Beeville, Texas

Beeville, Texas
—  City  —
Historic downtown Beeville showing the Rialto Theater
Location of Beeville, Texas
Coordinates:
Country United States
State Texas
County Bee
Area
 • Total 6.1 sq mi (15.8 km2)
 • Land 6.1 sq mi (15.8 km2)
 • Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation 210 ft (64 m)
Population (2000)
 • Total 13,129
 • Density 2,149.7/sq mi (830.0/km2)
Time zone Central (CST) (UTC-6)
 • Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP codes 78102, 78104
Area code(s) 361
FIPS code 48-07192[1]
GNIS feature ID 1330346[2]

Beeville is a city in Bee County, Texas, United States. The population was 13,129 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Bee County.[3] It is the site of a community college, Coastal Bend College.

Many of the stately homes, commercial buildings, and schools in and around Beeville, including the Bee County Courthouse, were designed by the architect William Charles Stephenson, who came to Beeville in 1908 from Buffalo, New York.

Contents

History and culture

The site was first settled by the Burke, Carroll and Heffernan families in the 1830s. It was first named "Maryville" for Mary Heffernan, then renamed "Beeville" after Barnard E. Bee, Sr., who served as Secretary of State and Secretary of War for the Republic of Texas. It was then called "Beeville-on-the-Poesta", with a nearby community "Beeville-on-the-Medio" seven miles (11 km) to the west. In 1859, Beeville's first post office opened.

In 1880, the population was about three hundred. In 1886, the first railroad came to town, and the population exceeded one thousand by the end of the decade.

Beeville was incorporated as a town in 1890, but the incorporation was dissolved the following year. In 1900, the population was 2,311. Beeville was reincorporated as a town in 1908.

In 1920, the population was 3,062. The town streets were paved in 1921. The Rialto Theater, one of the Beeville structures designed by W.C. Stephenson, cost $25,000. On Saturday, August 19, 1922, it opened with the silent film The Three Musketeers starring Douglas Fairbanks, Sr.. Admission was twenty-five cents for adults and ten cents for children. The theater is now used for special occasions, not the general running of motion pictures.[4]

The Texas oil boom brought new residents to town, and in 1930 the population was 4,806. In 1950, the Beeville population was 9,348.

The United States Navy operated the Beeville Naval Air Station, which trained Navy airplane pilots during World War II from 1943 through 1946. The base was reopened in 1952 as Naval Air Station Chase Field, continuing in operation until 1992.

In 1967, the town was inundated by 30 inches (760 mm) of rain during Hurricane Beulah.

Geography

Beeville is located at (28.405498, -97.750757)[5].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.1 square miles (16 km2), all of it land.

Demographics

At the 2000 census[1], there were 13,129 people, 4,697 households and 3,287 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,149.7 per square mile (829.6/km²). There were 5,539 housing units at an average density of 906.9 per square mile (350.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 72.08% White, 2.87% African American, 0.59% Native American, 0.69% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 20.63% from other races, and 3.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 67.67% of the population.

There were 4,697 households of which 39.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples living together, 19.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.0% were non-families. 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.30.

31.1% of the population were under the age of 18, 11.1% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 89.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.5 males.

The median household income was $25,475 and the median family income was $27,794. Males had a median income of $26,761 versus $20,411 for females. The per capita income for the city was $11,027. About 26.5% of families and 30.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 40.8% of those under age 18 and 24.4% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

The Texas Department of Criminal Justice operates the Correctional Institutions Division Region IV Office on the grounds of Naval Air Station Chase Field in unincorporated Bee County, near Beeville.[6] In addition, Garza East Unit and Garza West Unit, transfer facilities, are co-located on the grounds of the naval air station,[7][8] and the McConnell Unit is also in an unincorporated area in Bee County.[9] The Beeville Distribution Center is on the grounds of the air station.[10]

Education

Beeville is served by the Beeville Independent School District and Coastal Bend College.

Notable people

References

  1. ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  2. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
  4. ^ http://www.rialtotheater.net/history.html
  5. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
  6. ^ Correctional Institutions Division Region IV Director's Office Texas Department of Criminal Justice, retrieved on May 21, 2010.
  7. ^ Garza East Unit, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, retrieved on May 21, 2010.
  8. ^ Garza West Unit, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, retrieved on May 21, 2010.
  9. ^ McConnell Unit, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, retrieved on May 21, 2010.
  10. ^ "Beeville Distribution Center, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, retrieved on May 22, 2010.
  11. ^ "Marianne Rafferty Biography". FoxNews.com. 2011. http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/personalities/marianne-rafferty/bio/#s=r-z. Retrieved October 17, 2011. 

External links