Donley County, Texas
Encyclopedia
Donley County is a county located in the U.S. state
of Texas
. In 2000, its population was 3,828. It is named for Stockton P. Donley, a frontier lawyer
. Its county seat
is Clarendon
.
The legendary cattle baron
Charles Goodnight
spent his later years in Donley County. It was also the home of historian
Harley True Burton
, author of A History of the JA Ranch, which Goodnight formerly co-owned. Burton was president of Clarendon College
and the mayor
of Clarendon from 1955-1963. The JA Ranch
is located in the counties of Donley, Hall, Briscoe, and Armstrong
.
Donley County is also the home of Republican
U.S. Representative Mac Thornberry
.
Aviation
historian Randy Acord
(1919-2008) was originally from Donley County.
The Harold Dow Bugbee
Ranch, formerly owned by the Western
artist
and his second wife, Olive Vandruff Bugbee, also an artist, is located in Donley County.
On U.S. Highway 287, which runs through the county, there is a modern rest area
with free wi-fi
. http://www.dot.state.tx.us/MNT/sra/srahome.htm?sranbr=112&dir=S
See also: Saints' Roost Museum
in Clarendon.
, the county has a total area of 933 square miles (2,416.5 km²), of which 930 square miles (2,408.7 km²) is land and 3 square miles (7.8 km²) (0.35%) is water.
of 2000, there were 3,828 people, 1,578 households, and 1,057 families residing in the county. The population density
was 4 people per square mile (2/km²). There were 2,378 housing units at an average density of 3 per square mile (1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.41% White
, 3.94% Black
or African American
, 0.89% Native American
, 0.10% Asian
, 2.72% from other races
, and 0.94% from two or more races. 6.35% of the population were Hispanic
or Latino
of any race.
There were 1,578 households out of which 24.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.70% were married couples
living together, 7.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.00% were non-families. 31.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.86.
In the county, the population was spread out with 22.40% under the age of 18, 9.80% from 18 to 24, 20.60% from 25 to 44, 25.50% from 45 to 64, and 21.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 94.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.70 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $29,006, and the median income for a family was $37,287. Males had a median income of $24,375 versus $18,882 for females. The per capita income
for the county was $15,958. About 10.50% of families and 15.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.90% of those under age 18 and 15.90% of those age 65 or over.
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. In 2000, its population was 3,828. It is named for Stockton P. Donley, a frontier lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
. Its county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
is Clarendon
Clarendon, Texas
Clarendon is a city in Donley County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,974 at the 2000 census. The county seat of Donley County, Clarendon is located on United States Highway 287 in the Texas Panhandle some sixty miles east of Amarillo. It was established in 1878 by Methodist clergyman L.H...
.
The legendary cattle baron
Cattle baron
A cattle baron is a historic term for a person who possessed great power or influence, generally as owner of a large ranch and many cattle, specifically beef cattle. A cattle baron in the United States was sometimes called a cowman or a rancher...
Charles Goodnight
Charles Goodnight
Charles Goodnight, also known as Charlie Goodnight , was a cattle rancher in the American West, perhaps the best known rancher in Texas. He is sometimes known as the "father of the Texas Panhandle." Essayist and historian J...
spent his later years in Donley County. It was also the home of historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
Harley True Burton
Harley True Burton
Harley True Burton was a Texas historian, college president, and small-town mayor. He was born in Decatur, the seat of Wise County, located north of Fort Worth....
, author of A History of the JA Ranch, which Goodnight formerly co-owned. Burton was president of Clarendon College
Clarendon College (Texas)
Clarendon College is a community college located in Clarendon, the seat of Donley County in the Texas Panhandle. The college operates branch campuses in Pampa and Childress....
and the mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of Clarendon from 1955-1963. The JA Ranch
JA Ranch
The JA Ranch, jointly founded by John George Adair and Charles Goodnight, is the oldest privately owned cattle ranch in the Palo Duro Canyon section of the Texas Panhandle southeast of Amarillo. At its peak size in 1883, the JA, still run by descendants of the Adair family, encompassed some of...
is located in the counties of Donley, Hall, Briscoe, and Armstrong
Armstrong County, Texas
Armstrong County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas, and was formed in 1876 from Bexar County. It is part of the Amarillo metropolitan area. As of 2000, the population is 2,148. Its county seat is Claude. Armstrong is named for one of several Texas pioneer families named Armstrong...
.
Donley County is also the home of Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
U.S. Representative Mac Thornberry
Mac Thornberry
William McClellan "Mac" Thornberry is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1995. He is a member of the Republican Party....
.
Aviation
Aviation
Aviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Aviation is derived from avis, the Latin word for bird.-History:...
historian Randy Acord
Randy Acord
Randall Keith "Randy" Acord was a historian of American aviation who in 1992 founded the Alaska Air Pioneer Museum at Pioneer Park in Fairbanks, Alaska....
(1919-2008) was originally from Donley County.
The Harold Dow Bugbee
Harold Dow Bugbee
Harold Dow Bugbee was an American Western artist, illustrator, painter, and curator of the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum in Canyon, Texas. Bugbee sought with considerable success to become the dominant artist of the Texas South Plains, as his role model, Charles M...
Ranch, formerly owned by the Western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
and his second wife, Olive Vandruff Bugbee, also an artist, is located in Donley County.
On U.S. Highway 287, which runs through the county, there is a modern rest area
Rest area
A rest area, travel plaza, rest stop, or service area is a public facility, located next to a large thoroughfare such as a highway, expressway, or freeway at which drivers and passengers can rest, eat, or refuel without exiting on to secondary roads...
with free wi-fi
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...
. http://www.dot.state.tx.us/MNT/sra/srahome.htm?sranbr=112&dir=S
See also: Saints' Roost Museum
Saints' Roost Museum
The Saints' Roost Museum in Clarendon, Texas, United States, features heirlooms from Panhandle ranches, farms, and businesses as well as a renovated railroad depot and a collection of materials from the Red River War. The unusual name of the museum is derived from Clarendon having been established...
in Clarendon.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the county has a total area of 933 square miles (2,416.5 km²), of which 930 square miles (2,408.7 km²) is land and 3 square miles (7.8 km²) (0.35%) is water.
Major highways
U.S. Highway 287
State Highway 70
State Highway 273Texas State Highway 273State Highway 273 or SH 273 is a state highway that runs from Pampa in northern Texas east and south to SH 203 near Hedley.-History:The route was originally designated in 1939 from Pampa to McLean as part of a general redescription of the state highway system...
Adjacent counties
- Gray County (north)
- Collingsworth County (east)
- Hall County (south)
- Briscoe County (southwest)
- Armstrong CountyArmstrong County, TexasArmstrong County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas, and was formed in 1876 from Bexar County. It is part of the Amarillo metropolitan area. As of 2000, the population is 2,148. Its county seat is Claude. Armstrong is named for one of several Texas pioneer families named Armstrong...
(west)
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 3,828 people, 1,578 households, and 1,057 families residing in the county. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 4 people per square mile (2/km²). There were 2,378 housing units at an average density of 3 per square mile (1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.41% White
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 3.94% Black
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
or African American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.89% Native American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.10% Asian
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 2.72% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.94% from two or more races. 6.35% of the population were Hispanic
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
or Latino
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
of any race.
There were 1,578 households out of which 24.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.70% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 7.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.00% were non-families. 31.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.86.
In the county, the population was spread out with 22.40% under the age of 18, 9.80% from 18 to 24, 20.60% from 25 to 44, 25.50% from 45 to 64, and 21.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 94.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.70 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $29,006, and the median income for a family was $37,287. Males had a median income of $24,375 versus $18,882 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the county was $15,958. About 10.50% of families and 15.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.90% of those under age 18 and 15.90% of those age 65 or over.
Communities
Cities
- ClarendonClarendon, TexasClarendon is a city in Donley County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,974 at the 2000 census. The county seat of Donley County, Clarendon is located on United States Highway 287 in the Texas Panhandle some sixty miles east of Amarillo. It was established in 1878 by Methodist clergyman L.H...
- HedleyHedley, TexasHedley is a city in Donley County, Texas, United States. The population was 379 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Hedley is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
- HowardwickHowardwick, TexasHowardwick is a city in Donley County, Texas, United States. The population was 437 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Howardwick is located at ....
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Donley County, Texas
External links
- Donley County in Handbook of Texas Online at the University of TexasUniversity of Texas at AustinThe University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...