Kenedy, Texas
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Kenedy is a city in Karnes 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, named for Mifflin Kenedy, who bought and wanted to develop a new town that would carry his name. The population was 3,473 at the 2020 census, up from 3,296 at the 2010 census.


History

In the early 1900s many of Kenedy's gunfighter shootings caused the town to be nicknamed "Six Shooter Junction".Handbook of Texas Online.
/ref> During World War II, the Kenedy Allen Detention Camp was located near the outskirts of the town, on a former
Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was ...
site. Though it later served as a
prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
camp, it started as an
internment Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...
camp for people of German, Italian, and Japanese ancestry deported from
Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...
, as well as some who were long-term residents of the U.S.Mak, Stephen
"Kenedy (detention facility)"
''Densho Encyclopedia'' (accessed 17 Jun 2014).
The camp opened in April 1942, when the first group of Latin American deportees arrived: 456 Germans, 156 Japanese and 14 Italians. Despite State Department prisoner exchanges, in which German and Japanese Latin Americans were "repatriated" and traded for U.S. citizens in
Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...
custody, Kenedy's population swelled to 2,007 by October 1943: 1,168 Germans, 705 Japanese, 72 Italians, and 62 "miscellaneous". The 705 of Japanese descent included U.S. civilians.J. Burton, M. Farrell, F. Lord, R. Lord. ''Confinement and Ethnicity: An Overview of World War II Japanese American Relocation Sites''
"Department of Justice Internment Camps: Kenedy, Texas"
National Park Service (accessed 17 Jun 2014).
In 1944, the remaining internees were transferred to other facilities, and by September it had been converted to a German POW camp; beginning in July 1945, the camp was also used to house Japanese POWs. The camp was closed at the end of the war, in September 1945. The John B. Connally Unit, a state prison, is located south of the city limits. On December 13, 2000, a group called the Texas Seven escaped from that prison. They would go on a deadly crime spree before being caught. On July 24, 2019, the Karnes Countywide Newspaper featured a story on a Kenedy house with ties to a world famous San Antonio landmark. Blueprints by Hugman-Silber Architects were discovered in the cedar closet of the house. The blueprints were drawn and traced by Robert H.H. Hugman, the acknowledged visionary behind the San Antonio River Walk.


Geography

Kenedy is located in south-central Karnes County at (28.8143, –97.8496). U.S. Route 181 runs through the west side of the city, leading northwest to Karnes City, 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 ...
, and to
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 ...
. To the south US-181 leads to Beeville and to Corpus Christi.
Texas State Highway 72 State Highway 72 (SH 72) is a Texas state highway that runs approximately from near Fowlerton to Cuero in South Texas. Route description SH 72 begins in far western McMullen County, near the La Salle County line, at an intersection with ...
(Main Street) passes through the center of Kenedy, leading northeast to Yorktown and southwest to Three Rivers. 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 city of Kenedy has a total area of , of which , or 0.29%, are water.


Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 3,473 people, 1,231 households, and 786 families residing in the city. 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, there were 3,487 people, 1,266 households, and 907 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,550 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 72.44%
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 ...
, 3.18%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.72% Native American, 0.72% Asian, 0.17%
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 ...
, 20.68% from other races, and 2.09% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 64.90% of the population. There were 1,266 households, out of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.4% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 17.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.3% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.20. In the city, the population was spread out, with 29.0% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 17.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $24,647, and the median income for a family was $25,152. Males had a median income of $25,779 versus $17,895 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 city was $13,929. About 23.4% of families and 25.8% 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 33.1% of those under age 18 and 11.9% of those age 65 or over.


Education

The city is served by the Kenedy Independent School District.


Notable people

* Carl Baugh, Young-Earth creationist * Jim Busby, Major League Baseball player * Blas Elias, musician * Cliff Gustafson, head coach for 29 seasons of the
University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, 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 stud ...
baseball team * Mike Whitwell, NFL player


Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the
Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
system, Kenedy has a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Kenedy, Texas
/ref>


References


External links


Official website
{{authority control Cities in Texas Cities in Karnes County, Texas