Pennington, Texas

Last updated

Pennington, Texas
USA Texas location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Pennington
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Pennington
Coordinates: 31°11′29″N95°14′08″W / 31.19139°N 95.23556°W / 31.19139; -95.23556
Country United States
State Texas
County Houston and Trinity
Elevation
344 ft (105 m)
Population
 (2021)
  Total173
Time zone UTC-6 (Central (CST))
  Summer (DST) UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP codes
75856
Area code 936
GNIS feature ID382475 [1]

Pennington is an unincorporated community in Houston and Trinity counties in the U.S. state of Texas. [1] Although it is unincorporated, it has a post office with a zip code of 75856. Its population as of 2021 is 173. [2]

Contents

History

The community's location is within the boundaries of the 1835 Mexican Texas property grant to José Martín Prado that A. F. Westall and Daniel Daily (Dailey) acquired in 1855. On March 1, 1859, Daily acquired sole ownership of 1,280 acres (520 ha). In May 1860, the Salem (later Pennington) Baptist Church was established. Hill (or Hugh) Pennington, the town's first shopkeeper, inspired Dan Daily to plan and platted Pennington in February 1866. Pennington, which has had a post office since 1873, had its zenith between May 1874 and October 1882, when it served as the county seat and had a population that may have reached 1,000 to 1,500. Due to the lack of a railroad and the county's relocation to Groveton in 1882, Pennington saw a decline. Despite being formed on July 16, 1901, it seems to have lost its incorporation status by 1904, when it reported having a population of about 272, which then decreased to about 250 by 1926. A population of 198 people or such was estimated in 1968. Around 100 people lived in the tranquil rural village of Pennington in 1980. Pennington reported having 100 residents at the beginning of the 1990s, along with seven enterprises. In 2000, the population was reduced to 67. [3]

On May 3, 2009, an EF1 tornado struck Pennington. A shed was destroyed, and a trailer was shifted off its foundation. Numerous trees were also snapped. [4]

On Christmas Day 2012, two tornadoes struck Pennington. An EF3 tornado caused an agricultural feed store and a restaurant to be obliterated, while several houses and trailers were also destroyed, some severely. Several trees were downed. [5] Another EF0 tornado struck the community, lofting debris but caused no damage. [6]

Geography

Pennington is located off U.S. Highway 287 near the Davy Crockett National Forest, 12 mi (19 km) northwest of Groveton in northwestern Trinity County and southeastern Houston County. [7]

Education

Although it began operations as a coeducational institution in 1866, Pennington College, later known as Steele Academy, did not get a legislative charter until 1870. The institution ran until 1882 under the leadership of teacher and subsequently president Daniel Webster Steele and his successors. Competition from area schools was one cause of Pennington's decline. [3]

The Groveton Independent School District serves students on both the Houston and Trinity County sides of the community.

See also

Related Research Articles

Sidney is an unincorporated community located in Comanche County in the U.S. state of Texas. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had a population of 196 in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornado outbreak of April 9–11, 2011</span> Tornado outbreak in the United States

One of several tornado outbreaks in the United States to take place during the record month of April 2011, 49 tornadoes were produced across the Midwest and Southeast from April 9–11. Widespread damage took place; however, no fatalities resulted from the event due to timely warnings. In Wisconsin, 16 tornadoes touched down, ranking this outbreak as the state's largest April event on record as well as one of the largest single-day events during the course of any year. The strongest tornado of the outbreak was an EF4 tornado that touched down west of Pocahontas, Iowa on April 9, a short-lived satellite to a long-track EF3 tornado. Between 0256 and 0258 UTC that day, five tornadoes were on the ground simultaneously in Pocahontas County, Iowa, all of which were from one supercell thunderstorm. Other tornadoes impacted parts of eastern Kentucky and Tennessee on April 9, hours before the event in Iowa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornado outbreak of April 14–16, 2011</span> Tornado outbreak in the United States

From April 14–16, 2011, a tornado outbreak, among the largest recorded tornado outbreaks in U.S. history, produced 178 confirmed tornadoes across 16 states, resulting in severe destruction on all three days of the outbreak. A total of 38 people were killed from tornadoes and an additional five people were killed as a result of straight-line winds associated with the storm system. The outbreak of severe weather and tornadoes led to 43 deaths in the Southern United States. This was the largest number of fatalities in an outbreak in the United States since the 2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak. It is locally referred to as the "Forgotten Outbreak" in Alabama as it was vastly overshadowed by the 2011 Super Outbreak less than two weeks later.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 Super Outbreak</span> Largest, costliest tornado outbreak in United States history

The 2011 Super Outbreak was the largest, costliest, and one of the deadliest tornado outbreaks ever recorded, taking place in the Southern, Midwestern, and Northeastern United States from April 25 to 28, 2011, leaving catastrophic destruction in its wake. Over 175 tornadoes struck Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee, which were the most severely damaged states. Other destructive tornadoes occurred in Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, New York, and Virginia, with storms also affecting other states in the Southern and Eastern United States. In total, 360 tornadoes were confirmed by NOAA's National Weather Service (NWS) and Government of Canada's Environment Canada in 21 states from Texas to New York to southern Canada. Widespread and destructive tornadoes occurred on each day of the outbreak. April 27 was the most active day, with a record 216 tornadoes touching down that day from midnight to midnight CDT. Four of the tornadoes were rated EF5, which is the highest ranking on the Enhanced Fujita scale; typically these tornadoes are recorded no more than once a year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornado outbreak sequence of April 19–24, 2011</span> Tornado outbreak in April, 2011

An extended period of significant tornado activity affected the Midwest and Southern United States from April 19 to April 24, 2011, with 134 tornadoes being spawned across six days. The outbreak sequence produced an EF4 tornado that tore through the St. Louis metropolitan area on April 22, while other tornadoes caused damage in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Texas, Oklahoma, and other parts of Missouri during the period. No fatalities were reported in this outbreak sequence. This event was directly followed by the largest tornado outbreak in the history of the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornado outbreak of March 2–3, 2012</span> Windstorm in the southern United States

On March 2 and 3, 2012, a deadly tornado outbreak occurred over a large section of the Southern United States into the Ohio Valley region. The storms resulted in 41 tornado-related fatalities, 22 of which occurred in Kentucky. Tornado-related deaths also occurred in Alabama, Indiana, and Ohio. The outbreak was the second deadliest in early March for the U.S. since official records began in 1950; only the 1966 Candlestick Park tornado had a higher death toll for a tornadic system in early March.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Late December 2012 North American storm complex</span>

Near the end of 2012, a massive storm complex developed that produced both a tornado outbreak and a blizzard across the southern and eastern United States. On Christmas Day 2012, a tornado outbreak occurred across the Southern United States. This severe weather/tornado event affected the United States Gulf Coast and southern East Coast over a two-day span. It occurred in conjunction with a much larger winter storm event that brought blizzard conditions to much of the interior United States. In total, 31 tornadoes were confirmed by the National Weather Service in five states from Texas to North Carolina. All but one of the tornadoes that occurred during the outbreak touched down on December 25, with the other occurring the following day in North Carolina. Two of the tornadoes were destructive enough to be rated EF3 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. At least 16 people died as a result of the related blizzard, and thousands were without power.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">October 2013 North American storm complex</span> Blizzard and tornado outbreak

A massive blizzard and tornado outbreak that affected the Northwest, Rockies, and much of the Midwest in early-October 2013. A total of 22 tornadoes were confirmed as the system moved eastward across the eastern half of the United States, including two that were rated EF4. The storm was unofficially named Winter Storm Atlas by The Weather Channel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornado outbreak of June 16–18, 2014</span> Summer tornado outbreak in the U.S. Great Plains and Midwest

The tornado outbreak of June 16–18, 2014, was a tornado outbreak concentrated in the Great Plains and the Midwestern United States. Two tornadoes also occurred in Ontario. The severe weather event most significantly affected the state of Nebraska, where twin EF4 tornadoes killed two and critically injured twenty others in and around the town of Pilger on the evening of June 16. The two Pilger tornadoes were part of a violent tornado family that produced four EF4 tornadoes and was broadcast live on television. The outbreak went on to produce multiple other strong tornadoes across the northern Great Plains states throughout the next two days.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornado outbreak sequence of May 5–10, 2015</span>

The tornado outbreak sequence of May 5–10, 2015 was a six-day outbreak of tornado activity that affected the Great Plains of the United States in early May 2015. On May 6, strong tornadoes impacted the Oklahoma City area, along with rural parts of Kansas, Texas, Arkansas, South Dakota, and Nebraska. The outbreak coincided with major flooding, with large amounts of rain falling in parts of Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. The National Weather Service forecast office in Norman, Oklahoma issued a "flash flood emergency" for Oklahoma City following record-breaking rainfall that occurred in the area that evening. The outbreak sequence resulted in five tornado-related deaths, along with two flood-related deaths. A total of 127 tornadoes were confirmed and rated as a result of this outbreak sequence. Damage from the outbreak was estimated at $1.5 billion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Texas–Oklahoma flood and tornado outbreak</span> Wind and rainstorm in the south-central United States and Mexico

Preceded by more than a week of heavy rain, a slow-moving storm system dropped tremendous precipitation across much of Texas and Oklahoma during the nights of May 24–26, 2015, triggering record-breaking floods. Additionally, many areas reported tornado activity and lightning. Particularly hard hit were areas along the Blanco River in Hays County, Texas, where entire blocks of homes were leveled. On the morning of May 26, the National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency for southwest Harris County and northeast Fort Bend County. The system also produced deadly tornadoes in parts of Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma. This flood significantly contributed to the wettest month ever for Texas and Oklahoma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornado outbreak of November 16–18, 2015</span> 2015 tornado outbreak in Kansas and Texas

The Tornado outbreak of November 16–18, 2015 was a highly unusual nocturnal late-season tornado outbreak that significantly impacted the lower Great Plains on November 16 before producing additional weaker tornadoes across parts of the Southern United States the following two days. The first day of the outbreak spawned multiple strong, long-track tornadoes, including two consecutive EF3s that caused major damage near Pampa, Texas. Overall, the outbreak produced 61 tornadoes in all, and was described as by the National Weather Service office in Dodge City, Kansas as being "unprecedented in recorded history for southwest Kansas" given the magnitude and the late season. In addition, the tornado outbreak brought the first November tornadoes into northwest Kansas, and the first strong tornadoes in the Texas Panhandle in November, as well as the further west any F3/EF3 tornadoes touched down this late in the calendar year. Despite spawning multiple strong tornadoes after dark, no fatalities and only one minor injury occurred as a result of the outbreak.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tornado outbreak sequence of May 22–26, 2016</span> Tornado outbreak in the Central United States from May 22-26, 2016

An extended period of significant tornado activity affected the Central United States in late May 2016. This outbreak sequence came less than two weeks after another damaging tornado outbreak that affected similar areas. The most prolific day was May 24 when 44 tornadoes touched down with at least 12 of them spawned by an intense, long-tracked supercell near Dodge City, Kansas. The strongest tornado from this outbreak was a violent EF4 tornado on May 25 that caused severe damage near Solomon, Abilene, and Chapman, Kansas, injuring eight. Overall, 98 tornadoes were confirmed.

References

  1. 1 2 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Pennington, Texas
  2. "ZIP Code 75856 - Pennington, Texas Map, Demographics and Data - Updated May 2023". Zipdatamaps.com. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  3. 1 2 B., HENSLEY, PATRICIA (June 15, 2010). "PENNINGTON, TX". tshaonline.org. Retrieved July 25, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. SPC Storm Reports for May 3, 2009
  5. Texas Event Report: EF3 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  6. Texas Event Report: EF0 Tornado. National Climatic Data Center (Report). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  7. "Pennington, Texas". Texas Escapes Online Magazine. Retrieved June 30, 2023.