Victoria, Texas
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| City of Victoria | |||
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| Coordinates: | |||
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| Country | United States | ||
| State | Texas | ||
| County | Victoria | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor | Will Armstrong | ||
| Area | |||
| - City | 33.1 sq mi (85.8 km²) | ||
| - Land | 33.0 sq mi (85.9 km²) | ||
| - Water | 0.2 sq mi (0.2 km²) | ||
| Elevation | 95 ft (29 m) | ||
| Population (2005 Mid-Census Report) | |||
| - City | 68,965 | ||
| - Urban | 94,124 | ||
| - Metro | 301,739 | ||
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) | ||
| ZIP code | 77901, 77902, 77903, 77904, 77905 | ||
| Area code(s) | 361 | ||
| FIPS code | 48-75428[1] | ||
| GNIS feature ID | 1370631[2] | ||
| Website: [1] | |||
Victoria is a city in and the county seat of Victoria County, Texas, United States.[3] The population was 60,603 at the 2000 census. The Victoria metropolitan area had an estimated population of 221,417 in seven counties which is usually referred to as the "Golden Crescent". It is the cathedral city of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Victoria in Texas. Victoria is home to Victoria College, the University of Houston–Victoria, current NFL players Jerheme Urban (Wide Receiver) and Kevin Kolb (Quarterback), MLB players Doug Drabek and Ron Gant and WWE wrestler Stone Cold Steve Austin. Victoria is currently one of the state's fastest growing cities.[citation needed]
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[edit] Geography and climate
Victoria is located at (28.816866, -96.993462)[4]. It is one of the state's old, historic cities. The original colony founded in 1824 was named for the first president of Mexico, Don Guadalupe Victoria.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 33.1 square miles (85.8 km²), of which, 33.0 square miles (85.4 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.4 km²) of it (0.45%) is water.
| Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures | ||||||||||||
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rec High °F | 88 | 95 | 97 | 98 | 101 | 106 | 104 | 107 | 111 | 99 | 93 | 88 |
| Norm High °F | 62.8 | 66.6 | 73.4 | 79.2 | 85.1 | 90.3 | 93.4 | 93.7 | 89.9 | 83 | 73 | 65.2 |
| Norm Low °F | 43.6 | 46.7 | 53.9 | 60.1 | 68.1 | 73.3 | 75 | 74.6 | 70.3 | 61.6 | 52.3 | 45.2 |
| Rec Low °F | 14 | 19 | 21 | 33 | 45 | 59 | 62 | 62 | 48 | 31 | 24 | 3 |
| Precip (in) | 2.44 | 2.04 | 2.25 | 2.97 | 5.12 | 4.96 | 2.9 | 3.05 | 5 | 4.26 | 2.64 | 2.47 |
| Source: USTravelWeather.com [2] | ||||||||||||
[edit] Demographics
As of the 2005 mid-census report, there were 60,603 people in the city of Victoria, 22,129 households, and 15,755 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,838.3 people per square mile (709.7/km²). There were 24,192 housing units at an average density of 733.8/sq mi (283.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 71.18% White, 42.92% Hispanic or Latino of any race, 17.31% from other races, 7.59% African American, 2.35% from two or more races, 1.01% Asian, 0.51% Native American, and 0.04% Pacific Islander. There were 22,129 households out of which 36.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.4% were married couples living together, 14.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.8% were non-families. 24.5% 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 2.68 and the average family size was 3.21.
In the city the population was spread out with 28.8% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 92.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $36,829, and the median income for a family was $42,866. Males had a median income of $34,184 versus $21,161 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,009. About 12.2% of families and 14.7% of the population were below the poverty line.
Victoria has experienced a dynamic growth throughout the 21st century. With Victoria's quick growing population, traffic volumes have become a major issue in the busy spots of Victoria.
[edit] Location
Victoria, Texas, is located 30 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico and is within a two-hour drive of Corpus Christi, Houston, San Antonio and Austin. Victoria is a regional hub for a seven county area and serves a retail trade area of over 250,000 people[citation needed]. The city is known as "The Crossroads"[citation needed] because of its location centered between four major cities: Houston, Corpus Christi, San Antonio, and Austin, Texas.
Victoria is home to the University of Houston–Victoria and Victoria College. Additionally, more than 60 colleges and universities are located within a 125-mile radius of Victoria including the University of Houston, University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M University, Texas State University and Rice University.
[edit] History
On April 8, 1824, Don Martin De León petitioned the provincial delegation at San Fernando de Béxar to settle forty-one Mexican families on the lower Guadalupe and founded the town of Nuestra Señora Guadalupe de Jesús Victoria. The colonization grant was approved on April 13. Patricia De León (wife of Martin De León) contributed $9,800 and cows, horses, and mules valued at $300, which she inherited from her father. De León's colony was the only predominantly Mexican colony in Texas, and as a Mexican citizen the empresario received legal preference in the numerous border disputes with American settlements encircling Guadalupe Victoria. In 1829 he obtained a second contract to settle one hundred and fifty families within an area of ten leagues from the coast, and complied with that contract, founding the town of Victoria.
Victoria was the site of Foster Air Force Base before its decommissioning in 1958 and Aloe Army Air Field that was decommissioned in 1945.
[edit] Tragedy of Victoria
On May 14, 2003 Victoria received international attention when 19 immigrants died in a smuggling case. Seventy-four illegal immigrants were put into a trailer and then transported from the Mexican-American border to Houston, Texas. The trailer had no ventilation and thus created an environment conducive to dehydration and hyperthermia. The driver of the truck, Tyrone Williams, stopped at a gas station minutes south of Victoria after being flagged down by other drivers. The drivers could see that people were in the trailer signaling for help. He stopped at the gas station, detached the tractor and left, leaving the immigrants in the trailer. Seventeen immigrants died inside and two others died in a nearby hospital. Trials on several of the smuggling ring conspirators are still awaiting trial. The dead immigrants were from Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic.
[edit] Recreation
Victoria’s 562 acre Riverside Park is home to the Texas Zoo which houses more than 200 species of animals and plants that are indigenous to Texas, exhibiting them in their natural habitat.
There are three golf courses located in Victoria. The Victoria Country Club, Riverside Golf Course, and Colony Creek Country Club.
Riverside Park is home to over 15 baseball fields which are occupied during the Spring and Summer by baseball teams from all over the Victoria Metro region.
[edit] Libraries
The Victoria Public Librarycontains approximately 127,000 volumes at its downtown location. Victoria College and the University of Houston-Victoria share a library on their joint campus.
[edit] Health Care
Victoria has two major hospital systems: Detar Hospitals (Navarro and North) and Citizen's Medical Center. Citizen's was recently named one of the top 100[5] hospitals in the nation. It also has a specialty hospital by the name of Victoria Warm Springs Hospital.
[edit] Tourism
Victoria has 4450 hotel and motel rooms for visitors. The Victoria Community Center is the largest enclosed convention/exhibit facility in the Golden Crescent region, with over 68,000 square feet. The Victoria Chamber of Commerce, Victoria African-American Chamber of Commerce, and the Victoria Convention and Visitors Bureau can assist with tourism-related inquires.
[edit] Transportation
Known as the South Texas Crossroads, Victoria is located at the intersection of three major U. S. highways:
- US Highway 59 (future Interstate 69,) is a four-lane divided interstate quality highway extending southwest to Laredo and northeast to Houston where it meets Interstate 10 and Interstate 45.
- US Highway 77 travels north from Victoria to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex intersecting Interstate 10, Interstate 35, and Interstate 37. US 77 travels south via a four-lane divided highway to the Rio Grande Valley.
- US Highway 87 travels northwest connecting Victoria to San Antonio providing access to Interstate 35. US 87 also connects with Port Lavaca to the southeast.
Victoria is a regional transportation hub for the surrounding counties with local access to major large and small freight carriers, Victoria Regional Airport, railway terminals, the shallow draft Port of Victoria, and the deep water Port of Port Lavaca-Point Comfort.
[edit] Location from Victoria
| Destinations from VICTORIA | |||||||||||
| Cuero via Highway 87 |
Schulenburg, La Grange via Highway 77 |
Edna, El Campo via Highway 59 |
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| Kenedy via Highway 239 |
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Bay City via Highway 111 |
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| Goliad, Matamoros via Highway 59 |
Refugio, Corpus Christi via Highway 77 |
Port Lavaca via Highway 87 |
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[edit] Largest Companies / Organizations(Gross Revenues)
- EasyCFM.Com LLC
- Victoria Chamber of Commerce
- Victoria College
- Gene's Machine, Inc.
- Citizens Medical Center
- PabloSoft.Com
- University of Houston-Victoria
- DeTar Hospital
- The Ron Brown Company
- ERA Realty Group Inc
- BillBarnes.com L.L.C
- National Association of Steel Pipe Distributors
- Golden Crescent Regional Planning Commission
- Maverick Engineering Inc
- Atzenhoffer Chevrolet-Mitsubishi-Mazda
- McAdams Floral
- Clegg Industries Inc
- Aloe Software Group, LLC.
- Victoria Independent School District
- First Victoria National Bank
- Victoria Advocate
- Mario's Auto Body
[edit] References
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ 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.
- ^ About 100 Top Hospitals
[edit] External links
- City of Victoria, Texas
- Victoria Economic Development Corporation economic development
- The Victoria Advocate newspaper
- Catholic Diocese of Victoria
- Aloe Army Air Field from the Handbook of Texas Online
- Port of Victoria and the Victoria Barge Canal
- Victoria Advocate
- Crossroads Dining
- Crossroads Treasures
- White Dove Releases in Victoria
- Victoria, Texas is at coordinates Coordinates:
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