Waskom, Texas
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Waskom, Texas | |
Location of Waskom, Texas | |
Coordinates: | |
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Country | United States |
State | Texas |
County | Harrison |
Area | |
- Total | 2.8 sq mi (7.1 km²) |
- Land | 2.8 sq mi (7.1 km²) |
- Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km²) |
Elevation | 285 ft (87 m) |
Population (2000) | |
- Total | 2,068 |
- Density | 750.0/sq mi (289.6/km²) |
Time zone | Central (CST) (UTC-6) |
- Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
ZIP code | 75692 |
Area code(s) | 903 |
FIPS code | 48-76636[1] |
GNIS feature ID | 1349531[2] |
Waskom is a city in Harrison County, Texas, United States. It lies about 20 miles east of the county seat, Marshall, on U.S. Route 80. To the east is Shreveport, Louisiana. The population was 2,068 at the 2000 census with a United States Census Bureau 2005 population estimate of 2,129 citizens.
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[edit] Geography
Waskom is located at [3].
(32.478416, -94.063769)According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.8 square miles (7.1 km²), all of it land.
Waskom was established in 1850 as a midway point of an east-west (Dallas, TX to Shreveport, LA) cattle and cotton economic travelway to the Red River in Louisiana, some 20 miles east. In 1872 it became a main railroad station between Dallas and Shreveport to the west and east respectively and Texarkana to the north. A major railway still travels through Waskom. Today Waskom sits on I-20 that connects the Carolinas to southwest Texas and Mexico.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 2,068 people, 790 households, and 571 families residing in the city. The population density was 750.0 people per square mile (289.3/km²). There were 894 housing units at an average density of 324.2/sq mi (125.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 75.05% White, 15.76% African American, 0.63% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 7.16% from other races, and 1.26% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.86% of the population.
There were 790 households out of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.9% were married couples living together, 15.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.6% were non-families. 24.6% 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 2.62 and the average family size was 3.10.
In the city the population was spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 12.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 99.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $29,737, and the median income for a family was $32,243. Males had a median income of $29,625 versus $18,859 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,080. About 19.4% of families and 24.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 35.5% of those under age 18 and 14.8% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Education
The City of Waskom is served by the Waskom Independent School District.
[edit] Notable residents
Mary Frances Ellis "Dolly" Hamiter (November 27, 1919 - April 22, 2008) was a businesswoman and rancher in Waskom who served for more than sixteen years as an elected Harrison County justice of the peace. She was the first woman elected as a director of the Waskom Chamber of Commerce. A native of Camden, an unincorporated community in Polk County in southeast Texas, Hamiter was named "Outstanding Citizen of the Year" in 1975, and her Hamiter's Chevron was the "Outstanding Business" in 1989 and 1996. Previously, she had operated a Gulf Oil station. Hamiter was active too in civic functions and in the Methodist Church and the Order of the Eastern Star fraternal organization. She and her husband, Ernest Jewell Hamiter, originally of Bradley in Lafayette County in southwestern Arkansas, who survives her, built and managed their 200-acre Hamiter's 3-H Ranch, in Waskom. She is interred in Waskom Restland Cemetery.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ a b 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.
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ http://www.legacy.com/shreveporttimes/Obituaries.asp?Page=Lifestory&PersonId=108309100
[edit] External links
- Waskom, Texas is at coordinates Coordinates:
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