Fort Davis, Texas facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Fort Davis, Texas
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Jeff Davis County Courthouse, located in Fort Davis
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Location of Fort Davis, Texas
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| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| County | Jeff Davis |
| Area | |
| • Total | 10.1 sq mi (26.1 km2) |
| • Land | 10.1 sq mi (26.1 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 4,961 ft (1,512 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 1,024 |
| • Density | 101.61/sq mi (39.23/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code |
79734
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| Area code(s) | 432 |
| FIPS code | 48-26688 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2408235 |
Fort Davis is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Jeff Davis County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,201 at the 2010 census, up from 1,050 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Jeff Davis County.
Contents
History
It was the site of Fort Davis, established in 1854 on the San Antonio–El Paso Road through west Texas and named after Jefferson Davis, who was then the Secretary of War under President Franklin Pierce. It was reestablished in 1867 following the civil war.
Geography
Fort Davis is located in southeastern Jeff Davis County at the southeastern foot of the Davis Mountains. Texas State Highway 17 (State Street) passes through the center of town, leading northeast 38 miles (61 km) to Interstate 10 at Balmorhea and southwest 21 miles (34 km) to Marfa. Texas State Highway 118 joins Highway 17 through the center of Fort Davis, but leads northwest through the Davis Mountains 52 miles (84 km) to Interstate 10 and southeast 23 miles (37 km) to Alpine.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 10.1 square miles (26.1 km2), all land.
Fort Davis has the highest elevation above sea level of any county seat in Texas; the elevation is 4,900 feet (1,500 m).
Climate
Fort Davis experiences a semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk) with cool, dry winters and hot, wet summers. There is a large degree of diurnal temperature variation due to the high elevation of the area.
| Climate data for Fort Davis, Texas, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1902–present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 90 (32) |
86 (30) |
90 (32) |
97 (36) |
102 (39) |
107 (42) |
103 (39) |
104 (40) |
101 (38) |
100 (38) |
95 (35) |
79 (26) |
107 (42) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 74.4 (23.6) |
78.0 (25.6) |
84.2 (29.0) |
88.9 (31.6) |
95.6 (35.3) |
99.7 (37.6) |
97.5 (36.4) |
95.8 (35.4) |
92.9 (33.8) |
88.8 (31.6) |
80.5 (26.9) |
74.6 (23.7) |
100.8 (38.2) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 61.8 (16.6) |
66.5 (19.2) |
72.6 (22.6) |
80.2 (26.8) |
86.9 (30.5) |
91.8 (33.2) |
90.0 (32.2) |
88.8 (31.6) |
84.4 (29.1) |
79.3 (26.3) |
69.2 (20.7) |
62.3 (16.8) |
77.8 (25.5) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 46.3 (7.9) |
50.4 (10.2) |
56.3 (13.5) |
63.4 (17.4) |
71.0 (21.7) |
77.6 (25.3) |
77.2 (25.1) |
75.9 (24.4) |
71.0 (21.7) |
63.6 (17.6) |
53.5 (11.9) |
47.2 (8.4) |
62.8 (17.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 30.8 (−0.7) |
34.4 (1.3) |
39.9 (4.4) |
46.6 (8.1) |
55.1 (12.8) |
63.4 (17.4) |
64.4 (18.0) |
63.1 (17.3) |
57.6 (14.2) |
47.9 (8.8) |
37.7 (3.2) |
32.1 (0.1) |
47.8 (8.7) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 14.7 (−9.6) |
16.5 (−8.6) |
22.2 (−5.4) |
29.7 (−1.3) |
39.9 (4.4) |
51.9 (11.1) |
56.0 (13.3) |
54.1 (12.3) |
44.3 (6.8) |
29.6 (−1.3) |
20.1 (−6.6) |
14.1 (−9.9) |
11.0 (−11.7) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 2 (−17) |
0 (−18) |
10 (−12) |
20 (−7) |
26 (−3) |
40 (4) |
47 (8) |
46 (8) |
36 (2) |
18 (−8) |
8 (−13) |
0 (−18) |
0 (−18) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.53 (13) |
0.41 (10) |
0.40 (10) |
0.54 (14) |
1.19 (30) |
2.28 (58) |
2.99 (76) |
2.65 (67) |
2.08 (53) |
1.28 (33) |
0.57 (14) |
0.59 (15) |
15.51 (393) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 0.8 (2.0) |
0.5 (1.3) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.1 (0.25) |
0.4 (1.0) |
0.7 (1.8) |
2.5 (6.35) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 3.1 | 2.4 | 2.5 | 2.3 | 5.1 | 8.1 | 10.9 | 9.7 | 8.4 | 5.0 | 2.8 | 3.4 | 63.7 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 1.3 |
| Source 1: NOAA | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: National Weather Service | |||||||||||||
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 2000 | 1,050 | — | |
| 2010 | 1,201 | 14.4% | |
| 2020 | 1,024 | −14.7% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census 1850–1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 |
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2020 census
| Race | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| White (NH) | 547 | 53.42% |
| Native American or Alaska Native (NH) | 4 | 0.39% |
| Asian (NH) | 5 | 0.49% |
| Some Other Race (NH) | 6 | 0.59% |
| Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH) | 24 | 2.34% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 438 | 42.77% |
| Total | 1,024 |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,024 people, 415 households, and 317 families residing in the CDP.
Arts and culture
Points of interest
- Chihuahuan Desert Nature Center and Botanical Gardens at the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute
- Fort Davis National Historic Site
- The McDonald Observatory of the University of Texas at Austin
- Fort Davis is home to one of 10 dishes comprising the Very Long Baseline Array
- Davis Mountains State Park
Fort Davis is served by the Fort Davis Independent School District.
Education
- Dirks-Anderson Elementary School
- Fort Davis High School
All of Jeff Davis County is zoned to Odessa College.
Gallery
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Hotel Limpia (circa 1912)
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Masonic Lodge
See also
In Spanish: Fort Davis (Texas) para niños
