Parker County, Texas
Parker County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 148,222.[1] The county seat is Weatherford.[2] The county was created in 1855 and organized the following year.[3] It is named for Isaac Parker, a state legislator who introduced the bill that established the county in 1855.[4] Parker later fought in the Texas Brigade.[5]
Parker County is included in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metropolitan statistical area.
Geography
[edit | edit source]According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 910 square miles (2,400 km2), of which 903 square miles (2,340 km2) are land and 6.6 square miles (17 km2) (0.7%) are covered by water.[6] The county is intersected by the Brazos River.[7]
Highest point
[edit | edit source]Slipdown Mountain and Slipdown Bluff, at a height of 1,368 feet (417 m), are the highest points in Parker County.[8] They are located just east of the Advance community, southwest of Poolville.
Major highways
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Adjacent counties
[edit | edit source]- Wise County (north)
- Tarrant County (east)
- Johnson County (southeast)
- Hood County (south)
- Palo Pinto County (west)
- Jack County (northwest)
Communities
[edit | edit source]Cities (multiple counties)
[edit | edit source]- Azle (mostly in Tarrant County)
- Cresson (partly in Hood and Johnson counties)
- Fort Worth (mostly in Tarrant County, with small parts in Denton, Johnson, Wise, and Parker counties)
- Mineral Wells (mostly in Palo Pinto County)
- Reno (small part in Tarrant County)
Cities
[edit | edit source]- Aledo
- Dennis
- Hudson Oaks
- Weatherford (county seat)
- Willow Park
Towns
[edit | edit source]Census-designated places
[edit | edit source]- Briar (partly in Wise and Tarrant counties)
- Carter
- Garner
- Horseshoe Bend
- Western Lake
Unincorporated communities
[edit | edit source]Demographics
[edit | edit source]2020 census
[edit | edit source]As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 148,222, up from 88,495 in 2000.[9] The median age was 39.8 years. 24.8% of residents were under the age of 18 and 16.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.0 males age 18 and over.[10]
The racial makeup of the county was 83.0% White, 1.2% Black or African American, 0.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 4.6% from some other race, and 9.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 13.4% of the population.[11]
35.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 64.3% lived in rural areas.[12]
There were 53,482 households in the county, of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 61.5% were married-couple households, 14.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 19.4% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 19.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[10]
There were 57,427 housing units, of which 6.9% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 79.3% were owner-occupied and 20.7% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.1%.[10]
Racial and ethnic composition
[edit | edit source]| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980[13] | Pop 1990[14] | Pop 2000[9] | Pop 2010[15] | Pop 2020[16] | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 42,526 | 60,950 | 78,980 | 99,698 | 117,747 | 95.33% | 94.08% | 89.25% | 85.27% | 79.44% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 390 | 570 | 1,559 | 1,842 | 1,636 | 0.87% | 0.88% | 1.76% | 1.58% | 1.10% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 154 | 337 | 518 | 768 | 878 | 0.35% | 0.52% | 0.59% | 0.66% | 0.59% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 113 | 219 | 298 | 631 | 990 | 0.25% | 0.34% | 0.34% | 0.54% | 0.67% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) | x [17] | x [18] | 19 | 35 | 97 | x | x | 0.02% | 0.03% | 0.07% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 71 | 12 | 58 | 64 | 470 | 0.16% | 0.02% | 0.07% | 0.05% | 0.32% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | x [19] | x [20] | 852 | 1,479 | 6,585 | x | x | 0.96% | 1.26% | 4.44% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 1,355 | 2,697 | 6,211 | 12,410 | 19,819 | 3.04% | 4.16% | 7.02% | 10.61% | 13.37% |
| Total | 44,609 | 64,785 | 88,495 | 116,927 | 148,222 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Politics
[edit | edit source]Parker County, like most suburban counties in the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area, has been a Republican stronghold for decades. Republicans have held all public offices since 1999 and the county has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since 1976.
Parker County is located within District 60 of the Texas House of Representatives. Parker County contains parts of within District 10 and parts of District 30 for representation in the Texas Senate.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 135 | 5.62% | 1,700 | 70.72% | 569 | 23.67% |
| 1916 | 173 | 7.77% | 1,797 | 80.69% | 257 | 11.54% |
| 1920 | 488 | 20.60% | 1,765 | 74.50% | 116 | 4.90% |
| 1924 | 438 | 14.70% | 2,391 | 80.26% | 150 | 5.04% |
| 1928 | 2,178 | 66.24% | 1,110 | 33.76% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 372 | 10.68% | 3,074 | 88.28% | 36 | 1.03% |
| 1936 | 375 | 12.95% | 2,493 | 86.08% | 28 | 0.97% |
| 1940 | 558 | 13.12% | 3,687 | 86.69% | 8 | 0.19% |
| 1944 | 559 | 12.27% | 3,503 | 76.90% | 493 | 10.82% |
| 1948 | 806 | 19.75% | 3,061 | 75.02% | 213 | 5.22% |
| 1952 | 3,523 | 50.50% | 3,434 | 49.23% | 19 | 0.27% |
| 1956 | 3,390 | 51.46% | 3,165 | 48.04% | 33 | 0.50% |
| 1960 | 3,467 | 48.50% | 3,629 | 50.77% | 52 | 0.73% |
| 1964 | 2,175 | 29.16% | 5,270 | 70.66% | 13 | 0.17% |
| 1968 | 3,068 | 32.98% | 4,301 | 46.23% | 1,934 | 20.79% |
| 1972 | 7,152 | 69.11% | 3,184 | 30.77% | 13 | 0.13% |
| 1976 | 4,692 | 36.18% | 8,186 | 63.12% | 91 | 0.70% |
| 1980 | 8,505 | 52.65% | 7,336 | 45.41% | 314 | 1.94% |
| 1984 | 13,647 | 69.07% | 6,050 | 30.62% | 62 | 0.31% |
| 1988 | 14,090 | 62.01% | 8,517 | 37.48% | 116 | 0.51% |
| 1992 | 10,321 | 37.54% | 7,934 | 28.86% | 9,239 | 33.60% |
| 1996 | 14,580 | 54.29% | 9,447 | 35.18% | 2,828 | 10.53% |
| 2000 | 23,651 | 71.18% | 8,878 | 26.72% | 696 | 2.09% |
| 2004 | 31,795 | 77.63% | 8,966 | 21.89% | 196 | 0.48% |
| 2008 | 36,974 | 77.11% | 10,502 | 21.90% | 475 | 0.99% |
| 2012 | 39,243 | 82.28% | 7,853 | 16.47% | 598 | 1.25% |
| 2016 | 46,473 | 81.79% | 8,344 | 14.69% | 2,000 | 3.52% |
| 2020 | 62,045 | 81.50% | 13,017 | 17.10% | 1,066 | 1.40% |
| 2024 | 75,168 | 82.75% | 14,872 | 16.37% | 800 | 0.88% |
| 2016 | 1 | 33.33% | 1 | 33.33% | 1 | 33.33% |
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Notable people
[edit | edit source]- Oliver Loving, developer of the Loving-Goodnight Cattle Trail
- Bose Ikard, trusted cattle driver of Oliver Loving and Charles Goodnight
- Mary Martin, star of stage and screen
- S.W.T. Lanham, last Confederate veteran to serve as governor of Texas
- Jim Wright, youngest mayor of Weatherford, Texas, and Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
See also
[edit | edit source]- List of museums in North Texas
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Parker County, Texas
- Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Parker County
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ "Parker County, Texas". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
- ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ↑ "Texas: Individual County Chronologies". Texas Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Newberry Library. 2008. Archived from the original on May 13, 2015. Retrieved May 26, 2015.
- ↑ "PARKER COUNTY". Retrieved March 24, 2016.
- ↑ "Parker, Isaac".
- ↑ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved May 6, 2015.
- ↑ Template:Cite AmCyc
- ↑ "Parker County Highpoint Trip Report". Retrieved March 24, 2016.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Parker County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)". United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved January 10, 2026.
- ↑ "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)". United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved January 10, 2026.
- ↑ "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)". United States Census Bureau. 2023. Retrieved January 10, 2026.
- ↑ "1980 Census of Population - General Population Characteristics- Texas - Table 15. Persons by Race and Table 16. Total Persons and Spanish Origin Persons by Type of Spanish Origin and Race" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. p. 21-46. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 7, 2022.
- ↑ "1990 Census of Population - General Population Characteristics- Texas - Table 3. Race and Hispanic Origin: 1990" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. p. 29-138. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 3, 2026.
- ↑ "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Parker County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
- ↑ "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Parker County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
- ↑ included in the Asian category in the 1980 Census
- ↑ included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census
- ↑ not an option in the 1980 Census
- ↑ not an option in the 1990 Census
- ↑ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved July 28, 2018.
External links
[edit | edit source]| File:Commons-logo.svg | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Parker County, Texas. |
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- Template:Handbook of Texas
- The Parker County Poor Farm
- Historic photos from the Weatherford College Library, hosted by the Portal to Texas History
Template:Parker County, Texas Template:Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex Template:Texas counties Template:Texas
Coordinates: 32°47′N 97°49′W / 32.78°N 97.81°W
- ↑ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Parker County, Texas". www.census.gov. Retrieved January 31, 2024.