Atascosa County ( ) is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

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 ...

. It is in South Texas and 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 Jourdanton. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 48,981. Atascosa County is part of the

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

- New Braunfels metropolitan statistical area.

History

In 1856, the

Texas Legislature The Texas State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. It is a bicameral body composed of a 31-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. The state legislature meets at the Capitol in Austin. It is a p ...

established Atascosa County from portions of Bexar County and named it for the Atascosa River.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the county has a total area of , of which (0.2%) are covered by water. The county contains rolling hills and knolls, sloped to the southeast. It is drained by the Atascosa River, which exits the county at its southeastern corner.
''Atascosa County TX'' (Google Maps - accessed November 10, 2019) The highest point is a localized hill near the northeastern border with Bexar County, between Lytle, Texas, Lytle and Somerset in Bexar, at above sea level.

Major highways

Interstate 35 Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexican bo ...

* Interstate 37 * U.S. Highway 281 * * State Highway 16 * State Highway 85 * State Highway 97

Adjacent counties

* Bexar County - north * Wilson County - northeast * Karnes County - east * Live Oak County - southeast * McMullen County - south * La Salle County - southwest * Frio County - west * Medina County - northwest

Demographics

As of the 2010 United States census, 44,911 people resided in the county; 84.9% were

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.8% Black or African American, 0.8% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.1%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 10.9% of some other race, and 2.3% of two or more races. About 61.9% were Hispanics or Latinos (of any race). As of the 2000 United States census, 38,628 people, 12,816 households, and 10,022 families were 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 14,883 housing units had an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 73.23% White, 0.60% African American, 0.80% Native American, 0.31% Asian, 21.6% from other races, and 3.47% from two or more races. About 58.56% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race. Of the 12,816 households, 41.7% had children under 18 living with them, 60.3% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.8% were not families. About 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.99, and the average family size was 3.41. The age distribution was 31.7% under 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.60 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 94.20 males. The median income for a household in the county was $33,081, and for a family was $37,705. Males had a median income of $27,702 versus $18,810 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 $14,276. About 16.10% of families and 20.20% 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 25.60% of those under age 18 and 21.70% of those age 65 or over.

Education

These school districts serve Atascosa County: * Charlotte Independent School District (partial) * Jourdanton Independent School District * Karnes City Independent School District (partial) * Lytle Independent School District (partial) * Pleasanton Independent School District * Poteet Independent School District * Somerset Independent School District (partial) Most of the county is in the service area of Alamo Community College District. The portion in Pleasanton ISD is zoned to

Coastal Bend College Coastal Bend College (CBC), formerly Bee County College, is a public community college that has its main campus in Beeville, Texas, and branch campuses in Alice, Kingsville, and Pleasanton, Texas. As defined by the Texas Legislature, the offi ...

(formerly Bee County College).Texas Education Code, Sec. 130.162. ALAMO COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA. Sec. 130.167. BEE COUNTY COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.
The legislation uses "Bee County College".

Communities

Cities

* Charlotte * Jourdanton (county seat) * Lytle, Texas, Lytle (partly in

Medina Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...

and Bexar counties) * Pleasanton * Poteet

Town

* Christine

Census-designated place

* Leming

Unincorporated communities

Amphion There are several characters named Amphion in Greek mythology: * Amphion, son of Zeus and Antiope, and twin brother of Zethus (see Amphion and Zethus). Together, they are famous for building Thebes. Pausanias recounts an Egyptian legend acco ...

Anchorage Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolita ...

* Black Hill * Campbellton * Coughran *

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

* Davis * Espey * Fashing * Hindes * Iuka * Kyote * La Parita * McCoy * Peggy * Rossville * Verdi

Ghost towns

* Ditto * Dobrowolski * Leal

Gallery

Image:Cattle in Atascosa County, TX IMG_2513.JPG, Atascosa County has long been

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are calle ...

country Image:Replica of original Atascosa County, TX, Courthouse IMG_2537.JPG, Replica of the original Atascosa County log courthouse in Jourdanton Image:Old Atascosa County Jail, Jourdanton, TX IMG_2529.JPG, The old Atascosa County Jail in Jourdanton was used from 1911 to 1982 Image:Atascosa County Sheriff's Office and Jail IMG_2538.JPG, The Atascosa County Sheriff's Office and Jail in Jourdanton is located behind the old log courthouse Image:Gazebo in Lytle, TX IMG_0728.JPG,

Gazebo A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal or Gun turret, turret-shaped, often built in a park, garden, or spacious public area. Some are used on occasions as bandstands. In British English, the word is also used for a tent-like can ...

at Veterans Memorial Park in Lytle, Texas, Lytle Image:Trinity Baptist Church sign, Lytle, TX IMG_0746.JPG, Sign at Trinity

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

Church in Lytle

Politics

United States presidential election results

References

External links

Atascosa County Government
*
Atascosa County
from the Texas Almanac
Atascosa County
from the TXGenWeb Project
"Atascosa County Profile" from the Texas Association of Counties
{{coord, 28.89, -98.53, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-TX_source:UScensus1990 1856 establishments in Texas Populated places established in 1856 Greater San Antonio Majority-minority counties in Texas