Carson County was established in 1876 from Bexar County. The county was organized in 1888. Panhandle, the only town at the time, became the county seat.[9]
Ranching began to be established in the county in the 1880s. The JA Ranch encompassed over a million acres (4,000 km2) within six adjoining counties. Richard E. McNalty established the Turkey Track Ranch in 1878.[10]
One of the early failed attempts came in 1882 when Charles G. Francklyn purchased 637,440 acres (2,579.6 km2) of railroad lands in adjoining counties to form the Francklyn Land and Cattle Company. The lands were later sold to the White Deer Lands Trust of British bondholders in 1886 and 1887.[11][12]
Experimental drilling by Gulf Oil Corporation led to the county's, and the Panhandle's, first oil and gas production in late 1921. Borger field was discovered in 1925, sparking much oil exploration and production of the Panhandle area. By the end of 2000, more than 178,398,900 barrels (28,363,160 m3) of petroleum had been produced from county lands.[18][19]
In September 1942, the Pantex Ordnance Plant was built on 16,076 acres (65.06 km2) of southwestern Carson County land, to pack and load shells and bombs in support of the World War II effort. Operations ceased August 1945, and in 1949, the site was sold to Texas Tech University at Amarillo for agricultural experimentation. Pantex reopened in 1951 as a nuclear weapons assembly plant. In 1960, Pantex began high-explosives development in support of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. Pantex has a long-term mission to safely and securely maintain the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile and dismantle weapons retired by the military.[20][21]
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 924 square miles (2,390 km2), of which 3.9 square miles (10 km2) (0.4%) are covered by water.[22]
Carson County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition 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 may be of any race.
As of the census[28] of 2000, 6,516 people, 2,470 households, and 1,884 families were residing in the county. The population density was 7 people/sq mi (2.7 people/km2). The 2,815 housing units had an average density of 3 per square mile (1.2/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 93.82% White, 0.58% African American, 1.00% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 3.06% from other races, and 1.41% from two or more races. About 7.03% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race. In ancestry, 25.0% were of German, 14.2% were of Irish, 8.1% were of English, 4.7% were of American, 3.2% were of Scottish, and 3.1% were Polish.
Of the 2,470 households, 35.8% had children under living with them, 65.3% were married couples living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.7% were not families. About 22.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.60, and the average family size was 3.04.
In the county, the age distribution was 27.9% under 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 26.3% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.20 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $40,285, and for a family was $47,147. Males had a median income of $34,271 versus $23,325 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,368. About 5.40% of families and 7.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.90% of those under age 18 and 9.40% of those age 65 or over.
^Donoghue, David (June 15, 2010). "Francisco Vázquez de Coronado". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^"Panhandle, Texas". Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^Anderson, H Allen (June 15, 2010). "Turkey Track Ranch". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^Anderson, H. Allen (June 12, 2010). "Francklyn Land and Cattle Company". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^"Windmills". Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^"White Deer, Texas". Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^"Panna Maria, Texas". Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^Warner, C A; Thompson, Ernest O (2007). Texas Oil & Gas Since 1543. Copano Bay Press. p. 256. ISBN978-0-9767799-5-7.
^"Borger, Texas". Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^Makhijani, Arjun; Hu, Howard; Yih, Katherine (2000). Nuclear Wastelands: A Global Guide to Nuclear Weapons Production and Its Health and Environmental Effects. The MIT Press. pp. 233–239. ISBN978-0-262-63204-1.
^Norris, Robert S (October 1992). "Pantex Lays Nukes to Rest". Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists: 48, 49.
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