# Crockett County, Texas

Crockett County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 3,098. The county seat is Ozona. The county was founded in 1875 and later organized in 1891. It is named in honor of Davy Crockett, the legendary frontiersman who died at the Battle of the Alamo.

## History

Prehistoric people lived in Gobbler Shelter, located on a small tributary canyon of Live Oak Creek. The earliest known Native American tribes were the Tonkawa, Lipan Apache, and Comanche.
In 1590, Spanish explorer Gaspar Castaño de Sosa led a mining expedition of 170 who passed through the western section of Crockett County to reach the Pecos River. On May 22, 1684, Juan Domínguez de Mendoza and his expedition crossed the Pecos River and camped at San Pantaleón.
John Coffee Hays's 1849 expedition charted waterholes for transporting people and freight., and three years later, U.S. Army Colonel Joseph K. Mansfield recommended establishing a new post on Live Oak Creek to protect travelers. Fort Lancaster was established on August 20, 1855, in response to Mansfield's recommendation. In 1866, the Texas legislature provided three battalions of Texas Rangers to protect settlers in the area. Camp Melvin was established in 1868.
On January 12, 1875, Crockett County, named for Davy Crockett, was formed from Bexar County. Crockett County became a subsidiary of Val Verde County in 1885, and in 1887 was reduced further as Sutton and Schleicher counties were formed from part of its territory. In 1889, Emerald became the first town in Crockett County. Crockett County was organized in 1891, with Ozona serving as the county seat. The first water well was drilled at the First Baptist Church in Ozona that same year.
One of the first settlers was W. P. Hoover, who settled on the Pecos River in 1885. Throughout the next decade, sheep and cattle ranchers established themselves in the county. The Kirkpatrick Hotel was built to serve stagecoach passengers and cowboys. Stagecoach services began running in 1900, and contemporary county reports listed seven manufacturing firms. The Crockett County Courthouse was built in 1902 by architect Oscar Ruffini. The building does multiple duty for courtroom and county offices, as well as a community center and dance hall.
In 1925, the first producing oil well within the world, on L. P. Powell's ranch in north central Crockett County, by Chester R. Bunker's World Oil Company. Ozona erected a statue of Davy Crockett in the town square in 1938 and opened the Crockett County Museum the following year. In 1958, it was moved to its current location on the town square.

## Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,807 square miles (7,270 km$^2$), virtually all of which is land.

### Major highways

* Interstate 10
* U.S. Highway 190
* State Highway 137
* State Highway 163
* State Highway 349

### Adjacent counties

* Upton County (north)
* Reagan County (north)
* Irion County (northeast)
* Schleicher County (east)
* Sutton County (east)
* Val Verde County (south)
* Terrell County (south)
* Pecos County (west)
* Crane County (northwest)
Crockett County is among the few counties in the United States to border as many as nine counties.

## Demographics

Crockett County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race. :
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 2000 | Pop 2010 | Pop 2020 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
| White alone (NH) | 1,792 | 1,312 | 1,080 | 43.72% | 35.28% | 34.86% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 18 | 13 | 18 | 0.44% | 0.35% | 0.58% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 17 | 8 | 9 | 0.41% | 0.22% | 0.29% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 10 | 11 | 10 | 0.24% | 0.30% | 0.32% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 4 | 4 | 9 | 0.10% | 0.11% | 0.29% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 16 | 19 | 52 | 0.39% | 0.51% | 1.68% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2,242 | 2,352 | 1,920 | 54.70% | 63.24% | 61.98% |
| Total | 4,099 | 3,719 | 3,098 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the census of 2000, there were 4,099 people, 1,524 households, and 1,114 families residing in the county. The population density was 1.46 people per square mile (0.56 people/km$^2$). There were 2,049 housing units at an average density of 0.73 per square mile (0.28/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the county was 76.34% White, 0.68% Black or African American, 0.59% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 19.71% from other races, and 2.39% from two or more races. 54.70% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 1,524 households, out of which 36.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.30% were married couples living together, 9.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.90% were non-families. 24.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.80% 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 3.19.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.90% under the age of 18, 7.10% from 18 to 24, 26.40% from 25 to 44, 24.70% from 45 to 64, and 12.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 98.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.60 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $29,355, and the median income for a family was $34,653. Males had a median income of $29,925 versus $14,695 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,414. About 14.90% of families and 19.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.30% of those under age 18 and 18.20% of those age 65 or over.

## Communities
### Census-designated place

* Ozona (county seat)

### Ghost town

* Emerald

## Politics

United States presidential election results for Crockett County, Texas :
| Year | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Third party(ies) | Third party(ies) |
| Year | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| 2024 | 1,087 | 76.71% | 323 | 22.79% | 7 | 0.49% |
| 2020 | 1,220 | 77.51% | 344 | 21.86% | 10 | 0.64% |
| 2016 | 980 | 70.25% | 372 | 26.67% | 43 | 3.08% |
| 2012 | 957 | 65.68% | 480 | 32.94% | 20 | 1.37% |
| 2008 | 1,026 | 66.41% | 512 | 33.14% | 7 | 0.45% |
| 2004 | 1,248 | 72.22% | 473 | 27.37% | 7 | 0.41% |
| 2000 | 924 | 66.09% | 467 | 33.40% | 7 | 0.50% |
| 1996 | 714 | 45.98% | 684 | 44.04% | 155 | 9.98% |
| 1992 | 623 | 37.87% | 653 | 39.70% | 369 | 22.43% |
| 1988 | 932 | 51.24% | 881 | 48.43% | 6 | 0.33% |
| 1984 | 1,094 | 64.96% | 589 | 34.98% | 1 | 0.06% |
| 1980 | 885 | 59.24% | 595 | 39.83% | 14 | 0.94% |
| 1976 | 802 | 49.88% | 804 | 50.00% | 2 | 0.12% |
| 1972 | 851 | 72.12% | 329 | 27.88% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 509 | 37.45% | 571 | 42.02% | 279 | 20.53% |
| 1964 | 409 | 33.77% | 799 | 65.98% | 3 | 0.25% |
| 1960 | 635 | 54.93% | 517 | 44.72% | 4 | 0.35% |
| 1956 | 702 | 69.57% | 305 | 30.23% | 2 | 0.20% |
| 1952 | 654 | 68.13% | 306 | 31.88% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 127 | 23.30% | 400 | 73.39% | 18 | 3.30% |
| 1944 | 112 | 22.76% | 323 | 65.65% | 57 | 11.59% |
| 1940 | 132 | 23.91% | 420 | 76.09% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 75 | 24.35% | 231 | 75.00% | 2 | 0.65% |
| 1932 | 168 | 33.80% | 329 | 66.20% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1928 | 291 | 81.97% | 64 | 18.03% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 112 | 61.54% | 69 | 37.91% | 1 | 0.55% |
| 1920 | 80 | 46.78% | 89 | 52.05% | 2 | 1.17% |
| 1916 | 16 | 18.60% | 65 | 75.58% | 5 | 5.81% |
| 1912 | 5 | 8.06% | 53 | 85.48% | 4 | 6.45% |