Mineral Wells, Texas facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mineral Wells, Texas
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Downtown Mineral Wells, Texas
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Location within Palo Pinto County
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| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| Counties | Palo Pinto, Parker |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council-Manager |
| Area | |
| • Total | 21.16 sq mi (54.79 km2) |
| • Land | 20.40 sq mi (52.83 km2) |
| • Water | 0.76 sq mi (1.96 km2) |
| Elevation | 883 ft (269 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 14,820 |
| • Estimate
(2021)
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14,902 |
| • Density | 700.4/sq mi (270.49/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−06:00 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−05:00 (CDT) |
| ZIP Codes |
76067-76068
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| Area code(s) | 940 |
| FIPS code | 48-48684 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1341714 |
| Website | MineralWellsTX.gov |
Mineral Wells is a city in Palo Pinto and Parker Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 14,820 at the 2020 census. The city is named for mineral wells in the area, which were highly popular in the early 1900s.
Contents
History
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In 1919, Mineral Wells hosted the spring training camp for the Chicago White Sox, the year of the famous "Black Sox" scandal involving "Shoeless" Joe Jackson. Mineral Wells also hosted spring training for the Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Cardinals in the 1910s and early 1920s. The baseball field was located in the center of town.
Military History
Mineral Wells military history dates back to 1916 with the organization of Company 1, 4th Texas Infantry. By January 1925, the War Department approved the site that would become Camp Wolters, the training ground for the 56th Cavalry Brigade of the Texas National Guard.
In 1956, the base began operations as the Primary Helicopter Center of the United States Army that would provide basic training and primary flight training for all rotary-wing aviators. The Vietnam War created an increased need for pilots. To meet the demand, Fort Wolters increased operations to become the training site for helicopter pilots for the Marine Corp in 1968 and the Air Force in 1970. Nearly every helicopter pilot that flew in Vietnam was trained at Fort Wolters.
Fort Wolters was deactivated in 1973. The 8,500 acres was then parsed out to the city of Mineral Wells, private businessmen, Weatherford College, and Lake Mineral Wells State Park.
State Park
Mineral Wells is very well known for the state park which features fishing, camping, horse riding, biking, hiking trails and rock climbing. One attraction is Penitentiary Hollow, a popular rock climbing area.
Film
Prison Break Season 2 episode 8 "Dead Fall" set in "Arizona" is actually various locations in and around Mineral Wells. In an opening aerial shot showing downtown Hwy 281 Northbound, "Crazy Water" banners can be seen on the light poles.
Geography
Mineral Wells is located at 32°48′31″N 98°6′7″W / 32.80861°N 98.10194°W (32.808594, –98.101859). Mineral Wells lies east of the Brazos River and Palo Pinto Mountains.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 21.2 square miles (54.9 km2), of which 20.5 square miles (53.0 km2) are land and 0.7 square mile (1.9 km2) (3.45%) is covered by water.
Mineral Wells is 51 miles (82 km) west of Fort Worth and 109 miles (175 km) east of Abilene.
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1890 | 577 | — | |
| 1900 | 2,048 | 254.9% | |
| 1910 | 3,950 | 92.9% | |
| 1920 | 7,890 | 99.7% | |
| 1930 | 5,986 | −24.1% | |
| 1940 | 6,303 | 5.3% | |
| 1950 | 7,801 | 23.8% | |
| 1960 | 11,053 | 41.7% | |
| 1970 | 18,411 | 66.6% | |
| 1980 | 14,468 | −21.4% | |
| 1990 | 14,870 | 2.8% | |
| 2000 | 16,946 | 14.0% | |
| 2010 | 16,788 | −0.9% | |
| 2020 | 14,820 | −11.7% | |
| 2021 (est.) | 14,902 | −11.2% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
2020 census
| Race | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| White (NH) | 9,457 | 63.81% |
| Black or African American (NH) | 516 | 3.48% |
| Native American or Alaska Native (NH) | 69 | 0.47% |
| Asian (NH) | 155 | 1.05% |
| Pacific Islander (NH) | 10 | 0.07% |
| Some Other Race (NH) | 40 | 0.27% |
| Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH) | 506 | 3.41% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 4,067 | 27.44% |
| Total | 14,820 |
According to the 2020 United States census, the city had a population of 14,820 individuals, residing in 4,958 households, and belonging to 3,329 families. This represents a decrease of 12.54% compared to the figures reported in the 2000 Census.
Climate
The climate in this area is characterized by relatively high temperatures and evenly distributed precipitation throughout the year. The Köppen climate classification describes the weather as humid subtropical, and uses the code Cfa.
| Climate data for Mineral Wells Airport (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1948–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 91 (33) |
97 (36) |
98 (37) |
102 (39) |
106 (41) |
114 (46) |
112 (44) |
113 (45) |
111 (44) |
104 (40) |
94 (34) |
91 (33) |
114 (46) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 58.0 (14.4) |
62.2 (16.8) |
70.5 (21.4) |
77.8 (25.4) |
84.5 (29.2) |
91.7 (33.2) |
96.1 (35.6) |
96.0 (35.6) |
88.5 (31.4) |
78.7 (25.9) |
67.3 (19.6) |
58.7 (14.8) |
77.5 (25.3) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 45.4 (7.4) |
49.7 (9.8) |
57.7 (14.3) |
64.9 (18.3) |
72.8 (22.7) |
79.9 (26.6) |
83.8 (28.8) |
83.5 (28.6) |
76.4 (24.7) |
66.0 (18.9) |
55.0 (12.8) |
46.5 (8.1) |
65.1 (18.4) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 32.8 (0.4) |
37.2 (2.9) |
45.0 (7.2) |
52.0 (11.1) |
61.0 (16.1) |
68.2 (20.1) |
71.4 (21.9) |
71.0 (21.7) |
64.3 (17.9) |
53.3 (11.8) |
42.7 (5.9) |
34.3 (1.3) |
52.8 (11.6) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 4 (−16) |
−4 (−20) |
10 (−12) |
27 (−3) |
32 (0) |
51 (11) |
58 (14) |
56 (13) |
40 (4) |
23 (−5) |
12 (−11) |
−8 (−22) |
−8 (−22) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.59 (40) |
2.19 (56) |
2.98 (76) |
2.63 (67) |
4.00 (102) |
3.55 (90) |
2.13 (54) |
2.49 (63) |
2.66 (68) |
3.28 (83) |
2.41 (61) |
1.89 (48) |
31.80 (808) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 5.8 | 6.2 | 7.3 | 6.9 | 8.9 | 6.9 | 5.0 | 5.8 | 5.8 | 6.5 | 5.9 | 5.9 | 76.9 |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
Education
Mineral Wells is served by the Mineral Wells Independent School District, and by the Community Christian School.
Weatherford College operates a branch campus on the old Fort Wolters facility.
Notable people
- Barbara H. Bowman, geneticist
- Adrian Colbert, NFL football player for the Miami Dolphins
- Alvin Garrett, NFL football player and Super Bowl champion
- Dan Herbeck, journalist for The Buffalo News; co-author of American Terrorist, best-seller biography of Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh
- Millie Hughes-Fulford, American medical investigator, molecular biologist and former NASA astronaut who flew aboard a NASA Space Shuttle mission as a Payload Specialist
- Shane McAnally, singer-songwriter and record producer
- Alvy Ray Smith (born 8 September 1943), noted pioneer in computer graphics and the cofounder of Pixar
- Amanda Shires, singer songwriter
- James Vick, UFC lightweight
Gallery
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Entrance sign
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Site of historic Famous Mineral Water Company
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Crazy Water Retirement Hotel
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Downtown Mineral Wells
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Nazareth Hospital
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Downtown Mineral Wells
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Downtown Mineral Wells
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Crazy Water Hotel
See also
In Spanish: Mineral Wells (Texas) para niños
