Dickens County, Texas

Dickens County, Texas
The Dickens County Courthouse in Dickens.
Location in the state of Texas
Texas's location in the U.S.
Founded	1891
Seat	Dickens
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	905 sq mi (2,344 km²) 904 sq mi (2,341 km²) 1 sq mi (3 km²), 0.11%
Population  - (2000)  - Density	2,762 3/sq mi (1/km²)

Dickens County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 2,762. Its county seat is Dickens^[1]. The county and city are both named for J. Dickens, who died at the Battle of the Alamo. (It is not certain what the "J" means.) The county was founded in 1891.

The Pitchfork Ranch is in Dickens and adjacent King County. It was managed from 1965 to 1986 by Jim Humphreys, who was also affiliated with the National Ranching Heritage Center in Lubbock.

The Matador Ranch, based in Motley County, once reached into Dickens County.^[2]

Charles Weldon Cannon, a Dickens County native, operated a boots and saddle shop in Spur and Dickens from 1949 until his death in 1997.

Marshall Formby became the Dickens County county judge in 1936 at the age of twenty-five, at the time the youngest in the state. He was later a member of the Texas State Senate and owned a chain of West Texas radio stations. Clint Formby, Marshall's nephew, a Dickens County native, and the owner of KPAN AM&FM radio in Hereford, hosts the longest running one-person radio broadcast in the United States.^[3]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 905 square miles (2,343.9 km²), of which 904 square miles (2,341.3 km²) is land and 1 square mile (2.6 km²) (0.11%) is water.

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 82/State Highway 114
• State Highway 70

Adjacent counties

• Motley County (north)
• King County (east)
• Kent County (south)
• Crosby County (west)

Demographics

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there were 2,762 people, 980 households, and 638 families residing in the county. The population density was 3 people per square mile (1/km²). There were 1,368 housing units at an average density of 2 per square mile (1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 77.62% White, 8.18% Black or African American, 0.36% Native American, 0.11% Asian, 0.25% Pacific Islander, 12.35% from other races, and 1.12% from two or more races. 23.90% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 980 households out of which 23.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.60% were married couples living together, 7.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.80% were non-families. 32.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the county, the population was spread out with 18.50% under the age of 18, 10.40% from 18 to 24, 29.70% from 25 to 44, 22.40% from 45 to 64, and 19.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 130.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 141.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $25,898, and the median income for a family was $32,500. Males had a median income of $25,000 versus $18,571 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,156. About 14.10% of families and 17.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.30% of those under age 18 and 18.20% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

• Dickens
• Spur
• Afton (unincorporated)
• McAdoo (unincorporated)

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Dickens County, Texas

References

1. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
2. ^ "Matador Ranch," Historical marker, Texas Historical Commission, Motley County, Texas
3. ^ "Henri Brickey, Hereford radioman still going after decades". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, March 6, 2008. http://www.lubbockonline.com/stories/030608/loc_254328517.shtml. Retrieved December 21, 2009. 
4. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 

External links

• Dickens County in Handbook of Texas Online at the University of Texas
• Historic Dickens County materials, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.

Coordinates: 33°37′N 100°47′W / 33.62°N 100.78°W / 33.62; -100.78