Brownwood, Texas facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Brownwood, Texas
|
|
|---|---|
|
City
|
|
Brown County Courthouse
|
|
| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| County | Brown |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council-Manager |
| Area | |
| • Total | 14.99 sq mi (38.83 km2) |
| • Land | 14.97 sq mi (38.76 km2) |
| • Water | 0.03 sq mi (0.07 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,339 ft (408 m) |
| Population
(2020)
|
|
| • Total | 18,862 |
| • Density | 1,233.13/sq mi (476.11/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (CST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-6 (CDT) |
| ZIP Codes |
76801-76804
|
| Area code(s) | 325 |
| FIPS code | 48-10780 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2409925 |
Brownwood is a city in Brown County, Texas, United States. It is also the county seat, which means it's where the main government offices for the county are located. In 2020, about 18,862 people lived there. Brownwood is found in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. It is also home to Howard Payne University, a college that started way back in 1889.
Contents
Brownwood's Story: A Look at Its History
.jpg)
The first location for Brownwood was on the east side of Pecan Bayou. But there was a disagreement over land and water. So, the people had to find a new spot. A man named Greenleaf Fisk gave 60 acres of land to move the county seat to the west side of the bayou. This is where Brownwood is today. He also gave 100 more acres for the county to use. The town officially became a city in 1884.
Brownwood During World War II
During World War II, Brownwood was home to a large U.S. Army training base called Camp Bowie. At its busiest, more than 80,000 soldiers trained there! Today, Camp Bowie is still used as a training camp. You can find it where Farm-to-Market Roads 45 and 2126 meet.
A Powerful Storm in 1976
On April 19, 1976, a very strong tornado hit near Brownwood. It caused a lot of damage. Luckily, no one died, but 11 people were hurt.
Brownwood's Population Growth
After the year 2000, Brownwood's population numbers were checked again. They found that more people lived there than first thought. The city was then called a "micropolitan statistical area" in 2003. This means it's a city with at least 10,000 people but less than 50,000. It also has nearby areas that are closely connected to the city, often because people travel to Brownwood for work.
Neighboring City: Early, Texas
A disagreement about water rights led to the creation of a nearby city called Early. Brownwood and Early are separated by the Pecan Bayou. This bayou is one of the main rivers that flows into the Colorado River in Texas.
Exploring Brownwood's Geography
Brownwood is located in the southern part of Brown County. It sits west of the Pecan Bayou. The city of Early is right next to it, on the east side. Several major U.S. Highways go through Brownwood.
Highways Connecting Brownwood
- U.S. Route 84 and U.S. Route 67 go west towards towns like Bangs and Santa Anna.
- U.S. Route 377 heads southwest towards Brady.
- All three of these highways also go east into Early. From Early, U.S. 67 and U.S. 377 continue northeast towards Comanche. U.S. 84 goes southeast towards Goldthwaite.
- Just outside Brownwood in Early, U.S. Route 183 goes north about 46 miles (74 km) to Cisco. This is where you can find Interstate 20, which is the closest major highway.
Size of Brownwood
Brownwood covers a total area of about 14.9 square miles (38.5 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, about 14.8 square miles (38.4 square kilometers). Only a very small part, about 0.04 square miles (0.1 square kilometers), is water.
Water Fun and Features
Lake Brownwood
About 7 miles (11 km) north of Brownwood is Lake Brownwood. This lake is a large reservoir, covering about 7,300 acres (30 square kilometers). It was made by building a dam on the Pecan Bayou.
Lake Brownwood is a great place for fishing! You can find many types of fish here, including largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, white bass, striped bass, white crappie, yellow and flathead catfish, sunfish (also called perch), and alligator gar. People also enjoy camping, waterskiing, jet skiing, and boating on the lake. It's also home to Lake Brownwood State Park, a 538-acre (2.18 square kilometer) park that opened in 1938.
Pecan Bayou
The Pecan Bayou is an important river that flows into the Colorado River. Because of the dam that created Lake Brownwood, the bayou is not very deep and doesn't flow much downstream from Brownwood. However, during heavy rains, the bayou can sometimes flood. It runs from the northwest to the southeast and forms the boundary between Brownwood and Early.
Who Lives in Brownwood: Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1880 | 725 | — | |
| 1890 | 2,176 | 200.1% | |
| 1900 | 3,965 | 82.2% | |
| 1910 | 6,967 | 75.7% | |
| 1920 | 8,223 | 18.0% | |
| 1930 | 12,789 | 55.5% | |
| 1940 | 13,398 | 4.8% | |
| 1950 | 20,181 | 50.6% | |
| 1960 | 16,974 | −15.9% | |
| 1970 | 17,368 | 2.3% | |
| 1980 | 19,396 | 11.7% | |
| 1990 | 18,387 | −5.2% | |
| 2000 | 18,813 | 2.3% | |
| 2010 | 19,288 | 2.5% | |
| 2020 | 18,862 | −2.2% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
Brownwood's Population in 2020
| Group | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 11,611 | 61.56% |
| Black or African American (not Hispanic) | 948 | 5.03% |
| Native American (not Hispanic) | 35 | 0.19% |
| Asian (not Hispanic) | 146 | 0.77% |
| Pacific Islander (not Hispanic) | 27 | 0.14% |
| Some Other Race (not Hispanic) | 66 | 0.35% |
| Mixed/Multi-Racial (not Hispanic) | 628 | 3.33% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 5,401 | 28.63% |
| Total | 18,862 |
In 2020, the 2020 United States census counted 18,862 people living in Brownwood. There were 7,167 households and 4,367 families in the city.
Learning in Brownwood: Education
Most of Brownwood is part of the Brownwood Independent School District. A small area around the Brownwood Regional Airport belongs to the Early Independent School District.
Brownwood High School
Brownwood High School is well-known for its strong participation in UIL activities. These include academic competitions and drama (one-act plays). Students also have many other chances to get involved, such as band, DECA (for business students), FFA (for agriculture), the Lionettes drill team, Key Club, student council, Students Against Destructive Decisions, and National Honor Society.
The school's mascot is the lion, and its colors are maroon and white. Brownwood High was once tied for the most state championships in high school football, with seven wins. The last championship was in 1981. Gordon Wood, who coached at Brownwood High for 25 years, retired in 1985. He was one of the most successful coaches in Texas history, with 396 wins. Many athletes from nearby towns even move to Brownwood to play for the Lions!
Higher Education in Brownwood
Brownwood is home to Howard Payne University. The university's sports teams have won national championships. The men's cross country team won in 1957 and 1964, and the women's basketball team won in 2008.
On the Howard Payne campus, you can also find the Douglas MacArthur Academy of Freedom. This is a museum with recreated famous rooms from American history, like Independence Hall. It also has a 32-foot (9.8 m) tall mural that shows Biblical history.
Brownwood also has a campus of the Texas State Technical College System. This college offers many different courses. Some of these include computer-aided drafting and design, digital imaging, software and business accounting, nursing, health information technology, computer network systems, and welding technology.
Getting Around: Transportation
Brownwood is served by several important highways: US 67, US 84, US 183, US 377, and Texas State Highway 279.
The city also has train services from the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad, Fort Worth and Western Railroad, and Texas Rock Crusher Railway.
Brownwood Regional Airport
Brownwood is served by the Brownwood Regional Airport. The airport has two runways. One is 5,599 feet (1,707 m) long and 150 feet (46 m) wide. The other is 4,596 feet (1,401 m) long and 100 feet (30 m) wide. Most of the flights here are for cargo or private planes. In the past, Mesa Airlines used to offer regional flights from Brownwood.
Famous People from Brownwood
Many interesting people have connections to Brownwood:
- Cofféy Anderson, country singer-songwriter
- Bob Denver, actor (played Gilligan on Gilligan's Island)
- Larry Elkins – former American football player
- Jerry Don Gleaton, Major League Baseball pitcher
- Graham Harrell, former Texas Tech Red Raiders quarterback
- Tam Hollingshead, former Texas A&M football coach
- Shawn Hollingsworth, American football player
- Robert E. Howard, writer, created Conan the Barbarian
- Case Keenum, NFL quarterback
- Joe M. Kilgore, former U.S. representative from Texas
- Matthew McCrane, professional kicker
- Shelby Miller, pitcher for the Texas Rangers
- Jim Morris, pitcher and coach (his story was made into the movie The Rookie)
- Casey Pachall, former Texas Christian University quarterback
- Paul & Paula, or Ray Hildebrand and Jill Jackson, singers
- Josh Rosenthal, singer-songwriter
- J. L. Hunter "Red" Rountree, known as the oldest bank robber in history
- George M. Shelton, Medal of Honor recipient
- John Paul Stapp, United States Air Force colonel
- Glenn Strange, actor (played Sam the Bartender on Gunsmoke)
- Madylin, Sullivan, and Sawyer Sweeten – actors who played the Barone children on Everybody Loves Raymond
- Jack Taylor, former mayor of Mesa, Arizona
- Jim Thomason, football halfback for Texas A&M University
- Kenny Vaccaro, former NFL safety
- Clint Walker, star of the TV series Cheyenne
- Walt Williams, Major League Baseball player
- Drew Womack, country music singer-songwriter
- Gordon Wood – famous Texas high school football coach at Brownwood
- Bob Young, football offensive guard and World's Strongest Man contestant
- Doug Young, champion powerlifter
See also
In Spanish: Brownwood para niños
