Tarrant County, Texas

Tarrant County is located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2020, it had a population of 2,110,640. It is Texas' third-most populous county and the 15th-most populous in the United States. Its county seat is Fort Worth.[1] Tarrant County, one of 26 counties created out of the Peters Colony, was established in 1849 and organized the next year.[2] It was named in honor of General Edward H. Tarrant of the Republic of Texas militia.[3]

Tarrant County
County
Tarrant County Courthouse
Flag of Tarrant County
Flag
Official seal of Tarrant County
Seal
Map of Texas highlighting Tarrant County
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Map of the United States highlighting Texas
Texas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 32°46′N 97°17′W
Country United States
State Texas
Founded1850
Named forEdward H. Tarrant
SeatFort Worth
Largest cityFort Worth
Area
 • Total902 sq mi (2,340 km2)
 • Land864 sq mi (2,240 km2)
 • Water39 sq mi (100 km2)  4.3%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total2,110,640 Increase
 • Density2,340/sq mi (900/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional districts6th, 12th, 24th, 25th, 33rd
Websitetarrantcounty.com

Geography
USGS map of Tarrant County, 1894

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 902 square miles (2,340 km2), of which 864 square miles (2,240 km2) is land and 39 square miles (100 km2) (4.3%) is water.[4]

Adjacent counties

Communities

Cities (multiple counties)

Cities

Towns

Census-designated places

Historical census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Historical communities

Ghost towns

Notes
  • Italics indicate that the city is a principal city of DFW or a county seat.
  • The term "town" is used only in reference to relative population. Under Texas law, all incorporated places are officially designated "cities".

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
1850664—
18606,020806.6%
18705,788−3.9%
188024,671326.2%
189041,14266.8%
190052,37627.3%
1910108,572107.3%
1920152,80040.7%
1930197,55329.3%
1940225,52114.2%
1950361,25360.2%
1960538,49549.1%
1970716,31733.0%
1980860,88020.2%
19901,170,10335.9%
20001,446,21923.6%
20101,809,03425.1%
20202,110,64016.7%
2022 (est.)2,154,595[5]2.1%
U.S. Decennial Census[6]
1850–2010[7] 2010–2019[8]
Tarrant County, Texas – Demographic Profile
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
Race / ethnicity Pop 2010[9] Pop 2020[10] % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 937,135 904,884 51.80% 42.87%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 482,977 620,907 26.70% 29.42%
Black or African American alone (NH) 262,522 358,645 14.51% 16.99%
Asian alone (NH) 83,378 127,783 4.61% 6.05%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 7,037 7,033 0.39% 0.33%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 2,938 4,147 0.16% 0.20%
Some Other Race alone (NH) 2,491 8,321 0.14% 0.39%
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH) 30,556 78,920 1.69% 3.74%
Total 1,809,034 2,110,640 100.00% 100.00%

Note: the U.S. Census Bureau treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.

Since the 1850 United States census, Tarrant County has experienced population growth except for the 1870 census; in 1850, the county had a population of 664, growing to 1,170,103 at the 1990 census. By the 2020 census, the county's population grew to 2,110,640.[10] Tarrant County is the second-most populous county in the Metroplex, behind Dallas County.

Ethnic origins in Tarrant County, TX

In 2000, the racial and ethnic makeup of the county was 71.2% White, 12.8% Black or African American, 0.6% Native American, 3.6% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 9.1% from other races, and 2.5% from two or more races; 19.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.[11] In 2020, its racial and ethnic makeup was 42.87% non-Hispanic white, 29.42% Hispanic or Latino American of any race, 16.99% Black or African American, 6.05% Asian alone, 0.33% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.20% Pacific Islander, 0.39% some other race, and 3.74% multiracial.[10] Its increasing racial and ethnic diversity has reflected growing trends of diversification in Texas.[12][13][14]

In 2000, there were 533,864 households, out of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.6% were married couples living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% were non-families. 24.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.22. As of the 2010 census, there were about 5.2 same-sex couples per 1,000 households in the county.[15]

In the county as of 2000, the population was spread out, with 28.1% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 33.5% from 25 to 44, 20.1% from 45 to 64, and 8.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.6 males.

In 2000, the median income for a household in the county was $46,179, and the median income for a family was $54,068. Males had a median income of $38,486 versus $28,672 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,548. About 8.0% of families and 10.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.8% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over. According to the 2021 census estimates, the median income for a household in the county was $71,346.

Government, courts, and politics

Government

Tarrant County, like all Texas counties, is governed by a Commissioners Court. The court consists of the county judge, who is elected county-wide and presides over the full court, and four commissioners, who are elected in each of the county's four precincts.[16]

County Judge and Commissioners
Office Name Party
  County Judge Tim O'Hare Republican
  County Commissioner, Precinct 1 Roy Charles Brooks Democratic
  County Commissioner, Precinct 2 Alisa Simmons Democratic
  County Commissioner, Precinct 3 Gary Fickes Republican
  County Commissioner, Precinct 4 Manny Ramirez Republican

County Officials
Office Name[17][18] Party
  County Clerk Mary Louise Nicholson Republican
  Criminal District Attorney Phil Sorrells Republican
  District Clerk Thomas A. Wilder Republican
  Sheriff Bill E. Waybourn Republican
  Tax Assessor-Collector Wendy Burgess Republican

Constables
Office Name[17][18][19] Party
  Constable, Precinct 1 Dale Clark Republican
  Constable, Precinct 2 Robert McGinty Democratic
  Constable, Precinct 3 Darrell Huffman Republican
  Constable, Precinct 4 Jason Scott Bedford Republican
  Constable, Precinct 5 Pedro Munoz Democratic
  Constable, Precinct 6 Jon H. Siegel Republican
  Constable, Precinct 7 Sandra Lee Democratic
  Constable, Precinct 8 Michael R. Campbell Democratic

County services

The JPS Health Network (Tarrant County Hospital District) operates the John Peter Smith Hospital and health centers.

Countywide law enforcement is provided by the Tarrant County Sheriff's Office and Tarrant County Constable's Office. All cities in the county provide their own police services, with three exceptions: Westlake contracts service from the Keller Police Department,[20] and Haslet[21] and Edgecliff Village[22] contract service from the Sheriff's Office. DFW Airport,[23] the Tarrant County Hospital District, and the Tarrant Regional Water District also provide their own police forces.

Since the disbandment of the North Tarrant County Fire Department, no countywide firefighting services exist. All municipalities provide their own fire departments. Most cities also operate their own ambulances, with two notable exceptions: Fort Worth and 14 other Tarrant County cities are served by the Metropolitan Area EMS Authority (MAEMSA), a governmental administrative agency established under an interlocal operating agreement and operating as MedStar Mobile Health,[24] while the city of Arlington contracts paramedic apparatus from private entity American Medical Response.[25]

Fire and EMS protection in unincorporated portions of Tarrant County is governed by the Tarrant County Emergency Services District #1, which administers contracts with 17 fire departments (including 10 with EMS response) and has mutual aid agreements with eight additional fire departments.[26]

CareFlite air ambulance services operate from Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth.

Justices of the Peace
Office Name[17][18] Party
  Justice of the Peace, Precinct 1 Ralph Swearingin Jr. Republican
  Justice of the Peace, Precinct 2 Mary Tom Curnutt Republican
  Justice of the Peace, Precinct 3 Bill Brandt Republican
  Justice of the Peace, Precinct 4 Chris Gregory Republican
  Justice of the Peace, Precinct 5 Sergio L. De Leon Democratic
  Justice of the Peace, Precinct 6 Jason M. Charbonnet Republican
  Justice of the Peace, Precinct 7 Kenneth Sanders Democratic
  Justice of the Peace, Precinct 8 Lisa R. Woodard Democratic

County criminal courts
Office Name[17][18][27] Party
  County Criminal Court No. 1 David Cook Republican
  County Criminal Court No. 2 Carey F. Walker Republican
  County Criminal Court No. 3 Bob McCoy Republican
  County Criminal Court No. 4 Deborah Nekhom Republican
  County Criminal Court No. 5 Brad Clark Republican
  County Criminal Court No. 6 Randi Hartin Republican
  County Criminal Court No. 7 Eric Starnes Republican
  County Criminal Court No. 8 Charles L. "Chuck" Vanover Republican
  County Criminal Court No. 9 Brian Bolton Republican
  County Criminal Court No. 10 Trent Loftin Republican

County civil courts
Office Name[17][18] Party
  County Court at Law No. 1 Don Pierson Republican
  County Court at Law No. 2 Jennifer Rymell Republican
  County Court at Law No. 3 Mike Hrabal Republican

County probate courts
Office Name[17][18] Party
  County Probate Court No. 1 Chris Ponder Republican
  County Probate Court No. 2 Brooke Allen Republican

Criminal district courts
Office Name[17][18][28] Party
  Criminal District Court No. 1 Elizabeth H. Beach Republican
  Criminal District Court No. 2 Wayne Salvant Republican
  Criminal District Court No. 3 Douglas Allen Republican
  Criminal District Court No. 4 Andy Porter Republican
  213th District Court Chris Wolfe Republican
  297th District Court David C. Hagerman Republican
  371st District Court Ryan Hill Republican
  372nd District Court Julie Lugo Republican
  396th District Court George Gallagher Republican
  432nd District Court Ruben Gonzalez Jr. Republican
  485th District Court Steven Jumes Republican

Civil district courts
Office Name[17][18][29] Party
  17th District Court Melody Wilkinson Republican
  48th District Court Chris Taylor Republican
  67th District Court Don Cosby Republican
  96th District Court J. Patrick Gallagher Republican
  141st District Court John P. Chupp Republican
  153rd District Court Susan Heygood McCoy Republican
  236th District Court Tom Lowe Republican
  342nd District Court Kimberly Fitzpatrick Republican
  348th District Court Megan Fahey Republican
  352nd District Court Josh Burgess Republican

Family district courts
Office Name[17][18][30] Party
  231st District Court Jesus "Jesse" Nevarez Jr. Republican
  233rd District Court Kenneth Newell Republican
  322nd District Court James Munford Republican
  324th District Court Beth Poulos Republican
  325th District Court Cynthia Terry Republican
  360th District Court Patricia Baca Bennett Republican

Juvenile district court
Office Name[17][18] Party
  323rd District Court Alex Kim Republican

Politics

Since the 1950s, Tarrant County has been fairly conservative for an urban county, and one of the most populous Republican-leaning counties in the nation. However, it elected Democrat Jim Wright to 17 terms (1955–1989) as U.S. Congressman and Speaker of the House (1987–1989), and Wright was succeeded by fellow Democrat Pete Geren (1989–1997).

In 2018, the Democratic Party rebounded to represent a larger portion of the political profile and made huge gains in Tarrant County, concentrated in several areas throughout the county: eastern Euless, Grand Prairie and eastern and southern Arlington, northern and western areas of Mansfield, large portions of Fort Worth, particularly the area surrounding the Stockyards and Meacham Airport, southern and eastern Fort Worth, especially in dense metro areas and along I-35W, and Forest Hill.[31]

Republicans are dominant in many of the rural areas of the county, downtown and western Fort Worth and north of Loop 820, and almost all suburban areas including Benbrook, rural Mansfield areas and western Arlington, Haltom City, Mid-Cities (Hurst, Euless, and Bedford), and the northern suburbs.[31]

Beginning in 1952, the majority of voters supported the Republican Party presidential candidate in every election except 1964, when Tarrant County voted for the Lyndon B. Johnson–Hubert Humphrey Democratic ticket, then again in 2020 when the Joe Biden–Kamala Harris Democratic ticket carried the county. In 2016, Donald Trump–Mike Pence won Tarrant with 51.7% of the vote, the worst showing for Republicans since the Bob Dole–Jack Kemp ticket in 1996 won by a margin of 8.6%, and closest since 1976 when Gerald Ford–Bob Dole carried the county by less than 1% over the Jimmy Carter–Walter Mondale ticket.

The first Republican elected to the State Senate from Tarrant County since Reconstruction was Betty Andujar in 1972.

The county has leaned Republican in United States Senate races since Democrat Lloyd Bentsen's 1988 victory, but in the 2018 election Democratic candidate Beto O'Rourke carried Tarrant, though losing statewide to incumbent Ted Cruz.[32]

In 2020, Joe Biden carried the county with 49.3% (to Donald Trump's 49.1%) in the 2020 presidential election, the first win for a Democratic presidential ticket in Tarrant County since Texas native Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964 and the closest race in the county since 1976, which was won by the razor thin margin of 1,826 votes (The margin of votes in 2020, in comparison, was 1,836 votes). Many other suburban Texas counties, including Tarrant's immediate neighbors in Denton County and Collin County as well as those around Houston and Austin, have shown similar trends since 2016.

From the 1893 beginning of U.S. House District 12, there have been two Republicans in 127 years elected to the U.S. House for the western half of Tarrant County; from the 1875 inception of U.S. House District 6, there have been three Republicans in 145 years elected to the U.S. House for the eastern portion of Tarrant County, including former congressman and senator Phil Gramm's election as both a Democrat and a Republican after he switched parties in 1983 to run for re-election.

United States presidential election results for Tarrant County, Texas[33]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 409,741 49.09% 411,567 49.31% 13,389 1.60%
2016 345,921 51.74% 288,392 43.14% 34,201 5.12%
2012 348,920 57.12% 253,071 41.43% 8,899 1.46%
2008 348,420 55.43% 274,880 43.73% 5,253 0.84%
2004 349,462 62.39% 207,286 37.01% 3,393 0.61%
2000 286,921 60.74% 173,758 36.78% 11,710 2.48%
1996 208,312 50.85% 170,431 41.60% 30,901 7.54%
1992 183,387 38.90% 156,230 33.14% 131,779 27.96%
1988 242,660 61.24% 151,310 38.19% 2,267 0.57%
1984 248,050 67.25% 120,147 32.57% 665 0.18%
1980 173,466 56.86% 121,068 39.69% 10,532 3.45%
1976 124,433 50.05% 122,287 49.18% 1,911 0.77%
1972 151,596 68.55% 69,187 31.29% 355 0.16%
1968 81,786 42.88% 79,705 41.79% 29,256 15.34%
1964 56,593 36.71% 97,092 62.98% 473 0.31%
1960 72,813 54.75% 59,385 44.66% 788 0.59%
1956 66,329 59.65% 43,922 39.50% 946 0.85%
1952 63,680 57.97% 45,968 41.85% 194 0.18%
1948 17,157 28.25% 36,325 59.81% 7,257 11.95%
1944 4,113 8.05% 36,791 72.05% 10,161 19.90%
1940 7,474 17.15% 36,062 82.73% 53 0.12%
1936 3,781 11.20% 29,791 88.24% 190 0.56%
1932 5,251 15.67% 27,836 83.06% 426 1.27%
1928 20,481 68.99% 9,208 31.01% 0 0.00%
1924 5,859 26.45% 13,673 61.73% 2,619 11.82%
1920 3,486 20.38% 12,431 72.66% 1,191 6.96%
1916 1,550 12.69% 10,269 84.08% 394 3.23%
1912 548 6.13% 7,222 80.79% 1,169 13.08%

State Board of Education members
District Name[34] Party
  District 11 Patricia Hardy Republican
  District 13 Erika Beltran Democratic

Texas State Representatives
District Name[34] Party Residence
  90 Ramon Romero Jr. Democratic Fort Worth
  91 Stephanie Klick Republican Fort Worth
  92 Salman Bhojani Democratic Euless
  93 Nate Schatzline Republican Fort Worth
  94 Tony Tinderholt Republican Arlington
  95 Nicole Collier Democratic Fort Worth
  96 David Cook Republican Arlington
  97 Craig Goldman Republican Fort Worth
  98 Giovanni Capriglione Republican Southlake
  99 Charlie Geren Republican River Oaks
  101 Chris Turner Democratic Grand Prairie

Texas State Senators
District Name[34] Party Residence
  9 Kelly Hancock Republican Fort Worth
  10 Beverly Powell Democratic Burleson
  12 Jane Nelson Republican Flower Mound
  22 Brian Birdwell Republican Granbury

United States House of Representatives
District Name[34] Party Residence
  Texas's 6th congressional district Jake Ellzey Republican Waxahachie
  Texas's 12th congressional district Kay Granger Republican Fort Worth
  Texas's 24th congressional district Beth Van Duyne Republican Irving
  Texas's 25th congressional district Roger Williams Republican Weatherford
  Texas's 26th congressional district Michael Burgess Republican Lewisville
  Texas's 30th congressional district Jasmine Crockett Democratic Dallas
  Texas's 33rd congressional district Marc Veasey Democratic Fort Worth

Education

Colleges and universities
Further information: List of Dallas–Fort Worth area colleges and universities

Under the Texas Education Code, Tarrant County is the entire official service area of Tarrant County College (formerly Tarrant County Junior College).[35]

Universities in Tarrant County include:

Primary and secondary schools
See also: List of high schools in Texas § Tarrant County

Public schools in Texas are organized into independent school districts and charter schools. Tarrant County is also home to dozens of private high schools and nearly 100 lower-level private schools.[36]

Independent school districts

Those serving the county include:[37]

Masonic Home Independent School District formerly served a part of the county.[38] In 2005 it merged into FWISD.[39]

Charter schools

Private schools

Transportation

Major highways
C. H. Rogers' Road Map of Tarrant County, 1920

Airports

Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport is partially in the cities of Grapevine and Euless in Tarrant County and Irving in Dallas County.

Fort Worth Alliance Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located 14 miles (23 km) north of the central business district of Fort Worth on Interstate-35W. Billed as the world's first purely industrial airport, it was developed in a joint venture between the City of Fort Worth, the Federal Aviation Administration and Hillwood Development Company, a real estate development company owned by H. Ross Perot Jr. Alliance Airport has 9600' and 8200' runways.

Fort Worth Meacham International Airport is located at the intersection of Interstate 820 and U.S. Business Highway 287 in northwest Fort Worth, 5 miles from the downtown business district. Meacham International Airport has two parallel runways.

Fort Worth Spinks Airport is located 14 miles south of the downtown business district. The airport is located at the intersection of Interstate-35W and HWY 1187 and serves as a reliever airport for Fort Worth Meacham International Airport and Dallas–Fort Worth International Airport.

See also

References
  1. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  2. "Texas: Individual County Chronologies". Texas Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Newberry Library. 2008. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
  3. W. Kellon Hightower (June 15, 2010). "Handbook of Texas Online – Tarrant County". Tshaonline.org. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
  4. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
  5. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
  6. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". US Census Bureau.
  7. "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010" (PDF). Texas Almanac. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
  8. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  9. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Tarrant County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
  10. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Tarrant County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
  11. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 14, 2011.
  12. "Census shows less white Texas ahead of redistricting fight". Associated Press. August 12, 2021. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  13. Ura, Alexa; Kao, Jason; Astudillo, Carla; Essig, Chris (August 12, 2021). "People of color make up 95% of Texas' population growth, and cities and suburbs are booming, 2020 census shows". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  14. Ura, Alexa (June 22, 2023). "Hispanics officially make up the biggest share of Texas' population, new census numbers show". The Texas Tribune. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
  15. Leonhardt, David; Quealy, Kevin (June 26, 2015), "Where Same-Sex Couples Live", The New York Times, retrieved July 6, 2015
  16. "Commissioners Court". access.tarrantcounty.com. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  17. "Tarrant County Republican Party". Tarrant County Republican Party. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
  18. "Elected County Officials". www.tarrantcounty.com. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
  19. "Constables". www.tarrantcountytx.gov. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  20. "Police Services". Westlake, Texas. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  21. "Police Protection Tarrant County Sheriff's Office". Haslet, Texas. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  22. "Police Department (Tarrant County)". Town of Edgecliff Village, Texas. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  23. "DFW Airport Police and Fire". DFW International Airport. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  24. "About Us". MedStar Mobile Health. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  25. "On the Clock with the City of Arlington's EMS System & Ambulance Services". City of Arlington, Texas. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  26. "Tarrant County Emergency Services District No. 1". Tarrant County, Texas. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  27. "Misdemeanor Courts". www.tarrantcountytx.gov. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  28. "Felony Courts". www.tarrantcountytx.gov. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  29. "District Courts". www.tarrantcountytx.gov. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  30. "Family Courts". www.tarrantcountytx.gov. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  31. "2016 election: Division in a key Texas Republican stronghold?". star-telegram. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  32. Kennedy, Bud (November 6, 2018). "For Tarrant Democrats, a big state Senate win and a lot of oh-so-close calls". Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
  33. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 21, 2018.
  34. "Texas Redistricting". www.tlc.state.tx.us. Archived from the original on October 19, 2017. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  35. Texas Education Code, Sec. 130.201. Tarrant County Junior College District Service Area..
  36. Texas Private Schools, accessed 2008-08-23
  37. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Tarrant County, TX" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved June 30, 2022. - Text list
  38. Texas Education Agency: See map of Tarrant County. Retrieved on July 3, 2022.
  39. "CONSOLIDATIONS, ANNEXATIONS AND NAME CHANGES FOR TEXAS PUBLIC SCHOOLS" (PDF). Texas Education Agency. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved July 1, 2022.

32.77°N 97.29°W / 32.77; -97.29

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