Van Horn, Texas

Geography

Van Horn is located in southwestern Culberson County at 31°2′33″N 104°49′59″W (31.042489, -104.832928). Interstate 10 passes through the town, leading east 120 miles (190 km) to Fort Stockton and northwest 118 miles (190 km) to El Paso. Van Horn is the western terminus of U.S. Route 90; from Van Horn it leads southeast 73 miles (117 km) to Marfa. Texas State Highway 54 leads north from Van Horn 65 miles (105 km) to Pine Springs and the Guadalupe Mountains.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 2.8 square miles (7.3 km²), all land. Threemile Peak (or Threemile Mountain), elevation 4,868 feet (1,484 m), rises to the northwest overlooking the town.

Van Horn is the westernmost town in the U.S. Central Time Zone.

History

Anglo-Texan settlement began in the late 1850s and early 1860s supportive of the San Antonio-El Paso Overland Mail route. Although U.S. Army Major Jefferson Van Horne is believed to have passed near the area in 1849 on his way to take command of what would later become Fort Bliss, the town is instead named for Lt. James Judson Van Horn who commanded an army garrison at the Van Horn Wells beginning in 1859. Lt. Van Horn's command was relatively short-lived, as the post was seized by Confederate forces in 1861 and Lt. Van Horn taken prisoner. Settlement was further stimulated by the construction of the Texas and Pacific Railway in 1881. The town has several buildings on the National Register of Historic Places including the First Presbyterian Church (now Primera Iglesia Bautista), built in 1901.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,435 people, 834 households, and 652 families residing in the town. The population density was 846.9 people per square mile (326.4/km²). There were 976 housing units at an average density of 339.5 per square mile (130.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 64.60% White, 0.66% African American, 0.57% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 31.46% from other races, and 2.14% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 78.60% of the population.

Education

Van Horn is served by the Culberson County-Allamoore Independent School District and is home to the Van Horn High School Eagles.

Government and infrastructure

The United States Postal Service operates the Van Horn Post Office.

Roads

Rail

Space tourism

In late 2006, The Wall Street Journal reported that Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of amazon.com, had acquired 290,000 acres (1,200 km²) of land 25 miles (40 km) north of Van Horn, including the Figure 2 Ranch Airport, to house his fledgling space tourism company, Blue Origin. As of 2008, Blue Origin had been expected to start commercial operations as early as 2010, aiming for 52 launches per year from the Van Horn facility.

In early 2010, NASA awarded Blue Origin US$3.7 million to work on an advanced technology, which detaches a crew cabin from its launcher if the shuttle malfunctions.

As of August 2016, Blue Origin was still conducting test flights with plans to begin flying piloted tests in 2017 and paying customers in 2018.

10,000-year clock

In 2009 the Van Horn Advocate announced that the Long Now Foundation was starting geologic testing for an underground space to house a 10,000-year Clock of the Long Now, on the Bezos ranch, north of Van Horn.