Lea County, New Mexico facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lea County
U.S. county
Lea County Courthouse in Lovington
Location within the U.S. state of New Mexico
New Mexico's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	New Mexico
Founded	March 17, 1917
Seat	Lovington
Largest city	Hobbs
Area
• Total	4,394 sq mi (11,380 km2)
• Land	4,391 sq mi (11,370 km2)
• Water	3.3 sq mi (9 km2)  0.07%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	74,455
• Density	16.9447/sq mi (6.5424/km2)
Time zone	UTC−7 (Mountain)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−6 (MDT)
Congressional district	2nd

Lea County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2020 census, its population was 74,455.

Its county seat is Lovington. It is both west and north of the Texas state line. Lea County comprises the Hobbs, NM micropolitan statistical area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 4,394 square miles (11,380 km²), of which 4,391 sq mi (11,370 km²) are land and 3.3 sq mi (8.5 km²) (0.07%) are covered by water. Lea County is located in the southeast corner of New Mexico and borders Texas to the south and east.

The Permian Basin, 250 mi (400 km) wide and 350 mi (560 km) long, underlies Lea County and adjacent Eddy County, as well as a large portion of West Texas. It produces 500,000 barrels of crude a day, and this number was expected to double in 2019. The shale in this basin lies 3,000–15,000 ft (910–4,570 m) below the surface, below a salt bed and a groundwater aquifer.

Adjacent counties

Demographics

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, 64,727 people, 22,236 households, and 16,260 families were living in the county. The population density was 14.7 inhabitants per square mile (5.7/km²). The 24,919 housing units averaged 5.7/sq mi (2.2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 75.0% White, 4.1% African American, 1.2% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 16.6% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 51.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 9.3% were German, 7.6% were Irish, 7.2% were English, and 6.3% were American.

Of the 22,236 households, 41.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.8% were married couples living together, 13.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 26.9% were not families, and 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.82 and the average family size was 3.30. The median age was 31.9 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $43,910 and for a family was $48,980. Males had a median income of $44,714 versus $25,847 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,637. About 15.2% of families and 17.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.5% of those under age 18 and 11.1% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Airports

These public-use airports are located in the county:

• Lea County Regional Airport (HOB) – Hobbs
• Lea County-Jal Airport (E26) – Jal
• Lea County-Zip Franklin Memorial Airport (E06) – Lovington
• Tatum Airport (18T) – Tatum

Communities

Cities

• Eunice
• Hobbs
• Jal
• Lovington

Town

• Tatum

Census-designated places

• Monument
• Nadine
• North Hobbs

Other unincorporated communities

• Bennett
• Caprock
• Crossroads
• Knowles
• Maljamar
• McDonald

Education

School districts include:

• Eunice Municipal Schools
• Hobbs Municipal Schools
• Jal Public Schools
• Lovington Public Schools
• Tatum Municipal Schools

Notable people

• Roy Cooper. Rodeo cowboy
• Kathy Whitworth, professional golfer
• Brian Urlacher, Chicago Bears football linebacker (2000–2012)

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Lea para niños