Oatmeal, Texas | |
|---|---|
  Oatmeal  Oatmeal | |
| Coordinates: 30°41′49″N98°05′40″W / 30.69694°N 98.09444°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| County | Burnet |
| Elevation | 1,234 ft (376 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| Area code(s) | 512 & 737 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1380281 [1] |
Oatmeal is an unincorporated community in Burnet County, Texas, United States. [1] Its population was 20 in 2000.
The area's first settlers were German families during the late 1840s who lived on Oatmeal Creek. The community's name is either an alteration of a Mr. Othneil – the area's first gristmill owner or a supposed translation of the name Habermill (Haber being a German dialect word for Hafer, "oats"). [2] A post office was established in 1853 under the name Oatmeal. [3] The community had the first orchard in Burnet County and a cheese pressing station operated here. A gin built in the 1870s continued to serve as a local landmark into the early 1900s. It also had a general store at one time. A cemetery was deeded in 1871, although burials were recorded in the area as early as 1854. [2] In 1936, Oatmeal had two churches and scattered dwellings. [2] By 1990, the population was around twenty – consisting mostly of families engaged in farming and ranching. It also had a church, a community center, and a cemetery during that time. That figure remained the same in 2000.
Following the Civil War, a colony of freedmen, freed slaves, settled in the eastern part of Oatmeal. [2] The settlement, known as Stringtown, included homes, a building used as a church and school, and Burnet County's only all-black cemetery. [2] The community of Stringtown remained in existence until the early 1920s. [3]
Oatmeal's water tower is painted to resemble a box of oatmeal. [4]
Since 1978, the community of Oatmeal and the nearby city of Bertram have celebrated an annual Oatmeal Festival, originally a parody of chili cookoffs. [5] Ken Odiorne, a local resident, started the tradition by writing to the major producers of oatmeal at the time to ask for assistance. Only one company, National Oats, responded.
The Oatmeal Festival has played a significant role in the continued notoriety and existence of Oatmeal, Burnet County's second-oldest community. [2]
Oatmeal is situated along RM 243, approximately eight miles southeast of Burnet [2] and 56 miles (90 km) northwest of Austin. [3]
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Oatmeal has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps. [6]
The first schoolhouse opened in 1858, only to be replaced by a second building eleven years later. In 1936, Oatmeal's school continued to operate. [2] Today, the community is served by the Burnet Consolidated Independent School District.
Burnet County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 49,130. Its county seat is Burnet. The county was founded in 1852 and later organized in 1854. It is named for David Gouverneur Burnet, the first (provisional) president of the Republic of Texas. The name of the county is pronounced with the emphasis or accent on the first syllable, just as is the case with its namesake.
Bertram is a city in Burnet County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,353 at the 2010 census.
Burnet is a city in and the county seat of Burnet County, Texas, United States. Its population was 6,436 at the 2020 census.
Tilden is a Census-designated place (CDP) and county seat of McMullen County, Texas, United States.
Pollok is an unincorporated community in Angelina County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 300 in 2000. It is located within the Lufkin, Texas micropolitan area.
Ranch to Market Road 243 is a Ranch to Market Road in the U.S. state of Texas maintained by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). The road, first designated in 1945, is located in Burnet and Williamson counties in the Texas Hill Country and passes through the city of Bertram and the smaller communities of Oatmeal and Mahomet. The nearly 21-mile (34 km) road has major intersections with RM 1174 and US 183 at its termini and has short concurrencies with SH 29 and again with RM 1174 in Bertram. RM 243 passes through a portion of a national wildlife refuge and crosses two forks of the San Gabriel River.
May is an unincorporated community in Brown County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had an estimated population of 285 in 2000. May was designated a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1981, with marker number 5377. In 2001, historical marker 12532 was added for May United Methodist Church, commemorating the church's presence in the community for over 100 years. The May Cemetery was designated a Historic Texas Cemetery in 2016.
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Spicewood is an unincorporated community in Travis County and partially in Burnet County, Texas, United States. According to the Texas Almanac, the community had an estimated population of 2,000 in 2000. But in the 2011 census, the community had a population of 7,666. The community also extends towards Travis County off Highway 71.
Danevang is an unincorporated community in southern Wharton County, in the U.S. state of Texas. The rural community is located south of El Campo on State Highway 71 (SH 71). The community's church was still open in 2013.
Lake Victor is an unincorporated community in Burnet County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had an estimated population of 215 in 2000.
Lytton Springs is an unincorporated community in northeastern Caldwell County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 500 in 2000. It is located within the Greater Austin metropolitan area.
Hagansport is an unincorporated community in Franklin County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 40 in 2000.
Joppa is an unincorporated community located in Burnet County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 34 in 2000.
Sage, Bethel, and Pleasant Hill were small closely linked unincorporated communities in Burnet County, Texas. They were close to the small town of Lake Victor and seven or eight miles away from Burnet, Texas.
Double Horn is an incorporated city in Burnet County, Texas, United States. Until its incorporation in 2019, Double Horn was part of the community of Spicewood.
Mahomet is an unincorporated community in Burnet County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had an estimated population of 47 in 2000.
Watson is an unincorporated community in Burnet County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had an estimated population of 98 in 2000.
King is an unincorporated community in Coryell County, in the U.S. state of Texas. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 25 in 2000. It is located within the Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood metropolitan area.
Municipalities and communities of Burnet County, Texas, United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
| CDP | ||
| Other communities | ||
| Ghost towns | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |