Medina County, Texas Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Medina County
U.S. county
The Medina County Courthouse in Hondo
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Texas's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Texas
Founded	1848
Named for	Medina River
Seat	Hondo
Largest city	Hondo
Area
• Total	1,335 sq mi (3,460 km²)
• Land	1,325 sq mi (3,430 km²)
• Water	9.2 sq mi (24 km²) 0.7%
Population (2020)
• Total	50,748
• Density	38.013/sq mi (14.677/km²)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	23rd

Medina County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 50,748. Its county seat is Hondo. The county is named for the Medina River. The extreme northern part of the county lies within the Edwards Plateau, which elevates into the Texas Hill Country. The Medina Dam, the fourth largest in the nation when completed in 1913, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The irrigation project, creating Medina Lake, was built by 1500 skilled workers who worked in shifts operating 24 hours a day to complete the dam in two years. Medina County is part of the San Antonio, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History
- Texas-Indian Wars
Geography
- Major highways
- Adjacent counties
Demographics
Communities
Education
Gallery
See also

History

The county is named after the Medina River, which was named in 1689 after the Spanish cartographer Pedro de Medina by the Spanish explorer Alonso de Leon, the first European to encounter the river. Because Pedro de Medina derived his surname from the Andalusian city of Medina-Sidonia, the name Medina comes from the Arabic for city.

The Texas Legislature formed Medina county on February 12, 1848, and enlarged it on February 1, 1850, using land taken from Bexar County. Castroville was the county seat, and the county erected the first permanent courthouse there in 1854. The county seat moved to Hondo in 1892, and a new courthouse was completed there in 1893.

Texas-Indian Wars

The county was home to tribes such as the Lipan Apache, Coahuiltecan, and Tonkawa.

The county was subject to frequent Comanche and Kiowa raids during the 1860s and 1870s. On a June 11, 1873 raid, Comanches attacked four settlers near Hondo. These raids were feared by the local residents, however by 1875, the raiding had stopped. However, although the Comanche were gone, there were still other tribes raiding the county very frequently.

The last Indian raid of the county happened on April 22, 1877, when 19 year old Joe Wilton was killed by Indians near Devine, Texas.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,335 square miles (3,460 km²), of which 1,325 square miles (3,430 km²) is land and 9.2 square miles (24 km²) (0.7%) is water.

Major highways

Interstate 35
U.S. Highway 90
State Highway 16
State Highway 132
State Highway 173

Adjacent counties

Bandera County (north)
Bexar County (east)
Atascosa County (southeast)
Frio County (south)
Uvalde County (west)

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1850	909	—
1860	1,838	102.2%
1870	2,078	13.1%
1880	4,492	116.2%
1890	5,730	27.6%
1900	7,783	35.8%
1910	13,415	72.4%
1920	11,679	−12.9%
1930	13,989	19.8%
1940	16,106	15.1%
1950	17,013	5.6%
1960	18,904	11.1%
1970	20,249	7.1%
1980	23,164	14.4%
1990	27,312	17.9%
2000	39,304	43.9%
2010	46,006	17.1%
2020	50,748	10.3%
U.S. Decennial Census 1850–2010 2010 2020

**Medina 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)	19,919	21,408	22,324	50.68%	46.53%	43.99%
Black or African American alone (NH)	801	913	1,252	2.04%	1.98%	2.47%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	144	146	158	0.37%	0.32%	0.31%
Asian alone (NH)	117	272	215	0.30%	0.59%	0.42%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	17	24	38	0.04%	0.05%	0.07%
Other race alone (NH)	50	28	188	0.13%	0.06%	0.37%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	383	344	1,118	0.97%	0.75%	2.20%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	17,873	22,871	25,455	45.47%	49.71%	50.16%
Total	39,304	46,006	50,748	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the census of 2000, there were 39,304 people, 12,880 households, and 10,136 families residing in the county. The population density was 30 people per square mile (12 people/km²). There were 14,826 housing units at an average density of 11 units per square mile (4.2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 79.38% White, 2.20% Black or African American, 0.68% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 14.48% from other races, and 2.88% from two or more races. 45.47% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 12,880 households, out of which 39.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.20% were married couples living together, 11.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.30% were non-families. 18.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.91 and the average family size was 3.30.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 29.00% under the age of 18, 8.40% from 18 to 24, 28.70% from 25 to 44, 21.50% from 45 to 64, and 12.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $36,063, and the median income for a family was $40,288. Males had a median income of $27,045 versus $21,734 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,210. About 12.00% of families and 15.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.80% of those under age 18 and 15.60% of those age 65 or over.