Lovington, New Mexico

Lovington is a city in and the county seat of Lea County, New Mexico, United States.^[1] The population was 9,471 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Lovington is located at 32°56′47″N 103°21′13″W / 32.94639°N 103.35361°W (32.946459, -103.353618).^[2]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.8 square miles (12.4 km²), of which 4.8 square miles (12.4 km²) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) (0.42%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census^[3] of 2000, there were 9,471 people, 3,297 households, and 2,459 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,983.6 people per square mile (766.6/km²). There were 3,823 housing units at an average density of 800.7/sq mi (309.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 59.85% White, 3.03% African American, 0.78% Native American, 0.48% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 32.74% from other races, and 3.06% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 52.12% of the population.

There were 3,297 households out of which 41.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.0% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.4% were non-families. 22.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.29.

In the city the population was spread out with 31.8% under the age of 18, 10.9% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 18.8% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 96.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $26,458, and the median income for a family was $30,064. Males had a median income of $28,547 versus $19,826 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,752. About 20.1% of families and 22.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.1% of those under age 18 and 16.2% of those age 65 or over.

Claim to fame

Lovington is the hometown of star NFL football player Brian Urlacher, who has lived there since early childhood (after having been born in Pasco, Washington). Lovington is also the former home of professional golfers Ronnie Black and Sean Murphy. Colt McCoy, quarterback of the University of Texas Longhorns, was born 20 miles away in Hobbs, NM. Paul L. Foster, billionaire philanthropist and President of Western Refining is also formerly from Lovington, as is former Duke University basketball star Taymon Domzalski. Lovington is also proud of the Lovington High School Big Blue Marching Band. The band includes over 200 students this year and has received twenty seven 1st divisions at the District Marching Festival for their outstanding marching talent and playing ability. Lovington was also home of World Champion Calf Ropers, Jake McClure and Troy Fort. For several years, legendary Titanic Thompson lived in Lovington.

Lovington Wildcats Football State Championships

Lovington High School, whose mascot is the "Wildcats," has the distinction of having won a total of sixteen state championships in football. This achievement is a source of great pride for current and former residents of the city, who faithfully support the blue-and-white Wildcats. The championship years, records, and scores of the championship games are listed below:

1. 1951 ( 4-3-1) Lovington (NMAA point system)
2. 1952 ( 8-1-0) Lovington (NMAA point system) (Co-champions with Capitan)
3. 1957 ( 6-3-0) Lovington 20, Raton 6
4. 1958 ( 5-4-0) Lovington 28, Santa Fe St. Michael's 6
5. 1960 ( 7-2-0) Lovington 26, Aztec 7
6. 1968 ( 9-2-1) Lovington 13, Aztec 12
7. 1969 ( 9-3-0) Lovington 46, West Las Vegas 14
8. 1970 ( 9-3-1) Lovington 29, Santa Fe St. Michael's 7
9. 1986 (13-0-0) Lovington 20, Ruidoso 7
10. 1987 ( 9-3-1) Lovington 0, Artesia 0 (Co-champions)
11. 1990 (12-0) Lovington 13, Bloomfield 7
12. 1995 (14-0) Lovington 24, Silver City 7
13. 2000 (11-3) Lovington 42, Bayard Cobre 7
14. 2001 (13-0) Lovington 59, Las Vegas Robertson 3
15. 2004 ( 8-5) Lovington 40, Santa Fe St. Michael's 14
16. 2009 (11-2) Lovington 28, Socorro 21

In addition, the Lovington Wildcats have played in the state championship game in six other years, when they finished as runner-up. The school is currently classified as Class AAA in New Mexico. Lovington High's fight song utilizes the stirring tune of "Stars and Stripes Forever."

References

1. ^ . National Association of Counties. . Retrieved 2008-01-31.
2. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2005-05-03. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
3. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.

External links

• New Mexico Activities Association

Categories: Cities in New Mexico | Lea County, New Mexico | County seats in New Mexico | New Mexico communities with Hispanic majority populations