Odessa, Texas

Odessa is a city located in and the county seat of Ector County^GR6 in the U.S. State of Texas, United States of America. Odessa's population was 90,943 at the 2000 United States Census, with a 2005 census population estimated projection of 93,546. The Midland–Odessa metropolitan area had a population 251,842 as of the July 1, 2006 estimate.

Odessa is home to Permian High School (mascot: Panther, nickname: MOJO), the high school whose 1988 football team was featured in the book and movie Friday Night Lights, and Odessa High School (mascot: Broncho) as the only high schools in the Ector County Independent School District. The Richard Milburn Academy (mascot: Bulldogs) {founded in 2003} is a private high school that is free to the public but not affiliated with the Ector County Independent School District in any way. The University of Texas of the Permian Basin, the Texas Tech University Health Science Center at Odessa, and Odessa College are located in Odessa.

The Ector County Coliseum in Odessa features events as diverse as Indoor football as played by the Intense Football League's Odessa Roughnecks, ice hockey with the Central Hockey League's Odessa Jackalopes, and rodeo every year in the form of the Sandhills Stock Show and Rodeo. The Ector County Coliseum is also host to the Permian Basin International Oil Show on every even numbered year. The Permian Basin International Oil Show showcases the latest technology in the petroleum industry and also honors the industry’s past.

The Midland-Odessa Symphony & Chorale (MOSC) has performed in the Permian Basin for over 45 years, and is the region's largest orchestral organization, presenting both Pops and Masterworks concerts throughout the year. Comprised of professional musicians from the area as well as Lubbock, San Angelo and other surrounding cities, the MOSC also is home to three resident chamber ensembles, the Lone Star Brass, Permian Basin String Quartet and West Texas Winds. These ensembles are made up of principal musicians in the orchestra, who come to the area from across the United States.

The Globe of the Great Southwest, located on the campus of Odessa's community college Odessa College, features an authentic replica of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.

Odessa has 10 local television stations: KMID - an American Broadcasting Company affiliate, KWES - an NBC affiliate, KOSA - a CBS affiliate and a MyNetwork TV affiliate on their digital cable station, KPEJ - a FOX affiliate, KPBT - a PBS affiliate, KWWT - The CW Television Network affiliate, KUPB - a Univision affiliate, KTLE-LP - a Telemundo affiliate, and K69IT- a Multimedios Television affiliate. It also has one local religious television station: KMLM- a God's Learning Channel affiliate that is a worldwide institution offering pro-Israel programming.

It was the one year home of former U.S. President George H. W. Bush, his wife Barbara, and their son President George W. Bush. They later moved to Odessa's rival/sister city Midland. Since then, these two fast-growing cities sparked by oil have formed a partnership to entice new companies to come to the area. Hard work has paid off as new companies from retail to distribution to call centers have come to the area.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 Trivia
4 External links

[edit] Geography

Odessa is located at 31°51′48″N, 102°21′56″W (31.863294, -102.365490)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 95.5 km² (36.9 mi²). 95.3 km² (36.8 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (0.19%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 90,943 people, 33,661 households, and 23,697 families residing in the city. in 2006, the population increased to near 97,000 The population density was 954.2/km² (2,471.4/mi²). There were 37,966 housing units at an average density of 398.3/km² (1,031.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 73.43% White, 5.88% African American, 0.77% Native American, 0.88% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 16.07% from other races, and 2.93% from two or more races. 41.42% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 33,661 households out of which 37.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.6% were married couples living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.6% were non-families. 25.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.6% 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 3.21.

The age distribution is 29.8% under the age of 18, 10.6% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 93.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $31,209, and the median income for a family was $36,869. Males had a median income of $31,115 versus $21,743 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,096. About 16.0% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.9% of those under age 18 and 14.1% of those age 65 or over.

Odessa is served by Midland International Airport, which is in Midland, Texas, United States.

[edit] Trivia

Odessa was once home to Stephnie Weir of MADtv fame.
Odessa is the hometown of NBC drama Heroes characters Claire Bennet, her adoptive father Mr. Bennet, and his employer Primatech Paper. The series is, however, filmed entirely in California (according to the Internet Movie Database).
Odessa has one of the only authentic replicas of William Shakespeare's Globe Theater in existence. It hosts plays throughout the year as well as an annual Shakespeare festival.
Odessa'a Presidential Museum is the only one of its kind in the United States totally dedicated to the office of the Presidency, not just one single president. There are also displays about the Presidents of the Republic of Texas
The book Friday Night Lights and subsequent movie are based on the true struggles of the Permian Panthers, a high school football team from Odessa, Texas. Many of the characters mentioned in the book still reside there (as of January 2007).
Filming has begun on a new reality series on the TV Guide Channel following the reporters of the local CBS affiliate, KOSA-TV. The show is titled Making News: Texas Style and is slated for a June release. Odessa American Article "Who's Watching Whom?"

[edit] External links

Maps and aerial photos Coordinates: 31.863294° -102.36549°
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA

Parry, Albert (Spring 1944). "US towns named Odessa". Russian Review 3 (2): 36-40.
Odessa Texas History. odessahistory.com. Retrieved on September 21, 2006.
Odessa-Midland Area Radio Stations
City of Odessa Website
Permian Basin Oil Show Website

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