Graham Texas

City —
Graham downtown square as seen
from Twin Mountains
Location of Graham, Texas
Coordinates:
33°6′3″N 98°34′45″W
Country United States
State Texas
County Young
Area
- Total 5.5 sq mi (14.2 km2)
- Land 5.5 sq mi (14.2 km2)
- Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation 1,047 ft (319 m)
Population (2010 United States
Census)
- Total 8,903
- Density 1,584.9/
sq mi (611.9/km2)
Time zone Central (CST) (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code 76450
Area code(s) 940
FIPS code 48-30392[1]
GNIS feature ID 1336783[2]
Graham is a city in north central
Texas. It is the county seat of
Young County, and as of the
2010 Census had a population of
8,903.
History
The site was first settled in 1871
by brothers Gustavus A. and
Edwin S. Graham, primary
shareholders in the Texas
Emigration and Land Company of
Louisville, Kentucky. The brothers
moved to Texas after the Civil
War, and after buying 125,000
acres (510 km2) in then-vast
Young County, helped to
revitalize the area, the population
of which had become badly
depleted during the war. The
Grahams purchased a local
saltworks in 1872, and after new
families started to arrive, began
promoting the sale of homesites.
A post office opened in 1873,
and after Young County
reorganized the following year,
Graham became the county seat.
The town's newspaper, known as
the Leader and still in existence
today, was first printed in 1876,
the same year that the first
temporary courthouse was built.
Other businesses from these
early years included a gristmill,
sawmill, cotton gin, a brick kiln,
two hotels, and several stores.[3]
On February 15, 1877 the city
was the site of the organizational
meeting of the group that
became the Texas and
Southwestern Cattle Raisers
Association , created to police
ranching and put a stop to cattle
rustling.[4] Founding officers
included pioneer ranchers James
C. Loving (son of Oliver Loving),
Col. C.L. (Kit) Carter, and C.C.
Slaughter. A three-story limestone
courthouse was built in 1884,
and it was destroyed by fire in
the early 1930s. The 1884
structure's east door still stands
on the courthouse square. From
1879-1896, Graham was the seat
of a Federal District Court
overseen by Dr. J.E. Ryus; his
jurisdiction extended over all of
Texas north and west to New
Mexico.[3][4] By 1900, Graham
had incorporated as a town, and
railroad service began in 1903
when the Chicago, Rock Island
and Texas line arrived from Fort
Worth. The town's population
grew slowly until 1917, when oil
was discovered nearby; the
population tripled from 878 in
1900 to 2,544 in 1920. By 1966,
Graham had seventeen churches,
seven schools, a hospital, a radio
station, two libraries, three parks,
and two newspapers. The
population peaked at 9,170 in
1980 and has since gradually
declined; it was 8,716 at the
2000 census and 8,518 by the
July 2007 estimate.[3][5]
According to a mural on the
courthouse depicting the arrival
of the Graham brothers, the town
square is physically the largest of
any in the country.[6][7]
Graham is also one of only a
handful of towns in Texas still to
have an operational drive-in
theater.[8]
Geography
Graham is located at 33°6′3″N
98°34′45″W (33.100778,
-98.579254).[9]
According to the United States
Census Bureau, the city has a total
area of 5.5 square miles
(14.2 km²), all of it land.
The Twin Mountains are the
dominant physical landmark of
the city.
Graham is located near the
western edge of the Palo Pinto
Mountains.
Demographics
As of the census[1] of 2000,
there were 8,716 people, 3,391
households, and 2,366 families
residing in the city. The
population density was 1,584.8
people per square mile (611.9/
km²). There were 3,904 housing
units at an average density of
709.9 per square mile (274.1/
km²). The racial makeup of the
city was 88.39% White, 1.24%
African American, 0.55% Native
American, 0.30% Asian, 0.08%
Pacific Islander, 7.78% from other
races, and 1.66% from two or
more races. Hispanic or Latino of
any race were 13.41% of the
population.
There were 3,391 households out
of which 32.6% had children
under the age of 18 living with
them, 55.9% were married
couples living together, 10.3%
had a female householder with
no husband present, and 30.2%
were non-families. 27.3% of all
households were made up of
individuals and 15.5% had
someone living alone who was
65 years of age or older. The
average household size was 2.48
and the average family size was
3.01.
In the city the population was
spread out with 26.0% under the
age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24,
25.2% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from
45 to 64, and 19.8% who were
65 years of age or older. The
median age was 39 years. For
every 100 females there were
88.4 males. For every 100 females
age 18 and over, there were 83.3
males.
The median income for a
household in the city was
$31,081, and the median income
for a family was $38,118. Males
had a median income of $30,221
versus $19,574 for females. The
per capita income for the city
was $16,587. About 13.0% of
families and 17.4% of the
population were below the
poverty line, including 23.0% of
those under age 18 and 13.5% of
those age 65 or over.
Education
Public schools in the City of
Graham are managed by the
Graham Independent School
District .
Notable people
Rex Brown, former bassist for
the heavy metal band Pantera
Bob Estes, golfer. Four-time
winner on the PGA Tour
Bob Lilly, NFL Hall of Fame
Football player
William D. McFarlane, U.S.
Congressman from 1933–1939
Robert McFarlane, National
Security Adviser to President
Ronald Reagan
Dean Smith, 1952 Olympic Gold
Medalist
"Big Ed" Wilkes (1931–1998),
radio broadcaster, taught
school at Graham in the early
1950s