Reagan County is a county on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,385. The county seat is Big Lake. The county is named after John Henninger Reagan (1818-1905), who was the postmaster general of the Confederate States and also a U.S. senator, U.S. representative, and first chairman of the Railroad Commission of Texas.
History
First inhabitants Paleo-Indian, Suma-Jumano, Kiowa and Comanche.
1650 Captains Hernán Martín and Diego del Castillo explore the region.
1684 Juan Domínguez de Mendoza and Nicolás López report on local Indians.
1858–1861 Butterfield Overland Mail crosses the center of the county.
1878 Camp Grierson's Spring is established as a subpost of Fort Concho and named in honor of Col. Benjamin H. Grierson.
1903 Reagan County is carved from Tom Green County and named for United States Senator John Henninger Reagan. Stiles, named after local rancher William G. Stiles, becomes the first county seat.
1911 The Kansas City, Mexico and Orient of Texas Railway is completed.
1923 Oil is discovered at the Big Lake Oilfield in the Permian Basin. Big Lake Oilfield, located on University of Texas System land, opens the Permian Basin to oil production and endows the Permanent University Fund. The rig is named Santa Rita #1 for The Patron Saint of the Impossible. Big Lake is incorporated as a city.
1924 Boom town community of Best plunges into vice and violence, necessitating the Texas Rangers intervention. The Rangers destroy buildings that are being used as brothels, gambling houses, and saloons.
1925 Voters move the county seat to Big Lake.
1926 Texon is established by the Big Lake Oil Company for its employees and their families and is devoted to family life.
1951 A renewed oil boom from the Spraberry Trend production.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which are land and (0.06%) is covered by water. The Spraberry Trend, the third-largest oil field in the United States by remaining reserves, underlies much of the county.
Major highways
20px U.S. Highway 67
20px State Highway 137
20px Ranch to Market Road 33
Adjacent counties
Glasscock County (north)
Sterling County (northeast)
Tom Green County (east)
Irion County (east)
Crockett County (south)
Upton County (west)
Midland County (northwest)
Demographics
2020 census
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 can be of any race.
2000 Census
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,326 people, 1,107 households, and 872 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 1,452 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 64.64% White, 3.01% Black or African American, 0.54% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 29.56% from other races, and 1.98% from two or more races. 49.49% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 1,107 households, out of which 46.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.10% were married couples living together, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.20% were non-families. 19.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.96 and the average family size was 3.42.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 34.20% under the age of 18, 7.60% from 18 to 24, 28.10% from 25 to 44, 19.90% from 45 to 64, and 10.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 100.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.50 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $33,231, and the median income for a family was $36,806. Males had a median income of $31,228 versus $18,750 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,174. About 9.30% of families and 11.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.60% of those under age 18 and 23.60% of those age 65 or over.
Communities
City
Big Lake (county seat)
Unincorporated communities
Best
Texon
Ghost town
Stiles
Politics
