Denton County | |
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County | |
![]() The Denton County Courts Building, built 1998 | |
![]() Location within the U.S. state of Texas | |
![]() Texas's location within the U.S. | |
Coordinates: 33°12′N97°07′W / 33.2°N 97.12°W | |
Country | ![]() |
State | ![]() |
Founded | April 11, 1846 |
Named for | John B. Denton |
Seat | Denton |
Largest city | Denton |
Area | |
• Total | 953 sq mi (2,470 km2) |
• Land | 878 sq mi (2,270 km2) |
• Water | 75 sq mi (190 km2) 7.8% |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 906,422 |
• Estimate (2023) | 1,006,492 ![]() |
• Density | 950/sq mi (370/km2) |
Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
Congressional districts | 4th, 13th, 26th, 32nd |
Website | dentoncounty |
Denton County is located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 906,422, making it the seventh-most populous county in Texas. [1] The county seat is Denton. [2] The county, which was named for John B. Denton, was established in 1846. Denton County constitutes part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. In 2007, it was one of the fastest-growing counties in the United States. [3]
Before the arrival of settlers, various Native American peoples, including the Kichai and the Lenape, infrequently populated the area. [4] The area was settled by Peters Colony landowners in the early 1840s. [5] Until the annexation of Texas, the area was considered part of Fannin County. [6] On April 11, 1846, the First Texas Legislature established Denton County. [7] The county was named for John B. Denton, who was killed while raiding a Native American village in Tarrant County in 1841. [8] Originally, the county seat was set at Pinckneyville. This was later changed to Alton, where the Old Alton Bridge currently stands, and then moved finally to Denton.
By 1860, the population of the county had increased to 5,031. [9] On March 4, 1861, residents of the county narrowly voted for secession from the Union, with 331 votes cast for and 264 against. [10] The Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad reached Lewisville, located in the southern portion of the county, by the early 1880s. [5] The Denton County Courthouse-on-the-Square was built in 1896, and currently houses various government offices, as well as a museum. [11]
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According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 953 square miles (2,470 km2), of which 878 square miles (2,270 km2) are land and 75 square miles (190 km2) (7.8%) are covered by water. [13] Denton County is located in the northern part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, about 35 miles south of the border between Texas and Oklahoma. [14] It is drained by two forks of the Trinity River. [15] The largest body of water in Denton County is Lewisville Lake, which was formed in 1954 when the Garza–Little Elm Reservoir was merged with Lake Dallas. The county is on the western edge of the eastern Cross Timbers and also encompasses parts of the Grand Prairie portion of the Texas blackland prairies. Portions of Denton County sit atop the Barnett Shale, a geological formation believed to contain large quantities of natural shale gas. Between 1995 and 2007, the number of natural gas wells in the county increased from 156 to 1,820, which has led to some controversy over the pollution associated with hydraulic fracturing. [16]
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1850 | 641 | — | |
1860 | 5,031 | 684.9% | |
1870 | 7,251 | 44.1% | |
1880 | 18,143 | 150.2% | |
1890 | 21,289 | 17.3% | |
1900 | 28,318 | 33.0% | |
1910 | 31,258 | 10.4% | |
1920 | 35,355 | 13.1% | |
1930 | 32,822 | −7.2% | |
1940 | 33,658 | 2.5% | |
1950 | 41,365 | 22.9% | |
1960 | 47,432 | 14.7% | |
1970 | 75,633 | 59.5% | |
1980 | 143,126 | 89.2% | |
1990 | 273,525 | 91.1% | |
2000 | 432,976 | 58.3% | |
2010 | 662,614 | 53.0% | |
2020 | 906,419 | 36.8% | |
2023 (est.) | 1,007,703 | [17] | 11.2% |
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1990 [18] | Pop 2000 [19] | Pop 2010 [20] | Pop 2020 [21] | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
White alone (NH) | 232,885 | 328,849 | 426,887 | 485,646 | 85.14% | 75.95% | 64.42% | 53.58% |
Black or African American alone (NH) | 13,314 | 24,980 | 54,034 | 95,386 | 4.87% | 5.77% | 8.15% | 10.52% |
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 1,326 | 2,093 | 3,143 | 3,582 | 0.48% | 0.48% | 0.47% | 0.40% |
Asian alone (NH) | 6,753 | 17,327 | 43,091 | 92,751 | 2.47% | 4.00% | 6.50% | 10.23% |
Pacific Islander alone (NH) | N/A | 186 | 411 | 650 | N/A | 0.04% | 0.06% | 0.07% |
Other race alone (NH) | 234 | 559 | 1,176 | 3,909 | 0.09% | 0.13% | 0.18% | 0.43% |
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | N/A | 6,363 | 13,036 | 41,720 | N/A | 1.47% | 1.97% | 4.60% |
Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 19,013 | 52,619 | 120,836 | 182,778 | 6.95% | 12.15% | 18.24% | 20.16% |
Total | 273,525 | 432,976 | 662,614 | 906,422 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
According to the 2010 United States census, [22] there were 662,614 people, 224,840 households and 256,139 housing units in the county. The population density was 754.3 people per square mile (291.2 people/km2). By the 2020 census, its population increased to 906,422, [21] representing continued population growth among suburban communities outside of the principal metropolitan cities of Dallas and Fort Worth. Denton County ranked 29th on the U.S. Census Bureau's list of fastest-growing counties between 2000 and 2007, with a 41.4% increase in population. [3]
In 2010, the racial makeup of the county was 75% White, 8.4% African American, 0.7% Native American, 6.6% Asian, and 3.0% from two or more races. About 18.2% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. [23] The 2020 census determined the racial and ethnic makeup was 53.58% non-Hispanic white, 10.52% Black or African American, 0.40% Native American, 10.23% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 0.43% some other race, 4.60% multiracial, and 20.16% Hispanic or Latino American of any race, [21] reflecting state and national demographic trends of greater diversification. [24] [25]
A Williams Institute analysis of 2010 census data found about 5.2 same-sex couples per 1,000 households in the county. [26]
Denton County, like all counties in Texas, is governed by a commissioner's court, which consists of the county judge (the chairperson of the court), who is elected county-wide, and four commissioners who are elected by the voters in each of four districts.
Justices of the peace are county officials with jurisdiction over landlord/tenant issues, small civil claims, certain misdemeanors involving fines only (no jail time), and other matters. [27]
Office | Name | Party | |
---|---|---|---|
County judge | Andy Eads | Republican | |
Commissioner, Precinct 1 | Ryan Williams | Republican | |
Commissioner, Precinct 2 | Kevin Falconer | Republican | |
Commissioner, Precinct 3 | Bobbie Mitchell | Republican | |
Commissioner, Precinct 4 | Dianne Edmondson | Republican |
Office | Name | Party | |
---|---|---|---|
District attorney | Paul Johnson | Republican | |
County clerk | Juli Luke | Republican | |
District clerk | David Trantham | Republican | |
Sheriff | Tracy Murphree | Republican | |
Tax assessor | Michelle French | Republican | |
Treasurer | Cindy Yeatts Brown | Republican |
Office | Name | Party | |
---|---|---|---|
Precinct 1 | Alan Wheeler | Republican | |
Precinct 2 | James R. DePiazza | Republican | |
Precinct 3 | James Kerbow | Republican | |
Precinct 4 | Harris Hughey | Republican | |
Precinct 5 | Mike Oglesby | Republican | |
Precinct 6 | Blanca Oliver | Republican |
The Denton Sheriff's Office employs more than 600 people, for the Denton County Sheriff's Office, most in the Detention Bureau. [28] The office operates a county jail that houses up to 1,400 prisoners. The office is co-located with the jail at 127 North Woodrow Lane in the city of Denton. [29]
As of 2021, the current sheriff is Tracy Murphree, who was first elected in 2016. [30] That election was particularly contentious, with previous sheriff William B. Travis dogged by scandal, [31] and new candidate Murphree making headlines for threatening violence against transgender people. [32]
Denton County, like most suburban counties in Texas, is reliably Republican in statewide and national elections, although becoming less so since the 2018 election, when Beto O'Rourke earned 45.52% of the county's votes and two Democrats were elected. [33] The last Democratic presidential candidate to win the county was native Texan Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, [34] the only time since 1952 that the county has been carried by a Democrat. Denton swung rapidly into the Republican column at the federal level in the 1950s and 1960s as Dallas and Fort Worth's suburbs spilled into the county.
In 2018, former State Representative Michelle Beckley became the first Democrat elected to the state legislature from Denton County since 1984. [35] Her district at the time, the former 65th, was located entirely within Denton County, and included significant portions of Carrollton, Highland Village and Lewisville. Beckley stepped down from the seat in 2022 to run for Lieutenant Governor, and ultimately it was won back by the Republican nominee. [36] Also in 2018, Christopher Lopez was elected to Justice of the Peace, Precinct 6, and became the first Democrat elected at the county level since 2004; Lopez held the JP6 position until a Republican challenger unseated him in 2022. [35]
Despite a Republican advantage, Denton County has trended leftward, as Joe Biden managed to win 45.2% of the vote share (compared to Donald Trump's 53.3%) in the 2020 presidential election, the best result for a Democrat since 1976. Many other suburban Texas counties, including its immediate neighbors in Collin and Tarrant Counties, as well as those around Houston and Austin, showed similar swings between 2016 and 2020. However, in 2024 many of these swung back toward Trump, though Trump carried Denton County by a considerably smaller margin than in 2016.
Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
2024 | 250,521 | 55.77% | 191,503 | 42.63% | 7,164 | 1.59% |
2020 | 222,480 | 53.23% | 188,695 | 45.15% | 6,789 | 1.62% |
2016 | 170,603 | 57.13% | 110,890 | 37.13% | 17,152 | 5.74% |
2012 | 157,579 | 64.91% | 80,978 | 33.35% | 4,224 | 1.74% |
2008 | 149,935 | 61.63% | 91,160 | 37.47% | 2,168 | 0.89% |
2004 | 140,891 | 69.95% | 59,346 | 29.47% | 1,173 | 0.58% |
2000 | 102,171 | 69.60% | 40,144 | 27.35% | 4,475 | 3.05% |
1996 | 65,313 | 58.53% | 36,138 | 32.38% | 10,145 | 9.09% |
1992 | 48,492 | 41.60% | 27,891 | 23.93% | 40,193 | 34.48% |
1988 | 57,444 | 68.22% | 26,204 | 31.12% | 562 | 0.67% |
1984 | 52,865 | 75.74% | 16,772 | 24.03% | 159 | 0.23% |
1980 | 29,908 | 59.93% | 17,381 | 34.83% | 2,619 | 5.25% |
1976 | 20,440 | 51.50% | 18,887 | 47.58% | 365 | 0.92% |
1972 | 19,138 | 66.18% | 9,720 | 33.61% | 62 | 0.21% |
1968 | 8,222 | 43.59% | 7,463 | 39.56% | 3,178 | 16.85% |
1964 | 4,335 | 32.13% | 9,137 | 67.71% | 22 | 0.16% |
1960 | 5,724 | 51.48% | 5,366 | 48.26% | 29 | 0.26% |
1956 | 5,350 | 51.71% | 4,972 | 48.06% | 24 | 0.23% |
1952 | 5,840 | 52.44% | 5,289 | 47.49% | 8 | 0.07% |
1948 | 1,531 | 22.02% | 4,549 | 65.42% | 873 | 12.56% |
1944 | 771 | 10.84% | 5,584 | 78.54% | 755 | 10.62% |
1940 | 899 | 12.33% | 6,386 | 87.58% | 7 | 0.10% |
1936 | 476 | 8.62% | 5,021 | 90.91% | 26 | 0.47% |
1932 | 520 | 9.16% | 5,115 | 90.10% | 42 | 0.74% |
1928 | 2,587 | 51.89% | 2,384 | 47.81% | 15 | 0.30% |
1924 | 712 | 12.27% | 4,708 | 81.10% | 385 | 6.63% |
1920 | 900 | 34.62% | 1,257 | 48.35% | 443 | 17.04% |
1916 | 451 | 13.03% | 2,844 | 82.15% | 167 | 4.82% |
1912 | 189 | 7.25% | 2,287 | 87.76% | 130 | 4.99% |
Year | Democratic | Republican | Other |
---|---|---|---|
2018 | 45.52% 134,649 | 53.67%158,744 | 0.81% 2,409 |
2012 | 32.17% 77,314 | 64.17%154,208 | 3,66% 8,805 |
2006 | 28.05% 30,198 | 69.64%74,977 | 2.32% 2,495 |
Year | Democratic | Republican | Other |
---|---|---|---|
2020 | 41.38% 170,984 | 55.91%231,025 | 2.71% 11,202 |
2014 | 27.68% 39,488 | 67.68%96,561 | 4.65% 6,634 |
2008 | 34.31% 81,939 | 62.97%150,389 | 2.73% 6,511 |
2002 | 29.07% 11,523 | 69.88%27,697 | 1.04% 413 |
Year | Democratic | Republican | Other |
---|---|---|---|
2022 | 42.92% 136,389 | 55.70%177,017 | 1.37% 4,375 |
2018 | 38.65% 113,808 | 59.25%174,472 | 2.10% 6,194 |
2014 | 32.80% 47,238 | 65.05%93,683 | 2.15% 3,089 |
2010 | 32.84% 43,073 | 63.84%83,726 | 3.31% 4,344 |
2006 | 23.18% 25,156 | 46.90%50,888 | 29.91% 32,469 |
2002 | 25.73% 10,167 | 72.34%28,591 | 1.92% 763 |
District | Name | Party | Residence | |
---|---|---|---|---|
4th Congressional District | Pat Fallon | Republican | Sherman | |
13th Congressional District | Ronny Jackson | Republican | Amarillo | |
26th Congressional District | Brandon Gill | Republican | Flower Mound | |
32nd Congressional District | Julie Johnson | Democrat | Farmers Branch | |
District | Name | Party | Residence | |
---|---|---|---|---|
District 57 | Richard Hayes | Republican | Denton | |
District 63 | Ben Bumgarner | Republican | Flower Mound | |
District 64 | Lynn Stucky | Republican | Sanger | |
District 65 | Kronda Thimesch | Republican | Lewisville | |
District 106 | Jared Patterson | Republican | Frisco |
District | Name | Party | Residence | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
District 12 | Tan Parker | Republican | Flower Mound | ||
District 30 | Drew Springer | Republican | Muenster |
District | Name | Party | Residence | |
---|---|---|---|---|
District 12 | Pam Little | Republican | Fairview | |
District 14 | Evelyn Brooks | Republican | Frisco |
![]() | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (December 2016) |
These school districts lie entirely within Denton County: [39]
These school districts lie partly within Denton County:
These private educational institutions serve Denton County:
From around 1997 to 2015, the number of non-Hispanic white children in K-12 schools in the county increased by 20,000 as part of a trend of white flight and suburbanization by non-Hispanic white families. [40]
According to the Texas Education Code, most of Denton County is assigned to North Central Texas College for community college. However, portions within Celina ISD, Prosper ISD, and the municipalities of Frisco and The Colony are instead assigned to Collin College (formerly Collin County Community College), and portions zoned to Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD are assigned to Dallas College (formerly Dallas County Community College District). [41]
These four year higher-education institutions serve Denton County:
The Denton County Transportation Authority (DCTA) operates fixed-route bus services, [42] on-demand GoZone service, [43] and ACCESS paratransit service [44] in the county that includes Denton, Lewisville, and Highland Village. SPAN Transit covers areas outside of Denton and Lewisville.
DCTA also operates the A-train, a commuter rail service that runs from Denton to Carrollton, at which station passengers can switch to the Green Line train owned and operated by Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART). Passengers can transfer to other DART lines (denominated by different colors) at the downtown Dallas DART station.
The county is home to the Denton Municipal Airport and the Northwest Regional Airport in Roanoke. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport is located a few miles south of the county.
Wise County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 68,632. Its county seat is Decatur. Wise County is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area. Its Wise Eyes crime-watch program, eventually adopted by mostly rural counties in several states, was started in 1993 by then-Sheriff Phil Ryan.
Tarrant County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas with a 2020 U.S. census population of 2,110,640, making it the third-most populous county in Texas and the 15th-most populous in the United States. Its seat of government is Fort Worth. Tarrant County, one of 26 counties created out of the Peters Colony, was established in 1849 and organized the next year. It is named after Edward H. Tarrant, a lawyer, politician, and militia leader.
Rockwall County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. At 149 square miles, Rockwall County has the smallest area of any Texas county. Per the 2020 Census, its population was 107,819. Its county seat is Rockwall. The county and city are named for a wall-like subterranean rock formation that runs throughout the county.
Kaufman County is a county in the northeastern area of the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 145,310. Its county seat is Kaufman. Both the county, established in 1848, and the city were named for David S. Kaufman, a U.S. Representative and diplomat from Texas. Kaufman County is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
Johnson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 179,927. Its county seat is Cleburne. Johnson County is named for Colonel Middleton Tate Johnson Sr., a Texas Ranger, politician and soldier in the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War. Johnson County is included in the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area.
Ellis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2020, its population was estimated to be 192,455. The county seat is Waxahachie. The county was founded in 1849 and organized the next year. It is named for Richard Ellis, president of the convention that produced the Texas Declaration of Independence. Ellis County is included in the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area.
Dallas County is the second-most populous county in the U.S. state of Texas with a 2020 U.S. census count of 2,613,539, making it the ninth-most populous county in the country. Dallas County is included in the Dallas-Arlington-Fort Worth metropolitan statistical area—colloquially referred to as the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Municipal expansion within Dallas County has blurred the geographic lines between cities and between neighboring counties.
Collin County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and a small portion of the city of Dallas is in the county. At the 2020 United States census, the county's population was 1,064,465, making it Texas's sixth-most populous county and the 43rd-largest county by population in the United States. Its county seat is McKinney.
Copper Canyon is a town in Denton County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,731 in 2020. Copper Canyon is adjacent to the master-planned Lantana residential development.
Denton is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Denton County. With a population of 139,869 as of 2020, it is the 20th-most populous city in Texas, the 177th-most populous city in the United States, and the 12th-most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex.
Hebron is a town in Denton County in the U.S. state of Texas, with a small, disconnected section in Collin County. The population was 803 at the 2020 census, and according to 2023 census estimates, the city is estimated to have a population of 224.
Highland Village is a city in Denton County, Texas, United States. It is a suburb of Dallas and Fort Worth, located on the south side of the far western branch of Lewisville Lake. As of the 2020 United States census the city's population was 15,899.
Lake Dallas is a city in Denton County, Texas, United States. It is located in North Texas, northwest of the city of Dallas, on the shores of Lewisville Lake. The community's name derives from the original name of the lake. It is also one of the four communities in the Lake Cities.
Little Elm is a city in Denton County, Texas, United States, and a part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is an extended suburb of Denton; its population was 46,453 as of the 2020 census. In 2000, the census population was at 3,646. By the 2010 census, the city total had jumped to 25,898, making Little Elm one of the fastest-growing municipalities by percentage in Texas since 2000. The July 1, 2022 census estimates Little Elm's population as 55,357.
The Colony is a city in Denton County, Texas, United States, and a suburb of Dallas. The population was 44,534 at the 2020 census.
Carrollton is a city in Dallas, Denton, and Collin counties in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 133,434, making it the 27th-most populous city in Texas.
Coppell is a city in the northwest corner of Dallas County in the U.S. state of Texas. It is a suburb of Dallas and a bedroom community in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Its population was 42,983 at the 2020 census. A small area in the far northern portion of the city extends into neighboring Denton County.
Lewisville is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Denton County with portions extending into Dallas County. As one of the Mid-Cities within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the 2020 census reported a population of 111,822.
The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, officially designated Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, is the most populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Texas and the Southern United States, encompassing 11 counties. Its historically dominant core cities are Dallas and Fort Worth. It is the economic and cultural hub of North Texas. Residents of the area also refer to it as DFW or the Metroplex. The Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area's population was 7,637,387 according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the U.S. and the eleventh-largest in the Americas. In 2016, the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex had the highest annual population growth in the United States. By 2023, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area's population had increased to 8,100,037, with the highest numerical growth of any metropolitan area in the United States.
The Denton County Transportation Authority (DCTA) is the transit authority that operates in Denton County, Texas. It operates transit service in three cities within Denton County, as well as the A-train, a regional commuter rail line to Carrollton. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 2,852,000, or about 8,900 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2024.