Cleburne, Texas

History

Cleburne is Johnson County's third county seat (the first being Wardville, now under Lake Pat Cleburne). It was formerly known as Camp Henderson, a temporary Civil War outpost from which Johnson County soldiers would depart for war (most of them served under General Cleburne). The city was formally incorporated in 1871.

Cleburne was near the earliest road in the county. The location featured water from West Buffalo Creek, making it a stop for cattlemen from the Chisholm Trail.

In August 1886, the Texas Farmers' Alliance met at Lee's Academy{{cite web | access-date=2012-01-28

In 1900, Cleburne was the site of the founding convention of the Texas State Federation of Labor.

Cleburne was primarily an agricultural center and county seat until the Santa Fe Railroad opened a major facility there in 1898. During this time, the population boomed, as it became a sizable city for the area with over 12,000 residents by 1920. The Chicago, Texas and Mexican Central Railway connected Cleburne to Dallas in 1882. Two other railroads had terminals in Cleburne. The Dallas, Cleburne, and Southwestern Railway completed a route to Egan in 1902, and the Trinity and Brazos Valley, nicknamed the Boll Weevil, operated from Cleburne from 1904 to 1924.

Cleburne was the site of a prisoner-of-war camp for German soldiers during World War 2. The POWs worked as laborers on local farms.

In 1985, the city was the petitioner in the U.S. Supreme Court case City of Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center, Inc. after being sued over a special-use permit.

Cleburne is on the fringe of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Growth in the area has been primarily attributed to suburbanization.

On May 15, 2013, Cleburne was hit by a powerful tornado that cut a mile-wide path through part of the city and damaged about 600 homes and two schools. The National Weather Service rated it EF-3, which has winds between 136 and. No deaths or severe injuries were reported.

Geography

Cleburne is west of the center of Johnson County, 30 mi south of the center of Fort Worth. It is bordered to the north by Joshua and to the east by Keene. U.S. Route 67 runs through the north side of the city on a freeway bypass; the highway leads east 12 mi to Alvarado and west 53 mi to Stephenville. State Highways 171 and 174 run through the center of Cleburne on Main Street. Highway 171 leads northwest 19 mi to Cresson and southeast 29 mi to Hillsboro, while Highway 174 leads north 15 mi to Burleson and southwest 38 mi to Meridian.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Cleburne has a total area of 84.1 km2, of which 76.6 km2 are land and 7.4 km2, or 8.86%, are covered by water. East and West Buffalo Creek run through the center of Cleburne, flowing south to the Nolan River and part of the Brazos River watershed.

Climate

| Jan record high F = 90 | Feb record high F = 98 | Mar record high F = 101 | Apr record high F = 102 | May record high F = 107 | Jun record high F = 113 | Jul record high F = 112 | Aug record high F = 112 | Sep record high F = 114 | Oct record high F = 104 | Nov record high F = 92 | Dec record high F = 93 | year record high F = | Jan record low F = -3 | Feb record low F = -1 | Mar record low F = 11 | Apr record low F = 25 | May record low F = 34 | Jun record low F = 49 | Jul record low F = 57 | Aug record low F = 51 | Sep record low F = 30 | Oct record low F = 20 | Nov record low F = 12 | Dec record low F = -5 | year record low F = |access-date = November 8, 2023}}{{cite web |access-date = November 8, 2023}}

Demographics

| align-fn = center

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 31,352 people, 11,145 households, and 7,441 families residing in Cleburne. The median age was 36.2 years, 25.3% of residents were under the age of 18, and 16.8% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 97.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.6 males age 18 and over.

93.5% of residents lived in urban areas, while 6.5% lived in rural areas.

Of the 11,145 households, 35.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 49.0% were married-couple households, 16.1% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 12,079 housing units, of which 7.7% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 59.8% were owner-occupied and 40.2% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.8%.

Attractions

The City of Cleburne Parks and Recreation Department maintains Splash Station, a small water park for people of all ages.

The 96 acre John Warren Sports Complex contains seven baseball/softball fields, two football fields, and 20 soccer fields.

The Depot at Cleburne Station is a 1,750-seat baseball stadium, home to the Cleburne Railroaders of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball.

Plaza Theatre Company is a 158-seat theatre-in-the-round, which operates year-round in Cleburne's historic downtown. The troupe provides family-friendly musicals and comedies, and has been the recipient of numerous awards for theatrical excellence since opening in November 2006.

Historic Downtown Cleburne has 7 Antique Malls, numerous Boutiques and Restaurants , The Published Page, a large independent bookstore, and Songbird Live , a music venue all in a 5 block radius to their Courthouse.

Chisholm Trail Outdoor Museum is an outdoor museum located in the western part of Cleburne at the site of Wardville, the original county seat of Johnson County, established in 1854.{{cite web | access-date = May 7, 2025

Other local museums include the Cleburne Railroad Museum and the Layland Museum.

Cleburne State Park is in a hilly area 12 mi west of the city center. It has fishing in Cedar Lake, camping, swimming, and hiking trails.

Economy

Major employers include Walmart, which maintains a Supercenter retail outlet and a distribution center. Together, those facilities employ 914 workers. The Cleburne Independent School District is a major employer with 968 employees. Local government is also a major employer, providing 348 jobs, and Johnson County has 598 employees in the city. Johns Manville, Texas Resources Harris Methodist Hospital, Greenbrier rail service (operating at the rail yards previously occupied by Burlington Northern Santa Fe), Supreme Corporation of Texas, and Broan-Nutone are among other major private-sector employers. A recent natural gas boom has now brought related companies to the district and surrounding areas.

Fun Town RV, the nation's largest single-location towable RV dealer employs 412 at its corporate headquarters and sales office.

Education

The city is served by the Cleburne Independent School District, with Cleburne High School as the only high school. The district also maintains an alternative school, the Team School, and Phoenix, which is the disciplinary school. The district operates two middle schools for grades 6 though 8: A.D. Wheat Middle School and Lowell Smith Intermediate School. Elementary-level schools serving the Cleburne area are Adams, Coleman, Cooke, Gerard, Irving, Marti. and Santa Fe (kindergarten through grade 5). A private school (Cleburne Christian Academy) serving age 4 through grade 12 is also available.

Hill College's Johnson County Campus is in Cleburne.

Cleburne High School sports

Cleburne High School is in UIL district 8-5A. Cleburne's most notable sports stadium, the Yellow Jacket Stadium is nicknamed "the Rock". It is primarily made of stone and was constructed by the Public Works Administration workers in 1934. Football and soccer are played on this field.

Notable people

• William H. Bledsoe, a member of both houses of Texas legislature from Lubbock, 1915 to 1929
• Johnny Carroll, a rockabilly singer, recorded for Sun Records, Decca Records, and Warner Bros
• Pat Culpepper, All-American linebacker for the University of Texas at Austin
• Donnie Dacus, former guitarist for Chicago
• Leonard Eugene Dickson, professor of mathematics at University of Chicago
• Dillon Gee, pitcher for the New York Mets and others
• Joe Keeble, football player
• David "Benedict" McWilliams, a former player and head football coach of the University of Texas at Austin
• Spike Owen, a former Major League Baseball shortstop
• Derrell Palmer, a 1950s Cleveland Browns lineman
• Randy Rogers, singer and front man of Randy Rogers Band
• Del Sharbutt, radio and television announcer, songwriter, and composer
• Barbara Staff, co-chair of the 1976 Ronald Reagan presidential campaign in Texas
• Montey Stevenson, former professional football defensive tackle
• Anne Stratton, composer
• Claude Porter White, composer

References

References

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5. The pronunciation differs from that of its namesake, whose name was pronounced {{IPAc-en. ˈ. k. l. eɪ. b. ɜr. n {{respell. KLAY. burn.
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8. Ruth Alice Allen 1889–1979. ''[https://archive.org/details/TexasLabor Chapters in the history of organized labor in Texas]'' The University of Texas publication #4143 November 15, 1941 Austin, TX: University of Texas, p.123
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10. North Central Texas Council of Governments
11. kwqc.com
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23. "Layland Museum".
24. Source: Cleburne Chamber of Commerce
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