Matagorda County, Texas

Matagorda County
County
The Matagorda County Courthouse and Confederate Soldier Statue in Bay City
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Texas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 28°47′N96°00′W / 28.78°N 96°W / 28.78; -96
Country	United States
State	Texas
Founded	1836
Seat	Bay City
Largest city	Bay City
Area
• Total	1,613 sq mi (4,180 km2)
• Land	1,100 sq mi (3,000 km2)
• Water	512 sq mi (1,330 km2)  32%
Population  (2020)
• Total	36,255
• Density	22/sq mi (8.7/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	22nd
Website	www.co.matagorda.tx.us

Matagorda County Office Building

Matagorda County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 36,255. ^[1] Its county seat is Bay City, ^[2] not to be confused with the larger Baytown in Harris and Chambers Counties. Matagorda County is named for the canebrakes that once grew along the coast (matagorda is a Spanish word meaning "thick bush").

Matagorda County comprises the Bay City, TX Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Houston-The Woodlands, TX combined statistical area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,613 square miles (4,180 km²), of which 1,100 square miles (2,800 km²) are land and 512 square miles (1,330 km²) (32%) are covered by water. ^[3] The water area includes Matagorda Bay. It borders the Gulf of Mexico.

Major highways

• State Highway 35
• State Highway 60
• State Highway 71
• State Highway 111

Adjacent counties

• Brazoria County (northeast)
• Calhoun County (southwest)
• Jackson County (west)
• Wharton County (northwest)

National protected areas

• Big Boggy National Wildlife Refuge
• San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1850	2,124		—
1860	3,454		62.6%
1870	3,377		−2.2%
1880	3,940		16.7%
1890	3,985		1.1%
1900	6,097		53.0%
1910	13,597		123.0%
1920	16,589		22.0%
1930	17,678		6.6%
1940	20,066		13.5%
1950	21,559		7.4%
1960	25,744		19.4%
1970	27,913		8.4%
1980	37,828		35.5%
1990	36,928		−2.4%
2000	37,957		2.8%
2010	36,702		−3.3%
2020	36,255		−1.2%
U.S. Decennial Census [4] 1850–2010 [5] 2010 [6] 2020 [7]

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

Race / Ethnicity	Pop 2010 [6]	Pop 2020 [7]	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	17,400	15,355	47.41%	42.35%
Black or African American alone (NH)	4,060	3,734	11.06%	10.30%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	104	99	0.28%	0.27%
Asian alone (NH)	693	700	1.89%	1.93%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	7	7	0.02%	0.02%
Some Other Race alone (NH)	33	103	0.09%	0.28%
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH)	331	802	0.90%	2.21%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	14,074	15,455	38.35%	42.63%
Total	36,702	36,255	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 ^[8] of 2000, 37,957 people, 13,901 households, and 9,925 families were residing in the county. The population density was 34 people per square mile (13 people/km²). The 18,611 housing units averaged 17 units per square mile (6.6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 67.83% White, 12.72% African American, 0.67% Native American, 2.38% Asian, 14.02% from other races, and 2.38% from two or more races. About 31.35% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. By ancestry, 10.3% were of German, 8.2% American, 5.4% English, and 5.2% Irish according to Census 2000, and 73.9% spoke English, 24.0% Spanish, and 1.6% Vietnamese as their first language.

Of the 13,901 households, 36.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.80% were married couples living together, 12.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.60% were not families. About 25.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70, and the average family size was 3.25.

In the county, the age distribution was 30.00% under the age of 18, 8.90% from 18 to 24, 26.90% from 25 to 44, 21.80% from 45 to 64, and 12.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $32,174, and for a family was $40,586. Males had a median income of $37,733 versus $21,871 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,709. About 14.90% of families and 18.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.00% of those under age 18 and 13.60% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Matagorda County Museum in Bay City is located across from the Court House.

Rice is grown extensively in Matagorda County, as are St. Augustine and other turf grasses. In addition to a wealth of offshore oil rigs and natural gas extraction facilities all over the county, two petrochemical processing plants (Celanese and Equistar) and the South Texas Project nuclear power plant operate within the county. Matagorda County has secluded, extensive forests, wetlands, prairie, and coastal regions. The Gulf Coast floodplain has several conditions conducive to a variety of ecosystems and recreational activities evident by the highest count of migrating birds in the United States. Fishing (on- and offshore), hunting, and scuba diving are large parts of the recreation industry due to the Colorado River, the forests and Matagorda Bay. The Rio Colorado Golf Course and a birdwatching park are on the Colorado River near the State Highway 35 bridge, and a significant number of wildlife preserves are located around the county, a portion of which is land bought for that purpose by the two major petrochemical refineries and nuclear plant in the county.

Education

School districts serving Matagorda County include:

• Bay City Independent School District
• Boling Independent School District (partial)
• Matagorda Independent School District
• Palacios Independent School District (partial)
• Tidehaven Independent School District
• Van Vleck Independent School District

Communities

Cities

• Bay City (county seat)
• Palacios

Census-designated places

• Blessing
• Markham
• Matagorda
• Van Vleck

Unincorporated communities

• Allenhurst
• Buckeye
• Caney
• Cedar Lake
• Cedar Lane
• Collegeport
• El Maton
• Hawkinsville
• Midfield
• Pledger
• Sargent
• Wadsworth

Ghost towns

• Hawley ^[9]

Notable people

• James Boyd Hawkins, a planter and rancher, the founder of Hawkins Plantation. ^[10]
• Charlie Siringo
• Hortense Sparks Ward
• Priscilla Richman, Chief Judge of the Fifth Circuit
• William Abrams (W.A.) Price, the first black attorney, the first black judge, and the first black man elected county attorney in the state of Texas. ^[11]

Gallery

• 
  Monument erected by the Daughters of the Confederacy on the Matagorda County Courthouse square in Bay City in 1913
• 
  Episcopal Church, Palacios

Politics

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

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	9,845	71.72%	3,733	27.19%	149	1.09%
2016	8,366	68.60%	3,500	28.70%	330	2.71%
2012	8,040	66.27%	3,980	32.80%	113	0.93%
2008	7,835	63.32%	4,440	35.88%	98	0.79%
2004	8,119	64.84%	4,355	34.78%	47	0.38%
2000	7,584	60.87%	4,696	37.69%	179	1.44%
1996	5,876	47.03%	5,374	43.01%	1,244	9.96%
1992	5,328	40.47%	4,759	36.15%	3,078	23.38%
1988	6,787	54.01%	5,675	45.16%	104	0.83%
1984	8,452	61.72%	5,201	37.98%	41	0.30%
1980	5,545	53.41%	4,585	44.16%	252	2.43%
1976	3,679	42.14%	4,971	56.94%	81	0.93%
1972	5,003	66.75%	2,473	33.00%	19	0.25%
1968	3,094	36.55%	3,595	42.46%	1,777	20.99%
1964	2,407	36.72%	4,143	63.20%	5	0.08%
1960	2,975	49.60%	2,971	49.53%	52	0.87%
1956	3,927	66.46%	1,904	32.22%	78	1.32%
1952	4,122	66.23%	2,101	33.76%	1	0.02%
1948	1,016	30.80%	1,628	49.35%	655	19.85%
1944	412	13.43%	1,854	60.45%	801	26.12%
1940	651	23.14%	2,156	76.64%	6	0.21%
1936	459	21.21%	1,700	78.56%	5	0.23%
1932	408	16.58%	2,039	82.85%	14	0.57%
1928	1,194	58.85%	829	40.86%	6	0.30%
1924	893	37.62%	1,353	56.99%	128	5.39%
1920	918	43.90%	992	47.44%	181	8.66%
1916	252	23.10%	748	68.56%	91	8.34%
1912	107	9.64%	710	63.96%	293	26.40%

See also

• Texas portal

• List of museums in the Texas Gulf Coast
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Matagorda County, Texas
• Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Matagorda County

References

1. "Matagorda County, Texas". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved February 23, 2021.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
4. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". US Census Bureau.
5. "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010" (PDF). Texas Almanac. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
6. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Matagorda County, Texas". United States Census Bureau .
7. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Matagorda County, Texas". United States Census Bureau .
8. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved May 14, 2011.
9. JENKINS, RACHEL (June 15, 2010). "HAWLEY, TX". tshaonline.org. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
10. Lewis, Frank Hawkins (February 1979). "Evolution of an Early Texas Ranch". Rangelands. 1 (1): 6–8. JSTOR   3900331.
11. "Was Craig Watkins the first black DA in Texas? Historians find evidence of another". February 23, 2019.
12. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org.

External links

Media related to Matagorda County, Texas at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website
• Matagorda County from the Handbook of Texas Online
• "Matagorda County Profile" from the Texas Association of Counties

28°47′N96°00′W / 28.78°N 96.00°W / 28.78; -96.00