District The county is in the service area of Vernon College.Texas Education Code, Sec. 130.207. VERNON REGIONAL JUNIOR COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA

References

External links

Official Wichita County Website
*
Historic Wichita County materials
hosted by th
Portal to Texas History.

Sheppard Air Force Base Home Page
{{coord, 33.99, -98.71, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-TX_source:UScensus1990 1882 establishments in Texas Populated places established in 1882 Wichita Falls metropolitan area