# Canyon, Texas

Canyon is a city in and the county seat of Randall County, Texas, United States. The population was 14,836 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Amarillo, Texas, metropolitan statistical area. Canyon is the home of the Panhandle–Plains Historical Museum, and the outdoor musical drama Texas.

## History

Canyon was founded by L. G. Conner. The JA Ranch is east of Canyon.
The Tex Randall statue, a 47-foot (14 m) tall cowboy next to U.S. Route 60, was constructed in 1959 and designated an official Canyon landmark in 2017.

## Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, Canyon has a total area of 4.9 square miles (13 km$^2$), all land. The city itself lies in a valley that eventually becomes Palo Duro Canyon to the east.

### Climate

Climate data for Canyon, Texas (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1950–present) :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 79 (26) | 86 (30) | 93 (34) | 99 (37) | 103 (39) | 109 (43) | 109 (43) | 105 (41) | 105 (41) | 98 (37) | 90 (32) | 82 (28) | 109 (43) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 52.3 (11.3) | 56.0 (13.3) | 64.6 (18.1) | 72.6 (22.6) | 81.5 (27.5) | 90.3 (32.4) | 92.7 (33.7) | 91.1 (32.8) | 84.3 (29.1) | 74.1 (23.4) | 61.5 (16.4) | 52.0 (11.1) | 72.8 (22.7) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 37.4 (3.0) | 40.4 (4.7) | 48.8 (9.3) | 57.1 (13.9) | 67.0 (19.4) | 76.3 (24.6) | 79.7 (26.5) | 78.3 (25.7) | 70.7 (21.5) | 59.3 (15.2) | 46.9 (8.3) | 37.8 (3.2) | 58.3 (14.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 22.6 (−5.2) | 24.7 (−4.1) | 33.0 (0.6) | 41.6 (5.3) | 52.5 (11.4) | 62.3 (16.8) | 66.8 (19.3) | 65.4 (18.6) | 57.2 (14.0) | 44.4 (6.9) | 32.3 (0.2) | 23.7 (−4.6) | 43.9 (6.6) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −12 (−24) | −14 (−26) | 0 (−18) | 19 (−7) | 25 (−4) | 40 (4) | 51 (11) | 47 (8) | 29 (−2) | 15 (−9) | 3 (−16) | −6 (−21) | −14 (−26) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.59 (15) | 0.40 (10) | 1.06 (27) | 0.99 (25) | 2.25 (57) | 2.68 (68) | 2.26 (57) | 3.03 (77) | 1.90 (48) | 1.98 (50) | 0.68 (17) | 0.63 (16) | 18.45 (469) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 1.8 (4.6) | 0.8 (2.0) | 0.8 (2.0) | 0.4 (1.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.4 (1.0) | 1.3 (3.3) | 2.1 (5.3) | 7.6 (19) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 2.5 | 2.7 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 5.7 | 7.0 | 5.7 | 6.5 | 4.1 | 4.6 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 51.2 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 1.2 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 3.7 |
| Source: NOAA ||||||||||||||

## Demographics
### 2020 census

Canyon racial composition (NH = Non-Hispanic) :
| Race | Number | Percentage |
| White (NH) | 10,490 | 70.71% |
| Black or African American (NH) | 536 | 3.61% |
| Native American or Alaska Native (NH) | 120 | 0.81% |
| Asian (NH) | 187 | 1.26% |
| Pacific Islander (NH) | 7 | 0.05% |
| Some Other Race (NH) | 62 | 0.42% |
| Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH) | 529 | 3.57% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 2,905 | 19.58% |
| Total | 14,836 | |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 14,836 people, 5,189 households, and 3,444 families residing in the city.

### 2010 census

At the 2010 census, 13,303 people, 5,185 households and 2,924 families resided in the city. The population density was 2,687.47 inhabitants per square mile (1,037.64/km$^2$). The 5,611 housing units averaged 1,133.54 per square mile (437.68/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the city was 88.5% White, 2.4% African American, 0.7% Native American, 1.8% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 4.7% from other races, and 2% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 15.7% of the population.
Of the 5,185 households, 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.5% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.6% had a male householder with no wife present, and 43.6% were not families. About 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.99.
The population was distributed as 21.4% under the age of 18, 18.6% from 20 to 24, 22.3% from 25 to 44, 15.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 25 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.5 males.
The median household income was $32,361 and the median family income was $46,250. Males had a median income of $34,338 versus $25,255 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,292. About 8.1% of families and 14.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.2% of those under age 18 and 10.3% of those age 65 or over.

## Education

Public education in Canyon is served by the Canyon Independent School District. Currently, the only high school is Canyon High School, whose mascot is an Eagle.
Some students in Canyon, TX play soccer at the Brown Road Soccer Complex on the west side of town.
Canyon is the home of West Texas A&M University, the main campus is located near the city center.

### Sport

Canyon is home to the West Texas A&M Buffaloes.

## Points of interest

* Tallest wind turbine in the United States. It is a GW 3MW(S) Wind Turbine with a nacelle height of 130 metres and a total height of 199.2 metres situated at 34.967324 N 101.789980 W.

## Notable people

* Houston Bright, composer who taught for three decades at West Texas A&M University
* Harold Bugbee, Western artist and the former curator of Panhandle-Plains Museum
* Terry Funk, professional wrestler and actor
* Blair Garner, syndicated radio host
* Bryan A. Garner, editor-in-chief of Black's Law Dictionary, author, and teacher
* Margaret Pease Harper, educator, musician and originator of Texas
* Mark Lair, Hall of Fame bridge player
* Georgia O'Keeffe, artist, lived in Canyon (1916–1918), inspired by the beauty of the Palo Duro country
* Carmen Espinoza-Rodriquez, singer/songwriter
* Jake Rogers, MLB catcher for the Detroit Tigers
* Brandon Schneider, women's basketball head coach at the University of Kansas; born in Canyon
* Candi Whitaker, women's basketball head coach at Texas Tech; born in Canyon