Cleveland, Texas

For the city in Ohio, see Cleveland.

City of Cleveland (Texas)
—  City  —
Location in the state of Texas
Coordinates: 30°20′42″N 95°05′01″W / 30.345°N 95.08361°W / 30.345; -95.08361Coordinates: 30°20′42″N 95°05′01″W / 30.345°N 95.08361°W / 30.345; -95.08361
Country	United States
State	Texas
County	Liberty
Incorporated	1935
Government
– City Manager	Philip Cook
Area
– Total	4.8 sq mi (12.5 km2)
– Land	4.8 sq mi (12.5 km2)
– Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	150 ft (45.7 m)
Population (2000)[1]
– Total	7,605
– Density	615.8/sq mi (238.9/km2)
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
– Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP codes	77327-77328
Area code(s)	281
FIPS code	48-15436[2]
GNIS feature ID	1381199[3]
Website	http://www.clevelandtexas.net/; http://www.clevelandtexas.com/

Cleveland is a city in Liberty County, Texas, United States. The population was 7,605 at the 2000 census.

History

In 1854, a church and convent was built by Father Peter La Cour near the town's present site. The town began forming in 1878 when Charles Lander Cleveland, a local judge, donated 63.6 acres (257,000 m²) of land to the Houston East & West Texas Railway (formerly the Southern Pacific Railroad) for use as a stop, requesting that the town be named for him. Since 1900 Cleveland has served as the junction of this line (now the Southern Pacific) and the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe (now the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe). The town was not incorporated until 1935. The forests around Cleveland, including Sam Houston National Forest, which is located just to its north, are a resort for many inhabitants of the Houston area, who come to camp, hike, hunt, and fish. Cleveland has several historic sites and public recreational facilities, including two parks. The Austin Memorial Library Center offers a wide range of services to the community, and a Little Theater and annual rodeo provide entertainment. Commercially, Cleveland has been a shipping point for timber, lumber, and lumber byproducts since the 1870s. Oil, gas, cattle, farm products, and sand and gravel are important to the town's economy. The general trend toward urbanization of the entire area is reflected by the fact that in 1965 Liberty County was added to the Houston Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population of Cleveland grew from 1,200 in 1930 to 5,977 in 1980.^[4]

In 2011, 19 suspects were arrested for repeated gang rapes of an 11-year-old girl after identification from cell phone video they recorded of one incident.^[5][6] It is suspected that several more may be involved.^[7] The incident, which was reported in the national media, caused much consternation and division in the town. Relatives of the alleged child rapists and some other citizens were quoted in early media reports blaming the victim,^[8][9] and the victim's family was harassed,^[10] but the New York Times was also criticized for presenting the town's reaction with an overly negative slant.^[11][12][13] and the Times subsequently published a clarification. Latino community groups expressed displeasure at New Black Panther Party activist Quanell X's blaming of the victim for her rape.^[14] Individual trials of the alleged rapists are to start in early October of 2011.^[15] As of 16 November 2011, three of the perpetrators have made plea deals admitting their guilt.^[16]

Geography

Cleveland is located at 30°20′42″N 95°5′1″W / 30.345°N 95.08361°W / 30.345; -95.08361 (30.344920, -95.083503)^[17].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.8 square miles (12 km²), all of it land.

Cleveland is made up of ZIP codes 77327 and 77328, and area code (281).

Cleveland's northern boundary is made by the Sam Houston National Forest.^{[citation needed]}

Demographics

As of the 2010 census Cleveland had a population of 7,675. The racial and ethnic makeup of the population was 45.7% non-Hispanic white, 23.7% non-Hispanic black, 1.3% Asian, 13.0% some other race, 2.5% from two or more races and 27.8% Hispanic or Latino.^[18]

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 7,605 people, 2,645 households, and 1,758 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,580.5 people per square mile (610.5/km²). There were 2,976 housing units at an average density of 618.5 per square mile (238.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 58.65% White, 27.13% African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.59% Asian, 11.58% from other races, and 1.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 20.51% of the population.

There were 2,645 households out of which 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.4% were married couples living together, 19.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.5% were non-families. 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.27.

In the city, the population was spread out with 27.4% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 29.6% from 25 to 44, 18.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 101.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $24,164, and the median income for a family was $28,527. Males had a median income of $28,385 versus $17,889 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,562. About 19.3% of families and 22.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.8% of those under age 18 and 16.1% of those age 65 or over.

Notable People from Cleveland

• Gib Lewis, a Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives, spent his formative years in Cleveland. He graduated from Cleveland High School in 1955 and enrolled at Sam Houston State College ( Sam Houston State University ) in Huntsville, Texas located in East Texas' Walker County. Elected Speaker for the first time in 1983, Lewis became the first to hold that office for five terms. [1]
• Jason Grimsley was born in Cleveland. Jason pitched for the following teams: Philadelphia Phillies, Cleveland Indians, Anaheim Angels, New York Yankees, Kansas City Royals, Baltimore Orioles, and the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Law and government

Cleveland operates under the Council-Manager form of government. Under this system, the Mayor and five Council members appoint the city manager, who acts as the chief executive officer of the government. The city manager carries out policy and administers city programs. All department heads, including the city attorney, police chief and fire chief, are ultimately responsible to the city manager. All city council positions are officially nonpartisan.

The city operates and maintains the following divisions:

• Administration
• Police
• Fire/EMS
• Water and Sewer Utilities
• Streets
• Building Inspection and Code Enforcement
• Library
• Parks
• Airport
• Cemetery

The Cleveland Unit, a prison for men privately operated by the GEO Group, Inc. on behalf of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, is in the city, 0.25 miles (0.40 km) from downtown Cleveland.^[19]

Transportation

Highways

The major route traveling through Cleveland is U.S. Highway 59, traveling southwest towards Houston and north east into East Texas to the cities of Livingston, Lufkin, and Nacogdoches, and onward to Texarkana, Texas. US 59 is planned to be changed into the I-69 Corridor. U.S. Highway 59 Business is the original route of US 59, which runs north and south through the center of Cleveland, known locally as Washington Avenue and Loop 573. A current limited access bypass for US 59 was created due to traffic densities in downtown Cleveland that rivaled those of many large cities. SH 105 travels east and west, and Cleveland is roughly the halfway point between Beaumont and Navasota. SH 105 runs concurrently with SH 321 until SH 105 splits, going eastbound to Beaumont; while SH 321 continues roughly 20 miles (32 km) further south into Dayton. Short term future plans include a loop coming off SH 105 near Pin Oak Road, along the southern side of Cleveland, crossing US 59 and FM 1010, and terminating at SH 321 near New Salem Road.

Railroads

Cleveland is the meeting point of two rail lines. One is a north/south Union Pacific line that closely follows the path of US 59. The other is an east/west Burlington Northern Santa Fe line that roughly follows FM 787 to the east, and SH 105 west towards Conroe. Union Tank Car Company has a tank repair/maintenance facility along the BNSF line on the outskirts of Cleveland off of FM 787.

Airports

Cleveland Municipal Airport, a general aviation airport, is in Cleveland.

• Distance—5 miles (8.0 km); Runway: 5,000 feet (1,500 m) asphalt

George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston is the closest airport with commercial airline service.

Education

The city of Cleveland is served by the Cleveland Independent School District.

The Tarkington Independent School District also serves the area.

References

1. ^ "US Census Bureau Population Finder: Baytown city, TX". factfinder.census.gov. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/SAFFFacts?_event=ChangeGeoContext&geo_id=16000US4815436&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US48%7C16000US4807300&_street=&_county=cleveland&_cityTown=cleveland&_state=04000US48&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&ActiveGeoDiv=geoSelect&_useEV=&pctxt=fph&pgsl=010&_submenuId=factsheet_1&ds_name=DEC_2000_SAFF&_ci_nbr=null&qr_name=null&reg=null%3Anull&_keyword=&_industry=. Retrieved 2007-07-01. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
3. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
4. ^ Used with permission of Barbara Smith, "CLEVELAND, TX (LIBERTY COUNTY)," Handbook of Texas
5. ^ Edecio Martinez (April 5, 2011). "Cleveland, Texas gang rape suspects appear in court". CBS News. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20050743-504083.html. 
6. ^ James C. McKinley Jr. (March 8, 2011). "Vicious Assault Shakes Texas Town". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/09/us/09assault.html?_r=1&hp. Retrieved March 10, 2011. 
7. ^ "Gang Rape of 11-year-old Girl Recorded on Cell Phones". Los Angeles Times. March 9, 2011. http://www.latimes.com/ktla-gang-rape-texas-girl,0,2243171.story. Retrieved March 10, 2011. 
8. ^ Cindy Horswell (March 12, 2011). "Attorney: Suspects knew rape victim was 11". Houston Chronicle. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7468724.html. Retrieved May 28, 2011. 
9. ^ Juan Lozano (Associated Press) (March 11, 2011). "Some in Texas town blaming young girl in assault". Houston Chronicle. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/7467292.html. Retrieved March 17, 2011. 
10. ^ Cindy Horswell (March 7, 2011). "Girl's sex assault rocks Cleveland". Houston Chronicle. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7459716.html. Retrieved March 10, 2011. 
11. ^ Mac McClelland (March 9, 2011). "The New York Times' Rape-Friendly Reporting". Mother Jones. http://motherjones.com/rights-stuff/2011/03/new-york-times-texas-rape. Retrieved March 10, 2011. 
12. ^ Libby Copeland (March 9, 2011). "Reporting on a Gang Rape in East Texas". Slate. http://scribe.doublex.com/blog/xxfactor/reporting-gang-rape-east-texas. Retrieved March 10, 2011. 
13. ^ Arthur S. Brisbane (11 March 2011). "Gang Rape Story Lacked Balance". The New York Times. http://publiceditor.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/11/gang-rape-story-lacked-balance/?smid=fb-nytimes. 
14. ^ "Women Angry About Girl Being Blamed For Rape". Click2Houston. March 28, 2011. http://www.click2houston.com/news/27344722/detail.html. Retrieved May 28, 2011. 
15. ^ Kathy Dobie (September 2011). "The Girl from Trails End". GQ. p. 4. http://www.gq.com/news-politics/big-issues/201109/texas-gang-rape-11-year-old-girl-story?currentPage=1. Retrieved October 3, 2011. 
16. ^ http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/3-boys-admit-guilt-in-Cleveland-gang-rape-of-2272301.php
17. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
18. ^ 2010 genral profile of population and housing characteriticis from the US census for Cleveland
19. ^ "Cleveland Unit." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on May 10, 2010.

External links

Houston portal

• Cleveland, Texas Municipal Home Page
• Cleveland Advocate Weekly newspaper serving area
• Cleveland's Current Weather - Weather as recorded at the Cleveland Airport