Reeves County, Texas

History

Native Americans

Prehistoric Clovis culture peoples in Reeves County lived in the rock shelters and caves nestled near water supplies. These people left behind artifacts and pictographs as evidence of their presence. Jumano Indians led the Antonio de Espejo 1582–1583 expedition near Toyah Lake on a better route to the farming and trade area of La Junta de los Ríos. Espejo's diary places the Jumano along the Pecos River and its tributaries. The Mescalero Apache frequented San Solomon Springs to irrigate their crops. In 1849, John Salmon "RIP" Ford explored the area between San Antonio and El Paso, noting in his mapped report the productive land upon which the Mescalero Indians farmed.

County established and growth

The state legislature formed Reeves from Pecos County on April 14, 1883, and named it after Texas legislator and soldier George Robertson Reeves. The county was organized on November 4, 1884. The town of Pecos was named as county seat.

Toyah Valley farmers George B. and Robert E. Lyle were the first Anglo settlers 1871. White settlers started arriving in the area four years later, lured by open-range ranching. For the remainder of the century, the county economy was dependent upon farming and ranching as it moved into the manufacturing and oil industries of the 20th century.

The Texas and Pacific Railway built through Reeves County in 1881, with stations at Pecos and Toyah. By 1890, the Pecos River Railway had built from Pecos to New Mexico. Toyahvale, which means "flowing water", became the western terminus of the railroad.

Balmorhea State Park was built at Toyahvale by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The park was deeded to the State of Texas in 1934 and opened to the public in 1968.

Pecos Army Air Field was one of the 120 airbases that trained the pioneer Women Airforce Service Pilots to fly military aircraft. At the Pecos installation, WASP flew AT-6, UC-78, and AT-17 aircraft in engineering tests, administrative duties, and transporting freight. The base was activated in 1942 as a World War II pilot school. The base was deactivated in 1945. At its peak, the base population of 4,034 rivaled the town of Pecos in size. Portions of the base were sold off over the years, with Pecos Municipal Airport retaining the remainder.

Pecos is the site of the largest private prison in the world, the Reeves County Detention Complex, operated by the GEO Group.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2642.071 sqmi, of which 2635.354 sqmi is land and 6.717 sqmi (0.25%) is water. It is the 9th largest county in Texas by total area.

Major highways

• [[File:I-10 (TX).svg|20px]] Interstate 10
• [[File:I-20 (TX).svg|20px]] Interstate 20
• [[File:US 285.svg|25px]] U.S. Highway 285
• [[File:Texas 17.svg|20px]] State Highway 17

Adjacent counties

• Eddy County, New Mexico (north/Mountain Time Zone)
• Loving County (northeast)
• Ward County (east)
• Pecos County (southeast)
• Jeff Davis County (south)
• Culberson County (west)

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2020

As of the third quarter of 2024, the median home value in Reeves County was $117,940.

As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 4,145 estimated households in Reeves County with an average of 2.94 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $56,056. Approximately 17.6% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Reeves County has an estimated 58.1% employment rate, with 6.9% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 71.3% holding a high school diploma.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 14,748, 4,178 households, and 2,895 families residing in the county. The population density was 5.6 PD/sqmi, with 5,068 housing units at an average density of 1.92 /sqmi.

The median age was 37.1 years. 21.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 12.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 157.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 176.8 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 54.7% White, 2.0% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% Asian,

88.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 11.3% lived in rural areas.

There were 4,178 households in the county, of which 37.3% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 44.9% were married-couple households, 22.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 27.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 25.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Of the 5,068 housing units, 17.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 69.6% were owner-occupied and 30.4% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 17.4%.

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.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 13,783 people, 3,839 households, and _ families residing in the county. The population density was 5.2 PD/sqmi. There were 4,640 housing units at an average density of 1.76 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the county was 77.23% White, 5.01% African American, 0.46% Native American, 0.86% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 14.85% from some other races and 1.54% from two or more races. ****.

Communities

Cities

• Balmorhea
• Pecos (county seat)

Towns

• Toyah

Census-designated places

• Lindsay

Unincorporated communities

• Saragosa
• Toyahvale

Ghost town

• Orla

Politics

In 2020, Donald Trump not only flipped Reeves County, but he won the greatest margin of victory for a Republican presidential candidate since Richard Nixon's 1972 re-election at 61.1%. In 2024, Trump expanded his vote share, winning 68% of the vote. As a result, Reeves County shifted to the right from 2012 to 2024 by 53 percentage points, representing one of the strongest such rightward shifts for any county in the country.

Education

Two school districts serve sections of the county:

• Balmorhea Independent School District
• Pecos-Barstow-Toyah Independent School District

All of the county is in the service area of Odessa College.

Notes

References

References

1. "Explore Census Data". [[United States Census Bureau]].
2. "Find a County". [[National Association of Counties]].
3. (2008). "Texas: Individual County Chronologies". The [[Newberry Library]].
4. Mallouf, Robert J.. (2020). "Exploring the Past in Trans-Pecos Texas". Center for Big Bend Studies [[Sul Ross State University]].
5. (January 2008). "Artistic Expression". Texas Beyond History.
6. {{Handbook of Texas. Blake, Robert Bruce
7. (January 2008). "Who Were The Jumano?". Texas Beyond History.
8. "Texas Indian Lands". R E. Moore and Texarch Associates.
9. "San Solomon Spring". Historical Marker Database.
10. {{Handbook of Texas. Connor, Seymour V.
11. {{Handbook of Texas. Britton, Morris L.
12. Britton, Morris L.. (2003). "George R. Reeves". [[Texas State Historical Association]].
13. John Troesser and Kate Wong Troesser. "Pecos, Texas". Texas Escapes.
14. {{Handbook of Texas. Smith, Julia Cauble
15. "T&P Stations and Structures in Pecos, TX". Railfans Depot.
16. "T&P Stations and Structures in Toyah, TX". Railfans Depot.
17. {{Handbook of Texas. Cravens, Cris
18. {{Handbook of Texas. Smith, Julia Cauble
19. "Balmorhea State Park". [[Texas Parks and Wildlife Department]].
20. "Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP)". Wings Across America.
21. {{Handbook of Texas. Colwell, James L.
22. (March 10, 2010). "Private Prisons, Public Pain". [[Fort Worth Weekly]].
23. "2024 County Gazetteer Files – Texas". [[United States Census Bureau]].
24. "County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2024".
25. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau.
26. (2007). "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library.
27. Forstall, Richard L.. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau.
28. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau.
29. "County Median Home Price". [[National Association of Realtors]].
30. "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Reeves County, Texas".
31. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)".
32. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)".
33. (2023). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)".
34. "Reeves County, Texas — Population by Race". CensusScope.
35. "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Reeves County, Texas". [[United States Census Bureau]].
36. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Reeves County, Texas". [[United States Census Bureau]].
37. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Reeves County, Texas". [[United States Census Bureau]].
38. Goldmacher, Shane. (May 25, 2025). "How Donald Trump Has Remade America's Political Landscape". The New York Times.
39. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections".
40. (November 5, 2024). "2024 Senate Election (Official Returns)".
41. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Reeves County, TX". [[United States Census Bureau]].
42. [https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ED/htm/ED.130.htm Texas Education Code, Section 130.193, "Odessa College District Service Area".]