Sweeny, Texas
Encyclopedia
Sweeny is a city in Brazoria County
, Texas
, USA
. The population was 3,624 at the 2000 census, 7,316 if you include unincorporated areas of Sweeny. The city's motto is "A City With Pride", and is the westernmost incorporated town in the county.
of 2000, there were 3,624 people, 1,338 households, and 974 families residing in the city. The population density
was 1,946.6 people per square mile (752.3/km²). There were 1,444 housing units at an average density of 775.6 per square mile (299.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 75.25% White, 15.78%African American, 1.02% Native American, 0.41% Asian, 5.99% from other races
, and 1.55% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 13.71% of the population.
There were 1,338 households out of which 38.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.8% were married couples
living together, 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.2% were non-families. 23.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.4% 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 3.14.
In the city the population was spread out with 29.7% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 122.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 145.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,497, and the median income for a family was $42,128. Males had a median income of $43,854 versus $25,710 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $16,755. About 10.4% of families and 9.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.4% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.
Sweeny is 30 feet (9.1 m) above sea level and is 20 miles (32.2 km) from the Gulf Of Mexico
. The San Bernard River
flows 1 miles (1.6 km) west of city limits. The town is in a dense forest on coastal plains.
Sweeny is at the intersections of Farm Road 1459 and 524. The town is accessible from Highway 35 by taking 1459 or 524, which intersect in Sweeny 5 miles (8 km) from the highway, forming a "loop" off of 35. Brazoria County Road 332, known as Ashley-Wilson Road is also a main thoroughfare through the city. Plans have been made to close down Farm Road 524 between [Brazoria] County Road 359 and State Highway 35 due to terrorist concerns as the route takes you through the ConocoPhillips
and Chevron Phillips
Refinery. Sweeny mayor Larry G. Piper has asked for an alternative route to be built as the highway is a major thoroughfare from Sweeny to Bay City, TX and the west.
While most roads in Sweeny are straight and form blocks, both of the main highways have dangerous curves in them. Entering Sweeny on Farm Road 524 from the south, you must slow to 30 miles (48.3 km) an hour rounding a sharp right turn into the business district. Five blocks down, there is the "S-curve", with businesses alongside both sides of the street. Coming into town on Farm Road 1459 by the hospital, you must slow down to 25 miles (40.2 km) an hour with a sharp turn to the left, then to the right two blocks down from the first curve. Several wrecks: some fatal, have occurred in both areas because of speeding or careless drivers.
Union Pacific Railroad
cuts a path through a small piece of the south side of Sweeny, with two
grade crossings and a railyard. Train speeds through here usually range from 35–60 miles
an hour, though they sometimes park in the railyard.
Sweeny is served by a Council-Manager form of Government. The city has a Police Department (Sweeny PD) which boasts a low crime rate, a Volunteer Fire Department (Sweeny Fire and Rescue), a hospital (Sweeny Community Hospital) which is a state recognized level IV trauma center and operates the city's EMS service (Sweeny EMS).
A wound care center was recently started in Sweeny.
Multiple physician general practitioners and specialist physicians have clinics in Sweeny. These include a nephrologist
plant was built and was taken over by Phillips Petroleum, which developed the facilities into a refinery, natural gas liquids center, and petrochemicals complex with pipelines to markets in the eastern United States. In 2000, Phillips Petroleum merged with both Conoco Inc. and Chevron Corporation to form ConocoPhillips and Chevron Phillips. Sweeny's population in the latter 20th century has fluctuated from 3,087 to 3,699.
1905: Railroad reaches town.
1912: Independent school system formed.
1914: Population reaches 200.
1934: Old ocean oilfield discovered.
1945: City incorporated.
1967: City park built.
1988: Community Center / Library completed.
2002: Tropical Storm Fay dumps over 20 inches (508 mm) of rain in Sweeny, flooding most roads.
2004: Sweeny gets Christmas snow, with almost 10 inches reported in some places.
2007: Running out of space to grow, Sweeny plans to start annexing land.
2008: Sweeny's mayoral race is decided by 1 vote. Rodney Weems beat Phyllis Kittinger for the title. In the November general election, voters approved the sale of alcohol in Sweeny for the first time. Southeast Texas receives an early Christmas present, another snow fall.
2009: Kenneth Lott was elected Mayor.
2010: Hurricane Alex made landfall in Mexico. However, rain bands from Alex dumped more than a foot of rain over two days, flooding houses twice within 24 hours.
Reference:
http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/SS/hgs17.html
. Sweeny ISD serves the city of Sweeny as well as outlying areas including Churchill, Shady Acres, River's End, and Old Ocean
. The High School's mascot is the Bulldog.
Schools in the district are Sweeny Elementary(K-5), Sweeny Junior High(6-8), and Sweeny High School(9-12), which is a 3A school. In 2007 construction began on the high school to renovate the current building. With growing security concerns the Board of Trustees approved the renovation of the High School, because most of the campus was open to the outside. The new school will have limited outside access. Classes met in the new building December 1, 2008.
Wharton County Junior College and Brazosport College
are both within a 45 minute drive from Sweeny.
The Sweeny Library, part of the Brazoria County Library System, is located at 205 West Ashley-Wilson Road.
Brazoria County, Texas
Brazoria County[p] is a county in the U.S. state of Texas, located on the Gulf Coast within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. Regionally, parts of the county are within the extreme southern-most fringe of the regions locally known as Southeast Texas. Brazoria County is among a...
, 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...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 3,624 at the 2000 census, 7,316 if you include unincorporated areas of Sweeny. The city's motto is "A City With Pride", and is the westernmost incorporated town in the county.
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 3,624 people, 1,338 households, and 974 families residing in the city. 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 1,946.6 people per square mile (752.3/km²). There were 1,444 housing units at an average density of 775.6 per square mile (299.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 75.25% White, 15.78%African American, 1.02% Native American, 0.41% Asian, 5.99% 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 1.55% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 13.71% of the population.
There were 1,338 households out of which 38.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.8% 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, 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.2% were non-families. 23.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.4% 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 3.14.
In the city the population was spread out with 29.7% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 122.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 145.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,497, and the median income for a family was $42,128. Males had a median income of $43,854 versus $25,710 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 city was $16,755. About 10.4% of families and 9.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.4% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.
Geography and Roads
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
. The San Bernard River
San Bernard River
-Origin:San Bernard River flows from its headwaters northwest of San Felipe, Texas to its mouth on the Gulf of Mexico, some to the southeast of the source. Its principal tributary is Caney Creek. Along its course, it passes through portions of Austin, Brazoria, Colorado, Fort Bend, Matagorda...
flows 1 miles (1.6 km) west of city limits. The town is in a dense forest on coastal plains.
Sweeny is at the intersections of Farm Road 1459 and 524. The town is accessible from Highway 35 by taking 1459 or 524, which intersect in Sweeny 5 miles (8 km) from the highway, forming a "loop" off of 35. Brazoria County Road 332, known as Ashley-Wilson Road is also a main thoroughfare through the city. Plans have been made to close down Farm Road 524 between [Brazoria] County Road 359 and State Highway 35 due to terrorist concerns as the route takes you through the ConocoPhillips
ConocoPhillips
ConocoPhillips Company is an American multinational energy corporation with its headquarters located in the Energy Corridor district of Houston, Texas in the United States...
and Chevron Phillips
Chevron Phillips
Chevron Phillips is a chemical producer jointly owned by Chevron Corporation and ConocoPhillips. The company was formed July 1, 2000 by merging the chemicals operations of both Chevron Corporation and Phillips Petroleum Company. A 50/50 venture, the company continues to be governed by a board of...
Refinery. Sweeny mayor Larry G. Piper has asked for an alternative route to be built as the highway is a major thoroughfare from Sweeny to Bay City, TX and the west.
While most roads in Sweeny are straight and form blocks, both of the main highways have dangerous curves in them. Entering Sweeny on Farm Road 524 from the south, you must slow to 30 miles (48.3 km) an hour rounding a sharp right turn into the business district. Five blocks down, there is the "S-curve", with businesses alongside both sides of the street. Coming into town on Farm Road 1459 by the hospital, you must slow down to 25 miles (40.2 km) an hour with a sharp turn to the left, then to the right two blocks down from the first curve. Several wrecks: some fatal, have occurred in both areas because of speeding or careless drivers.
Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
cuts a path through a small piece of the south side of Sweeny, with two
grade crossings and a railyard. Train speeds through here usually range from 35–60 miles
an hour, though they sometimes park in the railyard.
City Government / Services
Healthcare
Sweeny Community Hospital has developed a flourishing healthcare section.A wound care center was recently started in Sweeny.
Multiple physician general practitioners and specialist physicians have clinics in Sweeny. These include a nephrologist
History
Once known as Adamston, the town was named for the family of John Sweeny. The original Sweeny family home, marked by a Texas Historical Society medallion, was still occupied by a descendant of the Sweeny family as of 1991. St. Louis, Brownsville and Mexico Railway laid a side track lined with gardens to the town in 1905. In 1895, a post office was formed, closed two years later and then reopened in 1905. A general store and cotton gin were completed in 1908 and a school organized in 1911, with 11 students. Burton D. Hurd, whose company promoted 10 acres (40,468.6 m²) suburban garden farms with "Soil Richer Than the Valley of the River Nile" to prospective settlers, platted the townsite in 1911 and by 1914, the town had a gristmill, sawmill, cotton gin, hotel, and several general stores. In 1918 it had a brick factory and an orange orchard and in 1912, a school district was formed. In 1934, oil was discovered in Old Ocean, creating development which made Sweeny prosper. In 1942, a government carbon blackCarbon black
Carbon black is a material produced by the incomplete combustion of heavy petroleum products such as FCC tar, coal tar, ethylene cracking tar, and a small amount from vegetable oil. Carbon black is a form of amorphous carbon that has a high surface-area-to-volume ratio, although its...
plant was built and was taken over by Phillips Petroleum, which developed the facilities into a refinery, natural gas liquids center, and petrochemicals complex with pipelines to markets in the eastern United States. In 2000, Phillips Petroleum merged with both Conoco Inc. and Chevron Corporation to form ConocoPhillips and Chevron Phillips. Sweeny's population in the latter 20th century has fluctuated from 3,087 to 3,699.
Timeline Of Sweeny
1833: John Sweeny settles just outside what will become a town bearing his name.1905: Railroad reaches town.
1912: Independent school system formed.
1914: Population reaches 200.
1934: Old ocean oilfield discovered.
1945: City incorporated.
1967: City park built.
1988: Community Center / Library completed.
2002: Tropical Storm Fay dumps over 20 inches (508 mm) of rain in Sweeny, flooding most roads.
2004: Sweeny gets Christmas snow, with almost 10 inches reported in some places.
2007: Running out of space to grow, Sweeny plans to start annexing land.
2008: Sweeny's mayoral race is decided by 1 vote. Rodney Weems beat Phyllis Kittinger for the title. In the November general election, voters approved the sale of alcohol in Sweeny for the first time. Southeast Texas receives an early Christmas present, another snow fall.
2009: Kenneth Lott was elected Mayor.
2010: Hurricane Alex made landfall in Mexico. However, rain bands from Alex dumped more than a foot of rain over two days, flooding houses twice within 24 hours.
Reference:
http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/SS/hgs17.html
Education
Schools are part of the Sweeny Independent School DistrictSweeny Independent School District
Sweeny Independent School District is a public school district based in Sweeny, Texas .The district is approximately and serves the City of Sweeny and surrounding area...
. Sweeny ISD serves the city of Sweeny as well as outlying areas including Churchill, Shady Acres, River's End, and Old Ocean
Old Ocean, Texas
Old Ocean is an unincorporated community in Brazoria County, Texas, United States.-Geography:Old Ocean is located at 29°4′47″ North, 95°44′58″ West , at the intersection of Loop 419 and Farm to Market Road 524, just south of State Highway 35 five miles northwest of Sweeny.- Demographics :As of...
. The High School's mascot is the Bulldog.
Schools in the district are Sweeny Elementary(K-5), Sweeny Junior High(6-8), and Sweeny High School(9-12), which is a 3A school. In 2007 construction began on the high school to renovate the current building. With growing security concerns the Board of Trustees approved the renovation of the High School, because most of the campus was open to the outside. The new school will have limited outside access. Classes met in the new building December 1, 2008.
Wharton County Junior College and Brazosport College
Brazosport College
Brazosport College, or BC, is a public, coeducational college located in Lake Jackson, Texas. The college was opened in 1968, and offers two-year and four-year degrees...
are both within a 45 minute drive from Sweeny.
The Sweeny Library, part of the Brazoria County Library System, is located at 205 West Ashley-Wilson Road.
Notable residents
- Elmo WrightElmo wrightElmo Wright is the first football player ever to perform an end zone dance, while at the University of Houston.Wright was an All-American receiver for the Cougars and, somewhere during his collegiate career, he began the practice of "high-stepping" into the end zone at the end of long touchdown...
- Former NFL Wide Receiver \ Credited with the First End Zone Dance - Tracy SimienTracy SimienTracy Anthony Simien is a former professional American football linebacker. He played college football at Texas Christian University. He played eight seasons in the NFL, mainly for the Kansas City Chiefs....
- Former NFL Linebacker - Cedric WoodardCedric WoodardCedric Darnell Woodard is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens in the 6th round of the 2000 NFL Draft. He played college football at Texas.Woodards cousin, Quentin Jammer, plays cornerback for the San Diego Chargers....
- Former NFL Defensive Tackle - Kevin GarrettKevin GarrettKevin Garrett , is a professional Canadian football player formerly playing cornerback with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League. Garrett attended Southern Methodist University and was drafted in the 2003 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Rams...
- Former NFL Cornerback - Johnnie Lee HigginsJohnnie Lee HigginsJohnnie Lee Higgins is an American football wide receiver who is currently a free agent. He was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the third round out of the University of Texas at El Paso in the 2007 NFL Draft.Higgins has also been a member of the Philadelphia Eagles...
- Current NFL Wide Receiver - Tank CarderTank CarderRicky "Tank" Carder, Jr. is an American football linebacker for the TCU Horned Frogs. Carder was a 2010 All-American selection by the American Football Coaches Association....
- Current NFL Linebacker