Travis County, Texas
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Travis County, Texas | |
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| Map | |
 Location in the state of Texas |
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 Texas's location in the U.S. |
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| Statistics | |
| Founded | 1840 |
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| Seat | Austin |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
1,022 sq mi (2,647 km²) 989 sq mi (2,561 km²) 33 sq mi (85 km²), 3.21% |
| PopulationEst. - (2007) - Density |
974,365 985/sq mi (380.4/km²) |
Travis County is located in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Austin-Round Rock metropolitan area. In the 2008, the population was 998,543; the county has gained more than 400,000 residents since 1990. Its county seat is Austin,[1] the capital of Texas. The county is named in honor of William Barret Travis, the commander of the Republic of Texas forces at the Battle of the Alamo.
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[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,022 square miles (2,647 km²). 989 square miles (2,562 km²) are land and 33 square miles (85 km²) (3.21%) are water.
[edit] Major highways
[edit] Adjacent counties
- Williamson County (north)
- Bastrop County (east)
- Caldwell County (south)
- Hays County (southwest)
- Blanco County (west)
- Burnet County (northwest)
[edit] National protected area
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1900 | 47,386 |
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| 1910 | 55,620 | 17.4% | |
| 1920 | 57,616 | 3.6% | |
| 1930 | 77,777 | 35.0% | |
| 1940 | 111,053 | 42.8% | |
| 1950 | 160,980 | 45.0% | |
| 1960 | 212,136 | 31.8% | |
| 1970 | 295,516 | 39.3% | |
| 1980 | 419,573 | 42.0% | |
| 1990 | 576,407 | 37.4% | |
| 2000 | 812,280 | 40.9% | |
| Est. 2008 | 998,543 | 22.9% | |
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 812,280 people, 320,766 households, and 183,798 families residing in the county. The population density was 821 people per square mile (317/km²). There were 335,881 housing units at an average density of 340 per square mile (131/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 68.21% White, 9.26% Black or African American, 0.58% Native American, 4.47% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 14.56% other races, and 2.85% from two or more races. 28.20% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 12.0% were of German, 7.7% English, 6.6% Irish and 5.5% American ancestry according to Census 2000. English the sole language spoken at home by 71.42% of the population age 5 or over, while 22.35% speaks Spanish, and a Chinese language (including Mandarin, Taiwanese, and Cantonese) is spoken by 1.05% [1].
The 2005 American Community Survey conducted by the census indicated that 25.1% of Travis County's population spoke Spanish in the home.[citation needed]
In 2000 there were 320,766 households, of which 29.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.60% were married couples living together, 10.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.70% were non-families. 30.10% of all households were composed of individuals and 4.40% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.15.
The population's age distribution was 23.80% under the age of 18, 14.70% from 18 to 24, 36.50% from 25 to 44, 18.20% from 45 to 64, and 6.70% age 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 104.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.50 males.
The median income per household in the county was $46,761, and the median income per family was $58,555. Males had a median income of $37,242 versus $30,452 for females. The per capita income in the county was $25,883. About 7.70% of families and 12.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.90% of those under age 18 and 7.60% of those age 65 or over.
Travis County, along with other Texas counties, has one of the nation's highest property tax rates. In 2007, the county was ranked 37th in the nation for property taxes as percentage of the homes value on owner occupied housing. The list only includes counties with a population over 65,000 for accuracy[3]. Travis County also ranked in the top 100 for amount of property taxes paid and for percentage of taxes of income. Part of this is due to the complex Robin Hood plan school financing law that exists in Texas.[4]
[edit] Communities
[edit] Cities, towns, and villages
(a portion of southern Round Rock also extends into northern Travis county)
(a portion of Elgin extends into Travis County)
[edit] Census-designated places
- Anderson Mill
- Barton Creek
- Garfield
- Hudson Bend
- Jollyville
- Lost Creek
- Onion Creek
- Shady Hollow
- Wells Branch
- Windemere
[edit] Unincorporated areas
[edit] Culture
The Austin Zoo is located at 10807 Rawhide Trail in an unincorporated area.[5]
[edit] Corrections
The Travis County Jail and the Travis County Criminal Justice Center are located in Downtown Austin.[6][7] The Travis County Correctional Complex is located in an unincorporated area in Travis County, next to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.[8]
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice operates the Travis County Unit, a state jail for men, in eastern Austin.[9]
[edit] References
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Template.cfm?Section=Find_a_County&Template=/cffiles/counties/usamap.cfm. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ http://www.taxfoundation.org/research/show/1888.html
- ^ http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F04E5DB173BF934A35753C1A9629C8B63
- ^ "Contact Us." Austin Zoo. Retrieved on February 1, 2009.
- ^ "Travis County Jail (TCJ)." Travis County Sheriff's Office. Accessed September 14, 2008.
- ^ "Criminal Justice Center (CJC)." Travis County Sheriff's Office. Accessed September 14, 2008.
- ^ "Travis County Correctional Complex (TCCC)." Travis County Sheriff's Office. Accessed September 14, 2008.
- ^ "Travis County (TI)." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Accessed September 14, 2008.
[edit] External links
- Travis County Information Directory
- Travis County Government website
- Travis County from the Handbook of Texas Online
- Travis County Law Library
- Travis County, Texas at the Open Directory Project
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Burnet County | Williamson County |
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| Blanco County |  |
Bastrop County | |||||
 Travis County, Texas  |
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| Hays County | Caldwell County |
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