Castro 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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, its population was 7,371. 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 Dimmitt. The county was named for Henri Castro, who was consul general to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

for the

Republic of Texas The Republic of Texas (), or simply Texas, was a country in North America that existed for close to 10 years, from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846. Texas shared borders with Centralist Republic of Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande, an ...

and the founder of a colony in Texas. The county was created in 1876 and was organized in 1891. On April 10, 2023, an explosion and subsequent fire at South Fork Dairy, about 10 miles south of Dimmitt, resulted in the deaths of an estimated 18,000

dairy cattle Dairy cattle (also called dairy cows) are cattle bred with the ability to produce large quantities of milk, from which dairy products are made. Dairy cattle generally are of the species '' Bos taurus''. Historically, little distinction was ...

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 (0.5%) are covered by water.

Major highways

* U.S. Highway 60 * U.S. Highway 385 * State Highway 86 * State Highway 194

Adjacent counties

* Deaf Smith County (north) * Randall County (northeast) * Swisher County (east) * Hale County (southeast) * Lamb County (south) * Parmer County (west)

Demographics

As of the

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 ...

of 2000, 8,285 people, 2,761 households, and 2,159 families were residing 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 3,198 housing units averaged . The racial makeup of the county was 75.35% White, 2.27% African American, 1.17% Native American, 19.15% from other races, and 2.05% from two or more races. About 51.65% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 2,761 households, 40.90% had children under 18 living with them, 65.10% were married couples living together, 8.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.80% were not families. About 20.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.20% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.98, and the average family size was 3.45. In the county, the age distribution was 33.10% under 18, 9.00% from 18 to 24, 24.30% from 25 to 44, 20.90% from 45 to 64, and 12.70% who were 65 or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.50 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 98.20 males. The median income for a household in the county was $30,619, and for a family was $35,422. Males had a median income of $25,379 versus $20,433 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 $14,457. About 15.70% of families and 19.00% 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 25.30% of those under age 18 and 13.90% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Communities

Cities

* Dimmitt (county seat) * Hart *

Nazareth Nazareth is the largest Cities in Israel, city in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. In its population was . Known as "the Arab capital of Israel", Nazareth serves as a cultural, political, religious, economic and ...

CDP

* Summerfield

Unincorporated communities

* Dodd *

Easter Easter, also called Pascha ( Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in t ...

* Flagg * Frio * Hilburn * Sunnyside

Ghost towns

* Arney * Big Square

Education

School districts: * Dimmitt Independent School District * Happy Independent School District * Hart Independent School District * Hereford Independent School District * Lazbuddie Independent School District * Nazareth Independent School District * Springlake-Earth 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.

References

External links

Castro County government's website

Castro County in ''Handbook of Texas Online''
at the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

Interactive Texas Map

Castro County Profile from the Texas Association of Counties
{{coord, 34.53, -102.26, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-TX_source:UScensus1990 1891 establishments in Texas Populated places established in 1891 Texas Panhandle Majority-minority counties in Texas