# Rockwall County, Texas

Rockwall County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. At 149 square miles (390 sq km), Rockwall County has the smallest area of any Texas county. Per the 2020 Census, its population was 107,819. Its county seat is Rockwall. The county and city are named for a wall-like subterranean rock formation that runs throughout the county. Rockwall County is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metropolitan statistical area. It was one of the top-25 fastest-growing counties in the U.S. in 2010. Rockwall County is listed as the wealthiest county in Texas and the 17th-wealthiest in the United States by median household income. Cities in Rockwall County include Rockwall, Heath, Royse City, Fate, McClendon-Chisholm, Mobile City, and part of Rowlett.

## History

Rockwall County was formed in 1873 from portions of Kaufman County. It split off because access to the county seat of Kaufman was inconvenient. It was named for its county seat, Rockwall. Rockwall County also is home to the great rock wall, which is no longer in public view today.

## Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 149 square miles (390 km$^2$), of which 127 square miles (330 km$^2$) are land and 22 square miles (57 km$^2$) (15%) are covered by water. It is the smallest county by area in Texas.

### Major highways

* Interstate 30
* U.S. Highway 67
* State Highway 66
* State Highway 205
* State Highway 276

### Adjacent counties

* Collin County (north)
* Hunt County (east)
* Kaufman County (south)
* Dallas County (west)

## Communities

* Dallas (mostly in Dallas County with small parts in Collin, Denton, Kaufman and Rockwall counties)
* Fate
* Garland (mostly in Dallas County with a small part in Collin County)
* Heath (small part in Kaufman County)
* McLendon-Chisholm
* Mobile City
* Rockwall (county seat)
* Rowlett (mostly in Dallas County)
* Royse City (partly in Collin and Hunt counties)
* Wylie (mostly in Collin County and a small part in Dallas County)

## Demographics

Rockwall 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) | 35,817 | 58,046 | 70,198 | 83.14% | 74.10% | 65.11% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 1,374 | 4,397 | 8,179 | 3.19% | 5.61% | 7.59% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 143 | 345 | 479 | 0.33% | 0.44% | 0.44% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 555 | 1,850 | 3,306 | 1.29% | 2.36% | 3.07% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 14 | 47 | 75 | 0.03% | 0.06% | 0.07% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 31 | 116 | 344 | 0.07% | 0.15% | 0.32% |
| Mixed race or multiracial (NH) | 375 | 1,066 | 4,678 | 0.87% | 1.36% | 4.34% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 4,771 | 12,470 | 20,560 | 11.07% | 15.92% | 19.07% |
| Total | 43,080 | 78,337 | 107,819 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
According to the census of 2000, 43,080 people, 14,530 households, and 11,972 were families residing in the county. The population density was 334 people per square mile (129 people/km$^2$). The 15,351 housing units had an average density of 119 units per square mile (46/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the county was 89.17% White, 3.24% Black or African American, 0.40% Native American, 1.32% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 4.45% from other races, and 1.37% from two or more races. About 11.07% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. By the 2020 census, its population increased to 107,819 with a racial and ethnic makeup of 65.11% non-Hispanic Whites, 7.59% African Americans, 0.44% Native Americans, 3.07% Asians, 0.07% Pacific Islanders, 0.32% some other race, 4.34% multiracial, and 19.07% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

### American Community Survey 2023 Data

The United States Census Bureau estimated that in 2023, Rockwall County’s population was 131,307, and the county was 21.4% Hispanic or Latino, with non-Hispanics consisting of 62.1% White, 9.9% Black, 3.8% Asian, 0.5% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, and 2.1% multiracial.

## Education

These school districts serve Rockwall County:
* Rockwall Independent School District (small portion in Kaufman County)
* Royse City Independent School District (small portion in Collin and Hunt Counties)
From 1997 to 2015, the number of non-Hispanic white children in K-12 schools in the county increased by 6,000 as part of a trend of white flight and suburbanization by non-Hispanic white families. It could not possibly have been caused by the cost of real estate in the area.
Collin College's official service area includes all of Rockwall County.

## Politics

Prior to 1972, Rockwall County was a Democratic stronghold. The 1968 election was highly transitional for the county, with Hubert Humphrey only winning with 39% of the vote due to the strong third-party candidacy of George Wallace. From 1972 on, the county has become a Republican stronghold. George H. W. Bush in 1992 has been the only Republican to fail to win a majority in the county since then, as the strong third-party candidacy of Ross Perot that year led him to a second-place finish in the county over national winner Bill Clinton. However, the county was represented in Congress by a Democrat as late as January 2004, when Representative and Rockwall resident Ralph Hall, a conservative Democrat, switched parties and became a Republican.
In recent years, though, especially as the Dallas-Fort Worth Metro area continues to grow and spill over into neighboring counties, the county's Republican bent has lessened a bit. Native son George W. Bush received almost 79% of the vote in 2004.

### Local government

Rockwall County is divided into four precincts, each represented by a county commissioner.
As of the most recent elections in 2020, all four commissioners are Republicans.
United States presidential election results for Rockwall County, Texas :
| Year | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Third party(ies) | Third party(ies) |
| Year | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| 2024 | 43,542 | 69.65% | 18,092 | 28.94% | 879 | 1.41% |
| 2020 | 36,726 | 67.97% | 16,412 | 30.38% | 891 | 1.65% |
| 2016 | 28,451 | 70.81% | 9,655 | 24.03% | 2,074 | 5.16% |
| 2012 | 27,113 | 75.81% | 8,120 | 22.70% | 531 | 1.48% |
| 2008 | 23,300 | 72.45% | 8,492 | 26.40% | 370 | 1.15% |
| 2004 | 20,120 | 78.65% | 5,320 | 20.80% | 141 | 0.55% |
| 2000 | 13,666 | 77.42% | 3,642 | 20.63% | 344 | 1.95% |
| 1996 | 8,319 | 65.01% | 3,289 | 25.70% | 1,188 | 9.28% |
| 1992 | 6,427 | 48.44% | 2,397 | 18.06% | 4,445 | 33.50% |
| 1988 | 7,214 | 72.58% | 2,659 | 26.75% | 66 | 0.66% |
| 1984 | 6,688 | 80.11% | 1,639 | 19.63% | 22 | 0.26% |
| 1980 | 4,036 | 65.27% | 1,985 | 32.10% | 163 | 2.64% |
| 1976 | 2,087 | 53.02% | 1,828 | 46.44% | 21 | 0.53% |
| 1972 | 1,890 | 75.06% | 610 | 24.23% | 18 | 0.71% |
| 1968 | 614 | 31.09% | 778 | 39.39% | 583 | 29.52% |
| 1964 | 445 | 25.36% | 1,305 | 74.36% | 5 | 0.28% |
| 1960 | 652 | 41.19% | 917 | 57.93% | 14 | 0.88% |
| 1956 | 657 | 41.50% | 920 | 58.12% | 6 | 0.38% |
| 1952 | 602 | 33.73% | 1,175 | 65.83% | 8 | 0.45% |
| 1948 | 117 | 9.35% | 947 | 75.64% | 188 | 15.02% |
| 1944 | 98 | 7.22% | 1,153 | 84.90% | 107 | 7.88% |
| 1940 | 95 | 5.92% | 1,510 | 94.08% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 26 | 2.18% | 1,168 | 97.74% | 1 | 0.08% |
| 1932 | 62 | 4.77% | 1,237 | 95.23% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1928 | 289 | 25.37% | 850 | 74.63% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 93 | 6.32% | 1,371 | 93.20% | 7 | 0.48% |
| 1920 | 104 | 10.46% | 873 | 87.83% | 17 | 1.71% |
| 1916 | 27 | 3.10% | 828 | 94.95% | 17 | 1.95% |
| 1912 | 0 | 0.00% | 642 | 95.82% | 28 | 4.18% |