Anderson County, Texas

Anderson County is a county in Texas. The population of the county is 58,458.

 Named for
 County seat
 Population
 Habitat
 Cong. District
 County Guildmaster
 Time Zone

## Major roads

US Route 79

US Route 84

US Route 175

US Route 287

Texas State Highway 19

Texas State Highway 155

Texas State Highway 294

Loop 256

Henderson County (north)

Houston County (south)

Leon County (southwest)

Freestone County (west)

## Demographics

As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the racial composition of the county is:

60.30% White (35,250)

21.29% Black or African American (12,445)

16.64% Hispanic or Latino (9,727)

1.77% Other (1,036)

13.1% (7,657) of Anderson County residents live below the poverty line.

## Theft rate statistics

Anderson County has average rates of Pokemon theft and murder. The county reported 29 Pokemon thefts in 2018, and averages 1.38 murders a year.

## Communities

### Towns

Elkhart - 1,371

Frankston - 1,229

### Unincorporated communities

Alderbranch

Bethel

Blackfoot

Bois d'Arc

Bradford

Broom City

Brushy Creek

Cayuga

Cedar Creek

Cronin

Crystal Lake

Days Chapel

Denson Springs

Elmtown

Elmwood

Fosterville

Greens Bluff

Long Lake

Massey Lake

Montalba

Mound City (partly in Houston County)

Myrtle Springs

Neches

Pert

Providence

Redtown

Salmon

Slocum

Springfield

Swanson Hill Church

Tennessee Colony

Todd City

Tucker

Wells Creek

Yard

### Ghost towns

Jarvis

Kickapoo

Wild Cat Bluff

## Climate

 Average yearly snowfall
 Average yearly sunny days
 Severe storm risk
 Tornado risk
 Blizzard risk

## Fun facts

* Alphabetically, Anderson is the first of Texas' 254 counties.
* In 1875, the International – Great Northern Railroad placed its machine and repair shops and general offices in Palestine, causing the community to double in size over the next 5 years. For a time, it was a rough railroad town, dominated by male workers.
* White violence against blacks occurred in the county. In July 1910, at least 22 blacks were killed in white rioting near Slocum, a majority-black community, in what is called the Slocum Massacre. Racial and economic tensions were high and southern states had disenfranchised blacks and imposed Jim Crow in furtherance of white supremacy. Anderson County tied for 13th place in a list of the 25 American counties with the highest number of lynchings between 1877 and 1950 (all were located in the South). Oral tradition in the black community says that as many as 200 blacks may have been killed in the massacre. An estimated 200 whites rioted and attacked blacks on the roads, in the fields, and in Slocum on July 29–30, 1910. Many black homes were burned, and black families fled for their lives, having to abandon their property and assets. This town is about 20 miles east of the county seat at Palestine. At the time, as was usual, events were described as a "race riot" by blacks; Texas newspapers mistakenly had contributed to problems by reporting rumors that 200 blacks were arming. Afterward, 11 men were arrested and seven were indicted, including James Spurger, said by many to be the instigator, but no prosecution resulted. The massacre had been preceded by racial tensions, rumors, and, for 6 months, at least one lynching per month of blacks in East Texas. In January 2016, the state installed a highway historical marker in Slocum to recognize this unprovoked attack on the black community.
* In January 1928, the first oil-producing well in Anderson County, the Humble-Lizzie Smith No. 1, was completed. From 1929 to 2000, 295,904,540 barrels (47,045,062 m3) of oil were produced from county lands.
* The Gus Engeling Wildlife Management Area was purchased by the state between 1950 and 1960, much of it formerly owned by Milze L. Derden. The area was renamed in 1952 for Gus A. Engeling, the first state biologist assigned to the area who was killed by a poacher on December 13, 1951.
* Anderson is a strongly Republican county, voting Republican in every election since 1980 (as of 2016). The county last voted Democratic in 1976, when Jimmy Carter won 57% of the county's votes. Hillary Clinton managed to win just 19.8% of the vote in the county, the least of any presidential candidate since 1944, when Thomas E. Dewey managed only 8.5%.
* Elkhart is named for a friendly Native American who assisted the early settlers of the town.
* Two theories are given as to how Frankston got its name. The one most accepted (and shown on the city's official website) is that Frankston was named for Frankie Miller, a young woman who donated land for the downtown city park. An alternate theory for the name of the town was that Frankston was named after Frank Miller, who owned the land when the railway was built. The Miller house still stands as a historical landmark in the southeast part of town, on ACR 19. The state bought the land from him and named the city in his honor. The original Main Street still holds the name Miller Street. The junction of Highways 155 and 175 is now the center of the town.
* Frank Beard, the drummer for ZZ Top, was born in Frankston.