# Ellis County, Texas

Ellis County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2020, its population was estimated to be 192,455. The county seat is Waxahachie. The county was founded in 1849 and organized the next year. It is named for Richard Ellis, president of the convention that produced the Texas Declaration of Independence. Ellis County is included in the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area.

## Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 952 square miles (2,470 km$^2$), of which 935 square miles (2,420 km$^2$) are land and 16 square miles (41 km$^2$) (1.7%) are covered by water.
Lake Waxahachie is located about five miles south of Waxahachie in Ellis County, Texas. Owned and operated by Ellis County Water Control and Improvement District Number One on behalf of the city of Waxahachie, the lake was formed by impounding the Waxahachie Creek in 1956. The water covers about 650 acres and has a maximum depth around 50. The former community of South Prong was located beside the creek before the lake was created. There has been a country club and a two-acre public park with boat ramp since the lake was completed. The lake is a recreational resource for the entire county.

### Major highways

* Interstate 35E
* Interstate 45
* U.S. Route 67
* U.S. 77
* U.S. 287
* State Highway 34
* State Highway 342

### Adjacent counties

* Dallas County (north)
* Kaufman County (northeast)
* Henderson County (east)
* Navarro County (south)
* Hill County (southwest)
* Johnson County (west)
* Tarrant County (northwest)

## Communities
### Cities (multiple counties)

* Cedar Hill (mostly in Dallas County)
* Ferris (small part in Dallas County)
* Glenn Heights (mostly in Dallas County)
* Grand Prairie (mostly in Dallas and Tarrant Counties)
* Mansfield (mostly in Tarrant County and a small part in Johnson County)
* Venus (mostly in Johnson County)
* Ovilla (small part in Dallas County)

### Cities

* Bardwell
* Ennis
* Maypearl
* Midlothian
* Oak Leaf
* Pecan Hill
* Red Oak
* Waxahachie (county seat)

### Towns

* Alma
* Garrett
* Italy
* Milford
* Palmer

### Census-designated place

* Bristol

### Unincorporated communities

* Auburn
* Avalon
* Crisp
* Forreston
* Ike
* India
* Rankin
* Rockett
* Telico
* Trumbull

## Demographics

Ellis 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) | 79,401 | 97,987 | 106,495 | 71.30% | 65.49% | 55.34% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 9,514 | 13,161 | 23,738 | 8.54% | 8.80% | 12.33% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 473 | 565 | 710 | 0.42% | 0.38% | 0.37% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 368 | 811 | 1,525 | 0.33% | 0.65% | 0.79% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 10 | 87 | 202 | 0.01% | 0.06% | 0.10% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 82 | 155 | 790 | 0.07% | 0.10% | 0.41% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 1,004 | 1,683 | 6,963 | 0.90% | 1.12% | 3.62% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 20,508 | 35,161 | 52,032 | 18.42% | 23.50% | 27.04% |
| Total | 111,360 | 149,610 | 192,455 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
According to the census of 2000, 111,360 people, 37,020 households, and 29,653 families resided in the county. The population density was 118 people per square mile (46 people/km$^2$). The 39,071 housing units averaged 42 units per square mile (16/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the county was 80.63% White, 8.64% African American, 0.59% Native American, 0.35% Asian, 7.92% from other races, and 1.86% from two or more races. About 18.42% of the population was Hispanic or Latinos of any race. By 2020, its population increased to 192,455. The racial makeup in 2020 was 55.34% non-Hispanic white, 12.33% African American, 0.37% Native American, 0.79% Asian American, 0.41% some other race, 3.62% multiracial, and 27.04% Hispanic or Latino of any race.
A Williams Institute analysis of 2010 census data found about 3.2 same-sex couples per 1,000 households were in the county.
American Community Survey 2023 Racial Data
The United States Census Bureau estimated that in 2023, Ellis County’s population was 222,829. It was also estimated that the county was 28.4% Hispanic or Latino, 51.9% NH White, 16.5% NH Black, 1.0% NH Asian, 0.4% NH Native, 0.1% NH Pacific Islander, and 1.7% NH Multiracial.
| Race | Total | Percentage |
| Hispanic or Latino | 63,319 | 28.4% |
| NH White | 115,601 | 51.9% |
| NH Black | 36,823 | 16.5% |
| NH Asian | 2,261 | 1.0% |
| NH Native American | 837 | 0.4% |
| NH Pacific Islander | 222 | 0.1% |
| NH Multiracial | 3,766 | 1.7% |

## Politics

Ellis is a staunchly Republican county in presidential elections. The last Democratic presidential candidate to carry the county was Jimmy Carter in 1976, and since 2000, Republican presidential candidates have won with more than 60% of the vote. The county's Republican lean has lessened a bit due to population growth in the DFW metroplex in recent years, but it still remains strongly Republican.
United States presidential election results for Ellis County, Texas :
| Year | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Third party(ies) | Third party(ies) |
| Year | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| 2024 | 64,763 | 64.88% | 33,850 | 33.91% | 1,205 | 1.21% |
| 2020 | 56,717 | 66.19% | 27,565 | 32.17% | 1,406 | 1.64% |
| 2016 | 44,941 | 70.10% | 16,253 | 25.35% | 2,916 | 4.55% |
| 2012 | 39,574 | 72.94% | 13,881 | 25.59% | 799 | 1.47% |
| 2008 | 38,078 | 70.71% | 15,333 | 28.47% | 442 | 0.82% |
| 2004 | 34,602 | 74.50% | 11,640 | 25.06% | 202 | 0.43% |
| 2000 | 26,091 | 69.94% | 10,629 | 28.49% | 587 | 1.57% |
| 1996 | 16,046 | 53.91% | 10,832 | 36.39% | 2,888 | 9.70% |
| 1992 | 13,564 | 40.50% | 9,537 | 28.47% | 10,394 | 31.03% |
| 1988 | 16,422 | 59.18% | 11,169 | 40.25% | 158 | 0.57% |
| 1984 | 16,873 | 67.56% | 8,029 | 32.15% | 72 | 0.29% |
| 1980 | 10,046 | 51.31% | 9,219 | 47.08% | 315 | 1.61% |
| 1976 | 6,996 | 41.02% | 9,991 | 58.58% | 68 | 0.40% |
| 1972 | 8,779 | 69.53% | 3,839 | 30.41% | 8 | 0.06% |
| 1968 | 3,794 | 31.44% | 5,431 | 45.01% | 2,842 | 23.55% |
| 1964 | 2,779 | 27.62% | 7,278 | 72.33% | 5 | 0.05% |
| 1960 | 3,666 | 38.42% | 5,841 | 61.21% | 36 | 0.38% |
| 1956 | 3,585 | 40.65% | 5,211 | 59.08% | 24 | 0.27% |
| 1952 | 4,183 | 39.91% | 6,275 | 59.86% | 24 | 0.23% |
| 1948 | 1,055 | 13.76% | 5,792 | 75.56% | 818 | 10.67% |
| 1944 | 666 | 8.02% | 7,065 | 85.08% | 573 | 6.90% |
| 1940 | 692 | 8.07% | 7,881 | 91.87% | 5 | 0.06% |
| 1936 | 319 | 5.34% | 5,644 | 94.46% | 12 | 0.20% |
| 1932 | 527 | 6.93% | 7,033 | 92.49% | 44 | 0.58% |
| 1928 | 3,569 | 44.72% | 4,399 | 55.12% | 13 | 0.16% |
| 1924 | 1,220 | 13.50% | 7,678 | 84.93% | 142 | 1.57% |
| 1920 | 819 | 13.98% | 4,081 | 69.68% | 957 | 16.34% |
| 1916 | 324 | 6.32% | 4,718 | 92.02% | 85 | 1.66% |
| 1912 | 293 | 7.42% | 3,483 | 88.24% | 171 | 4.33% |

## Law enforcement

The Ellis County Sheriff's Office provides law enforcement services to the county. The current sheriff is Brad Norman. The agency also operates the Ellis County Jail in Waxahachie.

### Line of duty deaths

As of 2025, 6 officers of the Ellis County Sheriff's Office have been killed in the line of duty.

## Media

Ellis County is part of the Dallas/Fort Worth television media market in North Texas. Stations in the market are KDFW-TV, KXAS-TV, WFAA-TV, KTVT-TV, KERA-TV, KTXA-TV, KDFI-TV, KDAF-TV, KFWD-TV, and KDTX-TV.
The county is home to one local radio station KBEC 1390 AM and 99.1 FM. The station has been in continuous operation since 1955 and is the oldest Family owned radio station in Texas. A weekly newspaper, the Ellis County Press, is based in Ferris and published Thursdays. The Waxahachie Daily Light and Waxahachie Sun are published biweekly; other weekly newspapers are The Ennis News and Midlothian Mirror.

## Education

School districts include:
* Avalon Independent School District
* Ennis Independent School District
* Ferris Independent School District
* Frost Independent School District
* Italy Independent School District
* Maypearl Independent School District
* Midlothian Independent School District
* Milford Independent School District
* Palmer Independent School District
* Red Oak Independent School District
* Waxahachie Independent School District
It is in the service area of Navarro College.

## Notable people

* Clyde Barrow of Bonnie and Clyde
* J. D. Grey, clergyman, pastor of Tabernacle Baptist Church in Ennis, 1931–1934; later president of the Southern Baptist Convention
* Ernest Tubb, country singer and songwriter
* Lecil Travis Martin, known more commonly as Boxcar Willie, country singer and songwriter