Anderson County, Texas Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Anderson County
U.S. county
The Anderson County Courthouse in Palestine
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Texas's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Texas
Founded	March 24, 1846
Named for	Kenneth L. Anderson
Seat	Palestine
Largest city	Palestine
Area
• Total	1,078 sq mi (2,790 km²)
• Land	1,063 sq mi (2,750 km²)
• Water	15 sq mi (40 km²) 1.4%
Population (2020)
• Total	57,922
• Density	54/sq mi (21/km²)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	6th

Anderson County is a place in Texas, a state in the United States. It's located in East Texas, and its main city, or county seat, is Palestine. In 2020, about 57,922 people lived here. Anderson County was created in 1846. It was named after Kenneth Lewis Anderson, who was the last vice president of the Republic of Texas. The county is part of the Palestine micropolitan area, which is a small city area.

History
Geography
Communities
Population Information
Education
Media
See also

History

Native American Tribes

Long ago, different Native American tribes lived in East Texas. Some of these tribes were the Kiowa, Kickapoo, Kichai, Apache, and Comanche. They hunted, farmed the land, and traded goods. By the 1770s, some tribes like the Tawakoni had settled near the Brazos and Trinity rivers. The Tawakoni were part of the Wichita Indians and made treaties with both the Republic of Texas and the United States.

In 1836, a group of tribes attacked Fort Parker. This fort was built in Anderson County in 1835 to protect settlers. Many settlers were killed or kidnapped. One famous person captured was Cynthia Ann Parker. She later became the mother of Comanche Chief Quanah Parker. Some people in Anderson County today are related to Cynthia Ann Parker.

In 1838, General Thomas Jefferson Rusk led a raid against some tribes near Frankston. This helped to end conflicts with Native Americans in East Texas for that year.

Early Settlers

In 1826, a person named David G. Burnet received permission to bring 300 families to what is now Anderson County. Most of these early settlers came from the southern states and Missouri.

A religious leader named Daniel Parker and eight other men started a church in Illinois. In 1833, their entire group moved to Texas. They were among the first settlers in the area. Fort Parker was one of the earliest settlements. After the attack on the fort, some survivors moved to Anderson County.

County Formation

Anderson County was officially formed on March 24, 1846. It was created from Houston County by the first Texas state legislature. The county was named after Kenneth Lewis Anderson. Palestine was chosen as the county seat, which is the main city where the county government is located.

During the American Civil War, Anderson County supported the Southern states that wanted to leave the Union. Judge John H. Reagan from Palestine served in the government of the Confederate States of America.

In 1875, the International – Great Northern Railroad built its repair shops and offices in Palestine. This caused the city to grow very quickly, doubling in size in just five years.

In 1928, the first successful oil well was found in Anderson County. By the year 2000, over 295 million barrels of oil had been taken from the county's land since 1929.

The Gus Engeling Wildlife Management Area was bought by the state between 1950 and 1960. It was renamed in 1952 after Gus A. Engeling, a biologist who was killed by a poacher there.

Geography

Anderson County covers about 1,078 square miles. Most of this area, 1,063 square miles, is land. The remaining 15 square miles, or about 1.4%, is water.

Major Roads

U.S. Highway 79
U.S. Highway 84
U.S. Highway 175
U.S. Highway 287
State Highway 19
State Highway 155
State Highway 294

Neighboring Counties

Henderson County (north)
Cherokee County (east)
Houston County (south)
Leon County (southwest)
Freestone County (west)

Protected Natural Areas

Neches River National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Communities

Cities

Palestine (county seat)

Towns

Unincorporated Areas

Ghost Town

Wild Cat Bluff

Population Information

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1850	2,684	—
1860	10,398	287.4%
1870	9,229	−11.2%
1880	17,395	88.5%
1890	20,923	20.3%
1900	28,015	33.9%
1910	29,650	5.8%
1920	34,318	15.7%
1930	34,643	0.9%
1940	37,092	7.1%
1950	31,875	−14.1%
1960	28,162	−11.6%
1970	27,789	−1.3%
1980	38,381	38.1%
1990	48,024	25.1%
2000	55,109	14.8%
2010	58,458	6.1%
2020	57,922	−0.9%
U.S. Decennial Census 1850–2010 2010-2020

**Anderson County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition**
*Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.*
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2000	Pop 2010	Pop 2020	% 2000	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	34,762	35,792	33,098	63.08%	61.23%	57.14%
Black or African American alone (NH)	12,897	12,222	11,430	23.40%	20.91%	19.73%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	135	192	193	0.24%	0.33%	0.33%
Asian alone (NH)	243	283	381	0.44%	0.48%	0.66%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	7	16	13	0.01%	0.03%	0.02%
Other race alone (NH)	11	37	113	0.02%	0.06%	0.20%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	349	629	1,583	0.63%	1.08%	2.73%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	6,705	9,287	11,111	12.17%	15.89%	19.18%
Total	55,109	58,458	57,922	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

Anderson County's population has changed over the years. In 1850, there were 2,684 people. By 2000, this grew to 55,109. In 2020, the population was 57,922, which was a small decrease from 2010.

The county is mostly made up of non-Hispanic white people. However, the number of Hispanic and Latino residents has grown a lot. In 2020, over 11,000 people were Hispanic or Latino. This shows how the county's population is becoming more diverse. The number of African American residents has stayed about the same. Also, the number of people who identify as mixed race has increased.

In 2020, there were about 16,555 homes in Anderson County. About 71.5% of people owned their homes. The average rent for a home was $829 per month. The average value of a home owned by its resident was $110,000.

Education

These school districts serve students in Anderson County:

Athens Independent School District (partial)
Cayuga Independent School District
Elkhart Independent School District (partial)
Frankston Independent School District (partial)
La Poynor Independent School District (partial)
Neches Independent School District
Palestine Independent School District
Slocum Independent School District
Westwood Independent School District

Media

Anderson County is part of the Dallas/Fort Worth TV market. Local TV channels include KDFW-TV, KXAS-TV, WFAA-TV, KTVT-TV, KERA-TV, KTXA-TV, KDFI-TV, and KDAF-TV. Other TV stations from the Tyler/Longview/Jacksonville area also provide news for Anderson County. These include KLTV, KTRE-TV, KYTX-TV, KFXK-TV, and KETK-TV.

Newspapers that serve Anderson County are the Palestine Herald-Press in Palestine and the online weekly Frankston Citizen in Frankston.

Anderson County, Texas facts for kids

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