Clute, Texas Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids City of Clute
City
SH 288 Business in Clute
Location in the state of Texas

Country	United States
State	Texas
County	Brazoria
Incorporated	May 1952
Founded by	Soloman J. Clute
Government
• Type	Council-Manager
Area
• Total	5.69 sq mi (14.73 km²)
• Land	5.32 sq mi (13.78 km²)
• Water	0.37 sq mi (0.95 km²)
Elevation	10 ft (3 m)
Population (2020)
• Total	10,604
• Density	2,197.78/sq mi (848.58/km²)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP code	77531
Area code(s)	979
FIPS code	48-15652
GNIS feature ID	2409490
Website	http://ci.clute.tx.us/

Clute is a city in Texas, located in Brazoria County. It's part of the larger Houston metropolitan area. In 2020, about 10,604 people lived here. Clute is famous for a cool discovery: a fossilized mammoth named Asiel!

History of Clute
Mammoth Discovery
Geography of Clute
Population and People
Education in Clute
Culture and Events
Notable Person
Images for kids
See also

History of Clute

The story of Clute started where two old plantations met. One was owned by Alexander Calvit, who got the land in 1824. He was one of Stephen F. Austin's first settlers in Texas. The other plantation belonged to Jared Groce, a very rich man.

After the American Civil War, a community began to grow here. It was founded by Joseph Pegan, Soloman J. Clute, and other relatives like George and John Clute. In 1881, the community was officially named Clute. This happened when Soloman J. Clute bought both of the old plantations.

George Clute was described as a "little Yankee from New York." The Clute family bought more land in the 1870s. Soloman Clute managed the community until around 1888 or 1889, when it was sold.

In 1933, Clute was very small, with only two businesses and ten people. But things changed in the early 1940s! The city started to grow a lot. This was because Dow Chemical and other big construction companies moved into the area.

A post office opened by 1943. A new grade school was built in the 1950s. By 1950, Clute had 700 people and 36 businesses. In 1954, the population grew to 3,200, and there were 45 businesses.

Clute became an official city in May 1952. It was first called Clute City. In 1955, the name changed back to Clute. The city also changed how its government worked.

Brazoswood High School opened in Clute in 1969. The first class graduated in 1971. The school's football team even won the state championship in 1974!

Mammoth Discovery

In November 2003, something amazing was found in a sand pit near Brazoswood High School. A backhoe operator discovered a pair of mammoth tusks! These tusks are believed to be from the first mammoth ever found on the Texas Gulf Coast.

Scientists think the mammoth is about 38,000 years old. They figured this out by looking at old logs found nearby. This mammoth was a Columbian mammoth. These mammoths were a bit bigger and had less hair than their famous cousins, the woolly mammoth.

Other fossils were also found, like parts of bison, horses, deer, and turtles. These finds help us understand what the Ice Age environment was like 35 feet underground.

Today, there's even a restaurant and museum named after the mammoth discovery. It helps honor this cool find!

Geography of Clute

Clute covers an area of about 5.6 square miles (14.7 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, about 5.3 square miles (13.78 square kilometers). The rest, about 0.3 square miles (0.95 square kilometers), is water.

Population and People

Clute has grown a lot over the years. Here's how the population has changed:

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1960	4,501	—
1970	6,023	33.8%
1980	9,577	59.0%
1990	8,910	−7.0%
2000	10,424	17.0%
2010	11,211	7.5%
2020	10,604	−5.4%
U.S. Decennial Census

In 2020, there were 10,604 people living in Clute. There were 4,453 households and 2,854 families.

Here's a look at the different groups of people living in Clute in 2020:

**Clute racial composition as of 2020**
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
Race	Number	Percentage
White (NH)	3,404	32.1%
Black or African American (NH)	1,040	9.81%
Native American or Alaska Native (NH)	45	0.42%
Asian (NH)	94	0.89%
Pacific Islander (NH)	3	0.03%
Some Other Race (NH)	46	0.43%
Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH)	280	2.64%
Hispanic or Latino	5,692	53.68%
Total	10,604

In 2000, there were 10,424 people in Clute. About 41% of households had children under 18. The average household had about 2.79 people. The average family had about 3.35 people.

The median age in the city was 28 years old. This means half the people were younger than 28, and half were older.

Education in Clute

Public schools in Clute are run by the Brazosport Independent School District. Here are the schools in Clute:

Madge Griffith Elementary School
T. W. Ogg Elementary School
Clute Intermediate School
Brazoswood High School

Clute is also served by Brazosport College. The Clute Library is part of the Brazoria County Library System.

Culture and Events

Clute hosts a fun event called "The Great Texas Mosquito Festival" every July. This festival has been happening every year since 1981. It's a popular three-day event that brings in about 18,000 visitors!