Portales, New Mexico
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| The City of Portales | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | New Mexico |
| County | Roosevelt |
| Area | |
| - Total | 6.9 sq mi (17.7 km²) |
| - Land | 6.9 sq mi (17.7 km²) |
| - Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km²) |
| Elevation | 4,006 ft (1,221 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 11,131 |
| - Density | 1,624.9/sq mi (627.4/km²) |
| Time zone | Mountain (MST) (UTC-7) |
| - Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| ZIP codes | 88123, 88130 |
| Area code(s) | 575 |
| FIPS code | 35-59260 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0893416 |
Portales is a city in and the county seat of Roosevelt County[1], New Mexico, United States. The population was 11,131 at the 2000 census. It is located near the larger city of Clovis as well as Cannon Air Force Base, a major contributor to the economy of the region.
Eastern New Mexico University opened in Portales in 1934 and has grown to become the third largest university in the state. Peanuts and sweet potatoes were formerly the largest crops in the area. Although Portales is one of the largest producers of Valencia peanuts in the United States, it is now better known for its dairy industry.
It is the principal city of the Portales Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of the larger Clovis-Portales Combined Statistical Area.
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[edit] City
The city's downtown area is centered around a traditional town square, descending from Spanish urban design. The center of the town square includes the 1930s WPA-style Roosevelt County Courthouse, including original architectural details from the era. The Courthouse Square is ringed with active retail shops. The Yam Theater, a historic theater located in the Downtown area, is currently under renovation. Eastern New Mexico University (ENMU), forms a sizable district with its campus and surrounding residential stock catering to students. Portales has 39 religious institutions and is home to 38 civic organizations.
[edit] Geography
Portales is located at (34.182184, -103.338737)[2].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.8 square miles (17.7 km²), all of it land.
[edit] History
The settlement was founded in the late 1800s and the city was formally established in 1909. Its first mayor was Washington Ellsworth Lindsey, later a state Governor of New Mexico.
[edit] Living
According to a study conducted by Bizjournals.com, of 577 micropolitan areas, Portales ranked 15th in the nation and ninth in the western United States in overall quality of life.[3] The goal of the study was to identify America’s most attractive micropolitan areas and points were given to small, well-rounded communities where the economy is strong, traffic is light, the cost of living is moderate, adults are well-educated, and access to big-city attractions is reasonably close.
The study identified 12 categories including population growth, per capita income, small business growth, professional jobs, commuting, cost of living, and advanced degrees. Cities were given points for positive results and negative scores if they were below the national averages. These scores were then totaled to determine its overall rank on the list of micropolitan areas.
Portales, the smallest city in the top 25, received a quality of life score of 8.96, the 15th highest score in the nation. According Scott Thomas, the author of the study, the income per capita, short commuting times, low taxes, and substantial percentage of adults with a graduate degree contributed to the ranking. Los Alamos was the only other New Mexico city to be recognized in the top 20.
[edit] Archaeology
The Blackwater Draw Archaeological Site near (Portales, New Mexico) is one of the best known and most significant sites in North American archaeology. Early investigations at Blackwater Draw recovered evidence of a human occupation in association with Late Pleistocene fauna, including Columbian mammoth, camel, horse, bison, sabertooth cat and dire wolf.
Since its discovery, the Blackwater Locality No. 1 Site has been a focal point for scientific investigations by academic institutions and organizations from across the country. The Carnegie Institute, Smithsonian Institution, Academy of Natural Sciences, National Science Foundation, United States National Museum, National Geographic Society, and more than a dozen major universities either have funded or participated in research at Blackwater Draw.
Additionally, due to the site's long-term potential for additional research and to public interest, the site was incorporated into the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, and has more recently been declared a National Historic Landmark.
[edit] Economy
The town and surrounding communities are heavily dependent on Eastern New Mexico University, county government, and agriculture (including cattle ranching and dairy farming, peanuts, and grain), as well as the service industry.
Sunland Inc. in Portales is the largest U.S. exporter of certified organic peanut products and a major U.S. processor and distributor of sweet Valencia peanuts. DairiConcepts of New Zealand processes local milk into milk solids for domestic and export use, including a growing stock of certified organic milk solids. Spanish energy corporation Abengoa Energy operates an ethanol plant in Portales, and Southwest Canning operates a canning and bottling plant.
The Portales economy is also connected to Cannon Air Force Base located approximately 12 miles to the north. The base operates a leased military housing area in Portales with 150 single family dwellings. Major Portales retailers include Wal-Mart, True Value hardware, small privately-owned boutique shops and services in the downtown area, IGA grocers, several furniture stores, Allsups convenience stores, and a number of discount retailers including dollar stores.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 11,131 people, 4,188 households, and 2,659 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,624.9 people per square mile (627.4/km²). There were 4,862 housing units at an average density of 709.7/sq mi (274.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 68.80% White, 2.28% African American, 1.12% Native American, 0.96% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 23.39% from other races, and 3.35% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 38.13% of the population.
There were 4,188 households out of which 33.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.3% were married couples living together, 14.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.5% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.09.
In the city the population was fairly young with 26.3% under the age of 18, 20.1% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 15.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27 years. For every 100 females there were 93.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $24,658, in 2000 and the median income for a family was $30,462. Males had a median income of $27,080 versus $20,625 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,935. About 18.8% of families and 24.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.5% of those under age 18 and 17.5% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Notable natives and residents
- Michael Blake, Author of Dances with Wolves, attended college at Eastern New Mexico University
- John Burroughs, Democratic governor of New Mexico, 1959-1960
- Ronny Cox, Actor; starred in the film Deliverance and on the CBS series Apple's Way
- Ed Foreman, Represented two states in the United States House of Representatives: Texas and New Mexico; motivational speaker and philanthropist, Republican
- Danny Leary, Comedian and actor
- Cody Ross, Major League Baseball outfielder for the Florida Marlins
- Christopher Stasheff, Fantasy author
- Ned Sublette, Singer and Cuban scholar
- Jack Williamson, Science fiction author
[edit] References
- ^ Find a County. National Association of Counties. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ America's Dreamtowns: Regional leaders in small-town quality of life rankings
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
[edit] External links
- City of Portales - Official Site
- Eastern New Mexico University-Blackwater Draw Archaelogical Site
- PortalesNM.org
- City of Clovis - Official Site
- Portales, New Mexico is at coordinates Coordinates:
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