# Jasper County, Texas

Jasper County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 32,980. Its county seat is Jasper. The county was created as a municipality in Mexico in 1834, and in 1837 was organized as a county in the Republic of Texas. It is named for William Jasper, an American Revolutionary War hero.

## Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 970 square miles (2,500 km$^2$), of which 939 square miles (2,430 km$^2$) are land and 31 square miles (80 km$^2$) (3.2%) are covered by water.

### Major highways

* U.S. Highway 69
* U.S. Highway 96
* U.S. Highway 190
* State Highway 62
* State Highway 63
* Recreational Road 255

### Adjacent counties

* San Augustine County (north)
* Sabine County (northeast)
* Newton County (east)
* Orange County (south)
* Hardin County (southwest)
* Tyler County (west)
* Angelina County (northwest)

### National protected areas

* Angelina National Forest (part)
* Big Thicket National Preserve (part)
* Sabine National Forest (part)

## Demographics

Jasper 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) | 27,320 | 26,939 | 23,795 | 76.73% | 75.44% | 72.15% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 6,302 | 5,931 | 5,572 | 17.70% | 16.61% | 16.90% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 125 | 168 | 127 | 0.35% | 0.47% | 0.39% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 111 | 200 | 114 | 0.31% | 0.56% | 0.35% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 5 | 12 | 16 | 0.01% | 0.03% | 0.05% |
| Other Race alone (NH) | 10 | 21 | 72 | 0.03% | 0.06% | 0.22% |
| Mixed Race or Multiracial (NH) | 347 | 422 | 1,086 | 0.97% | 1.18% | 3.29% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 1,384 | 2,017 | 2,198 | 3.89% | 5.65% | 6.66% |
| Total | 35,604 | 35,710 | 32,980 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the census of 2000, 35,604 people, 13,450 households, and 9,966 families resided in the county. The population density was 38 people per square mile (15 people/km$^2$). The 16,576 housing units averaged 18 units per square mile (6.9/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the county was 78.24% White, 17.81% Black or African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.32% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 2.04% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. About 3.89% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.
Of the 13,450 households, 33.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.20% were married couples living together, 12.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.90% were not families. About 23% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.03.
In the county, the population was distributed as 26.50% under the age of 18, 8.00% from 18 to 24, 26.80% from 25 to 44, 23.40% from 45 to 64, and 15.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $30,902, and for a family was $35,709. Males had a median income of $31,739 versus $19,119 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,636. About 15.00% of families and 18.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.40% of those under age 18 and 17.80% of those age 65 or over.

## Government
### United States Congress

| Senators | Senators | Name | Party | First Elected | Level |
| | Senate Class 1 | John Cornyn | Republican | 2002 | Senior Senator |
| | Senate Class 2 | Ted Cruz | Republican | 2012 | Junior Senator |
| Representatives | Representatives | Name | Party | First Elected | Area(s) of Jasper County Represented |
| | District 36 | Brian Babin | Republican | New district created with 2010 census. First elected 2014. | Entire county |
United States presidential election results for Jasper County, Texas :
| Year | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Third party(ies) | Third party(ies) |
| Year | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| 2024 | 13,162 | 82.99% | 2,615 | 16.49% | 83 | 0.52% |
| 2020 | 12,542 | 80.26% | 2,954 | 18.90% | 131 | 0.84% |
| 2016 | 10,609 | 79.06% | 2,590 | 19.30% | 220 | 1.64% |
| 2012 | 9,957 | 73.66% | 3,423 | 25.32% | 137 | 1.01% |
| 2008 | 9,022 | 70.62% | 3,658 | 28.63% | 96 | 0.75% |
| 2004 | 8,347 | 64.84% | 4,471 | 34.73% | 55 | 0.43% |
| 2000 | 7,071 | 60.22% | 4,533 | 38.61% | 138 | 1.18% |
| 1996 | 4,523 | 42.51% | 5,039 | 47.36% | 1,078 | 10.13% |
| 1992 | 3,870 | 32.02% | 5,658 | 46.81% | 2,559 | 21.17% |
| 1988 | 4,985 | 42.87% | 6,613 | 56.87% | 31 | 0.27% |
| 1984 | 5,965 | 50.64% | 5,787 | 49.13% | 27 | 0.23% |
| 1980 | 4,396 | 42.86% | 5,707 | 55.64% | 154 | 1.50% |
| 1976 | 3,167 | 36.80% | 5,422 | 63.00% | 18 | 0.21% |
| 1972 | 4,575 | 62.46% | 2,746 | 37.49% | 4 | 0.05% |
| 1968 | 1,839 | 25.60% | 2,438 | 33.94% | 2,906 | 40.46% |
| 1964 | 1,919 | 34.66% | 3,600 | 65.02% | 18 | 0.33% |
| 1960 | 2,102 | 41.03% | 3,004 | 58.64% | 17 | 0.33% |
| 1956 | 2,430 | 56.41% | 1,856 | 43.08% | 22 | 0.51% |
| 1952 | 1,946 | 42.84% | 2,595 | 57.12% | 2 | 0.04% |
| 1948 | 284 | 11.24% | 1,777 | 70.32% | 466 | 18.44% |
| 1944 | 341 | 14.05% | 1,850 | 76.23% | 236 | 9.72% |
| 1940 | 220 | 8.96% | 2,236 | 91.04% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 109 | 6.76% | 1,500 | 93.05% | 3 | 0.19% |
| 1932 | 93 | 4.46% | 1,990 | 95.49% | 1 | 0.05% |
| 1928 | 611 | 40.44% | 898 | 59.43% | 2 | 0.13% |
| 1924 | 176 | 10.24% | 1,526 | 88.77% | 17 | 0.99% |
| 1920 | 62 | 5.66% | 793 | 72.42% | 240 | 21.92% |
| 1916 | 75 | 7.31% | 906 | 88.30% | 45 | 4.39% |
| 1912 | 40 | 4.33% | 628 | 67.97% | 256 | 27.71% |

### County officials

* County Judge - Judge Mark W. Allen
* Commissioner, Pct. #1 - Seth Martindale
* Commissioner, Pct. #2 - Roy Parker
* Commissioner, Pct. #3 - Willie Stark
* Commissioner, Pct. #4 - Vance Moss
* County Sheriff - Mitchel Newman
* Tax Assessor/Collector - Bobby Biscamp
* County Clerk - Debbie Newman
* County Treasurer - René Ellis
* County Auditor - Mellissa Smith
* Tax Appraiser - Lori Barnett
* Emergency Management Coordinator - Billy Ted Smith
The County jail is named after former Sheriff, Aubrey E. Cole.

### District officials

* District Judge - Judicial District 1 - Judge Craig M. Mixson (appointed by Texas Governor Rick Perry to complete term of Judge Gary Gatlin, who resigned effective December 31, 2011)
* District Judge - Judicial District 1A - DeLinda Gibbs-Walker
* District Clerk - Rosa Norsworthy
* District Attorney - Anne Pickle

### Courts

* Justice of the Peace, Pct. #1 - John Cooper
* Justice of the Peace, Pct. #2 - Raymond Hopson
* Justice of the Peace, Pct. #3 - Mike Smith
* Justice of the Peace, Pct. #4 - Gina Cleveland
* Justice of the Peace, Pct. #5 - Brett Holloway
* Justice of the Peace, Pct. #6 - Steve Conner
* Constable, Pct. #1 - Jimmy Hensarling
* Constable, Pct. #2 - Niles Nichols
* Constable, Pct. #3 - Ronnie Hutchison
* Constable, Pct. #4 - Gene Hawthorne
* Constable, Pct. #5 - Michael Poindexter
* Constable, Pct. #6 - Joe Sterling

## Communities
### Cities

* Browndell
* Jasper (county seat)
* Kirbyville

### Census-designated places

* Buna
* Evadale
* Sam Rayburn

### Unincorporated communities

* Beans
* Beech Grove
* Bessmay
* Brookeland (partly in Sabine County)
* Erin
* Gist

### Ghost towns

* Zeirath

## Education

School districts:
* Brookeland Independent School District
* Buna Independent School District
* Colmesneil Independent School District
* Evadale Independent School District
* Jasper Independent School District
* Kirbyville Consolidated Independent School District
* Vidor Independent School District
Areas of Jasper County in Brookeland ISD, Colmesneil ISD, and Jasper ISD are assigned to Angelina College. Legislation does not specify a community college for the remainder of the county.