Henderson County, Texas - Wikipedia

County in Texas, United States Not to be confused with Henderson, Texas. County in Texas

Henderson County, Texas
County
The Henderson County Courthouse in Athens
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Coordinates: 32°13′N 95°51′W / 32.21°N 95.85°W / 32.21; -95.85
Country	United States
State	Texas
Founded	1846
Named after	James Pinckney Henderson
Seat	Athens
Largest city	Athens
Area
• Total	948 sq mi (2,460 km2)
• Land	874 sq mi (2,260 km2)
• Water	75 sq mi (190 km2)  7.9%
Population (2020)
• Total	82,150
• Density	87/sq mi (34/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	5th
Website	www.henderson-county.com

Henderson County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 82,150.[1] The county seat is Athens.[2] The county is named in honor of James Pinckney Henderson, the first attorney general of the Republic of Texas, and secretary of state for the republic.[3] He later served as the first governor of Texas. Henderson County was established in 1846, the year after Texas gained statehood. Its first town was Buffalo, laid out in 1847.[4] Henderson County comprises the Athens micropolitan statistical area, which is also included in the Dallas-Fort Worth combined statistical area.

Geography

[edit]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 948 sq mi (2,460 km2), of which 75 sq mi (190 km2) (7.9%) are covered by water.[5]

Major highways

[edit]

• U.S. Highway 175
• State Highway 19
• State Highway 31
• State Highway 155
• State Highway 198
• State Highway 274
• State Highway 334

Lakes

[edit]

• Cedar Creek Reservoir
• Lake Palestine

Adjacent counties

[edit]

• Kaufman County (north)
• Van Zandt County (north)
• Smith County (east)
• Cherokee County (southeast)
• Anderson County (south)
• Freestone County (southwest)
• Navarro County (west)
• Ellis County (northwest)

Communities

[edit]

Cities

[edit]

• Athens (county seat)
• Brownsboro
• Chandler
• Eustace
• Gun Barrel City
• Log Cabin
• Malakoff
• Moore Station
• Murchison
• Seven Points (small part in Kaufman County)
• Star Harbor
• Tool
• Trinidad

Towns

[edit]

• Berryville
• Caney City
• Coffee City
• Enchanted Oaks
• Mabank (mostly in Kaufman County)
• Payne Springs
• Poynor

Census-designated place

[edit]

• Sunrise Shores

Unincorporated communities

[edit]

• Aley
• Antioch
• Baxter
• Bethel
• Big Rock
• Buffalo
• Crescent Heights
• Cross Roads
• Dauphin
• Evelyn
• Fincastle
• Harmony
• LaRue
• Leagueville
• Mankin
• New Hope
• New York
• Opelika
• Pauline
• Pickens
• Pine Grove
• Ruth Springs
• Shady Oaks
• Stockard
• Summer Hill
• Union Hill
• Virginia Hill

Ghost towns

[edit]

• Centreville
• Corinth

Demographics

[edit] Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1850	1,237	—
1860	4,595	271.5%
1870	6,786	47.7%
1880	9,735	43.5%
1890	12,285	26.2%
1900	19,970	62.6%
1910	20,131	0.8%
1920	28,327	40.7%
1930	30,583	8.0%
1940	31,822	4.1%
1950	23,405	−26.5%
1960	21,786	−6.9%
1970	26,466	21.5%
1980	42,606	61.0%
1990	58,543	37.4%
2000	73,277	25.2%
2010	78,532	7.2%
2020	82,150	4.6%
2024 (est.)	87,467	[6]	6.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[7]1850–2010[8] 2010–2020[9]

Henderson County, Texas – Racial and ethnic compositionNote: 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.

Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2000[10]	Pop 2010[11]	Pop 2020[9]	% 2000	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	62,214	63,494	61,854	84.78%	80.85%	75.29%
Black or African American alone (NH)	4,811	4,813	4,705	6.57%	6.13%	5.73%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	334	349	414	0.46%	0.44%	0.50%
Asian alone (NH)	220	318	510	0.30%	0.40%	0.62%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	19	27	31	0.03%	0.03%	0.04%
Other Race alone (NH)	24	76	211	0.03%	0.10%	0.26%
Mixed Race or Multiracial (NH)	674	965	3,183	0.92%	1.23%	3.87%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	5,071	8,490	11,242	6.92%	10.81%	13.68%
Total	73,277	78,532	82,150	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the census[12] of 2000, 73,277 people, 28,804 households, and 20,969 families were residing in the county. Its population density was 84 people/mi2 (32 people/km2). The 35,935 housing units averaged 41 units per square mile (16/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 88.50% White, 6.61% African American, 0.54% Native American, 0.30% Asian, 2.75% from other races, and 1.30% from two or more races. About 6.92% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. At the 2020 census, its population increased to 82,150 with a predominantly non-Hispanic white population; the Hispanic or Latino population of any race increased to 13.68% reflecting nationwide demographic trends.[13]

Government

[edit]

• County Judge: Wade McKinney
• Commissioner Pct. 1: Wendy Spivey
• Commissioner Pct. 2: Scott Tuley
• Commissioner Pct. 3: Charles "Chuck" McHam
• Commissioner Pct. 4: Mark Richardson
• County Clerk: Mary Margret Wright
• District Clerk: Betty Herriage
• County Attorney: Clint Davis
• District Attorney: Jenny Palmer
• County Auditor: Ann Marie Lee
• County Treasurer: Michael Bynum
• County Court at Law #1 Judge: Scott Williams
• County Court at Law #2 Judge: Nancy Perryman
• 3rd District Court Judge: Mark Calhoon
• 173rd District Court Judge: Dan Moore
• 392nd District Court Judge: R. Scott McKee
• Justice of the Peace Pct. 1: Randy Daniel
• Constable Pct. 1: Thomas Goodell
• Justice of the Peace Pct. 2: Kevin Pollock
• Constable Pct. 2: Jason Ramsey
• Justice of the Peace Pct. 3: James "Tony" Duncan
• Constable Pct. 3: David Grubbs
• Justice of the Peace Pct. 4: Milton Adams
• Constable Pct. 4: John Floyd
• Justice of the Peace Pct. 5: Tanya Norris
• Constable Pct. 5: Brad Miers
• Sheriff: Botie Hillhouse
• Tax Assessor/Collector: Peggy Goodall
• Elections Administrator: Paula Ludtke
• Fire Marshal/Emergency Management Coordinator: Shane Renburg

Politics

[edit] United States presidential election results for Henderson County, Texas[14]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	№	%	№	%	№	%
1912	137	6.84%	1,370	68.36%	497	24.80%
1916	268	11.11%	1,790	74.18%	355	14.71%
1920	538	18.62%	1,684	58.29%	667	23.09%
1924	405	9.41%	3,819	88.73%	80	1.86%
1928	1,128	39.52%	1,726	60.48%	0	0.00%
1932	219	5.82%	3,522	93.67%	19	0.51%
1936	260	7.38%	3,259	92.45%	6	0.17%
1940	803	16.34%	4,111	83.66%	0	0.00%
1944	427	10.12%	3,219	76.28%	574	13.60%
1948	540	12.24%	3,669	83.14%	204	4.62%
1952	2,534	36.33%	4,439	63.65%	1	0.01%
1956	2,479	44.51%	3,065	55.04%	25	0.45%
1960	2,521	42.23%	3,411	57.14%	38	0.64%
1964	1,988	29.61%	4,697	69.96%	29	0.43%
1968	2,315	29.19%	3,119	39.32%	2,498	31.49%
1972	6,263	69.49%	2,741	30.41%	9	0.10%
1976	4,658	36.01%	8,245	63.73%	34	0.26%
1980	7,903	48.47%	8,199	50.29%	203	1.25%
1984	12,725	63.38%	7,302	36.37%	49	0.24%
1988	11,005	52.61%	9,819	46.94%	94	0.45%
1992	8,368	34.49%	9,105	37.53%	6,788	27.98%
1996	10,345	45.43%	10,085	44.29%	2,342	10.28%
2000	16,607	64.80%	8,704	33.96%	316	1.23%
2004	20,210	70.05%	8,505	29.48%	134	0.46%
2008	20,857	71.94%	7,913	27.29%	223	0.77%
2012	21,231	76.85%	6,106	22.10%	290	1.05%
2016	23,650	78.72%	5,669	18.87%	726	2.42%
2020	28,911	79.50%	7,060	19.41%	397	1.09%
2024	31,379	81.29%	6,919	17.92%	305	0.79%

United States Senate election results for Henderson County, Texas1[15]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	№	%	№	%	№	%
2024	30,047	78.60%	7,453	19.50%	726	1.90%

Media

[edit]

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

Newspaper coverage of the area can be found in the Athens Daily Review, based in Athens; The Monitor is published in Mabank, which is primarily in Kaufman County, but also covers news in parts of Henderson County, as well.

Crime

[edit]

Paul Knight of the Houston Press said in a 2009 article that some people blamed the development of the artificial Cedar Creek Lake, which opened in 1965, and development of the area surrounding the lake for the initial influx of crime and recreational drugs into the county and the East Texas region. Carroll Dyson, a retired pilot and Henderson County resident interviewed by the Houston Press, said in 2009 that the lake attracted "white flight" from metropolitan areas.[16] Dyson added, "When all your rich people from Dallas and Houston move out here, the thieves are just drawn to them." Ray Nutt, the sheriff of Henderson County, said that the area around the lake has "a lot of good people," yet it was also where "a lot of criminals tend to flow."[17]

See also

[edit]

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Henderson County, Texas
• Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Henderson County
• Clay Smothers

References

[edit]

1. ^ "Henderson County, Texas". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp. 154.
4. ^ A Memorial and Biographical History of Navarro, Henderson, Anderson, Limestone, Freestone and Leon Counties, Texas. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Company. 1893. p. 199. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
5. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
6. ^ "QuickFacts: Henderson County, Texas". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 15, 2025.
7. ^ "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". US Census Bureau.
8. ^ "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010" (PDF). Texas Almanac. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
9. ^ a b "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Henderson County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
10. ^ "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Henderson County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
11. ^ "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Henderson County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
12. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 14, 2011.
13. ^ Passel, Jeffrey S.; Lopez, Mark Hugo; Cohn, D'Vera (February 3, 2022). "U.S. Hispanic population continued its geographic spread in the 2010s". Pew Research Center. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
14. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
15. ^ "2024 Senate Election (Official Returns)". Commonwealth of Texas by county. November 5, 2024. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
16. ^ Knight, Paul. "Superthief." September 22, 2009. 1. Retrieved on September 28, 2009.
17. ^ Knight, Paul. "Superthief." September 22, 2009. 2. Retrieved on September 28, 2009.

External links

[edit]

• Henderson County Archived October 1, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
• Henderson County in Handbook of Texas Online at the University of Texas
• TXGenWeb Project for Henderson County

Places adjacent to Henderson County, Texas
Ellis County Kaufman County and Van Zandt County Navarro County Henderson County, Texas Smith County Freestone County Anderson County Cherokee County

v t e Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex
Topics	Demographics Geology Christianity Islam Judaism and Jewish history African American history Chinese American history Indian American history Mexican American history Nigerian American history LGBT culture
Counties	Collin Dallas Denton Ellis Hood Hunt Johnson Kaufman Parker Rockwall Somervell Tarrant Wise
Major cities	Dallas Fort Worth Arlington
Cities and towns100k–300k	Allen Carrollton Denton Frisco Garland Grand Prairie Irving Lewisville McKinney Mesquite Plano Richardson
Cities and towns25k–99k	Anna Balch Springs Bedford Burleson Cedar Hill Celina Cleburne Colleyville The Colony Coppell DeSoto Duncanville Euless Farmers Branch Flower Mound Forney Grapevine Greenville Haltom City Hurst Keller Lancaster Little Elm Mansfield Melissa Midlothian North Richland Hills Princeton Prosper Rockwall Rowlett Sachse Southlake University Park Waxahachie Weatherford Wylie
Cities and towns10k–25k	Addison Azle Benbrook Corinth Crowley Ennis Fairview Fate Forest Hill Glenn Heights Granbury Highland Village Murphy Red Oak Rendon Royse City Saginaw Seagoville Terrell Trophy Club Watauga White Settlement

v t e Municipalities and communities of Henderson County, Texas, United States
County seat: Athens
Cities	Athens Brownsboro Chandler Eustace Gun Barrel City Log Cabin Malakoff Moore Station Murchison Seven Points‡ Star Harbor Tool Trinidad
Towns	Berryville Caney City Coffee City Enchanted Oaks Mabank‡ Payne Springs Poynor
CDP	Sunrise Shores
Othercommunities	Aley Antioch Baxter Bethel Big Rock Buffalo Crescent Heights Cross Roads Dauphin Evelyn Fincastle LaRue Leagueville Mankin New Hope New York Opelika Pauline Pickens Pine Grove Ruth Springs Shady Oaks Stockard Summer Hill Union Hill Virginia Hill
Ghost towns	Ash Switch Centreville Corinth
Footnotes	‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
Texas portal United States portal

v t e Counties of Texas

Anderson Andrews Angelina Aransas Archer Armstrong Atascosa Austin Bailey Bandera Bastrop Baylor Bee Bell Bexar Blanco Borden Bosque Bowie Brazoria Brazos Brewster Briscoe Brooks Brown Burleson Burnet Caldwell Calhoun Callahan Cameron Camp Carson Cass Castro Chambers Cherokee Childress Clay Cochran Coke Coleman Collin Collingsworth Colorado Comal Comanche Concho Cooke Coryell Cottle Crane Crockett Crosby Culberson Dallam Dallas Dawson Deaf Smith Delta Denton DeWitt Dickens Dimmit Donley Duval Eastland Ector Edwards El Paso Ellis Erath Falls Fannin Fayette Fisher Floyd Foard Fort Bend Franklin Freestone Frio Gaines Galveston Garza Gillespie Glasscock Goliad Gonzales Gray Grayson Gregg Grimes Guadalupe Hale Hall Hamilton Hansford Hardeman Hardin Harris Harrison Hartley Haskell Hays Hemphill Henderson Hidalgo Hill Hockley Hood Hopkins Houston Howard Hudspeth Hunt Hutchinson Irion Jack Jackson Jasper Jeff Davis Jefferson Jim Hogg Jim Wells Johnson Jones Karnes Kaufman Kendall Kenedy Kent Kerr Kimble King Kinney Kleberg Knox La Salle Lamar Lamb Lampasas Lavaca Lee Leon Liberty Limestone Lipscomb Live Oak Llano Loving Lubbock Lynn Madison Marion Martin Mason Matagorda Maverick McCulloch McLennan McMullen Medina Menard Midland Milam Mills Mitchell Montague Montgomery Moore Morris Motley Nacogdoches Navarro Newton Nolan Nueces Ochiltree Oldham Orange Palo Pinto Panola Parker Parmer Pecos Polk Potter Presidio Rains Randall Reagan Real Red River Reeves Refugio Roberts Robertson Rockwall Runnels Rusk Sabine San Augustine San Jacinto San Patricio San Saba Schleicher Scurry Shackelford Shelby Sherman Smith Somervell Starr Stephens Sterling Stonewall Sutton Swisher Tarrant Taylor Terrell Terry Throckmorton Titus Tom Green Travis Trinity Tyler Upshur Upton Uvalde Val Verde Van Zandt Victoria Walker Waller Ward Washington Webb Wharton Wheeler Wichita Wilbarger Willacy Williamson Wilson Winkler Wise Wood Yoakum Young Zapata Zavala

v t e State of Texas
Austin (capital)
Topics	Outline Architecture Climate (Climate change) Cuisine Dialects Geography Government Healthcare History Languages Law Literature Mass media Newspapers Radio TV National Historic Landmarks National Register of Historic Places Sites Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks Sports Symbols Texans Time Tourist attractions Transportation
Society	Abortion Culture Crime Demographics Economy Education Gambling Gun laws Homelessness LGBTQ rights Pride Politics
Regions	Ark‑La‑Tex Big Bend Boca Chica Blackland Prairies Brazos Valley Central Texas Coastal Bend Concho Valley Cross Timbers East Texas Edwards Plateau Golden Triangle Hill Country Llano Estacado Northeast Texas North Texas Osage Plains Panhandle Permian Basin Piney Woods Rio Grande Valley Southeast Texas South Plains South Texas Texoma Trans-Pecos West Texas
Metropolitanareas	Abilene Amarillo Austin–Round Rock (Greater Austin) Beaumont–Port Arthur Brownsville–Harlingen College Station–Bryan Corpus Christi Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington (DFW) El Paso Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land (Greater Houston) Killeen–Temple Laredo Longview–Kilgore Lubbock McAllen–Edinburg–Mission Midland Odessa San Angelo San Antonio–New Braunfels Sherman–Denison Texarkana Tyler Victoria Waco Wagner Creek Wichita Falls
Counties	See: List of counties in Texas
Texas portal

Authority control databases
International	VIAF WorldCat
National	United States Israel
Other	NARA Yale LUX

32°13′N 95°51′W / 32.21°N 95.85°W / 32.21; -95.85