| Weatherford, Texas | |
|---|---|
| — City — | |
| Weatherford City Hall | |
| Nickname(s): Cutting Horse Capital of the World, Peach Capital of Texas | |
| Location of Weatherford within Parker County, Texas. | |
| Coordinates: | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| County | Parker |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council-Manager |
| • City Council | Mayor Dennis Hooks Waymon Hamilton Craig Swancy Jerry Clinton |
| • City Manager | Jerry Blaisdell |
| Area | |
| • Total | 22.7 sq mi (58.7 km2) |
| • Land | 20.9 sq mi (54.1 km2) |
| • Water | 1.8 sq mi (4.6 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,053 ft (321 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 19,000 |
| • Density | 909.9/sq mi (351.3/km2) |
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP codes | 76085-76088 |
| Area code(s) | 817 |
| FIPS code | 48-76864[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1376666[2] |
| Website | WeatherfordTX.gov |
Weatherford is a city in Parker County, Texas, United States, and a western suburb of Fort Worth. The population was 19,000 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Parker County[3] and is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
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Weatherford is located 25 miles (40 km) west of Fort Worth on Interstate 20. It is the county seat for Parker County.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 22.7 square miles (59 km2), of which, 20.9 square miles (54 km2) of it is land and 1.8 square miles (4.7 km2) of it (7.86%) is water.
The 2008 census for the population of the City of Weatherford, Texas is 26,686 with a population density of 1,175.59 people per square mile. The population grew by 40.5% from 2000 to 2008. The racial makeup of the city in 2008 is 85.50% White, 10.20% Hispanic, 2.10% Black, 1.30% American Indian, 0.70% Asian, 4.10% other. Weatherford's average household size is 2.5.
The average income per household was $50,924, in the year 2007. The estimated 2007 city capita was $26,380.
According to the 1999 census, 25.0% of the population is under the age of 18, 10.6% is 18 to 24, 26.3% is 25 to 44, 21.8% is 45 to 64, and 16.4% is 65 years of age or older. The median age is 36 years.
The City of Weatherford is served by the Weatherford Independent School District and Weatherford College.
Weatherford ISD has classes from pre-kindergarten through high school serving 7,200 students throughout 254 square miles (660 km2) at 11 campuses.
Weatherford College is a 140-year-old community college. There are more than 35 study areas and 19 professional/technical programs. Financial aid packages and scholarships are also available. The College was originally built by Masons and was one of the first in Texas.
In 1855, Parker County was created by the Texas State Legislature and named for pioneer and State Representative Isaac Parker. Parker was the uncle of Cynthia Ann Parker, a little girl who was stolen from her home by Indians during the Texas Revolution. Cynthia Ann lived among the Comanche and became the mother of Chief Quanah Parker. Later, when she was overtaken in flight with an Indian raiding party, Isaac Parker who recognized her as his long-lost niece.
The Town of Weatherford was named for the State Senator for this district, Thomas Jefferson Weatherford (1811-1867) of Dallas. According to his cousin, Senator Weatherford never set foot in the town.
The first settlers had arrived less than ten years earlier. They were many Native American attacks between the years of 1846 and 1874. There are several headstones in Parker County that read "Killed by Indians."
The railroad arrived in June 1880. The Santa Fe Depot (which today houses the Weatherford Chamber of Commerce) was built in 1908 under Jim Crow laws, with waiting rooms segregated and separated by the ticket office.
In 1895, the town’s still existing daily newspaper, the Weatherford Democrat, began publication. The Weatherford Telegram began publishing as a weekly newspaper in 2006.
Cattle drover Oliver Loving is buried in Weatherford’s Greenwood Cemetery. After being attacked by Indians in New Mexico in 1867, Loving’s dying wish to his friend, Charles Goodnight, was to be buried in his home, Parker County. Goodnight brought the body back six hundred miles by wagon for burial. The story is the inspiration behind Texas author Larry McMurtry’s novel, Lonesome Dove.
A year earlier, Goodnight had invented the first chuckwagon which catered to cowboys on a cattle drive that would later become known as the Goodnight-Loving Trail.
Boze Ikard, who served with Goodnight and for whom the McMurtry character “Deets” was modeled, was also laid to rest in the Greenwood Cemetery.
Weatherford lies in the geographic region commonly referred to as the "Bible Belt". As such, it is home to churches of several Christian denominations including (among others) Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Mormon and Roman Catholic. There are no worship centers for any other major religions within the city limits, with practitioners of those religions commonly traveling to nearby Fort Worth to attend religious services.
The city was named by the Texas Legislature as the Peach Capital of Texas due to the peaches produced by area growers. As such, the peach is celebrated each year at the Parker County Peach Festival, which is Weatherford’s largest event and one of the best-attended festivals in Texas.
Weatherford is known as the Cutting Horse Capital of the World.
Weatherford also has a number of historic homes and buildings. More than 60 Queen Anne, Victorian, and other architecturally significant homes built at the turn of the 20th century sit along the tree-lined avenues. Several of these homes are open for tours, arranged by the Parker County Heritage Society, during the Christmas season.
Another landmark is the Second Empire style Parker County Courthouse, which is located in the geographical center of the county in downtown Weatherford. The building is surrounded by buildings which served other purposes at the turn of the 20th century, including saloons and cat-houses. In recent years, both the interior and exterior of the courthouse structure have been restored to its original character and attractiveness.
Parker County has been represented in the Texas State House since 1985 by two Republicans, Richard F. "Ric" Williamson (1952–2007) and Phillip Stephen King. Originally a Democrat, Williamson switched parties and served until 1999, when he was succeeded by King, one of the more conservative members of the legislature. Williamson's old friend and former legislative colleague, Governor Rick Perry, appointed him to the Texas Transportation Commission, of which he became the chairman in 2004. Williamson died of a third heart attack on December 30, 2007. He had been a champion of Perry's controversial Trans-Texas Corridor toll road project.
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