Foard County, Texas

Foard County
County
The Foard County Courthouse in Crowell, Texas
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Texas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 33°59′N99°47′W / 33.98°N 99.78°W / 33.98; -99.78
Country	United States
State	Texas
Founded	1891
Named for	Robert Levi Foard
Seat	Crowell
Largest city	Crowell
Area
• Total	708 sq mi (1,830 km2)
• Land	704 sq mi (1,820 km2)
• Water	3.3 sq mi (9 km2)  0.5%
Population  (2020)
• Total	1,095
• Density	1.5/sq mi (0.60/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	13th

Foard County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,095. ^[1] Its county seat is Crowell, ^[2] which is also the county's only incorporated community. The county is named for Robert Levi Foard, an attorney who served as a major with the Confederate Army, ^{[3] [4]} in the American Civil War.

Foard County was one of 46 prohibition, or entirely dry, counties in the state of Texas until voters approved a referendum to permit the legal sale of alcoholic beverages in May 2006.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 708 square miles (1,830 km²), of which 704 sq mi (1,820 km²) are land and 3.3 sq mi (8.5 km²) (0.5%) are covered by water. ^[5]

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 70
• State Highway 6

Adjacent counties

• Hardeman County (north)
• Wilbarger County (east)
• Baylor County (southeast)
• Knox County (south)
• King County (southwest)
• Cottle County (west)

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1900	1,568		—
1910	5,726		265.2%
1920	4,747		−17.1%
1930	6,315		33.0%
1940	5,237		−17.1%
1950	4,216		−19.5%
1960	3,125		−25.9%
1970	2,211		−29.2%
1980	2,158		−2.4%
1990	1,794		−16.9%
2000	1,622		−9.6%
2010	1,336		−17.6%
2020	1,095		−18.0%
U.S. Decennial Census [6] 1850–2010 [7] 2010 [8] 2020 [9]

Foard County, Texas - Demographic Profile
(NH = Non-Hispanic)

Race / Ethnicity	Pop 2010 [8]	Pop 2020 [9]	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	1,087	845	81.36%	77.17%
Black or African American alone (NH)	53	19	3.97%	1.74%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	1	0	0.07%	0.00%
Asian alone (NH)	4	3	0.30%	0.27%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	0	1	0.00%	0.09%
Some Other Race alone (NH)	0	2	0.00%	0.18%
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH)	4	28	0.30%	2.56%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	187	197	14.00%	17.99%
Total	1,336	1,095	100.00%	100.00%

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 can be of any race.

As of the census ^[10] of 2000, 1,622 people, 664 households, and 438 families resided in the county. The population density was two people per square mile (0.77 people/km²). The 850 housing units averaged one units per square mile (0.39 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 84.16% White, 3.27% Black or African American, 0.62% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 10.23% from other races, and 1.54% from two or more races. About 16.34% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 664 households, 29.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.10% were married couples living together, 9.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.00% were not families; 31.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38, and the average family size was 3.02. As of the 2010 census, about seven same-sex couples per 1,000 households were in the county. ^[11]

In the county, the population was distributed as 25.80% under the age of 18, 5.80% from 18 to 24, 22.30% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 23.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $25,813, and for a family was $34,211. Males had a median income of $21,852 versus $16,450 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,799. About 9.90% of families and 14.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.50% of those under age 18 and 16.20% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Foard County is represented in the Texas House of Representatives by the Republican James Frank, a businessman from Wichita Falls. Foard County was once a stronghold for the Democratic Party at both the state and federal levels, both by Solid South standards and as the rest of North Texas and the rural parts of the state trended towards the Republican Party. The county last voted for a Democratic presidential candidate when it gave its votes to Bill Clinton in 1996. Since 1996, the vote share of Republican presidential candidates has steadily increased in every election, jumping to a record high of nearly 81% for Donald Trump in 2020. Despite this, it remains somewhat more liberal than the rest of West Texas, albeit very conservative by nationwide standards.^{[ citation needed ]}

United States presidential election results for Foard County, Texas ^[12]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	445	80.76%	99	17.97%	7	1.27%
2016	383	74.66%	113	22.03%	17	3.31%
2012	348	70.30%	140	28.28%	7	1.41%
2008	327	60.78%	198	36.80%	13	2.42%
2004	347	59.11%	235	40.03%	5	0.85%
2000	286	51.44%	263	47.30%	7	1.26%
1996	166	28.97%	355	61.95%	52	9.08%
1992	207	26.01%	435	54.65%	154	19.35%
1988	306	37.32%	513	62.56%	1	0.12%
1984	472	51.03%	448	48.43%	5	0.54%
1980	349	35.69%	617	63.09%	12	1.23%
1976	240	25.26%	706	74.32%	4	0.42%
1972	369	53.87%	312	45.55%	4	0.58%
1968	216	22.09%	594	60.74%	168	17.18%
1964	146	14.90%	833	85.00%	1	0.10%
1960	270	27.14%	723	72.66%	2	0.20%
1956	243	26.07%	687	73.71%	2	0.21%
1952	418	33.28%	830	66.08%	8	0.64%
1948	90	10.27%	751	85.73%	35	4.00%
1944	84	7.78%	925	85.65%	71	6.57%
1940	142	12.47%	997	87.53%	0	0.00%
1936	74	7.36%	928	92.34%	3	0.30%
1932	53	5.59%	882	93.04%	13	1.37%
1928	430	47.51%	466	51.49%	9	0.99%
1924	95	13.29%	585	81.82%	35	4.90%
1920	101	16.06%	491	78.06%	37	5.88%
1916	41	6.79%	475	78.64%	88	14.57%
1912	18	3.66%	429	87.20%	45	9.15%

At the statewide level, most notably in recent gubernatorial races, the county was one of the few rural ones that continued to give its votes to Democratic candidates in this area, even as it trended Republican on the national level. For instance, in the landslide re-election of then-governor George W. Bush in 1998, it was one of only 14 counties that gave its votes to Bush's Democratic challenger Garry Mauro, albeit by one vote, as Mauro won 206 votes (49.6%) to Bush's 205 votes (49.4%). The county continued this trend through all of Rick Perry's three gubernatorial landslide elections in 2002, 2006, and 2010, the most recent one when it gave its votes to Bill White. This streak ended in 2014, when the county gave its votes to then-Attorney General Greg Abbott, who won 66% of the popular vote over Wendy Davis's 33%.

Foard County vote
by party in gubernatorial elections ^[12]

Year	GOP	DEM
2022	85.44%452	13.04% 69
2018	75.9%331	23.2% 101
2014	66.1%205	32.9% 102
2010	47.0% 148	48.6%153
2006	22.9% 87	43.7%166
2002	37.4% 136	62.4%227
1998	49.4% 205	49.6%206
1994	34.9% 187	64.7%347
1990	28.3% 182	70.6%454

Attractions

• Copper Breaks State Park ^[13] is located near the Pease River about 8 miles north of Crowell off State Highway 6. The park is located in neighboring Hardeman County.
• Comanche Springs Astronomy Campus is located 10 miles west of Crowell off U.S. Highway 70. It is operated by the 3 Rivers Foundation for the Arts & Sciences, which is based in Crowell.

Communities

• Crowell (county seat)
• Thalia

Education

School districts serving sections of the county include: ^[14]

• Crowell Independent School District
• Vernon Independent School District

The county is in the service area of Vernon College. ^[15]

See also

• Texas portal

• Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Foard County

References

1. "Foard County, Texas". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved February 23, 2021.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. "TSHA | Foard, Robert Levi".
4. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp.  128.
5. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
6. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". US Census Bureau.
7. "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010" (PDF). Texas Almanac. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
8. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Foard County, Texas". United States Census Bureau .
9. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Foard County, Texas". United States Census Bureau .
10. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved May 14, 2011.
11. Leonhardt, David; Quealy, Kevin (June 26, 2015), "Where Same-Sex Couples Live", The New York Times, retrieved July 6, 2015
12. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
13. "Texas State Parks: Official Guide — Texas Parks & Wildlife Department".
14. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Foard County, TX" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022. - Text list
15. Texas Education Code, Sec. 130.207. VERNON REGIONAL JUNIOR COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.

External links

• Foard County from the Handbook of Texas Online
• Foard County Profile from the Texas Association of Counties Archived November 13, 2013, at the Wayback Machine

33°59′N99°47′W / 33.98°N 99.78°W / 33.98; -99.78