Sterling City is the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

Sterling County, Texas Sterling County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,372, making it the ninth-least populous county in Texas. Its county seat is Sterling City. The county is named ...

, United States. Its population was 1,121 at the 2020 census.

History

Sterling City was named for W.S. Sterling, a buffalo hunter and Indian fighter. Land for the new town was donated in January 1891 by R.C. Stewart, and was platted by H.B. Tarver in February. That same year, it was designated the seat of Sterling County. The town soon grew to 300 residents and had its own newspaper, a hotel, a post office, several other businesses, a school, and three churches. Sterling City was a stop on the

Santa Fe Railroad The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison and Topeka, Kansas, and ...

by 1910, but the service was eventually abandoned. The depot still exists as a tourist site. During World War Two, Sterling City's population decreased by 10%. When it was incorporated in August, 1955, Sterling City had a population of some 800 and had added three more churches, a hospital, a bank, and a library. On May 25, 1955, 15

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Si ...

personnel, flying in a

B-36 The Convair B-36 "Peacemaker" is a strategic bomber that was built by Convair and operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1949 to 1959. The B-36 is the largest mass-produced Reciprocating engine, piston-engined aircraft ever built. It ...

bomber under the callsign Abbot 27, perished in a crash near Sterling City. The airmen were members of the 40th Bomb Squadron of the 6th Bombardment Wing at Walker Air Force Base in

Roswell, New Mexico Roswell () is a city in, and the seat of, Chaves County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Chaves County forms the entirety of the Roswell micropolitan area. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 48,422, making it the fifth-largest city ...

. A monument in their honor was erected in 2007 at the Tom Green County Courthouse in San Angelo.

Geography

Sterling City is located on the

Edwards Plateau The Edwards Plateau is a geographic region at the crossroads of Central, South, and West Texas. It is bounded by the Balcones Fault to the south and east, the Llano Uplift and the Llano Estacado to the north, and the Pecos River and Chihua ...

in west-central Texas along the

North Concho River The North Concho River is a river in west-central Texas and one of three tributaries of the Concho River. The river is long. The other two tributaries are the Middle Concho and South Concho Rivers. The Concho River flows into the Colorado Rive ...

at (31.839066, –100.985871). It is accessed by U.S. Highway 87 and State Highways 158 and 163, and covers area of 0.98 sq mi (2.5 km), all of it land. Windmills have been a feature of Sterling City since the early 20th century, when the town claimed to have more windmills per acre than any other place in the world, totaling some 300. Today, most of Sterling City's windmills are giant turbines in modern wind farms on a ridge about 20 miles northwest of the town and visible from U.S. Highway 87.Flippin, Perry.
Wind Power's New Pioneers
" ''Standard-Times,'' 27 Aug. 2007. Retrieved 15 June 2019.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to off ...

, there were 1,121 people, 344 households, and 291 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

of 2000, 1,081 people, 393 households, and 297 families resided in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was 1,105.9 people/sq mi (425.9/km). The 467 housing units averaged 477.7/sq mi (184.0/km). The

racial makeup A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

of the city was 82.05% White, 0.09% African American, 0.37% Native American, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 14.80% from other races, and 2.59% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 33.30% of the population. Of the 393 households, 36.9% had children under 18 living with them, 62.8% were married couples living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.4% were not families. About 23.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.69, and the average family size was 3.18. In the city, the age distribution was 29.6% under 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.7 males. The median income for a household in the city was $36,359, and for a family was $38,958. Males had a median income of $32,500 versus $18,654 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $14,955. About 14.3% of families and 17.7% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 22.3% of those under age 18 and 19.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The city of Sterling City is served by the Sterling City Independent School District and home to the Sterling City High School Eagles.

Gallery

Image:City Hall at Sterling City, TX IMG 1412.JPG, City Hall is located across from the courthouse in Sterling City. Image:Windmill at courthouse, Sterling City, TX IMG 1404.JPG, A windmill on the courthouse grounds in Sterling City Image:Wind turbines south of Sterling City, TX IMG 1400.JPG, Wind turbines off U.S. Highway 87 south of Sterling City Image:First Baptist Church of Sterling City, TX IMG 1416.JPG, First

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...

Church at 401 Water Street in Sterling City, pastor, Jason McGuire (2013)

References

External links

{{authority control Cities in Sterling County, Texas Cities in Texas County seats in Texas Populated places established in 1891 1891 establishments in Texas