Cottle County, Texas

Last updated

Cottle County
Cottle County Courthouse December 2020.jpg
Cottle County Courthouse in Paducah
Map of Texas highlighting Cottle County.svg
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Texas in United States.svg
Texas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 34°05′N100°16′W / 34.08°N 100.27°W / 34.08; -100.27
CountryFlag of the United States.svg United States
StateFlag of Texas.svg Texas
Founded1892
Named after George Washington Cottle
Seat Paducah
Largest townPaducah
Area
  Total
902 sq mi (2,340 km2)
  Land901 sq mi (2,330 km2)
  Water1.1 sq mi (3 km2)  0.1%
Population
 (2020)
  Total
1,380
  Density1.5/sq mi (0.59/km2)
Time zone UTC−6 (Central)
  Summer (DST) UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district 13th
Website www.co.cottle.tx.us

Cottle County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,380. [1] [2] Its county seat is Paducah. [3] The county was founded in 1876 and later organized in 1892. [4] It is named for George Washington Cottle, [5] who died defending the Alamo. Cottle County was formerly one of 46 prohibition, or entirely dry counties in the state of Texas. It now allows beer and wine sales.

Contents

The Matador Ranch, based in neighboring Motley County, once reached into Cottle County. [6]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 902 sq mi (2,340 km2), of which 901 sq mi (2,330 km2) are land and 1.1 sq mi (2.8 km2) (0.1%) is covered by water. [7]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note
1880 24
1890 240900.0%
1900 1,002317.5%
1910 4,396338.7%
1920 6,90157.0%
1930 9,39536.1%
1940 7,079−24.7%
1950 6,099−13.8%
1960 4,207−31.0%
1970 3,204−23.8%
1980 2,947−8.0%
1990 2,247−23.8%
2000 1,904−15.3%
2010 1,505−21.0%
2020 1,380−8.3%
2024 (est.)1,263 [8] −8.5%
U.S. Decennial Census [9]
1850–2010 [10] 2010 [11] 2020 [12]
Cottle County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 2000 [13] Pop 2010 [11] Pop 2020 [12] % 2000% 2010% 2020
White alone (NH)1,3481,04390270.80%69.30%65.36%
Black or African American alone (NH)176129969.24%8.57%6.96%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)0420.00%0.27%0.14%
Asian alone (NH)0000.00%0.00%0.00%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)0110.00%0.07%0.07%
Other race alone (NH)0300.00%0.20%0.00%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)209521.05%0.60%3.77%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)36031632718.91%21.00%23.70%
Total1,9041,5051,380100.00%100.00%100.00%

As of the census [14] of 2000, 1,904 people, 820 households, and 550 families resided in the county. The population density was 2 people/sq mi (0.77 people/km2). The 1,088 housing units averaged 1 per square mile (0.39/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 81.46% White, 9.87% African American, 7.20% from other races, and 1.47% from two or more races. About 18.91% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 820 households, 28.00% had children under 18 living with them, 53.90% were married couples living together, 10.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.90% were not families. Around 32.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.90% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.28, and the average family size was 2.84.

In the county, the age distribution was 23.90% under 18, 5.70% from 18 to 24, 21.50% from 25 to 44, 23.30% from 45 to 64, and 25.60% who were 65 or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $25,446, and for a family was $33,036. Males had a median income of $24,375 versus $16,667 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,212. About 13.70% of families and 18.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.40% of those under age 18 and 16.00% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Until 2000, Cottle County went consistently Democratic in presidential elections, except for the 1928 election, when sentiment against Al Smith’s devout Catholic faith and opposition to Prohibition allowed Herbert Hoover to carry the county with 51% of the vote. After John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Hubert Humphrey easily carried the county in 1960, 1964, and 1968, respectively, [15] [16] [17] Cottle County again voted for the Democratic candidate in the 1972 election, as it was the only county in Texas north of Maverick County (Eagle Pass) to have been won by George McGovern, albeit by a margin of only seven votes. [18] After Jimmy Carter carried it in 1976 and 1980, [19] [20] Walter Mondale won a majority of the county's votes in 1984, [21] Michael Dukakis won the county in 1988 [22] and Bill Clinton carried it in 1992 and 1996. [23] [24]

Like the rest of the Bible Belt, Cottle has trended powerfully Republican [25] and in the last six elections, the Republican nominee has won more than two-thirds of the vote. In 2012, Mitt Romney received 555 votes to Barack Obama’s 180, [26] and in 2016, Hillary Clinton won fewer than 100 votes in the county, less than a tenth as many as Jimmy Carter 40 years before.

United States presidential election results for Cottle County, Texas [27]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.%No.%No.%
1912 82.64%27791.42%185.94%
1916 122.24%45585.05%6812.71%
1920 12118.22%47271.08%7110.69%
1924 598.97%58088.15%192.89%
1928 47351.19%45148.81%00.00%
1932 383.08%1,19696.92%00.00%
1936 866.33%1,26593.08%80.59%
1940 23713.60%1,50686.40%00.00%
1944 1304.68%2,55191.89%953.42%
1948 1027.02%1,31890.71%332.27%
1952 49426.53%1,36873.47%00.00%
1956 32922.40%1,13877.47%20.14%
1960 37027.19%98672.45%50.37%
1964 23017.00%1,12282.93%10.07%
1968 26821.00%74258.15%26620.85%
1972 56449.69%57150.31%00.00%
1976 31122.85%1,04776.93%30.22%
1980 51140.36%73257.82%231.82%
1984 50744.09%62354.17%201.74%
1988 37935.00%69063.71%141.29%
1992 24523.90%54252.88%23823.22%
1996 33140.46%40449.39%8310.15%
2000 50266.31%24131.84%141.85%
2004 54971.48%21427.86%50.65%
2008 50972.20%18726.52%91.28%
2012 55574.90%18024.29%60.81%
2016 50682.68%9215.03%142.29%
2020 54081.57%11317.07%91.36%
2024 56585.87%8913.53%40.61%
United States Senate election results for Cottle County, Texas1 [28]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.%No.%No.%
2024 54484.60%9014.00%91.40%

Communities

Town

Unincorporated communities

Ghost towns

Education

School districts serving sections of the county include: [29]

The county is in the service area of Vernon College. [30]

See also

References

  1. "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Cottle County, Texas". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  2. "Cottle County, Texas". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 30, 2022.
  3. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  4. "Texas: Individual County Chronologies". Texas Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Newberry Library. 2008. Archived from the original on April 12, 2017. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  5. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp.  93.
  6. "Matador Ranch," Historical marker, Texas Historical Commission, Motley County, Texas
  7. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved April 21, 2015.
  8. "QuickFacts: Cottle County, Texas". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 12, 2025.
  9. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". US Census Bureau.
  10. "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010" (PDF). Texas Almanac. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2015.
  11. 1 2 "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Cottle County, Texas". United States Census Bureau .
  12. 1 2 "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Cottle County, Texas". United States Census Bureau .
  13. "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Cottle County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
  14. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved May 14, 2011.
  15. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Data Graphs".
  16. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Data Graphs".
  17. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Data Graphs".
  18. "David Leip Presidential Atlas" . Retrieved May 25, 2017.
  19. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Data Graphs".
  20. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Data Graphs".
  21. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Data Graphs".
  22. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Data Graphs".
  23. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Data Graphs".
  24. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Data Graphs".
  25. Cohn, Nate; ‘Demographic Shift: Southern Whites’ Loyalty to G.O.P. Nearing That of Blacks to Democrats’, The New York Times , April 24, 2014
  26. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Data Graphs".
  27. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  28. "2024 Senate Election (Official Returns)". Commonwealth of Texas by county. November 5, 2024. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
  29. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Cottle County, TX". U.S. Census Bureau . Retrieved June 29, 2022. - Text list
  30. Texas Education Code, Sec. 130.207. VERNON REGIONAL JUNIOR COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.

34°05′N100°16′W / 34.08°N 100.27°W / 34.08; -100.27