Lamb County, Texas

Lamb County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 13,045.[1] Its county seat is Littlefield.[2] The county was created in 1876, but not organized until 1908.[3] It is named for George A. Lamb, who died in the Battle of San Jacinto.

Lamb County
County
Lamb County Courthouse in Littlefield
Lamb County Courthouse in Littlefield
Map of Texas highlighting Lamb County
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Map of the United States highlighting Texas
Texas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 34°04′N 102°21′W
Country United States
State Texas
Founded1908
Named forGeorge A. Lamb
SeatLittlefield
Largest cityLittlefield
Area
 • Total1,018 sq mi (2,640 km2)
 • Land1,016 sq mi (2,630 km2)
 • Water1.5 sq mi (4 km2)  0.2%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total13,045
 • Density13/sq mi (4.9/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district19th
Websiteco.lamb.tx.us

Lamb County was the home of the Texas House Speaker Bill W. Clayton, who served from 1975 until 1983. It is also the birthplace of country music singer Waylon Jennings.

History

Lamb County was formed in 1876 from portions of Bexar County. It was named after George A. Lamb, a soldier in the Battle of San Jacinto.

In the 1960s the water table began to decline. From the 1980s until 2023, the population declined by about 33%. Between circa 2013 and 2023, the population declined by about 8%.[4]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lamb County had an almost 1/100 death rate as of March 2023. As of that month, Lamb County, among American counties with 2,500 or more residents, had the eighth highest COVID-19 death rate.[4]

By 2023 there was water scarcity among farms, and many younger people moved to other counties for jobs.[4]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,018 square miles (2,640 km2), of which 1.5 square miles (3.9 km2) (0.2%) are covered by water.[5]

Adjacent counties

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18904—
190031675.0%
19105401,641.9%
19201,175117.6%
193017,4521,385.3%
194017,6060.9%
195020,01513.7%
196021,8969.4%
197017,770−18.8%
198018,6695.1%
199015,072−19.3%
200014,709−2.4%
201013,977−5.0%
202013,045−6.7%
U.S. Decennial Census[6]
1850–2010[7] 2010[8] 2020[9]
Lamb County, Texas - Demographic Profile
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
Race / Ethnicity Pop 2010[8] Pop 2020[9] % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 6,020 4,981 43.07% 38.18%
Black or African American alone (NH) 555 392 3.97% 3.00%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 39 15 0.28% 0.11%
Asian alone (NH) 17 4 0.12% 0.03%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 4 5 0.03% 0.04%
Some other race alone (NH) 16 24 0.11% 0.18%
Mixed race/multiracial (NH) 95 175 0.68% 1.34%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 7,231 7,449 51.73% 57.10%
Total 13,977 13,045 100.00% 100.00%

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 can be of any race.

As of the census[10] of 2000, 14,709 people, 5,360 households, and 3,991 families resided in the county. The population density was 14 people per square mile (5.4 people/km2). The 6,294 housing units averaged 6 units per square mile (2.3/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 76.1% White, 4.3% Black or African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.1% Asian, less than 0.05% Pacific Islander, 16.9% from other races, and 1.9% from two or more races. About 43.5% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 5,360 households, 35.4% had children under 18 living with them, 59.5% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.5% were not families. About 23.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.19.

In the county, the population was distributed as 29.6% under 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 24.2% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 17.3% who were 65 age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.9 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $36,898, and for a family was $31,833. Males had a median income of $36,434 versus $30,342 for females. The per capita income for the county was $30,169. About 18.0% of families and 10.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.3% of those under age 18 and 15.3% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Major highways

Airports

Littlefield Municipal Airport is located in Lamb County, 3 nautical miles (5.6 km) west of the central business district of Littlefield, Texas.

Communities

Cities

Town

Census-designated place

Unincorporated community

Education

School districts serving the county include:[11]

The county is in the service area of South Plains College.[12]

Media

As of 2023 there is one newspaper, Lamb County Leader-News, with three employees. An additional employee had died of COVID-19 in 2022, and the newspaper did not hire another individual.[4]

The Olton Enterprise, another newspaper, stopped publication in 2021.[13]

In 2023 Alejandro de la Garza wrote, in regards to the media landscape during the COVID-19 pandemic as the pandemic had caused damage to local media outlets, "for many residents, their Facebook feeds took the place of local media."[4]

  • Littlefield claims the world's tallest windmill.
    Littlefield claims the world's tallest windmill.
  • Lamb County Library in downtown Littlefield across from the First Baptist Church
    Lamb County Library in downtown Littlefield across from the First Baptist Church
  • Lamb County Leader-News in Littlefield
    Lamb County Leader-News in Littlefield
  • Lamb County Veterans Memorial
    Lamb County Veterans Memorial
  • Littlefield Farmers Co-op grain elevator
    Littlefield Farmers Co-op grain elevator

Politics
United States presidential election results for Lamb County, Texas[14]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 3,521 79.84% 840 19.05% 49 1.11%
2016 3,111 77.87% 771 19.30% 113 2.83%
2012 3,058 74.75% 998 24.40% 35 0.86%
2008 3,344 73.90% 1,156 25.55% 25 0.55%
2004 3,410 79.84% 857 20.07% 4 0.09%
2000 3,451 75.05% 1,114 24.23% 33 0.72%
1996 2,593 56.69% 1,683 36.79% 298 6.52%
1992 2,998 55.01% 1,737 31.87% 715 13.12%
1988 3,064 57.64% 2,230 41.95% 22 0.41%
1984 3,892 66.78% 1,919 32.93% 17 0.29%
1980 3,723 62.75% 2,132 35.93% 78 1.31%
1976 2,413 41.50% 3,374 58.02% 28 0.48%
1972 3,981 74.19% 1,350 25.16% 35 0.65%
1968 2,595 41.05% 2,267 35.86% 1,460 23.09%
1964 2,022 31.85% 4,318 68.01% 9 0.14%
1960 2,764 46.01% 3,089 51.42% 154 2.56%
1956 1,840 35.54% 3,325 64.23% 12 0.23%
1952 2,913 51.36% 2,748 48.45% 11 0.19%
1948 475 12.03% 3,286 83.25% 186 4.71%
1944 616 17.89% 2,407 69.89% 421 12.22%
1940 513 13.56% 3,259 86.15% 11 0.29%
1936 300 11.41% 2,320 88.21% 10 0.38%
1932 271 8.24% 2,978 90.57% 39 1.19%
1928 1,266 74.21% 440 25.79% 0 0.00%
1924 121 23.87% 356 70.22% 30 5.92%
1920 136 32.46% 264 63.01% 19 4.53%
1916 14 8.14% 150 87.21% 8 4.65%
1912 6 7.14% 53 63.10% 25 29.76%

In the 2020 U.S. presidential election, about 80% of the county's residents selected Donald Trump.[4]

Healthcare

In August 22, 43% of the county's residents had completed at least one COVID-19 vaccination series.[4]

See also

References
  1. "Lamb County, Texas". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. "Texas: Individual County Chronologies". Texas Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Newberry Library. 2008. Retrieved May 25, 2015.
  4. Garza, Alejandro de la (March 15, 2023). "In This Texas County, There's No Such Thing as Moving on From COVID-19". Time. Retrieved March 15, 2023. [...] it's the 8th highest in the nation as of March 2023, excluding counties with fewer than 2,500 people. - Alternate link at Yahoo! News
  5. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2015.
  6. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decade". 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 3, 2015.
  8. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Lamb County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
  9. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Lamb County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
  10. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 14, 2011.
  11. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Lamb County, TX" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022. - Text list
  12. Texas Education Code, Sec. 130.198. SOUTH PLAINS COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.
  13. "Olton Enterprise ceased publication with June 25 edition". Texas Press Association. July 30, 2021. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
  14. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved July 26, 2018.

34.07°N 102.35°W / 34.07; -102.35

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