Wheeler County, Texas

History

In 1876, the Texas State Legislature established Wheeler County. In 1879, Mobeetie was named the county seat. Mobeetie was then known as "Sweetwater," but this name should not be confused with the Sweetwater, which is the seat of Nolan County west of Abilene. A stone courthouse was erected from locally quarried materials in 1880 but was replaced by a wooden structure in 1888. The town of Wheeler was designated as the county seat in 1908. The wooden courthouse was moved to the current site but was replaced by the existing structure as a result of a 1925 bond election. The previous building was sold to a sheriff, Riley Price, who dismantled it and used it to build barns on his nearby ranch. The structure was designed by E. H. Eads of Shamrock and built by local contractors Hughes and Campbell. It features Palladian windows and Corinthian columns, characteristic of the Greek revival style of architecture.

In the 1880s, Temple Lea Houston, the youngest son of Sam Houston, was the district attorney of the 35th Judicial District of Texas, when then encompassed twenty-six counties in the Texas Panhandle. The district was based at the time in the courthouse at Mobeetie in Wheeler County. Houston was also a member of the Texas State Senate from 1885 to 1889 and later moved to Oklahoma, where he worked for statehood. An NBC television series, Temple Houston, which aired from 1963 to 1964, is loosely based on his life, with Jeffrey Hunter in the starring role.

The Pioneer West Museum, the Wheeler County historical museum, is located in Shamrock off U.S. Highway 83.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 915 square miles (2,370 km²), of which 915 square miles (2,370 km²) is land and 1.0 square mile (2.6 km²) (0.1%) is water.

Major highways

U.S. Highway 66 is no longer officially commissioned or signed, but has special brown historic signage at various points along its former routing.

Adjacent counties

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 5,284 people, 2,152 households, and 1,487 families residing in the county. The population density was 6 people per square mile (2/km²). There were 2,687 housing units at an average density of 3 per square mile (1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 87.83% White, 2.78% Black or African American, 0.78% Native American, 0.55% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 6.64% from other races, and 1.34% from two or more races. 12.57% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,152 households out of which 29.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.00% were married couples living together, 7.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.90% were non-families. 29.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the county, the population was spread out with 24.90% under the age of 18, 6.50% from 18 to 24, 22.50% from 25 to 44, 25.20% from 45 to 64, and 20.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 92.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,029, and the median income for a family was $36,989. Males had a median income of $26,790 versus $19,091 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,083. About 11.60% of families and 13.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.30% of those under age 18 and 16.80% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Republican Drew Springer, Jr., a businessman from Muenster in Cooke County, has since January 2013 represented Wheeler County in the Texas House of Representatives.

The representative from 1971 to 1979 was the Democrat Phil Cates, later a lobbyist in Austin.

Cities

Unincorporated communities