Navasota, Texas

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Navasota is a city in Grimes County, Texas, United States. The population was 6,789 at the 2000 census. In 2005, the Texas Legislature named the city "The Blues Capital of Texas," in honor of the late Mance Lipscomb, a Navasota native and blues musician.

1 Location
2 Early History
3 Present Day
4 Media
5 Attractions
6 Geography
7 Demographics
8 Education
9 Planning and Development
10 Miscellaneous
11 External links

[edit] Location

Navasota is located on a bend of the Navasota River, at the intersections of Highway 105 and Farm Roads 3090 and 1227. It sits approximately 25 miles south of Bryan-College Station. It is connected to those cities, and to Houston, by State Highway 6.

[edit] Early History

The site was first named Hollandale for Francis Holland, who bought land in the area in 1822. In 1832 a Georgia planter named Daniel Arnold moved to the vicinity. In 1848 James Nolan set up some tents nearby, and by 1852 he had built a log cabin that became a stage stop. The site was a natural crossroads, as it was located near the spot where the La Bahía Road crossed the Navasota River, and about halfway between Anderson and Washington-on-the-Brazos. By the mid-1850s four stage lines had established stops in the vicinity. The settlement name was changed to Navasota (for the river) in 1854, when a post office was established there. After September 1859, when the Houston and Texas Central Railway built into the town, Navasota became even more important as a shipping and marketing center for the surrounding area. Cotton, gunpowder, and guns were stored there during the American Civil War. By 1865 the population was about 2,700.

The town, however, suffered a series of disasters in the mid-1860s that severely depleted its population. In 1865 a warehouse filled with cotton and gunpowder exploded after it was torched by disgruntled Confederate veterans; the blast killed a number of people and started a fire that destroyed or damaged many buildings, including the post office. Not long afterward the town was struck by a deadly cholera epidemic, which was followed in 1867 by an even more dangerous epidemic of yellow fever. As many Navasota citizens, including the mayor, fled to escape the disease, the town population dropped by about 50 percent. During the late 1860s the Ku Klux Klan spread into Navasota, and on one occasion a tense confrontation between federal soldiers and a crowd of local white citizens occurred there.

In October 1866, in the midst of these troubles, Navasota was incorporated; after the yellow fever epidemic its economic fortunes revived. One of the first cottonseed oil mills in the state was built there before 1880. By 1884 about 2,500 people were living in Navasota, and in addition to the oil mill the town had five churches, two flour mills, several steam-powered cotton gins, a bank, an opera house that could seat 1,000, and a newspaper, the Navasota Tablet. A telephone company began operating there in 1885; that same year the town gained another railroad connection when the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe built through. In the late 1880s the town contracted for its first water system and electrical lights. By 1896 four weekly newspapers were being published in Navasota, and the town had grown to a population of about 3,500.

[edit] Present Day

The International-Great Northern became the town's third railroad in 1900, and for the next three decades Navasota continued to grow as a shipping and marketing center for cotton, livestock, lumber, and produce. Its population increased from 3,857 in 1900 to 5,128 by 1930; in 1930, 175 businesses were reported in the town. Though the number of businesses in Navasota declined slightly during the Great Depression, by 1940 its population had grown to 6,138. During the 1940s the town declined as the farms surrounding it were mechanized and consolidated, and by 1950 only 4,976 residents remained. Hoping to reverse this trend, in 1952 local businessmen began to organize the Navasota Industrial Foundation. The foundation, which later drew tax dollars for its support, worked with some success to attract new industries to the area.

Downtown Navasota, Texas.

The town population stabilized, and by the mid-1970s Navasota had eighteen manufacturers producing mobile homes, furniture, cheese, steel tubing, and oilfield machinery. The population grew from 4,937 in 1960 to 5,026 by 1970 and to 5,971 by 1980. Residents also organized to revitalize the downtown area, and in 1980 Navasota was one of five Texas cities selected for the National Main Street program sponsored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. During the mid-1980s the Texas Department of Corrections built the minimum-security Wallace Pack prison just outside of town. Though many in Navasota had opposed the prison, the facility produced hundreds of new jobs. Many businesses suffered during the late 1980s, when the oil industry collapsed; one employer alone laid off more than 650 workers. Though the new jobs brought by the prison helped to offset some of the worst effects of the economic downturn, city officials again became concerned that young people would have to move elsewhere for employment. In 1990 the census counted 6,296 people in Navasota. The population as of July 19, 2006 is 6,789.

[edit] Media

Navasota is served by the weekly Navasota Examiner newspaper, which has been reporting on the goings-on in Grimes County since 1894. The city is also home to the Navasota News 1550 AM radio station, a daily news-talk broadcast station hosted by anchors Nancy Woods and Tom Turner.

[edit] Attractions

The Sangster House (est. 1902), Navasota, Texas.

Navasota is relatively famous for its historic Victorian homes, many of which line Washington Avenue, the main residential and commercial thouroughfare through town. Another historic edifice is Brule Field, which (until recently) served as the primary field for the local high school football team, The Navasota Rattlers.

Visitors also flock to the area each spring to view the famous Texas Bluebonnets, which are in abundant supply along local highways. The city is also home to the LaSalle Statue, a memorial to the famous French explorer. The statue was donated to the city by the French government in 1930.

In recent years, the city has become host to the wildly successful Navasota Blues Festival, a summer gathering of blues musicians and enthusiasts which honors the memory of local blues man Mance Lipscomb. The celebration raises money for local college students.

Navasota also hosts the annual Hertitage Days celebration each spring, an event planned and executed by the Navasota Merchants' Association.

[edit] Geography

Navasota is located at 30°23′17″N, 96°5′9″W (30.388005, -96.085951)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.9 km² (6.1 mi²). 15.9 km² (6.1 mi²) of it is land and 0.16% is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 6,789 people, 2,379 households, and 1,624 families residing in the city. The population density was 428.3/km² (1,109.7/mi²). There were 2,661 housing units at an average density of 167.9/km² (435.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 53.42% White, 34.11% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.46% Asian, 9.90% from other races, and 1.81% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 27.96% of the population.

There were 2,379 households out of which 37.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.9% were married couples living together, 19.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.7% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.40.

In the city the population was spread out with 30.3% under the age of 18, 10.6% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 18.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 86.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $26,990, and the median income for a family was $31,875. Males had a median income of $28,585 versus $21,731 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,230. About 23.8% of families and 26.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.7% of those under age 18 and 24.0% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Education

The City of Navasota is served by the Navasota Independent School District.

[edit] Planning and Development

2005 Downtown Navasota Parking Study Cover, a document written for the City of Navasota, Texas by Butler Planning Services.

Beginning in 2004, the city government and Economic Development Corporation funded several planning projects. The first project included a Comprehensive Plan, Economic Development Plan, and Design Concept portfolio. The documents included in this initial project were drafted by graduate students from Texas A&M University's Texas Target Cities group. The Navasota Comprehensive Plan (website) was well received by many in the community. The plan has begun to influence government policy in terms of zoning and subdivision regulations. The document was also recognized with the 2005 Student Project of the Year Award by the Central Texas Section of the American Planning Association.

The ongoing reinvigoration initiative in Downtown was bolstered with a project by Butler Planning Services to assess the state of parking in the district. The 2005 Downtown Navasota Parking Study (website) analyzed the current parking situation and recommended ways to improve parking availability and access within Downtown. The study was written to be a precursor to additional and more targeted planning efforts addressing the Downtown district. The study also was awarded a state-level award (website) by a committee of professional planners. This recognition came in the form of the 2005 Project Planning Award administered by the Texas chapter of the American Planning Association.

[edit] Miscellaneous

French explorer René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle was killed here in 1687, according to historians.
Frank Hamer, a Texas Ranger known for his involvement in ordering, tracking down, and killing Bonnie and Clyde, was Marshal of Navasota. He was known for "cleaning" the town of violence.