Marion County
County
Marion County Courthouse in Jefferson
Marion County Courthouse in Jefferson
Map of Texas highlighting Marion 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°48′N 94°22′W / 32.8°N 94.36°W / 32.8; -94.36
Country United States
State Texas
Founded1860
Named forFrancis Marion
SeatJefferson
Largest cityJefferson
Area
 • Total420 sq mi (1,100 km2)
 • Land381 sq mi (990 km2)
 • Water39 sq mi (100 km2)  9.4%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total9,725
 • Density23/sq mi (8.9/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district1st
Websitewww.co.marion.tx.us

Marion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 9,725.[1] Its county seat is Jefferson.[2] Marion County is in East Texas and is named for Francis Marion, the Revolutionary War general from South Carolina who was nicknamed the "Swamp Fox".

History

Native Americans

The indigenous farming Caddoan Mississippian culture has been dated to 200 BCE in the area. The Hernando de Soto expedition of 1541 resulted in violent encounters with Native Americans. Spanish and French missionaries carried endemic diseases: resulting in epidemics of smallpox, measles malaria, and influenza among the Caddo. Eventually, the Caddo were forced to reservations.[3][4] Shashidahnee (Timber Hill) is the last known permanent Marion County settlement of the Caddo people. During the 19th century, Shawnee, Delaware, and Kickapoo migrated to the area and settled here.[5]

County established

The legislature formed Marion County from Cass County in 1860 and named it for Revolutionary War Swamp Fox Francis Marion.[6] Jefferson, named after Thomas Jefferson became the county seat.[7]

The majority of the settlers had migrated from other southern states and brought enslaved African Americans with them as workers, or purchased them in slave markets. The county was developed as cotton plantations, and enslaved African Americans made up 51 percent of the population in 1860. In 1861, the white male voters in the county voted unanimously for secession from the Union. The county benefited financially from Confederate government contracts.[8]

In February 1869 the river steamboat Mittie Stephens caught fire from a torch basket that ignited a hay stack on board. Sixty-one people died, either from the fire or from being caught in the boat's paddlewheel as they jumped overboard.[9][10]

Following the Civil War, the white minority used violence to impose dominance on the freedmen. On October 4, 1869, George Washington Smith, a delegate to the state Constitutional Convention, was murdered by a band of vigilantes while incarcerated in Jefferson. Smith's slaying resulted in the federal government assigning military troops to Jefferson. They offered some protection for the black majority during the Reconstruction era.[11]

During Reconstruction, Republican presidential races were supported by the black majority voters in the county. However, with the end of Reconstruction, white conservative Democrats regained control of the state legislature and, in 1898, passed various restrictions on voter registration and voting, including establishing White primaries. Because the Democratic Party dominated the state, its primaries afforded the only true competitive political races. Blacks were unable to vote in these primaries and were thus disenfranchised. Various forms of the white primary survived until 1944 when a US Supreme Court ruling overturned the practice as racially discriminatory and unconstitutional.[12][13]

The Marion County brick courthouse was erected in 1914, designed by architect Elmer George Withers.[14] In the early 20th century, the Dick Taylor Camp of Confederate veterans erected a monument to honor the county's dead in the American Civil War, placing it outside the courthouse.[15]

Caddo Lake State Park was first proposed in 1924. From 1933 to 1937, during the Great Depression, men were hired into the Civilian Conservation Corps and made improvements to the park. The former army barracks and mess hall were converted to log cabins and a recreation hall for park goers.[16]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 420 square miles (1,100 km2), of which 381 square miles (990 km2) is land and 39 square miles (100 km2) (9.4%) is water.[17]

Major highways

Entering Marion County from Louisiana along State Highway 49

The TTC-69 component (recommended preferred) of the once-planned Trans-Texas Corridor went through Marion County.[18]

Adjacent counties and parish

Communities

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18603,977—
18708,562115.3%
188010,98328.3%
189010,862−1.1%
190010,754−1.0%
191010,472−2.6%
192010,8864.0%
193010,371−4.7%
194011,45710.5%
195010,172−11.2%
19608,049−20.9%
19708,5175.8%
198010,36021.6%
19909,984−3.6%
200010,9419.6%
201010,546−3.6%
20209,725−7.8%
U.S. Decennial Census[19]
1850–2010[20] 2010–2020[21]
Demographic Profile of Marion County, Texas
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
Race / Ethnicity Pop 2010[22] Pop 2020[21] % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 7,564 6,869 71.72% 70.63%
Black or African American alone (NH) 2,319 1,846 21.99% 18.98%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 72 69 0.68% 0.71%
Asian alone (NH) 50 48 0.47% 0.49%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 3 0 0.03% 0.00%
Some Other Race alone (NH) 8 45 0.08% 0.46%
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH) 202 459 1.92% 4.72%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 328 389 3.11% 4.00%
Total 10,546 9,725 100.00% 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.

According to the 2000 U.S. census, there were 10,941 people, 4,610 households, and 3,120 families residing in the county.[23] The population density was 29 people per square mile (11 people/km2). There were 6,384 housing units at an average density of 17 units per square mile (6.6/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 72.74% White, 23.91% Black or African American, 0.80% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.79% from other races, and 1.54% from two or more races. 2.40% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. The 2020 United States census reported a population of 9,725.[21] Its racial and ethnic makeup in 2020 was 70.63% non-Hispanic white, 18.98% Black or African American, 0.71% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.46% some other race, 4.72% multiracial, and 4.0% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

The median income for a household in the county was $25,347, and the median income for a family was $32,039. Males had a median income of $30,584 versus $17,885 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,535. About 17.80% of families and 22.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.90% of those under age 18 and 14.40% of those age 65 or over. According to the 2020 American Community Survey, the median household income was $39,093.[24]

Politics

United States presidential election results for Marion County, Texas[25]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 3,470 71.34% 1,339 27.53% 55 1.13%
2016 2,983 70.39% 1,165 27.49% 90 2.12%
2012 2,733 63.83% 1,495 34.91% 54 1.26%
2008 2,567 60.37% 1,644 38.66% 41 0.96%
2004 2,441 56.14% 1,884 43.33% 23 0.53%
2000 2,039 51.88% 1,852 47.12% 39 0.99%
1996 1,260 34.45% 2,028 55.46% 369 10.09%
1992 1,245 29.03% 2,156 50.28% 887 20.69%
1988 1,857 44.97% 2,255 54.61% 17 0.41%
1984 2,336 52.34% 2,111 47.30% 16 0.36%
1980 1,666 44.66% 2,015 54.02% 49 1.31%
1976 1,291 40.76% 1,860 58.73% 16 0.51%
1972 1,680 60.22% 1,106 39.64% 4 0.14%
1968 637 22.32% 1,260 44.15% 957 33.53%
1964 927 40.25% 1,372 59.57% 4 0.17%
1960 742 43.88% 904 53.46% 45 2.66%
1956 1,126 60.93% 709 38.37% 13 0.70%
1952 877 47.43% 970 52.46% 2 0.11%
1948 200 18.48% 703 64.97% 179 16.54%
1944 219 15.86% 1,057 76.54% 105 7.60%
1940 167 11.76% 1,253 88.24% 0 0.00%
1936 129 12.31% 919 87.69% 0 0.00%
1932 84 8.83% 861 90.54% 6 0.63%
1928 443 40.90% 640 59.10% 0 0.00%
1924 347 33.02% 620 58.99% 84 7.99%
1920 392 34.69% 430 38.05% 308 27.26%
1916 166 27.04% 445 72.48% 3 0.49%
1912 85 18.48% 339 73.70% 36 7.83%

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Marion County, Texas". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
  2. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ↑ "Caddo Timeline". Texas Beyond History. UT-Austin. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Caddo History". Oklahoma Historical Society. Archived from the original on July 19, 2010. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  5. ↑ Teague, Wells (2000). "Where We Came From". Calling Texas Home: A Lively Look at What It Means to Be a Texan. Wildcat Canyon Press. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-885171-38-2.
  6. ↑ The History of Marion County. Union Historical Company. 1881. pp. 248–249.
  7. ↑ "Jefferson, Texas". Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  8. ↑ Atkins, Mark Howard. "Marion County, Texas". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  9. ↑ Hodge, Larry D (2000). Official Guide to Texas Wildlife Management Areas. Texas Parks and Wildlife Press. p. 133. ISBN 978-1-885696-35-9.
  10. ↑ McDonald, PhD, Archie P. "The Mittie Stephens Disaster". Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  11. ↑ Lale, Max S. "Stockade Case". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  12. ↑ Greenberg, Sanford N. "White Primary". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  13. ↑ Williams, Patrick G. “Suffrage Restriction in Post-Reconstruction Texas: Urban Politics and the Specter of the Commune.” The Journal of Southern History, vol. 68, no. 1, 2002, pp. 31–64. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/3069690. Accessed 7 Sept. 2020.
  14. ↑ "Marion County Courthouse". Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  15. ↑ "Confederate Monument". Texas Confederate Veterans. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  16. ↑ "Caddo Lake State Park". Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
  17. ↑ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  18. ↑ TxDoT, TTC Section F, Detailed Maps 1 & 2, 2007-12-28 Archived 2009-02-07 at the Wayback Machine
  19. ↑ "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". US Census Bureau.
  20. ↑ "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010" (PDF). Texas Almanac. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  21. 1 2 3 "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Marion County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
  22. ↑ "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Marion County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
  23. ↑ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 14, 2011.
  24. ↑ "2020 ACS Financial Characteristics". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
  25. ↑ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved July 26, 2018.

32°48′N 94°22′W / 32.80°N 94.36°W / 32.80; -94.36

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