Parmer 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 southwestern

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 ...

on the High Plains of the

Llano Estacado The Llano Estacado (), sometimes translated into English as the Staked Plains, is a region in the Southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas. One of the largest mesas or tablelands on the Nort ...

in the U.S. state 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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,869. 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 Farwell. The county was created in 1876 and later organized in 1907. It is named in honor of

Martin Parmer Martin Parmer (born Martin Palmer June 4, 1778 – March 2, 1850) was an eccentric 19th-century United States, American frontiersman, statesman, politician and soldier. On March 2, 1836, Martin Parmer seconded Sam Houston's motion to adopt the T ...

, a signer of the

Texas Declaration of Independence The Texas Declaration of Independence was the formal declaration of independence of the Republic of Texas from Mexico in the Texas Revolution. It was adopted at the Convention of 1836 at Washington-on-the-Brazos on March 2, 1836, and was forma ...

and early judge. Parmer County was one of 10

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholi ...

, or entirely dry, counties in the state of Texas, but is now a wet county.

Geography

According to the

U.S. 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 county has a total area of , of which are land and (0.5%) are covered by water.

Major highways

* U.S. Highway 60 * U.S. Highway 70 *

U.S. Highway 84 U.S. Route 84 (US 84) is an east–west U.S. Highway that started as a short Georgia–Alabama route in the original 1926 scheme. Later, in 1941, it had been extended all the way to Colorado. The highway's eastern terminus is a short distan ...

* State Highway 86 * State Highway 214

Adjacent counties

* Deaf Smith County (north) * Castro County (east) * Lamb County (southeast) * Bailey County (south) *

Curry County, New Mexico Curry County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 census, its population was 48,376. Its county seat is Clovis. The county is named in honor of George Curry, territorial governor of New Mexico from 1907 to 1910 ...

(west/

Mountain Time Zone The Mountain Time Zone of North America keeps time by subtracting seven hours from Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) when standard time ( UTC−07:00) is in effect, and by subtracting six hours during daylight saving time ( UTC−06:00). The clo ...

)

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 inc ...

of 2000, 10,016 people, 3,322 households, and 2,614 families resided in the county. 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 RosenberPopu ...

was 11 people per square mile (4/km²). The 3,732 housing units averaged four per square mile (2/km²). 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 county was 66.01% White, 1.01% Black or African American, 0.76% Native American, 0.32% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 29.51% from other races, and 2.35% from two or more races. About 49.19% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 3,322 households, 42.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.0% were married couples living together, 8.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.3% were not families. About 19.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.97 and the average family size was 3.43. In the county, the population was distributed as 32.9% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.90 males. The median income for a household in the county was $30,813, and for a family was $34,149. Males had a median income of $26,966 versus $19,650 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 $14,184. About 14.2% of families and 17.0% 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 20.9% of those under age 18 and 14.2% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

* Bovina * Farwell (county seat) * Friona

Unincorporated community

* Lazbuddie

Education

School districts: * Bovina Independent School District * Farwell Independent School District * Friona Independent School District * Hereford Independent School District * Lazbuddie Independent School District All of the county is in the service area of Amarillo College.Texas Education Code, Sec. 130.164. AMARILLO COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.

Gallery

File:Rhea, Parmer County, Texas, grain elevator, 2010.jpg, Grain elevator in northwestern Parmer County File:Obelisk commemorating Ozark Trail in Farwell, Texas.JPG, Ozark Trail monument in Farwell File:Texico New Mexico grain elevator 2010.jpg, Weathered building and grain elevator in Farwell

Politics

References

External links

Parmer County government’s website
*
Parmer County Profile from the Texas Association of Counties
{{authority control 1907 establishments in Texas Populated places established in 1907 Texas Panhandle Majority-minority counties in Texas