Waskom, Texas

Waskom, Texas
City
Waskom Volunteer Fire Department facility
Location of Waskom, Texas
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	Texas
County	Harrison
Area
• Total	2.8 sq mi (7.1 km2)
• Land	2.8 sq mi (7.1 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	285 ft (87 m)
Population (2000)
• Total	2,068
• Density	750.0/sq mi (289.6/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	75692
Area code(s)	903
FIPS code	48-76636
GNIS feature ID	1349531

Waskom is a city in Harrison County, Texas, United States. It lies about 20 miles (32 km) east of the county seat, Marshall, on U.S. Route 80. To the east is Shreveport, Louisiana. The population was 2,068 at the 2000 census with a United States Census Bureau 2005 population estimate of 2,129 citizens.

History

Waskom was established in 1871 as a midway point of an east-west (Dallas to Shreveport) cattle and cotton economic travelway to the Red River in Louisiana, some 20 miles (32 km) east. In 1872, it became a main railroad station between Dallas and Shreveport to the west and east respectively and Texarkana to the north. A major railway still travels through Waskom. Today, Waskom sits on I-20 that connects the Carolinas to southwest Texas and Mexico.

Geography

Waskom is located at (32.478416, -94.063769). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.8 square miles (7.3 km²), all land.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1940	564		—
1950	719		27.5%
1960	1,336		85.8%
1970	1,460		9.3%
1980	1,821		24.7%
1990	1,812		−0.5%
2000	2,068		14.1%
2010	2,160		4.4%
Est. 2014	2,170		0.5%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,068 people, 790 households, and 571 families residing in the city. The population density was 750.0 people per square mile (289.3/km²). There were 894 housing units at an average density of 324.2 per square mile (125.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 75.05% White, 15.76% African American, 0.63% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 7.16% from other races, and 1.26% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.86% of the population.

There were 790 households out of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.9% were married couples living together, 15.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.6% were non-families. 24.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the city the population was spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 12.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 99.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,737, and the median income for a family was $32,243. Males had a median income of $29,625 versus $18,859 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,080. About 19.4% of families and 24.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 35.5% of those under age 18 and 14.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The City of Waskom is served by the Waskom Independent School District.

Notable people

• Junior Moore, baseball player.

External links

• City of Waskom