Gregg County, Texas

History

This area was among early sections settled by United States immigrants before Texas became an independent republic, and after 1845, a state of the United States. It was an area developed as cotton plantations dependent on slave labor of African Americans. Lumbering of the pine forests was also pursued, especially in the early years of clearing the land for cultivation.

Gregg County was organized in 1873 after the American Civil War from portions of existing counties. When the Texas State Legislature convened in January 1873, Democratic representative B. W. Brown of Upshur County introduced a bill to create a new county from parts of Harrison, Rusk, and Upshur Counties. He was likely trying to break up the black majority that dominated county politics in Harrison County. Under Brown's proposal, the county was to be named Roanoke, and Longview was to be the county seat. The proposed name was later changed to honor Texas leader and Confederate General John Gregg, and the county seat was determined by popular election.

Harrison and Rusk Counties resisted efforts to have portions of their territory assigned to Gregg County. When Gregg County was created, it first consisted of about 143 sqmi taken from Upshur County, and the Sabine River was its southern boundary. In April 1874, about 141 sqmi south of the Sabine River in Rusk County was added to Gregg County. The third portion, of about 145 sqmi to be taken from Harrison County, was never realized. Many of its voters continued to elect Republicans to county offices.

By 1919, the county population was 16,700, of whom 8,160, or 48%, were Black. Most were sharecroppers or tenant farmers raising cotton as a commodity crop. Members of the Negro Business League set up a cooperative store in Longview to compete with White merchants and offer African-American residents more choices for purchases. Beginning July 10, the town had a short-lived Longview Race Riot, in which one Black man was killed, and several Black-owned homes and properties were burned. It was quelled when the sheriff asked for Texas National Guard and other law enforcement. They established a curfew and military occupation.

Agricultural work declined during the Great Depression of the 1930s, and many African Americans continued to leave in the Great Migration north to find other work.

In October 1930, oil was discovered near Joinerville, between Henderson, Texas (Rusk County) and Kilgore (mostly in southwest Gregg County). And shortly after, oil was discovered within Gregg County, near Pine Tree/East Mountain (Lathrop No 1). Suddenly, the county economy was booming, and the East Texas Oil Field attracted so many workers that county population increased by more than 500% by 1940. Growth stabilized, but oil has continued to be important. County demographics changed as other workers were attracted to the area. In the early 21st century, slightly less than 20% of the population is African American.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 276 sqmi, of which 2.5 sqmi (0.9%) are covered by water.

Major highways

• [[Image:I-20 (TX).svg|20px]] Interstate 20
• [[Image:US 80.svg|20px]] U.S. Highway 80
• [[Image:US 259.svg|25px]] U.S. Highway 259
• [[Image:US 271.svg|25px]] U.S. Highway 271
• [[Image:Texas 31.svg|20px]] State Highway 31
• [[Image:Texas 42.svg|20px]] State Highway 42

Adjacent counties

• Upshur County (north)
• Harrison County (east)
• Rusk County (south)
• Smith County (west)

Communities

Cities

• Clarksville City (small part in Upshur County)
• East Mountain (mostly in Upshur County)
• Easton (partly in Rusk County)
• Gladewater (partly in Upshur County)
• Kilgore (small part in Rusk County)
• Lakeport
• Longview (small part in Harrison County)
• Warren City (small part in Upshur County)
• White Oak

Census-designated places

• Lake Cherokee
• Liberty City

Other unincorporated communities

• Danville
• Elderville
• Fredonia
• Gladewater Park
• Judson
• Seven Pines
• Shiloh
• Teneryville

Former communities

• Greggton - annexed to Longview in the 1950s
• Spring Hill - annexed to Longview on October 7, 1983

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1850–2010 2010 2020

Racial and ethnic composition

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 124,239. The median age was 37.5 years; 24.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 17.0% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 89.8 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 58.8% White, 20.3% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3% Asian,

86.5% of residents lived in urban areas, while 13.5% lived in rural areas.

There were 48,130 households in the county, of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 44.3% were married-couple households, 18.5% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 31.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. There were 53,212 housing units, of which 9.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 58.9% were owner-occupied and 41.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 10.4%.

2000 census

According to the 2000 census, 111,379 people, 42,687 households, and 29,667 families were residing in the county. The population density was 406 PD/sqmi in 2000; the 46,349 housing units averaged 169 /sqmi.

The racial makeup of the county was 72.89% White, 19.86% African American, 0.52% Native American, 0.68% Asian, 4.57% from other races, and 1.49% from two or more races; about 9.14% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

In 2000, median income for a household in the county was $35,006, and for a family was $42,617. Males had a median income of $33,186 versus $21,432 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,449. About 12.00% of families and 15.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.50% of those under age 18 and 11.40% of those age 65 or over.

Income

By 2020, its median household income was $52,027 with a mean income of $73,022.

Education

These school districts serve Gregg County:

• Gladewater ISD (partly in Smith, Upshur Counties)
• Kilgore ISD (partly in Rusk County)
• Longview ISD
• Pine Tree ISD
• Sabine ISD
• Spring Hill ISD
• White Oak ISD

Areas in Gladewater, Kilgore, Longview, Pine Tree, Sabine, Spring Hill, and White Oak ISDs (in other words, all of the school districts covering sections of the county) are in the Kilgore Junior College zone.

Media

Gregg County is part of the Tyler/Longview/Jacksonville DMA. Local media outlets are: KLTV, KTRE-TV, KYTX-TV, KFXK-TV, KCEB-TV, and KETK-TV.

The Longview News-Journal is the primary newspaper in the county, published in Longview. Coverage of the area can also be found in the Tyler Morning Telegraph, based in Tyler, in Smith County. The Gladewater Mirror has been published since 1949, first as a daily newspaper and then as a weekly newspaper.

Radio

Gallery

File:Gregg County Courthouse annex in Longview, TX IMG_3953.JPG|The annex building is attached to the Gregg County Courthouse. File:Gregg County, TX, Historical Museum IMG_3997.JPG|The Gregg County Historical Museum is located in the historic district of Longview. File:Confederate monument in Longview, TX IMG_3949.JPG|Monument to the Confederate soldier at the Gregg County Courthouse in Longview, completed by Frank Teich, 1911

Politics

Before the complete disfranchisement of rural freedmen, Gregg County's black freedmen allowed it to vote for William McKinley twice, and for several other Republicans during the Third Party System.

Gregg subsequently became a classic "Solid South" Democratic county between 1904 and 1948, but has since become solidly Republican at a Presidential level, although the presence of a sizeable black population has permitted the Democrats to gain a quarter of the countywide total at virtually every election. Nonetheless, Gregg was one of only 16 Texas counties to vote for Barry Goldwater in his 1964 definitive loss, and the last Democrat to carry the county was Harry S. Truman in 1948.

References

References

1. "Gregg County Courthouse, Longview, Texas.".
2. "Gregg County, Texas".
3. "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
4. Gannett, Henry. (1905). "The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States". Govt. Print. Off..
5. Tuttle, William M. Jr.. (1972). "Violence in a "Heathen" Land: The Longview Race Riot of 1919". [[Clark Atlanta University]].
6. Kenneth R. Durham Jr.. (1980). "THE LONGVIEW RACE RIOT OF 1919". East Texas Historical Journal.
7. (August 22, 2012). "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
8. (June 15, 2010). "GREGGTON, TX".
9. (June 15, 2010). "SPRING HILL, TX [GREGG COUNTY]".
10. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". [[US Census Bureau]].
11. "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010". Texas Almanac.
12. "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Gregg County, Texas". [[United States Census Bureau]].
13. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Gregg County, Texas".
14. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Gregg County, Texas".
15. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)".
16. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)".
17. (2023). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)".
18. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
19. "Explore Census Data".
20. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Gregg County, TX". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
21. [https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ED/htm/ED.130.htm Texas Education Code, Sec. 130.194. Sec. 130.184. KILGORE JUNIOR COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.]
22. "Gladewater Mirror @ Gladewater". Texas Press Association.
23. "About The Gladewater mirror. (Gladewater, Tex.) 1968-current". [[United States Library of Congress]].
24. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections".
25. (November 5, 2024). "2024 Senate Election (Official Returns)".