Rockwall is a city 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 ...

and the

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but may also refer to concentrations of power in a wider sense (i.e " seat (legal entity)"). See disambiguation. Types of seat The ...

of Rockwall County. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that as of 2023, Rockwall's population is 52,918, up from 47,251 in the 2020 census. The name Rockwall is derived from a naturally jointed geological formation, which has the appearance of an artificial wall.

History

The association of

Paleo-Indian Paleo-Indians were the first peoples who entered and subsequently inhabited the Americas towards the end of the Late Pleistocene period. The prefix ''paleo-'' comes from . The term ''Paleo-Indians'' applies specifically to the lithic period in ...

artifacts with extinct

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...

mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...

remains in various

archeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology an ...

s within the Texas Prairie-Savannah Region of eastern North Central Texas, including a site in Collin County, and

Clovis points Clovis points are the characteristically fluted projectile points associated with the New World Clovis culture, a prehistoric Paleo-American culture. They are present in dense concentrations across much of North America and they are largely restr ...

recovered from the Brushy Creek Clovis Site in Hunt County demonstrates that the Rockwall region was occupied by prehistoric Native American cultures at least as far back as 13,500 to 13,000 years ago.Crook, W.W. III, M.D. Hughston and J.L. McCraw, 2009, ''The Brushy Creek Clovis Site (41HU74): An Early Paleoindian Occupation in Hunt County, Texas.'' The Record, Dallas Archeological Society 56(1):1-18.Crook, W. W., III, 2011, ''A Possible Association of Worked Flakes with Probosidian Bones near Lake Lavon, Collin County, Texas.'' Archeological Journal of the Texas Prairie-Savannah 1(1):4-8.Ferring, C.R., 2000, ''The Archeology and Paleoecology of the Aubrey Clovis Site (41DN79) Denton County, Texas.'' Center for Environmental Archeology, Department of Geography, University of North Texas, Denton. More recently, the Rockwall region was occupied by

Caddo The Caddo people comprise the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma, a federally recognized tribe headquartered in Binger, Oklahoma. They speak the Caddo language. The Caddo Confederacy was a network of Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, who ...

Indians. Creek Indians moved to the area in the early 19th century. In 1851, the first

Anglo-American Anglo-American can refer to: * the Anglosphere (the Anglo-American world) * Anglo-American, something of, from, or related to Anglo-America ** the Anglo-Americans demographic group in Anglo-America * Anglo American plc Anglo American plc is a ...

settlers moved to the area, and wells were dug. During the digging, they found large underground rock walls that were initially believed to be man-made. Later study of the wall-like features by geologists and archaeologists found them to be jointed, natural sandstone dikes that had intruded

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...

marl Marl is an earthy material rich in carbonate minerals, Clay minerals, clays, and silt. When Lithification, hardened into rock, this becomes marlstone. It is formed in marine or freshwater environments, often through the activities of algae. M ...

. The wall, when viewed from above, runs in long straight lines with angles that form a near perfect rectangle. The eastern wall has several deviations that run in straight lines with sharp angles, which would be unusual for a natural formation in an already unusual closed loop wall formation. The town was established April 17, 1854 and named after these natural rock walls. While originally part of Kaufman County, in 1873, Rockwall County was formed with Rockwall being the county seat.

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 city has a total area of , of which is land and (1.63%) is water. Rockwall is on the eastern shore of Lake Ray Hubbard, approximately 20 miles northeast of

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

. It is on state highways 205 and 66, north of

Interstate 30 Interstate 30 (I-30) is a major Interstate Highway in the southern states of Texas and Arkansas in the United States. I-30 travels 366.76 miles from Interstate 20, I-20 west of Fort Worth, Texas, northeast via Dallas, and Texarkana, Texas ...

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, Rockwall 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.

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 47,251 people, 16,151 households, and 12,771 families residing in the city.

Government

Local government

According to the city's 2009 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report Fund Financial Statements, the city's various funds had $39.0 million in revenues, $42.2 million in expenditures, $32.3 million in total assets, $3.6 million in total liabilities, and $25.9 million in investments. The structure of the management and coordination of city services is: The city of Rockwall is a voluntary member of the North Central Texas Council of Governments association, the purpose of which is to coordinate individual and collective local governments and facilitate regional solutions, eliminate unnecessary duplication, and enable joint decisions.

State government

Rockwall is represented in the

Texas Senate The Texas Senate is the upper house of the Texas Legislature, with the Texas House of Representatives functioning as the lower house. Together, they form the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the state of Texas. The Senate ...

by Republican Bob Hall, District 2, and in the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...

by Republican Justin Holland, House District 33.

Federal government

At the federal level, the two U.S. senators from Texas are Republicans

John Cornyn John Cornyn III ( ; born February 2, 1952) is an American politician, attorney, and former jurist serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Texas, a seat he has held since 2002. ...

and

Ted Cruz Rafael Edward Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz was the solicitor general of Texas from 2003 ...

; Rockwall is part of

Texas's 4th congressional district Texas's 4th congressional district of the United States House of Representatives is in an area of Northeast Texas, that includes some counties along the Red River northeast of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, as well as some outer eastern su ...

, which is currently represented by Republican Pat Fallon.

Education

Public schools

The city is served by the Rockwall Independent School District. There are two public high schools in Rockwall: Rockwall High School and Rockwall-Heath High School. There are sixteen elementary schools and three middle schools in Rockwall.

Higher education

The city is home to the Higher Education Center at Rockwall, which is part of the community college district, Collin College. The campus is the District's first campus outside of Collin County itself.

Texas A&M University-Commerce East Texas A&M University (ETAMU; formerly Texas A&M University–Commerce) is a public university in Commerce, Texas, United States. With an enrollment of over 12,000 students as of fall 2017, the university is the third-largest institution in ...

holds classes at the center.

Transportation

Rockwall is served by the following highways that run through the city: * I-30

U.S. Highway 67 (runs concurrent with

) *

State Highway 66 * Texas 205

State Highway 205 * Texas 276

State Highway 276 * Texas FM 549

Farm to Market 549 * Texas FM 552

Farm to Market 552 * Texas FM 740

Farm to Market 740 Ralph M. Hall/Rockwall Municipal Airport is located two miles east of the city and is used mostly by small general aviation aircraft.

Sports

Rockwall offers many different sports complexes as well as activities. Airport Road boasts baseball fields, as well as the Landing Point complex containing the Texas International Fencing Center, zipline and dance facilities. The Rockwall Indoor Sports Expo is located on South 205. Lake Ray Hubbard has several boating marinas and is used for

jet ski A personal watercraft (PWC), also called Jet Ski or water scooter, is a primarily recreational watercraft that is designed to hold only a small number of occupants, who sit or stand on top of the craft, not within the craft as in a boat. P ...

ing. Rockwall also offers 2 different Golf Courses within 17 miles of the center of Rockwall.

Notable people

* Dan Bartlett, former Counselor to the President * Jason Castro, top 12 contestant on season 7 of ''American Idol'' * Joe Driver, Texas State Representative from 1993 to 2013 * Zack Eskridge, former CFL quarterback * Allie Gonino, singer, actress, and violinist who played Laurel Mercer in '' The Lying Game'' *

Ralph Hall Ralph Moody Hall (May 3, 1923 – March 7, 2019) was an American politician who served as the United States representative for from 1981 to 2015. He was first elected in United States House elections, 1980, 1980, and was the chairman of the Uni ...

, member of US House of Representatives *

Cliff Harris Clifford Allen Harris (born November 12, 1948) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a Safety (American football position), safety for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL) for ten seas ...

, professional football safety who played for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

Alex Jones Alexander Emerick Jones (born February 11, 1974) is an American Far-right politics, far-right radio host, radio show host and prominent conspiracy theorist. He hosts ''The Alex Jones Show'' from Austin, Texas. ''The Alex Jones Show'' is the lo ...

, conservative radio show host and conspiracy theorist * Roger Kieschnick, former outfielder for Arizona Diamondbacks * Kendial Lawrence, former CFL running back * Larry Lea, former televangelist whose ministry was based in Rockwall during the 1980s and early 1990s * Carlton Massey, defensive lineman for Cleveland Browns * James McSweeney, retired UFC fighter * Mason Musso, lead singer and guitarist in

Metro Station A metro station or subway station is a train station for a rapid transit system, which as a whole is usually called a "metro" or "subway". A station provides a means for passengers to purchase tickets, board trains, and evacuate the syste ...

Mitchel Musso Mitchel Tate Musso (born July 9, 1991) is an American actor and singer. He is best known for his three Disney Channel roles as Oliver Oken in ''Hannah Montana''; Jeremy Johnson in the animated series ''Phineas and Ferb''; and his Disney XD r ...

, actor and singer * Anfernee Orji, linebacker for New Orleans Saints * Marina Oswald Porter, widow of

Lee Harvey Oswald Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 – November 24, 1963) was a U.S. Marine veteran who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963. Oswald was placed in juvenile detention at age 12 for truan ...

* William Hubbel Price,

Legislator A legislator, or lawmaker, is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people, but they can be appointed, or hereditary. Legislatures may be supra-nat ...

* Amar Sandhu, first American-born Punjabi singer * Jaxon Smith-Njigba, NFL wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks * Andy Tanner, former wide receiver for the New Orleans Saints * Travis Tedford, former child actor best known for portraying Spanky McFarland in the 1994 feature film The Little Rascals

Fringe claims that the rock wall was built by a prehistoric race

In 1925 Byron Khun de Prorok claimed that the wall was built by a prehistoric race.Monroe, J.N., 1950, ''Origin of the clastic dikes in the Rockwall area, Texas. '' Field and Laboratory. v. 18, no. 4, pp. 133-143.Ellwood, B.B., J. Payne, and G.J. Long, 1989
''The Rockwall, Texas: A study of unusual natural magnetic effects in geoarcheological surveys produced by mineral oxidation.''
Geoarchaeology. v. 4, no. 2, pp. 103-118.

References

External links

The City of Rockwall Home Page
{{authority control Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex Cities in Rockwall County, Texas Cities in Texas County seats in Texas Populated places established in 1854 1854 establishments in Texas