Garza County, Texas

Garza County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas southeast of Lubbock. In 2000, its population was 4,872. Its county seat is Post^[1]. Garza is named for a pioneer Bexar County family, as it was once a part of that county.

A leading civic figure in Garza County is Giles McCrary (born 1919), a rancher, oil developer, investor, and art collector. McCrary's OS Ranch Museum is a popular attraction in the county seat of Post, which has made an extended effort to attract tourism.

History Timeline

• 2000 b.c. • Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the first inhabitants. Later inhabitants were the Kiowa, Comanche. ^[2]

• 1519-1685 Hernando Cortez and

Alonso Álvarez de Pineda claim Texas for Spain.

• 1541 Spanish explorer Francisco Vázquez de Coronado traverses the general region.

• 1685-1690 France plants its flag on Texas soil, but departs after only five years. ^[3].

• 1821 Mexico claims its independence from Spain. Anglos from the north settle in Texas and claim Mexican citizenship.

• 1829, September 15 - Mexican President Vicente Ramon Guerrero, himself an ex-slave of Spanish, African and Native American descent, emancipates all slaves within the Republic of Mexico: ^{[4] [5]}

1st - Slavery is abolished in the republic.

2nd - Consequently, those who have been until now considered slaves are free.

3rd - When the circumstances of the treasury may permit, the owners of the slaves will be indemnified in the mode that the laws may provide. And in order that every part of this decree may be fully complied with, let it be printed, published, and circulated.

Given at the Federal Palace of Mexico, the 15th of September, 1829.

Vicente Guerrero To José María Bocanegra

• 1836

March 2 - Texas Declaration of Independence from Mexico establishes the Republic of Texas.

March 6 - The Alamo falls.

April 21-22 - Battle of San Jacinto, Antonio López de Santa Anna captured.

May 14 - Santa Anna signs the Treaties of Velasco.

• 1845, December 29 -Texas Annexation by the United States

• 1846, May 13 - The United States Congress officially declares war on Mexico.

• 1848, February 2 - Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo officially ends the Mexican-American War.

• 1861

February 1 - Texas secedes from the Union

March 2 - Texas joins the Confederate States of America

• 1863, January 1 • The Emancipation Proclamation. ^[6]

• 1865

April 9 • Robert E. Lee formally surrenders to Ulysses S. Grant at the Appomattox Court House.

April 15 • President Abraham Lincoln dies of a head wound inflicted by assassin John Wilkes Booth.

June 19 • Major General Gordon Granger arrives in Galveston to enforce the emancipation of all slaves. It is the first time African Americans in Texas know of the Emancipation. The date becomes celebrated annually in Texas as Juneteenth, and later as an official state holiday known as Emancipation Day. ^[7]

December 6 • The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits slavery.

• 1870, March 30 - The United States Congress readmits Texas into the Union.

• 1875 W. C. Young of Fort Worth and Illinois Irishman Ben Galbraith establish the beginnings of the Curry Comb Ranch in the northwest part of Garza County. ^[8]

• 1876 Garza County is formed from Bexar County, and named for the prominent Bexar County family of José Antonio de la Garza. ^[9]

• 1880 County census count is 36 people.

• 1882 The Square and Compass Ranch is started by the Nave and McCord Cattle Company. They put up the first barbed wire fence two years later. ^[10]

• 1884 OS Ranch is founded by brothers Andrew J. Long and Frank M. Long of Lexington, Kentucky. ^[11]

• 1900 County population is 185 persons.

• 1907 Post is founded as a utopian venture by, and named for, cereal king Charles William Post. ^{[12] [13] [14]}

• 1909 C.W. Post builds a cotton gin.

• 1911 C.W. post builds a cotton mill.

• 1910-1913 C. W. Post attempts to improve agriculture production through rainmaking, involving the heavy use of explosives fired from kites and towers along the rim of the Caprock Escarpment.

• 1926 Oil is discovered in the county.

• 1934 Archeologists in the county discover the sixteen-foot-long tusk of a prehistoric imperial mammoth.

• 1957 A Prehistoric Indian site at Cowhead Mesa is recorded by Emmet Shedd of Post. ^[15]

• 1960-1965 South Plains Archaeological Society excavations of Cowhead Mesa find artifacts to date inhabitation back to 2000 b.c. ^{[16] [17]}

• 1980 The most important business in the county are agribusiness, oil and gas extraction, and textile mills.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 896 square miles (2,321 km²), of which, 895 square miles (2,319 km²) of it is land and 1 square miles (2 km²) of it (0.07%) is water.

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 84
• U.S. Highway 380
• State Highway 207

Adjacent counties

• Crosby County (north)
• Kent County (east)
• Scurry County (southeast)
• Borden County (south)
• Lynn County (west)

Demographics

As of the census^[18] of 2000, there were 4,872 people, 1,663 households, and 1,217 families residing in the county. The population density was 5 people per square mile (2/km²). There were 1,928 housing units at an average density of 2 per square mile (1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 56.7% White (European and non-Hispanic), 4.8 Black or African American,0.2%Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander,37.2% of the population were Hispanic or Latino. 17.1 other races, and 3.00% from two or more races.

There were 1,663 households out of which 36.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.50% were married couples living together, 11.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.80% were non-families. 23.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.15.

In the county, the population was spread out with 28.00% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 28.60% from 25 to 44, 21.30% from 45 to 64, and 14.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 112.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 111.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $27,206, and the median income for a family was $31,173. Males had a median income of $26,604 versus $18,105 for females. The per capita income for the county was $12,704. About 17.50% of families and 22.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.60% of those under age 18 and 18.60% of those age 65 or over.

The county is served by a weekly newspaper, nearby stations KBXJ (FM) and KPET (AM), and the various Lubbock, and some Midland radio and TV stations. Post is city of license of KGCE (FM) but it offers no local programs. It is fed 100% by a satellite feed from California, and has an office in Lubbock.

Cities and towns

• Post
• Justiceburg
• Southland

See also

• C.W. Post Memorial Camp
• Double Mountain Fork Brazos River

References

1. ^ . National Association of Counties. . Retrieved 2008-01-31.
2. ^ Handbook of Texas, Garza County [1]
3. ^ The Six National Flags of Texas [2]
4. ^ The Magnificent Life of Vicente Ramon Guerrero [3]
5. ^ TAMU Chieftans of Mexican Independence [4]
6. ^ Government documents, Emancipation Proclamation [5]
7. ^ Cinnamon Hearts Juneteenth [6]
8. ^ Curry Comb Ranch [7]
9. ^ Handbook of Texas, Jose Garza [8]
10. ^ Handbook of Texas, Square and Compass Ranch [9]
11. ^ OS Ranch and Museum [10]
12. ^ TxGenWeb Post Tx [11]
13. ^ Texas Escapes, Post Tx [12]
14. ^ Post Texas CC [13]
15. ^ Handbook of Texas, Cowhead Mesa [14]
16. ^ Texas Archaeological Society [15]
17. ^ Texas Beyond History [16]/
18. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.

External links

• Garza County government's website
• Garza County from the Handbook of Texas Online

Coordinates: 33°11′N 101°18′W / 33.18°N 101.30°W

Categories: Texas counties | Garza County, Texas