Stephenville | |
|---|---|
City | |
 Downtown Stephenville, Texas | |
 Location of Stephenville, Texas | |
 | |
| Coordinates:32°12′35″N98°14′15″W / 32.20972°N 98.23750°W /32.20972; -98.23750 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| County | Erath |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council-Manager |
| • City Council | Mayor |
| Area | |
• Total | 11.91 sq mi (30.85 km2) |
| • Land | 11.89 sq mi (30.79 km2) |
| • Water | 0.023 sq mi (0.06 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,342 ft (409 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 20,897 |
| • Density | 1,440/sq mi (556.1/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP codes | 76401-76402 |
| Area code | 254 |
| FIPS code | 48-70208[3] |
| GNIS feature ID | 2411977[2] |
| Website | Stephenville, Texas |
Stephenville is a city in and thecounty seat ofErath County, Texas, United States.[4] It sits on theNorth Bosque River, which rises nearby. Founded in 1854, it is home toTarleton State University.[5] Stephenville's population was 20,847 as of the2020 census, and it is the principal city in the Stephenville Micropolitan Statistical Area. Stephenville is among several communities that call themselves the "Cowboy Capital of the World".[6]
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Stephenville is founded by and named after John M. Stephen, who settled there in 1854, and donated the land for the townsite laid out byGeorge B. Erath when the county was organized in 1856. In the first two years of its settlement, the population increased to 776. The population then declined until 1871, because the townsite was inComanche territory and raids were common, and because the hardships of theAmerican Civil War led citizens to leave. The population grew after Stephenville became an agriculture and livestock center. Coal mining also became important to the area in 1886, and was a major segment of the economy for the 30 years.[7]
Stephenville was incorporated in 1889, with the arrival of theFort Worth and Rio Grande Railway. In the 1890s, many of the buildings around the town square were built,Tarleton State University opened, and the community's two newspapers merged to become theEmpire-Tribune, which is still in operation. In February 1907, theStephenville North and South Texas Railway was chartered by Stephenville andHamilton business interests, which sold the line in 1910 to theSt. Louis Southwestern Railway of Texas system. In the 20th century, industry became an important part of Stephenville, and the population has steadily increased since the 1920s.[7]
In January 2008, dozens of people in Stephenville reported seeing patterns of lights in the night sky, which were eventually discovered to have been caused by a military training maneuver. Some described it as a single largeunidentified flying object.[8][9] TheAir Force Reserve issued a statement from theNAS Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base that jets from the457th Fighter Squadron were in military airspace designated for training during the time people reported seeing the lights.[10] The F-16s had been engaged in training maneuvers and dropping counter-measure flares used to confuse heat-seeking missiles.[11] Following news reports of the UFO sighting, "media calls came from all over the world", and local police Constable Lee Roy Gaitan gave more than 100 interviews. The town reacted in a "UFO frenzy"; T-shirts proclaiming the town "Alien Capital of the World" and "Erath County — the New Roswell", were rushed into production, and the local high school suddenly received $7,000 for college scholarships.[12]
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 11.89 square miles (30.8 km2), of which 11.89 square miles (30.8 km2) are land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km2) is covered by water.[citation needed]
Stephenville is served by three major US highways –US Highway 377,US Highway 281, andUS Highway 67 (the last of which joins US Hwy 377).[citation needed]
Stephenville's climate is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to theKöppen climate classification system, Stephenville has ahumid subtropical climate, with the abbreviationCfa.[13]
| Climate data for Stephenville, Texas (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1921–1932, 1941–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 87 (31) | 96 (36) | 95 (35) | 103 (39) | 103 (39) | 109 (43) | 111 (44) | 110 (43) | 110 (43) | 103 (39) | 92 (33) | 89 (32) | 111 (44) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 78.2 (25.7) | 82.3 (27.9) | 86.3 (30.2) | 90.8 (32.7) | 94.3 (34.6) | 97.9 (36.6) | 101.5 (38.6) | 101.8 (38.8) | 97.8 (36.6) | 92.2 (33.4) | 83.3 (28.5) | 78.7 (25.9) | 103.5 (39.7) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 59.1 (15.1) | 63.1 (17.3) | 70.4 (21.3) | 78.6 (25.9) | 85.6 (29.8) | 93.1 (33.9) | 97.3 (36.3) | 97.6 (36.4) | 90.2 (32.3) | 80.5 (26.9) | 68.8 (20.4) | 60.5 (15.8) | 78.7 (25.9) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 45.0 (7.2) | 49.0 (9.4) | 56.4 (13.6) | 64.4 (18.0) | 72.7 (22.6) | 80.4 (26.9) | 84.0 (28.9) | 83.6 (28.7) | 76.3 (24.6) | 66.0 (18.9) | 54.9 (12.7) | 46.8 (8.2) | 65.0 (18.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 30.9 (−0.6) | 34.9 (1.6) | 42.4 (5.8) | 50.2 (10.1) | 59.9 (15.5) | 67.6 (19.8) | 70.6 (21.4) | 69.6 (20.9) | 62.5 (16.9) | 51.5 (10.8) | 41.1 (5.1) | 33.1 (0.6) | 51.2 (10.7) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 19.0 (−7.2) | 21.4 (−5.9) | 25.8 (−3.4) | 35.3 (1.8) | 45.4 (7.4) | 59.0 (15.0) | 65.3 (18.5) | 63.4 (17.4) | 50.1 (10.1) | 36.1 (2.3) | 25.9 (−3.4) | 20.0 (−6.7) | 15.0 (−9.4) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −2 (−19) | 0 (−18) | 9 (−13) | 25 (−4) | 36 (2) | 51 (11) | 50 (10) | 50 (10) | 33 (1) | 21 (−6) | 11 (−12) | −8 (−22) | −8 (−22) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 1.84 (47) | 2.16 (55) | 2.82 (72) | 2.91 (74) | 4.97 (126) | 3.33 (85) | 1.99 (51) | 2.96 (75) | 3.32 (84) | 3.32 (84) | 2.33 (59) | 2.18 (55) | 34.13 (867) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 0.4 (1.0) | 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) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.3 (0.76) | 0.7 (1.8) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) | 6.1 | 6.4 | 7.7 | 5.8 | 7.9 | 6.0 | 4.9 | 5.2 | 5.9 | 7.1 | 5.7 | 5.6 | 74.3 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.1 in) | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.7 |
| Source:NOAA[14][15] | |||||||||||||
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | 120 | — | |
| 1880 | 725 | — | |
| 1890 | 909 | 25.4% | |
| 1900 | 1,902 | 109.2% | |
| 1910 | 2,561 | 34.6% | |
| 1920 | 3,891 | 51.9% | |
| 1930 | 3,944 | 1.4% | |
| 1940 | 4,768 | 20.9% | |
| 1950 | 7,155 | 50.1% | |
| 1960 | 7,359 | 2.9% | |
| 1970 | 9,277 | 26.1% | |
| 1980 | 11,881 | 28.1% | |
| 1990 | 13,502 | 13.6% | |
| 2000 | 14,921 | 10.5% | |
| 2010 | 17,123 | 14.8% | |
| 2020 | 20,897 | 22.0% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[16] | |||
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| Race | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| White (NH) | 14,257 | 68.23% |
| Black or African American (NH) | 1,122 | 5.37% |
| Native American orAlaska Native (NH) | 98 | 0.47% |
| Asian (NH) | 279 | 1.34% |
| Pacific Islander (NH) | 6 | 0.03% |
| Some Other Race (NH) | 44 | 0.21% |
| Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH) | 749 | 3.58% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 4,342 | 20.78% |
| Total | 20,897 |
As of the2020 United States census, the town had a population of 20.9k people with a median age of 25.7 and a median household income of $48,602. 95.5% of residents are U.S. citizens. Over one year, it's median household income grew from $47,161 to $48,602, a 3.06% increase. Ethnic groups in Stephenville include White (Non-Hispanic) (75.6%), White (Hispanic) (12.7%), Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) (3.29%), Other (Hispanic) (2.68%), and Two+ (Non-Hispanic) (2.11%). No households reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider potential multi-lingual situations, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household. Universities include Tarleton State University (3,536 degrees awarded in 2021). In 2020, the median property value was $153,400, and the homeownership rate was 45.9%. The average reported commute time was 16.1 minutes, and average car ownership was 2 cars per household.[20]
Stephenville is served by theStephenville Independent School District and two colleges:Tarleton State University andRanger College.[citation needed]
Municipalities and communities ofErath County, Texas,United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
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| Other communities | ||
| Ghost town | ||
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