Sutton County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located on the

Edwards Plateau The Edwards Plateau is a geographic region forming the crossroads of Central, South and West Texas, United States. It is named in honor of Haden Edwards. It is bounded by the Balcones Fault to the south and east; the Llano Uplift and the Lla ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,372. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

. The county was created in 1887 and organized in 1890. Sutton County is named for John S. Sutton, an officer in the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

History

* 9500 BC – c. 1860s AD

Paleo-Indians Paleo-Indians were the first peoples who entered and subsequently inhabited the Americas towards the end of the Late Pleistocene period. The prefix ''paleo-'' comes from . The term ''Paleo-Indians'' applies specifically to the lithic period in ...

in the county leave behind archaeological remains of a burned-rock

midden A midden is an old dump for domestic waste. It may consist of animal bones, human excrement, botanical material, mollusc shells, potsherds, lithics (especially debitage), and other artifacts and ecofacts associated with past human oc ...

with

mortar and pestle A mortar and pestle is a set of two simple tools used to prepare ingredients or substances by compression (physics), crushing and shear force, grinding them into a fine Paste (rheology), paste or powder in the kitchen, laboratory, and pharmacy. ...

, as well as other tools. Later native inhabitants include

Tonkawa The Tonkawa are a Native American tribe from Oklahoma and Texas. Their Tonkawa language, now extinct language, extinct, is a linguistic isolate. Today, Tonkawa people are enrolled in the Federally recognized tribes, federally recognized Tonkawa ...

Comanche The Comanche (), or Nʉmʉnʉʉ (, 'the people'), are a Tribe (Native American), Native American tribe from the Great Plains, Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the List of federally recognized tri ...

and

Lipan Apache Lipan Apache are a band of Apache, a Southern Athabaskan languages, Southern Athabaskan Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous people, who have lived in the Oasisamerica, Southwest and Southern Plains for centuries. At the time of European ...

. * 1736 Lt. Miguel de la Garza Falcón leads 100 soldiers along the Devils River * 1852, February 2 - Camp Terrett, later known as Fort Terrett, established to protect settlers from Comanches. Founded by Lt. Col. Henry Bainbridge and named for Lt. John Terrett, who was killed in the

Battle of Monterrey In the Battle of Monterrey (September 21–24, 1846) during the Mexican–American War, General Pedro de Ampudia and the Mexican Army of the North was defeated by the Army of Occupation, a force of United States Regulars, Volunteers, an ...

in 1846. * 1881 Wall's Well discovered by Tim Birtrong and Ed Wall. Town of Wentworth discovered. Birtrong Ranch is the area's only ranch. * 1885 Charles G. Adams, a merchant and sometime rancher from Fort McKavett, founds

Sonora, Texas Sonora is a city in and the county seat of Sutton County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,502 at the 2020 census. Geography and climate Sonora is located at (30.568166, –100.644163). According to the United States ...

, named after a family servant from

Sonora, Mexico Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into 72 municipalities; the capital (and largest) city of which is ...

. * 1887 The Texas legislature establishes Sutton County, carved out of eastern

Crockett County Crockett County is the name of two counties in the United States, both named for frontiersman and politician Davy Crockett Colonel (United States), Colonel David Crockett (August 17, 1786 – March 6, 1836) was an American politician, militia ...

named for Confederate officer John Schuyler Sutton. * 1890 Sonora becomes the county seat. * 1915 Texas Sheep & Goat Raisers’ Association organized. * 1928 The

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the largest Class 1 railroads in the United States between 1859 and 1996. The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight transport; at vario ...

acquires

Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway The Kansas City, Mexico and Orient Railway, started in 1900 by American railroad entrepreneur Arthur Edward Stilwell, was the predecessor of the Chihuahua al Pacífico railroad in Mexico. It was intended to reach the Pacific Ocean at Topolob ...

to connect Sonora with San Angelo, Del Rio, and the outside world by rail. * 1930 Sonora Wool and Mohair Company established. * 1936 WPA projects help local economy. * 1958, August 1 – Sonora Municipal Airport activated. * 1960, July 16 –

Caverns of Sonora The Caverns of Sonora, a National Natural Landmark, is a unique cave located west of the small city of Sonora, the seat of Sutton County, Texas. It is a world-class cave because of its stunning array of calcite crystal formations, especially hel ...

open to the public. * 1965 Caverns of Sonora designated National Natural Landmark. * 1975 Fort Terrett Ranch is purchased by the Texas oil industrialist

Bill Noël William Douglas Noël (May 11, 1914 – January 9, 1987), was an American independent oilman, industrialist, banker, rancher, philanthropist, and civic leader in Odessa, Texas. Background Noël was born in Fort Worth, the son of Earnest No� ...

and used in part for the growing of pecans.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.03%) is water.

Major highways

Interstate 10 Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost transcontinental highway in the Interstate Highway System of the United States. It is the fourth-longest Interstate in the country at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. It was part of the origina ...

U.S. Highway 277 U.S. Route 277 (US 277, US-277) is a north–south United States Highway that is a spur route of U.S. Route 77. It no longer connects to its parent route, US 77, although it does intersect another one of its spurs ( U.S. Route 377). It runs ...

Adjacent counties

* Schleicher County (north) * Kimble County (east) *

Edwards County Edwards County is the name of several counties in the United States: *Edwards County, Illinois *Edwards County, Kansas *Edwards County, Texas Edwards County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the ...

(south) *

Val Verde County Val Verde County is a county located on the southern Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population is 47,586. Its county seat is Del Rio. The Del Rio micropolitan statistical area includes all of Val Verde County. Val ...

(southwest) *

(west) * Menard County (northeast)

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 4,077 people, 1,515 households, and 1,145 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...

was . There were 1,998 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 45.28%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.25%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.42% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 2.27% from other races, and 1.62% from two or more races. 49.99% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 1,515 households, out of which 38.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.60% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 7.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.40% were non-families. 22.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.60% 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 3.15. In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.80% under the age of 18, 6.70% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 24.40% from 45 to 64, and 12.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 99.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.00 males. The median income for a household in the county was $34,385, and the median income for a family was $38,143. Males had a median income of $31,193 versus $18,587 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $17,105. About 14.10% of families and 18.00% 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 25.20% of those under age 18 and 16.10% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Sutton County is served by the

Sonora Independent School District Sonora Independent School District is a public school district based in Sonora, Texas, Sonora, Texas (United States, USA). The district's boundaries parallel that of Sutton County, Texas, Sutton County. In 2009, the school district was rated ...

based in

Communities

City

(county seat)

Ghost towns

* Fort Terrett * Owenville

Politics

Sutton County is very conservative in national politics. In 2016, it gave 76% of its vote to Republican candidate

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

. It last supported a Democrat in 1964, when Texan

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

was the Democratic candidate. However, this was not always the case. In fact, in 1916, the Democratic candidate received 10 times as many votes as the Republican. It hasn't supported a Democrat in Texas gubernatorial elections since 1974, when

Dolph Briscoe Dolph Briscoe Jr. (April 23, 1923 – June 27, 2010) was an American rancher and businessman from Uvalde, Texas, who was the 41st governor of Texas between 1973 and 1979. He was a member of the Democratic Party. Because of his re-election fo ...

, the Democrat, carried all but five counties in the state.

References

External links

Sutton County government's website
*
Sutton County Profile from the Texas Association of Counties
{{authority control 1890 establishments in Texas Populated places established in 1890 Texas Hill Country Majority-minority counties in Texas