Scurry County, Texas

Not to be confused with Scurry, Texas.

Scurry County
County
Scurry County Courthouse in Snyder
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Texas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 32°45′N100°55′W / 32.75°N 100.92°W / 32.75; -100.92
Country	United States
State	Texas
Founded	1884
Named for	William Read Scurry
Seat	Snyder
Largest city	Snyder
Area
• Total	908 sq mi (2,350 km2)
• Land	905 sq mi (2,340 km2)
• Water	2.1 sq mi (5 km2)  0.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	16,932
• Density	19/sq mi (7.2/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	19th
Website	www.co.scurry.tx.us

Scurry County marker

Scurry County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 16,932. ^[1] Its county seat is Snyder, ^[2] which is the home for Western Texas College. Scurry County is named for Confederate General William Scurry. The county was created in 1876 and organized in 1884. ^[3] Scurry County was one of 46 prohibition, or entirely dry, counties in the state of Texas, until a 2006 election approved the sale of beer and wine in Snyder, and a 2008 election approved the sale of liquor by the drink throughout the county.

Scurry County comprises the Snyder, Texas, micropolitan statistical area.

History

This county, lying directly north of Mitchell County, was created in 1876, and was organized June 28, 1884. It was named for William Read Scurry, lawyer and Confederate Army general. Until 1909, it was without railroad facilities, and the nearest shipping points were Colorado City to the south and still later the railroad towns in Fisher County to the east.

The first railroad was the Roscoe, Snyder and Pacific Railway, built from Roscoe on the Texas & Pacific in Nolan County, to Snyder, the county seat of Scurry County, about 1909, and subsequently extended to Fluvanna, also in Scurry County. In 1911, the Texico-Coleman division of the Santa Fe system was built through the county, giving it a trunk line of railway. Development has been particularly rapid during the early 1900s.

Some of the important pioneer facts concerning Scurry County are found in a sketch of W.H. Snyder, after whom the county seat town was named. In 1877, he opened a trading camp in the county, hauling lumber on wagons from Dallas to build his store and also hauling a good portion of his goods from the same place. He used what was known as trail wagons, with seven yoke of oxen to a team, each wagon having a capacity of 50,000 pounds. Mr. Snyder erected a house in Scurry County and began dealing in general merchandise and supplies for buffalo hunters. Other parties moved into the same locality, and that was the beginning of the town of Snyder.

In 1882, Mr. Snyder laid out the town, and two years later, it became the county seat. Snyder has had an enterprising citizenship, and 10 years later had an independent school district and four churches, and was an important center for trade.

Its importance has greatly increased since the coming of the railway, and in 1910, its population was 2,154. Other towns have sprung up along the railway, the most important of which is Fluvanna, at the terminus of the Roscoe, Snyder & Pacific, and Hermleigh." ^[4]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 908 square miles (2,350 km²), of which 905 square miles (2,340 km²) are land and 2.1 square miles (5.4 km²) (0.2%) are covered by water. ^[5]

Since 1952, Lake J. B. Thomas has operated in Scurry County covering up to 7,282 acres when filled to the morning glory spillway at elevation of 2,258 ft above sea level.

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 84
• U.S. Highway 180
• State Highway 208
• State Highway 350

Adjacent counties

• Kent County (north)
• Fisher County (east)
• Mitchell County (south)
• Borden County (west)
• Garza County (northwest)

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	102		—
1890	1,415		1,287.3%
1900	4,158		193.9%
1910	10,924		162.7%
1920	9,003		−17.6%
1930	12,188		35.4%
1940	11,545		−5.3%
1950	22,779		97.3%
1960	20,369		−10.6%
1970	15,760		−22.6%
1980	18,192		15.4%
1990	18,634		2.4%
2000	16,361		−12.2%
2010	16,921		3.4%
2020	16,932		0.1%
U.S. Decennial Census [6] 1850–2010 [7] 2010 [8] 2020 [9]

Scurry County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition
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 may be of any race.

Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2000 [10]	Pop 2010 [8]	Pop 2020 [9]	% 2000	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	10,672	9,773	8,637	65.23%	57.76%	51.01%
Black or African American alone (NH)	984	764	599	6.01%	4.52%	3.54%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	50	47	60	0.31%	0.28%	0.35%
Asian alone (NH)	36	48	82	0.22%	0.28%	0.48%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	0	2	5	0.00%	0.01%	0.03%
Other race alone (NH)	1	12	27	0.01%	0.07%	0.16%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	74	126	383	0.45%	0.74%	2.26%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	4,544	6,149	7,139	27.77%	36.34%	42.16%
Total	16,361	16,921	16,932	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the census ^[11] of 2000, 16,361 people, 5,756 households, and 4,161 families resided in the county. The population density was 18 people per square mile (6.9 people/km²). The 7,112 housing units averaged 8 units per square mile (3.1 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 81.27% White, 6.06% Black or African American, 0.53% Native American, 0.23% Asian, 10.51% from other races, and 1.41% from two or more races. About 27.77% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 5,756 households, 33.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.40% were married couples living together, 10.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.70% were not families; 25.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55, and the average family size was 3.05.

In the county, the population was distributed as 25.20% under the age of 18, 10.70% from 18 to 24, 26.20% from 25 to 44, 22.40% from 45 to 64, and 15.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 107.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 109.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,646, and for a family was $38,467. Males had a median income of $30,399 versus $18,061 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,871. About 12.60% of families and 16.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.60% of those under age 18 and 11.70% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

City

• Snyder (county seat)

Census-designated place

• Hermleigh

Unincorporated communities

• Dunn
• Fluvanna
• Ira

Ghost Town

• Pyron

Politics

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

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	4,945	86.44%	734	12.83%	42	0.73%
2020	4,983	84.74%	818	13.91%	79	1.34%
2016	4,410	83.02%	733	13.80%	169	3.18%
2012	4,124	82.04%	838	16.67%	65	1.29%
2008	4,414	79.26%	1,088	19.54%	67	1.20%
2004	4,576	82.12%	981	17.61%	15	0.27%
2000	4,060	76.23%	1,193	22.40%	73	1.37%
1996	2,929	49.95%	2,099	35.79%	836	14.26%
1992	2,670	43.62%	1,609	26.29%	1,842	30.09%
1988	3,749	63.61%	2,119	35.95%	26	0.44%
1984	5,028	75.85%	1,564	23.59%	37	0.56%
1980	3,745	64.06%	2,003	34.26%	98	1.68%
1976	2,797	51.24%	2,639	48.34%	23	0.42%
1972	3,777	74.79%	1,223	24.22%	50	0.99%
1968	1,745	35.90%	2,031	41.78%	1,085	22.32%
1964	1,741	33.89%	3,381	65.82%	15	0.29%
1960	2,235	42.25%	3,020	57.09%	35	0.66%
1956	2,250	45.46%	2,691	54.37%	8	0.16%
1952	2,620	51.37%	2,480	48.63%	0	0.00%
1948	201	8.71%	2,040	88.39%	67	2.90%
1944	285	13.10%	1,761	80.93%	130	5.97%
1940	280	10.84%	2,303	89.16%	0	0.00%
1936	162	8.47%	1,746	91.32%	4	0.21%
1932	105	6.14%	1,604	93.75%	2	0.12%
1928	1,597	77.49%	462	22.42%	2	0.10%
1924	269	16.71%	1,292	80.25%	49	3.04%
1920	151	15.01%	801	79.62%	54	5.37%
1916	40	3.59%	994	89.15%	81	7.26%
1912	31	3.81%	661	81.20%	122	14.99%

Education

School districts include: ^[13]

• Colorado Independent School District
• Hermleigh Independent School District
• Ira Independent School District
• Roscoe Collegiate Independent School District
• Snyder Independent School District

The Texas Legislature designated the county as being in the Western Texas College District. ^[14]

Gallery

• 
  Veterans Monument at the Scurry County Courthouse
• 
  Scurry County Museum is located on the campus of Western Texas College in Snyder.
• 
  Scurry County Library in Snyder
• 
  West Texas State Bank in Snyder serves Scurry County.
• 
  Abandoned buildings, such as this one located off US Route 84 in northern Scurry County, are seen throughout the South Plains. This building was the Dermott Post Office located in Dermott, Scurry County, TX. It had an attached home for the postmaster.
• 
  Water tank in Scurry County, Texas, near Snyder, on north side of Hwy 84

See also

• Texas portal

• Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Scurry County

References

1. "Scurry County, Texas". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 30, 2022.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. "Texas: Individual County Chronologies". Texas Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Newberry Library. 2008. Archived from the original on December 11, 2017. Retrieved May 26, 2015.
4. Fehrenbach, T.R. "Lone Star: A History of Texas and the Texans" Da Capo Press, 2000.
5. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved May 10, 2015.
6. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decade". 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 May 10, 2015.
8. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Scurry 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) – Scurry County, Texas". United States Census Bureau .
10. "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Scurry County, Texas". United States Census Bureau .
11. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved May 14, 2011.
12. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved July 30, 2018.
13. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Kent County, TX" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau . Retrieved September 22, 2024. - Text list
14. "Sec. 130.210. WESTERN TEXAS COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA" . Retrieved September 22, 2024.

External links

• Scurry County government's website
• Scurry County from the Handbook of Texas Online
• Historic Scurry County materials, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
• TXGenWeb Scurry County website
• Scurry County Genealogy Trails ^{[ permanent dead link ‍]}
• Scurry County Profile from the Texas Association of Counties

32°45′N100°55′W / 32.75°N 100.92°W / 32.75; -100.92