George West, Texas

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

George West is a city in Live Oak County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,524 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Live Oak County^GR6. George West was named the "storytelling capital of Texas" in 2005 by the Texas Senate; and it hosts the George West Storyfest, a festival that features storytelling, cowboy poetry and music.

Contents 1 History 2 Geography 3 Demographics 4 Education 5 External links

[edit] History

George West was a land venture and ranching enterprise of George Washington West and Kittie West. Originally from San Antonio, West began to build his town in 1913, after ranching in the area from 1880 to 1912. He sold his cattle holdings and began to colonize some 75,000 acres.

He offered the railroad $100,000 and a free easement through his land to build to George West. He offered $75,000 to build a new courthouse if the county seat was moved from Oakville and voters approved the measure in 1918. West also built schools, roads and water and electricity plants.

George West was incorporated in 1946 and the government changed to home rule in 1980.

[edit] Geography

George West is located at 28°19′52″N, 98°7′1″W (28.331147, -98.117013)^GR1. This is 57 miles (92 km) northwest of Corpus Christi and 79 miles (127 km) south of San Antonio.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.9 km² (1.9 mi²), all land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 2,524 people, 892 households, and 671 families residing in the city. The population density was 512.9/km² (1,327.3/mi²). There were 1,035 housing units at an average density of 210.3/km² (544.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 82.73% White, 0.28% African American, 0.40% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 14.38% from other races, and 2.06% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 58.00% of the population.

There were 892 households out of which 40.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.8% were married couples living together, 14.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.7% were non-families. 22.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.0% 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 30.8% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 91.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,364, and the median income for a family was $33,971. Males had a median income of $28,456 versus $14,573 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,591. About 18.2% of families and 21.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.0% of those under age 18 and 13.2% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Education

The City of George West is served by the George West Independent School District.

[edit] External links

• George West, Texas from the Handbook of Texas Online
• George West Storyfest festival.
• Geographic Names Information System Feature Detail Report from the USGS website.
• Maps and aerial photos Coordinates: 28.331147° -98.117013°
  • 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