Portland, Texas

Portland, Texas
City
Nickname:  Gem City By the Gulf
Motto(s):  Building Community and Raising Families
Coordinates: 27°52′59″N97°19′14″W / 27.88306°N 97.32056°W / 27.88306; -97.32056
Country	United States
State	Texas
Counties	San Patricio, Nueces
Government
• Type	Council-Manager
• Mayor	Cathy Skurow
• City Manager	Randy L. Wright
Area [1]
• Total	25.14 sq mi (65.11 km2)
• Land	12.49 sq mi (32.35 km2)
• Water	2.65 sq mi (6.87 km2)
Elevation	43 ft (13 m)
Population  (2020) [2]
• Total	20,383
• Density	1,632/sq mi (630.1/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	78374
Area code	361
FIPS code	48-58904 [3]
GNIS feature ID	1344378 [4]
Website	www.portlandtx.gov

Portland is a city primarily located in San Patricio County with some water bodies extending into Nueces County in the U.S. state of Texas. Its population was 20,383 as of the 2020 United States census. Current population calculated by the City of Portland is 22,783. Portland is a suburb of Corpus Christi, located on the north shore of Nueces and Corpus Christi Bays.

History

The community of Portland began forming in the early 1890s when developer John G. Willacy purchased land from the Coleman-Fulton Pasture Company and worked with several investment groups from Maine and Kansas to promote settlement on the Nueces Bay bluff. ^[5] To attract residents and investors, a large hotel was constructed, and transportation was arranged by steamboat and railroad to bring visitors for a major land sale in July 1891. The early response was strong. Hundreds of lots were sold, and the small town soon had a few hundred residents and new businesses. ^[5]

This initial prosperity was short-lived. The nationwide economic downturn of 1893 slowed land sales and stopped development. A local entrepreneur later converted the vacant hotel into Bay View College, which operated until it was destroyed by a hurricane. ^[5]

Portland’s next period of growth came in the 1910s, when the Portland Development Company worked to expand rail access, improve water supply, and support the area’s cotton shipping trade. These efforts boosted the economy temporarily, but hurricanes in 1916 and 1919 again damaged the town and reduced its population for several decades. ^[5]

The city formally incorporated in 1949, marking the beginning of a more stable civic structure. In the 1950s, industrial investment, especially the construction of a Reynolds Metals Company plant, helped turn Portland into a growing residential and commercial community connected to the Corpus Christi area. ^[5]

By the end of the twentieth century, Portland had expanded into Nueces County and transitioned from a small agricultural settlement into a suburban city with a steadily increasing population. ^[5]

Geography

Portland is situated on the second-highest bluff on the Gulf Coast and overlooks both Nueces and Corpus Christi Bays. Portland is located at 27°52′59″N97°19′14″W / 27.88306°N 97.32056°W / 27.88306; -97.32056 (27.883117, –97.320466). ^[6] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 25.14 sq mi (65.11 km²), of which 21.84 sq mi (56.57 km²) are land and 3.3 sq mi (8.54 km²) (13.2%) is covered by water. The city is roughly equidistant from Portland, Maine, and Portland, Oregon. ^[7]

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1950	1,202		—
1960	2,538		111.1%
1970	7,302		187.7%
1980	12,023		64.7%
1990	12,224		1.7%
2000	14,827		21.3%
2010	15,099		1.8%
2020	20,383		35.0%
2023 (est.)	22,783		11.8%

2020 census

Portland racial composition ^[8]
(NH = Non-Hispanic) ^[a]

Race	Number	Percentage
White (NH)	10,095	49.53%
Black or African American (NH)	353	1.73%
Native American or Alaska Native (NH)	88	0.43%
Asian (NH)	571	2.8%
Pacific Islander (NH)	39	0.19%
Some Other Race (NH)	80	0.39%
Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH)	674	3.31%
Hispanic or Latino	8,483	41.62%
Total	20,383

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 20,383 people, 6,136 households, and 4,639 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the census ^[3] of 2000, 14,827 people, 5,021 households, and 4,051 families were residing in the city. The population density was 2,125.5 people/sq mi (820.7 people/km²). The 5,351 housing units averaged 767.1sq mi (296.0/km²).

In 2017, the Texas Demographic Center estimated the population at 21,619. ^[11]

Of the 5,021 households, 47.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.6% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.3% were not families. About 16.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.94, and the average family size was 3.30.

In the city, the age distribution was 32.6% under 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 7.9% who were 65 or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males. The median income for a household in the city was $48,574, and for a family was $52,220. Males had a median income of $37,316 versus $25,722 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,871. About 5.8% of families and 7.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.3% of those under age 18 and 10.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Gregory-Portland High School

Portland's public education is provided by Gregory-Portland Independent School District, ^[12] made up of W. C. Andrews Elementary (grades K–5), T. M. Clark Elementary, East Cliff Elementary, Stephen F. Austin Elementary (in Gregory), Gregory-Portland Middle School (grade 6–8), and Gregory-Portland High (grades 9–12) Schools.

Del Mar College is the designated community college for all of San Patricio County and Nueces County. ^[13]

Crime

In 2022, Portland had a crime index lower than the U.S. average and half that of Texas. ^{[14] [15]} Of fifteen cities in the region, only two cities have lower crime rates than Portland. ^[16]

Notable people

• Matt Merrell, racing driver
• Mitch Morris, ^[17] an American actor and attorney, was a regular in Queer as Folk (U.S. TV series) and star in the sex comedy, Another Gay Movie
• Vince Vieluf, ^[18] an American actor; starred in An American Werewolf in Paris , Rat Race , Love, Inc. , National Lampoon's Barely Legal , and cult favorite Grind.
• Don Williams (1939–2017), was a country singer and songwriter. Williams moved to Portland as a child from the Texas Panhandle/South Plains town of Floydada and was a 1958 graduate of Gregory-Portland High School. Williams had 17 songs to reach number one on the country charts.
• Steve Treviño, Comedian
• Walker Janek, American Baseball Player

References

1. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
2. "Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2020 Demographic Profile Data (DP-1): Portland city, Texas". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved February 8, 2024.
3. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
4. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
5. Association, Texas State Historical. "History of Portland, Texas: From Dream to Development". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
6. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
7. Bradfield, Bill; Bradfield, Clare (1998). Muleshoe and More. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 156. ISBN   9780884158653.
8. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 21, 2022.
9. https://www.census.gov/ ^{[ not specific enough to verify ]}
10. "About the Hispanic Population and its Origin". www.census.gov. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
11. "Texas Demographic Center" (PDF). Texas Demographic Center. June 2018.
12. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: San Patricio County, TX" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau . Retrieved September 27, 2024. - Text list
13. Texas Education Code Sec. 130.177. DEL MAR COLLEGE-CORPUS CHRISTI JUNIOR COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.
14. "Portland, TX Crime and Crime Rate". USA.com. Retrieved June 26, 2012.
15. "Press Statements - Olgin/Chapa Murder Investigation". Portland, Tx. Retrieved September 18, 2012.
16. "Texas Department of Public Safety, URC Data 2022".
17. Internet Movie Database: John Mitchell "Mitch" Morris Bio
18. Internet Movie Database: Vince Vieluf Bio

1. 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. ^{[9] [10]}

Further reading

• Jacoway, Larry W. (2007). Pictorial history of Portland, Texas. LCCN   2008276759. OCLC   282974001.
• Webb, Walter Prescott; Branda, Eldon Stephen (1952). "Portland, Texas". The Handbook of Texas. Texas State Historical Association. p. 397. ISBN   978-0-87611-027-0.

External links

• Texas portal

• Portland official website
• Portland Chamber of Commerce