Commerce, Texas

History

The town of Commerce was formed when two merchants named William Jernigan and Josiah Jackson established a trading post and mercantile store located where the present day downtown area is. The rural area just to the northeast of the area was an open prairie area originally known as Cow Hill. The town was established in 1872 and named Commerce due to the thriving economic activity, and cotton fields and ideal farm and ranch lands between the Middle and South Sulphur rivers on the rich, black gumbo prairie in northeast Hunt County. The town incorporated in 1885. Two years later, a railroad was built through Commerce to transport merchandise from Fort Worth, and nine years later, William L. Mayo, a college educator, moved East Texas Normal College from the Northeast Texas town of Cooper to Commerce after the original school in Cooper was destroyed in a fire. Mayo continued as president of the college, now known as Texas A&M University–Commerce, until his death in 1917 and is buried on the campus grounds.

Commerce was named the “Bois d’Arc Capital of Texas” (pronounced "bow-dark") by the Texas Legislature because of its location in the geographic center of the indigenous range of the bois d'arc tree. The second largest bois d’arc tree in Texas “Big Max”, recognized by the National Forests Famous and Historic Trees, is located within the city limits. Held every September, the annual festival Bois d’Arc Bash pays homage to bois d’arc trees which played a vital part in the frontier days, providing foundations, fences and weapons of the Native Americans. The Bash celebrates with arts & crafts vendors, food, parade, kid's game area, pageant, wine, musical entertainment, 5K run, and car & truck show.

Geography

Commerce is located at 33°14′42″N 95°54′0″W (33.244959, −95.899957).

It is about 60 miles (97 km) northeast of Dallas

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.5 square miles (17 km²), of which, 6.5 square miles (17 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km²) of it (0.92%) is water.

Climate

Commerce's climate is considered to be part of the humid subtropical region. The temperature varies greatly throughout the year. Commerce has hot, humid and dry Summers, typical of much of Texas and above average Spring temperatures. Commerce has cooler fall and Winter temperatures with higher wind chills due to its northern location and location on a natural prairie. During the Spring is the strongest part of the storm season as thunderstorms are very common and Tornadoes have been known to form in and around the area.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were approximately 8,078 people, 2,881 households, and 1,524 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,183.3 people per square mile (456.9/km²). There were 3,405 housing units at an average density of 525.4 per square mile (202.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 71.07% White, 20.78% African American, 0.42% Native American, 2.59% Asian, 0.21% Pacific Islander, 3.13% from other races, and 1.80% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.65% of the population.

There were 2,881 households out of which 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.0% were married couples living together, 14.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.1% were non-families. 36.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 3.02.

Age demographic: 21.5% under the age of 18, 28.2% age 18 to 24, 26.3% age 25 to 44, 14.3% age 45 to 64, and 9.8% age 65 or older. The median age was 25.6 years. For every 100 females there were 95.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $26,946, and the median income for a family was $34,901. Males had a median income of $17,666 versus $14,515 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,320. About 29.3% of families and 35.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 37.2% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Commerce is served by the following Highways:

Business 224–A business route of highway 224 through Commerce along Live Oak Street, Main Street and Park Street.

Business 11–A business route of highway 11 through Commerce along Maple Street, Park Street, and Wolfe City Drive, this route was formerly a part of highway 11 before it was rerouted to run concurrent with Loop 178 and Highway 24.

High school sports

Commerce High School is the only high school in Commerce, they are known as the Commerce Tigers and compete at the 3A level in UIL sports. The Commerce Tigers compete in football (men), volleyball (women), basketball (men and women), softball (women), baseball (men), track and field (men and women), cross country (men and women), powerlifting (men and women), tennis (men and women), and golf (men and women). The Commerce Tigers football team has two state titles from 1999 and 2001. Commerce-Norris High School (defunct) won the state championship for basketball in 1964.

Collegiate sports

The A&M–Commerce Lions compete in NCAA Division II sports and are a flagship member of the Lone Star Conference. The A&M-Commerce Lions compete in: football (men), volleyball (women), basketball (men and women), soccer (women), softball (women), golf (men and women), track and field (men and women), and cross country (men and women). Football is very popular among the university as well as the town, as fans from surrounding cities including Greenville and Sulphur Springs will come out to support the A&M-Commerce Lions football team, and the average attendance at football games is over 6,000. The A&M-Commerce Lions have earned numerous conference titles in nearly every sport that they compete in. In addition to this they've also earned five national titles, men's basketball (1954–1955), men's golf (1965), football (1972), men's tennis (1972, 1978).

Media

KETR serves as the radio station for the city of Commerce, Texas A&M University–Commerce, Hunt County, and surrounding cities. The station was founded in 1975 at the A&M-Commerce campus where it still remains today. KETR is a 100,000 watt radio station that can reach up to 75 miles away, the radio frequency is 88.9 FM in honor of the year 1889 which is the year the university was founded. The station provides news, music, and sports for its listeners. In fact the station has two NPR talk shows. Commerce High School football games are broadcast on KETR, as well as A&M–Commerce Lions football and basketball games. KGVL in nearby Greenville also has a strong presence due to the proximity of the two cities. Commerce is served by the Dallas/Fort Worth Television Stations on local cable and also regular programming. Commerce residents have three newspapers that serve the city, The Dallas Morning News, (Daily) The Greenville Herald-Banner, (Daily) and the Commerce Journal. (Weekly)

Primary and secondary education

The City of Commerce is served by the Commerce Independent School District. CISD currently operates the following schools:

Post-secondary education

The city of Commerce is home to Texas A&M University–Commerce (formerly known as East Texas State University), a fully accredited and ranked university that offers over 100 different majors, with an enrollment of 12,302 students, 7,808 undergraduates, and 4,494 graduate students. A&M-Commerce was founded in 1889 at its original location in Cooper, Texas, but moved to Commerce after burning down in 1894. The university is ranked #1 in the state of Texas for teaching education and 13th in the nation, in addition to having a highly ranked graduate school. The university also remains as the fifth longest continuous operating university in the state of Texas. Paris Junior College is an alternative for Junior College Students in the area as PJC has campuses in Paris (40 miles away), Greenville (15 miles away), and Sulphur Springs (25 miles away).

Economy

Due to being a rural college town with proximity to Dallas, Commerce has an economy that remained steady for years with gradual increases with new businesses opening and others being renovated. Most of the bigger businesses of the town surround the local university, and the university's student body is bigger than the town itself. The downtown area is approximately one mile from the University and is the hub for town festivities. The downtown area includes bars, dining, a fashion retailer, a pet store, an office supplies retailer, a thrift shop, real estate offices, tax preparation offices, an insurance agency, the Chamber of Commerce, banks, and loft style living.

Healthcare

Commerce is home to Hunt Regional Medical Center, a Level IV Emergency Room and Trauma Center. The Hospital was once part of the Dallas-based Presbyterian Health System, but changed hands around 2010. The main Medical Center is in nearby Greenville and Commerce also has 3 primary care physicians offices, one chiropractor, a prenatal clinic, two dental offices, and a physical therapy center.

Northeast Texas Children's Museum

The city of Commerce is home to the Northeast Texas Children's Museum. The museum provides playful and creative learning experiences for children. There are many hands-on exhibits and programs that cater to children between ages 2 through 10. Many school districts from the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex and the Northeast Texas area visit the museum.

Jim Chapman Lake

Jim Chapman Lake (formerly known as Cooper Lake) is located roughly 25 minutes away from Commerce, between Cooper and Sulphur Springs. Boating, swimming, and fishing are available at Jim Chapman Lake. Cooper Lake State Park is located along the northern shore of the lake. The park contains several picnic areas, campgrounds and a large swimming area on Jim Chapman Lake. The park also contains several hiking and equestrian trails.

Notable landmark

The most notable landmark of the city of Commerce is the high-rise 12 story building located on the A&M-Commerce campus. This building is called Samuel H. Whitley Hall and is the tallest building between Dallas and Texarkana. The building is named in honor of former university president Samuel Whitley, who served as president of the university from 1924–1946. This 146 foot tall building serves as a dormitory for traditional freshmen on campus.

Notable people