Kaufman County, Texas

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 808 sqmi, of which 781 sqmi are land and 27 sqmi (3.3%) are covered by water. Located in the northeast portion of Texas, it is bounded on the southwest by the Trinity River, and drained by its east fork.

Major highways

• [[Image:I-20 (TX).svg|20px]] Interstate 20
• [[Image:US 80.svg|20px]] U.S. Highway 80
• [[Image:US 175.svg|25px]] U.S. Highway 175
• [[Image:Texas 34.svg|20px]] State Highway 34
• [[Image:Texas 205.svg|20px]] State Highway 205
• [[Image:Texas 243.svg|20px]] State Highway 243
• [[Image:Texas 274.svg|20px]] State Highway 274
• [[Image:Texas Spur 557.svg|20px]] Spur 557

Lakes

• Cedar Creek Reservoir (small part)
• Lake Ray Hubbard (small part)
• Kaufman Lake

Adjacent counties

• Hunt County (north)
• Van Zandt County (east)
• Henderson County (south)
• Ellis County (southwest)
• Dallas County (west)
• Rockwall County (northwest)

Communities

Cities (multiple counties)

• Combine (partly in Dallas County)
• Dallas (mostly in Dallas County with small parts in Collin, Denton, Rockwall, and Kaufman Counties)
• Heath (mostly in Rockwall County)
• Mesquite (mostly in Dallas County)
• Poetry (partly in Hunt County)
• Seagoville (mostly in Dallas County)
• Seven Points (mostly in Henderson County)

Cities

• Cottonwood
• Crandall
• Forney
• Kaufman (county seat)
• Kemp
• Terrell

Towns

• Mabank (partly in Henderson County)
• Oak Grove
• Oak Ridge
• Post Oak Bend City
• Scurry
• Talty

Villages

• Grays Prairie
• Rosser

Census-designated places

• Elmo
• Heartland
• Travis Ranch

Unincorporated communities

• Ables Springs
• Abner
• Cobb
• College Mound
• Colquitt
• Gastonia
• Hiram
• Lawrence
• Markout
• McCoy
• Ola
• Prairieville
• Styx
• Tolosa
• Warsaw

Ghost towns

• Cedar Grove
• Cedarvale
• Jiba
• Peeltown
• Stubbs

Demographics

| align-fn = center 1850–2010 2020

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 145,310. The median age was 35.2 years. 28.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 12.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 92.5 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 60.2% White, 15.1% Black or African American, 1.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 9.2% from some other race, and 13.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 24.9% of the population.

58.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 41.9% lived in rural areas.

There were 47,673 households in the county, of which 43.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 58.3% were married-couple households, 13.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 22.4% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 17.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 51,228 housing units, of which 6.9% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 76.8% were owner-occupied and 23.2% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.5%.

Racial and ethnic composition

2000 census

According to the census of 2000, 71,313 people, 24,367 households, and 19,225 families were residing in the county. The population density was 91 /mi2. Its 26,133 housing units averaged 33 /mi2. According to the 2000 census, the racial and ethnic makeup of the county was 81.10% White, 10.53% African American, 0.61% Native American, 0.47% Asian, 5.68% from other races, and 1.61% from two or more races. About 11.11% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

American Community Survey 2023

The United States Census Bureau estimated that in 2023, Kaufman County’s population was 185,690. It also estimated that the population was 46.6% non-Hispanic White, 28.1% Hispanic or Latino, 20.8% non-Hispanic Black, 2.2% Asian, 0.4% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, and 1.9% multiracial.

Media

Kaufman County is part of the Dallas/Fort Worth DMA. Local media outlets include KDFW-TV, KXAS-TV, WFAA-TV, KTVT-TV, KERA-TV, KTXA-TV, KDFI-TV, KDAF-TV, KFWD-TV, and KDTX-TV. Other nearby stations that provide coverage for Kaufman County come from the Tyler/Longview/Jacksonville market and they include KLTV, KYTX-TV, KFXK-TV, and KETK-TV.

Kaufman County is served by three newspapers, the Terrell Tribune, the Kaufman Herald, and the Forney Messenger. Forney, Texas, is also served by online news media outlet inForney.com, which covers breaking news for the county. A quarterly magazine called Kaufman County Life is produced by the Terrell Tribune. The Kemp and Mabank areas are included in coverage by The Monitor and Athens Daily Review newspapers.

Law enforcement

The Kaufman County Sheriff's Office is Kaufman County's main police force. Smaller cities depend on the sheriff's office, along with the Texas Highway Patrol, for law-enforcement duties.

Kaufman County murders

Main article: Kaufman County murders

In December 2012, Texas officials issued a statewide bulletin warning that the Aryan Brotherhood was "actively planning retaliation against law enforcement officials" who worked to prosecute the gang's leadership.

In January 2013, Assistant District Attorney Mark Hasse of Kaufman County was assassinated by gunshot outside the Kaufman County courthouse. On March 30, 2013, District Attorney Mike McLelland, along with his wife, were found shot and killed in their home. On April 13, 2013, ex-justice of the peace Eric Williams was arrested for making terrorist threats to county officials by email. Hasse and McLelland had aggressively prosecuted Williams in a theft case. Williams was convicted, and lost his position and his law license as a result. On April 17, 2013, his wife Kim Williams was arrested on capital murder charges in all three deaths.

Officials did not link these arrests or events to the Aryan Brotherhood. Eric Williams was convicted at trial and sentenced to death on December 16, 2014. Kim Williams pleaded guilty on December 30, 2014, and received a 40-year sentence.

Politics

Prior to 1952, Kaufman County was a Democratic Party stronghold in presidential elections. From 1952 to 1980, it was still primarily Democratic, though the party's margin of victories were far lower than before. Republican Richard Nixon won the county handily in 1972 as part of his national landslide. Starting with the 1984 election, it has become a Republican stronghold, though neither of Bill Clinton's two Republican opponents managed a majority despite winning the county due to Ross Perot's strong third-party candidacy.

The county's Republican lean has lessened a bit due to population growth in the DFW metroplex in recent years, but it still remains strongly Republican. Republicans have consistently won more than 60% of the vote in the county in the 21st century.

Education

School districts in the county include:

• Crandall Independent School District
• Forney Independent School District
• Kaufman Independent School District
• Kemp Independent School District
• Mabank Independent School District
• Quinlan Independent School District
• Rockwall Independent School District
• Scurry-Rosser Independent School District
• Terrell Independent School District
• Wills Point Independent School District

It is in the service area for Trinity Valley Community College.

References

References

1. "Kaufman County, Texas".
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
3. Kaufman County Historical Commission, ''History of Kaufman County'' (Dallas, Texas: Taylor, 1978)
4. (August 22, 2012). "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
5. {{Cite AmCyc
6. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". [[US Census Bureau]].
7. "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010". Texas Almanac.
8. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)".
9. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)".
10. (2023). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)".
11. "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Kaufman County, Texas". [[United States Census Bureau]].
12. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Kaufman County, Texas".
13. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Kaufman County, Texas".
14. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
15. "County Population by Characteristics: 2020-2023". United States Census Bureau.
16. (March 30, 2013). "Breaking news: Texas County District Attorney and Wife Found Dead". [[The New York Times]].
17. (March 30, 2013). "Breaking news: Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland, wife reportedly found dead in home". [[The Dallas Morning News]].
18. Eiserer, Tanya and Jana J. Pruet. (April 13, 2013). "Ex-justice of peace is prime suspect in Kaufman DA slayings". Dallas Morning News.
19. Eiserer, Tanya. (April 17, 2013). "Wife of jailed ex-Kaufman County justice of the peace is now behind bars, charged with capital murder". Dallas Morning News.
20. Eiserer, Tanya. "Ex-judge sentenced to death in Texas revenge plot".
21. (July 29, 2018). "Wife of convicted Kaufman County killer sentenced to 40 years in prison".
22. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections".
23. (November 5, 2024). "2024 Senate Election (Official Returns)".
24. Geography Division. (December 22, 2020). "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Kaufman County, TX". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
25. [https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ED/htm/ED.130.htm Texas Education Code, Sec. 130.205. TRINITY VALLEY COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.]