Jasper is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

in and the

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 ...

of Jasper County,

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 ...

, United States. Its population was 6,884 at the 2020 U.S. Census, down from 7,590 at the 2010 U.S. Census. Jasper is situated in the

Deep East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that consists of approximately 38 counties. It is roughly divided into Northeast, Southeast, and Deep East Texas. Most ...

subregion, about west of the Texas-Louisiana state line. Jasper (the "Butterfly Capital of Texas") holds an annual Butterfly Festival the first Saturday in October to celebrate the migration of the

monarch butterflies The monarch butterfly or simply monarch (''Danaus plexippus'') is a milkweed butterfly (subfamily Danainae) in the family Nymphalidae. Other common names, depending on region, include milkweed, common tiger, wanderer, and black-veined brown. ...

History

19th century

The area, which was then part of

Mexican Texas Mexican Texas is the historiographical name used to refer to the era of Texan history between 1821 and 1836, when it was part of Mexico. Mexico gained independence in 1821 after winning its Mexican War of Independence, war against Spain, whi ...

, was settled around 1824 by John Bevil. Thirty families occupied the settlement as early as 1830, when it was known as "Snow River", after John R. Bevil, a hero of the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

. In 1835, the town was renamed after

William Jasper William Jasper ( – October 9, 1779) was an American soldier in the Revolutionary War. He was a sergeant in the 2nd South Carolina Regiment. Jasper distinguished himself in the defense of Fort Moultrie (then called Fort Sullivan) on June 28 ...

, a soldier from the American Revolution, who was killed attempting to plant the American flag at the storming of

Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) biome and ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach th ...

in 1779. Jasper was one of the 23 original counties when 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 ...

was created in 1836. Jasper became the county seat in 1844 and became part of the United States with the

annexation of Texas The Republic of Texas was annexed into the United States and admitted to the Union as the 28th state on December 29, 1845. The Republic of Texas declared independence from the Republic of Mexico on March 2, 1836. It applied for annexatio ...

in 1845.

During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, the town housed a

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

quartermaster depot and served as a major center for Confederate communication, transportation, and supply. Jasper was a Confederate Army headquarters for a nine-county area. Following the war, Union troops led by General George Custer occupied Jasper, camping in the town square. Educational institutions included the Jasper Male and Female High School, which operated until 1878, when it became the Southeast Texas Male and Female College, and Jasper Collegiate Institute, which operated from 1851 until 1874. The population declined to 360 in 1870, reflecting the hardships of the Civil War, but by 1885 had risen to 1,000. In 1896, Jasper had a population of 1,200. With the arrival of the

Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway The Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway (GC&SF) was chartered in Texas in 1873 to build a railroad from Galveston, Texas, to Santa Fe, New Mexico. By 1886, it had built from Galveston to a junction in Temple, Texas, which was founded by the co ...

early in the 20th century, Jasper grew into a center for the manufacture of timber products. Lumber from two sawmills, with a daily capacity of , goods from basket and stave factories, logs, ties, poles, and pulpwood were shipped in 200 cars per month.

20th century

In 1901, the town of Jasper was robbed. The post office safe and the county treasurer's safe were blown open and robbed. The thieves set a fire, and as the town had no fire department, the entire town was completely destroyed. Damages were estimated at $100,000. What was stolen from the safes was unknown. The thieves escaped. Jasper served as headquarters for the

Lower Neches Valley Authority The Lower Neches Valley Authority was established in 1933 by the state legislature as a district to store, control, conserve, and utilize the water of the lower Neches River valley in Texas. The LNVA, the second river district created by the state ...

's construction program, including Dam "B" at Town Bluff and engineering and surveying for a dam at Magee Bend on the

Angelina River The Angelina River is formed by the confluence of Barnhardt and Shawnee creeks northwest of Laneville in southwest central Rusk County, Texas, United States. A tributary of the Neches River, the river flows southeast for and forms the bou ...

. Local farmers raised broiler chickens and beef, and in the 1950s turned to dairying. Jasper also became the headquarters of the Morgan and Lindsey chain of

variety store A variety store (also five and dime (historic), pound shop, or dollar store) is a retail store that sells general merchandise, such as apparel, auto parts, dry goods, toys, hardware, furniture, and a selection of groceries. It usually sel ...

s (otherwise known as dime-stores), which at one time operated 85 outlets in Texas,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, and

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

. In June 1998, the murder of James Byrd Jr. catapulted Jasper into national news and led to the creation of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. Three men—John William King, Lawrence Russell Brewer, and Shawn Berry—were tried and convicted of capital murder. King and Brewer received the

death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence ordering that an offender be punished in s ...

, while Berry, who was the only suspect who cooperated during the investigation and implicated King and Brewer, was sentenced to life in prison. Brewer was executed on September 21, 2011. King was executed on April 24, 2019.

21st century

In 2000, Jasper had 8,247 residents and around 250 businesses. Jasper was one of the primary locations for the recovery of the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' wreckage in February 2003. Jasper was greatly affected by

Hurricane Rita Hurricane Rita was the most intense tropical cyclone on record in the Gulf of Mexico, tying with Hurricane Milton in 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, 2024, as well as being the fourth-most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded. Part of the ...

on September 25, 2005, as it moved inland. The city suffered considerable damage and was left without power or potable water for about three and a half weeks. The Jasper Arboretum Project began in 2000, and the Outdoor Learning Center was added in 2012 to create of public gardens, walking trails, a master gardener greenhouse, and a nature classroom. In 2012, Jasper returned to national attention during a bitterly fought political feud over the hiring and firing of Jasper's first black police chief, Rodney Pearson. To fire Pearson, two black city council members were recalled in the narrowly divided city. Free of Voting Rights Act preclearance requirements, Jasper is moving to annex largely white suburbs. The feud highlighted Jasper's persistent struggle with

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...

throughout its history. On July 8, 2024, the western part of Jasper was struck by a low-end EF2 tornado that was spawned by the outer bands of

Hurricane Beryl Hurricane Beryl (, ) was a deadly and destructive tropical cyclone that impacted parts of the Caribbean, the Yucatán Peninsula, and the Gulf Coast of the United States in late June and early July 2024. The second named storm, first hurricane ...

. Many trees, power poles, and structures were damaged, and one person was injured.

Geography

The city of Jasper is in northern Jasper County, with U.S. Routes 190 and 96 crossing south of the city center. US 190 leads southeast to Newton and southwest to Woodville, while US 96 leads north to San Augustine and south to Beaumont.

Texas State Highway 63 State Highway 63 (SH 63) is a highway in east Texas that runs from Zavalla through Jasper, continuing east to the Louisiana state line. The route is proposed to become an extension of I-14 in the future. History The highway was originally de ...

passes through Jasper with US 190, but leads northeast to Burkeville and northwest to Zavalla. 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 ...

, Jasper has a total area of , of which , or 0.11%, are covered by water. Sandy Creek runs passes just south of the city center, flowing west to the

Neches River The Neches River () begins in Van Zandt County west of Rhine Lake and flows for through the piney woods of east Texas, defining the boundaries of 14 counties on its way to its mouth on Sabine Lake near the Rainbow Bridge. Two major reservoirs ...

in B. A. Steinhagen Lake.

Climate

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 6,884 people, 2,809 households, and 1,997 families residing in the city. At the census of 2010, 7,590 people (compared with 8,247 people in the 2000 census), 2,890 households, and 1,892 families resided in the city. The population density was . The 3,445 housing units averaged 333.1 per square mile (128.7/km²). The major racial and ethnic groups in the city, as a percentage of the total city population, were: 64.2% non-Hispanic African American; 41.9% non-Hispanic White; 10.8% Hispanic or Latino of any race; and 1.5% Asian, with the remaining 1.6% mainly consisting of non-Hispanics of two or more races. The Hispanic or Latino population was subdivided (as a percentage of total city population) into 5.9% other races, 3.9% White, 78% African American, and 1.1% in other categories, mainly two or more races. Welcome to Jasper

Of the 2,888 households, 34.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.7% were married couples living together, 20.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.0% were not families. About 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.20. In the city, the population was distributed as 29.4% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 22.8% from 25 to 44, 24.3% from 45 to 64, and 15.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 82.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.1 males.

Economy

The median income for a household in the city was $24,671, and for a family was $32,242. Males had a median income of $28,432 versus $17,266 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,997. About 23.3% of families and 28.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.3% of those under age 18 and 23.3% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Jasper is administered by a

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

of six members. The council is composed of five council members and an elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

, accompanied by a hired

city manager A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city in the council–manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are referred to as the chief executive officer (CEO) or chief administ ...

under the manager-council system of municipal governance. The council is elected under four single-member districts (numbered 1 through 4), and one at-large district (numbered 5 ); the mayor is elected at-large.

Parks and recreation

Sam Rayburn Reservoir Sam Rayburn Reservoir is a reservoir in the United States in Deep East Texas, north of Beaumont. The reservoir is fed by the Angelina River, the major tributary of the Neches River. The Reservoir is upstream of the Big Thicket National Preserv ...

, about north of Jasper, is visited by thousands of vacationers each year; it is the largest lake wholly within the state of Texas. B. A. Steinhagen Lake is about west.

Education

The city is served by the Jasper Independent School District and Vista Academy of Jasper. The school district partners with Lamar Institute of Technology and

Stephen F. Austin State University Stephen F. Austin State University (SFASU or SFA) is a public university in Nacogdoches, Texas, in the United States. Named after Stephen F. Austin, one of the founders of Texas, SFA was founded as a teachers college in 1923 and built on part ...

. 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 ...

designated Jasper ISD as being in the boundary of

Angelina College Angelina College is a public community college with its main campus in Lufkin, Texas. It has nine off-campus centers in Crockett, Hemphill, Jasper, Livingston (Polk County Center), Nacogdoches, Pineland (Sabine Center), San Augustine, T ...

's district. The city operates the Jasper Public Library.

Media

A weekly newspaper, the '' Jasper Newsboy'', has been published continuously since 1865. It is considered the oldest continuously published weekly newspaper in Texas. The area is served by: * KJAS radio 107.3 FM * KTXJ radio 102.7 FM *

KCOX KCOX (1350 AM, "1350 News/Talk") is a radio station broadcasting a news talk information format. Licensed to Jasper, Texas, United States, the station is currently owned by Cross Texas Media and features programming from Fox News Radio, Premiere ...

radio 1350 AM * KVHP-LD television 34

Notable people

* Mark Chesnutt, lived in Jasper formerly *

Don Adams Donald James Yarmy (April 13, 1923 – September 25, 2005), known professionally as Don Adams, was an American actor. In his five decades on television, he was best known as bumbling Maxwell Smart (Secret Agent 86) in the television situa ...

, Texas legislator and lobbyist *

Max Alvis Roy Maxwell Alvis (born February 2, 1938) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from through , most notably for the Cleveland Indians (now the Cleveland Guardians) where he beca ...

, former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB)

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...

, born in Jasper * Derick Armstrong,

Canadian football Canadian football, or simply football, is a Sports in Canada, sport in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete on a field long and wide, attempting to advance a Ball (gridiron football), pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposi ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

, born in Jasper *

Zack Bronson Robert Zach Bronson (born January 28, 1974) is a cornerbacks coach at McNeese State and a former professional American football safety in the National Football League. He played professionally for the San Francisco 49ers his entire NFL career f ...

, former football

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

in the NFL for the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

, born in Jasper * Red Bryant,

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

for the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

, raised in Jasper * James Byrd, Jr., dragged to death behind a pick-up truck in 1998 * James Hadnot, former running back for the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

. * Phil Hennigan, former MLB pitcher for the Cleveland Indians and

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

, born in Jasper * Robert Hunt, professional football player for the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

Roger Mobley Roger Lance Mobley (born January 16, 1949) is a former child actor in the 1950s and 1960s who made more than 118 television appearances and co-starred in nine feature films in a nine-year career. He served in the Green Berets (46th Special Force ...

, a pastor in Jasper and a

child actor The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting on stage, television, or in film, movies. An adult who began their acting career as a child may also be called a child actor, or a "former child actor". Closely associa ...

in the 1950s and 1960s * SirVincent Rogers, former professional football player * Michael Sarver, singer/songwriter, ''American Idol'' contestant * Eugene Seale, former professional football player * Sean Weatherspoon, former professional football player, raised in Jasper

Notes

References

External links

City of Jasper official website

Jasper/Lake Sam Rayburn Area Chamber of Commerce

"Two Towns of Jasper"
''Point of View''. PBS. January 22, 2003. {{authority control Cities in Texas Cities in Jasper County, Texas County seats in Texas