Jacksonville, Texas | |
|---|---|
 Jacksonville's City Hall, located downtown on South Ragsdale Street, was completed in November 2016. | |
 Seal | |
| Nicknames: The Biggest Small Town in Texas; Tomato Capital of the World | |
 Location of Jacksonville, Texas | |
 | |
| Coordinates:31°57′34″N95°16′00″W / 31.95944°N 95.26667°W /31.95944; -95.26667 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Texas |
| County | Cherokee |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council-Manager |
| Area | |
• Total | 14.20 sq mi (36.77 km2) |
| • Land | 14.19 sq mi (36.75 km2) |
| • Water | 0.0077 sq mi (0.02 km2) |
| Elevation | 505 ft (154 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 13,997 |
| • Density | 1,044.0/sq mi (403.09/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code | 75766 |
| Area codes | 430,903 |
| FIPS code | 48-37216[3] |
| GNIS feature ID | 2410130[2] |
| U.S. Highways |    |
| Major State Highways |      |
| Website | http://www.jacksonvilletx.org |
Jacksonville is a city located inCherokee County,Texas, United States. The population was 13,997 at the2020 U.S. census.[4] It is the principal city of the Jacksonville micropolitan statistical area, which includes all of Cherokee County.
Jacksonville is located in East Texas, north of the county seat,Rusk, and south ofTyler, inSmith County.
Area production and shipping oftomatoes gained the town the title "Tomato Capital of the World". The impressive red iron ore rock Tomato Bowl, built byWorks Progress Administration workers during theGreat Depression, is home to the Jacksonville High School "Fightin' Indians" football and soccer teams. Annual events include the "Tops in Texas Rodeo" held in May and the "Tomato Fest" celebration in June.
Jacksonville began in 1847 as the town of Gum Creek. Jackson Smith built a home and blacksmith shop in the area, and became postmaster in 1848, when a post office was authorized. Shortly afterward, Dr. William Jackson established an office near Smith's shop. When the townsite was laid out in 1850, the name Jacksonville was chosen in honor of these two men. The name of the post office was changed from Gum Creek to Jacksonville in June 1850.
Despite never having organized unions in anyWalmart stores before, meatcutters working at the Jacksonville Walmart voted in favor of organizing under the wing of theUnited Food and Commercial Workers union in February 2000. During a flurry of subsequent legal actions, Walmart discontinued store-level meatcutting and started shipping in pre-packaged/pre-frozen meat to their stores. When all the hearings and appeals were exhausted, it was decided that the local meatcutters didn't embody the characteristics of a group that could bargain since they weren't specialized. Even now, there is no one in the Jacksonville meat department to make special cuts of meat or any union presence there.[5][6]
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 14.1 square miles (37 km2), of which 14.1 square miles (37 km2) is land and 0.07% is water.
Lake Jacksonville is three miles (5 km) southwest of Jacksonville. It is the city's primary water source. It is a popular location for recreation and residences. It was created in 1957 and the city expected it to take years to fill with water from the surrounding creeks. But, with an unusually rainy season, the lake reached full capacity in a year.
With records only dating to 1953, Jacksonville was one a few Texas locations to have its all time low occur during the2021 Texas power crisis cold snap in February 2021.
| Climate data for Jacksonville, Texas (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1953–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 85 (29) | 91 (33) | 90 (32) | 95 (35) | 99 (37) | 103 (39) | 110 (43) | 108 (42) | 109 (43) | 100 (38) | 89 (32) | 83 (28) | 109 (43) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 58.2 (14.6) | 62.5 (16.9) | 70.1 (21.2) | 77.2 (25.1) | 83.2 (28.4) | 89.9 (32.2) | 93.9 (34.4) | 94.3 (34.6) | 88.9 (31.6) | 79.2 (26.2) | 68.3 (20.2) | 60.7 (15.9) | 77.2 (25.1) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 46.0 (7.8) | 49.8 (9.9) | 56.7 (13.7) | 64.1 (17.8) | 72.2 (22.3) | 79.1 (26.2) | 82.8 (28.2) | 82.4 (28.0) | 76.6 (24.8) | 66.4 (19.1) | 55.8 (13.2) | 48.8 (9.3) | 65.1 (18.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 33.8 (1.0) | 37.1 (2.8) | 43.3 (6.3) | 51.0 (10.6) | 61.2 (16.2) | 68.3 (20.2) | 71.6 (22.0) | 70.5 (21.4) | 64.2 (17.9) | 53.5 (11.9) | 43.2 (6.2) | 36.9 (2.7) | 52.9 (11.6) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 5 (−15) | −6 (−21) | 15 (−9) | 28 (−2) | 39 (4) | 50 (10) | 57 (14) | 54 (12) | 43 (6) | 29 (−2) | 14 (−10) | 5 (−15) | −6 (−21) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 4.54 (115) | 4.24 (108) | 3.80 (97) | 3.38 (86) | 4.26 (108) | 4.04 (103) | 3.40 (86) | 3.07 (78) | 3.55 (90) | 4.75 (121) | 4.24 (108) | 4.23 (107) | 47.50 (1,207) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 0.2 (0.51) | 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 (0.0) | 0.2 (0.51) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) | 7.8 | 8.2 | 7.8 | 6.1 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 5.5 | 4.9 | 5.3 | 6.0 | 6.8 | 8.6 | 80.0 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.1 in) | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
| Source:NOAA[7][8] | |||||||||||||
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 349 | — | |
| 1890 | 970 | 177.9% | |
| 1900 | 1,558 | 60.6% | |
| 1910 | 2,875 | 84.5% | |
| 1920 | 3,723 | 29.5% | |
| 1930 | 6,748 | 81.3% | |
| 1940 | 7,213 | 6.9% | |
| 1950 | 8,607 | 19.3% | |
| 1960 | 9,590 | 11.4% | |
| 1970 | 9,734 | 1.5% | |
| 1980 | 12,264 | 26.0% | |
| 1990 | 12,765 | 4.1% | |
| 2000 | 13,868 | 8.6% | |
| 2010 | 14,544 | 4.9% | |
| 2020 | 13,997 | −3.8% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[9] | |||
| Race | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| White (NH) | 4,915 | 35.11% |
| Black or African American (NH) | 2,747 | 19.63% |
| Native American orAlaska Native (NH) | 25 | 0.18% |
| Asian (NH) | 105 | 0.75% |
| Pacific Islander (NH) | 5 | 0.04% |
| Some Other Race (NH) | 47 | 0.34% |
| Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH) | 404 | 2.89% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 5,749 | 41.07% |
| Total | 13,997 |
As of the2020 United States census, there were 13,997 people, 5,027 households, and 3,670 families residing in the city.
According to the city's most recent Adopted Budget (September 2024), the city had a budget of $13.5 million in revenue and $15.0 million in expenditures thus leading to a deficiency of revenues over expenditures of $1.5 million.[13]
Management of the city and coordination of city services are provided by (as of 2024):[14]
| Department | Director[14] |
|---|---|
| City Mayor | Randy Gorham |
| Mayor Pro-Tem | Tim McRae |
| City Manager | James Hubbard |
| Director of Finance | Roxanna Briley |
| Fire Chief | Paul Findley |
| Police Chief | Steven Markasky |
| Director of Public Works | Randall Chandler |
| Director of Water and Sewer | Randall Chandler |
| Director of Development Services | Jody Watson |
| Director of Streets | James Worley |
| Library Director | Trina Stidham |
Jacksonville is represented in theTexas Senate by RepublicanRobert Nichols, District 3, and in theTexas House of Representatives by RepublicanTravis Clardy, District 11.
At the Federal level, the two U.S. Senators from Texas are RepublicansJohn Cornyn andTed Cruz; Jacksonville is part of the Fifth Congressional District, represented by RepublicanLance Gooden.
The Jacksonville Public Library[15] served the City of Jacksonville and Cherokee County for over 70 years. The Library was a member of the Texas Library Association, the Northeast Texas Library System and the Forest Trails Library Consortium. In September 2020, the lot it sat on was sold to Chick-fil-A, where construction promptly began on a restaurant location. The new Jacksonville Public Library opened in April 2021, in the Norman Activities Center.[16][17] Until the opening of the new location, Jacksonville residents were allowed to visit the Rusk Public Library with library card fines waived.[18]
TheJacksonville Jax Minor League baseball team played atRagsdale Park between 1934 and 1950.[19]
The city of Jacksonville is served by theJacksonville Independent School District.Jacksonville High School, the district's only high school, has "Fightin' Indians"/"Maidens" asmascots for its team sports.
Jacksonville College and theBaptist Missionary Association Theological Seminary, both of which are owned by theBaptist Missionary Association of America, are located in Jacksonville.
Lon Morris College, aUnited Methodist Church operated private junior college, was located in Jacksonville until ceasing operations in 2012.
Many highways pass through and intersect in Jacksonville:US 69,US 79,US 175,SH 135,SH 204,FM 347,FM 768,FM 2138, andLoop 456. However, no Interstate highways pass through the city limits
Where 3 railroads once served the Jacksonville area (Southern Pacific andCotton Belt abandoned their tracks in the mid-1980s), only one,Union Pacific, remains.
Cherokee County Airport is the sole airport within Jacksonville, but solely servesgeneral aviation. Commercial aviation can be accessed by traveling north toTyler Pounds Regional Airport with anAmerican Eagle flight toDallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), or by driving approximately 132 miles viaU.S. Route 175 to either DFW orDallas Love Field.
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Municipalities and communities ofCherokee County, Texas,United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
| Towns | ||
| CDP | ||
| Other communities | ||
| Ghost towns | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
