Dallas County, Texas
U.S. County|
county = Dallas County|
founded = March 30, 1846|
state = Texas |
map = Map of Texas highlighting Dallas County.png |
map size = 250|
seat =
Dallas | area = 909
mi² (2,353
km²) |
area land = 880 mi² (2,278 km²) |
area water = 29 mi² (75 km²) |
area percentage = 3.19% |
census yr = 2004|
pop = 2,294,706 |
density = 974|
web = www.dallascounty.org|}}
Dallas County is a
county located in the
U.S. state of
Texas within the
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metropolitan area (colloquially referred to as the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex). As of the
2000 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 2.2 million (though a
2004 estimate placed the population at 2.3 million) and is now the
ninth most populous county in the
United States.
Its
county seat is
Dallas6, which is also the largest city in the county. Dallas County is the most populous county within the metropolitan area and contains the largest of its principal cities. The county was named in honor of
George Mifflin Dallas, the eleventh
vice president of the United States.
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 909
mi² (2,353
km²). 880 mi² (2,278 km²) of it is land and 29 mi² (75 km²) of it (3.19%) is water.
Adjacent counties
*
Collin County (north)
*
Rockwall County (northeast)
*
Kaufman County (east)
*
Ellis County (south)
*
Tarrant County (west)
*
Denton County (northwest)
As of the
census² of 2000, there were 2,218,899 people, 807,621 households, and 533,837 families residing in the county. The
population density was 2,523/mi² (974/km²). There were 854,119 housing units at an average density of 971/mi² (375/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 58.35%
White, 20.31%
Black or
African American, 0.56%
Native American, 3.98%
Asian, 0.06%
Pacific Islander, 14.04% from
other races, and 2.70% from two or more races. 29.87% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race.
There were 807,621 households out of which 35.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.90% were
married couples living together, 14.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.90% were non-families. 27.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.34.
In the county, the population was spread out with 27.90% under the age of 18, 10.70% from 18 to 24, 34.40% from 25 to 44, 18.90% from 45 to 64, and 8.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 99.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.00 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $43,324, and the median income for a family was $49,062. Males had a median income of $34,988 versus $29,539 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $22,603. About 10.60% of families and 13.40% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 18.00% of those under age 18 and 10.50% of those age 65 or over.
† Only a portion of this city extends into Dallas County
Historical communities
*
Bird's Foot*
Buckingham (Annexed by
Richardson in
1996)
*Embree (merged into
Garland in
1887)
*Fruitdale (annexed by Dallas in
1964)
*Duck Creek (merged into
Garland in
1887)
*
Long Creek (Merged into
Sunnyvale in
1953)
*
Hatterville (Merged into
Sunnyvale in
1953)
*
New Hope (Merged into
Sunnyvale in
1953 - not to be confused with the
Collin County town of the same name)
*
Oak Cliff (Annexed by
Dallas in
1903)
*
Tripp (Merged into
Sunnyvale in
1953)
*
County of Dallas*Sketch of the
Dallas County Courthouse from
A pictorial history of Texas, from the earliest visits of European adventurers, to A.D. 1879, hosted by the
Portal to Texas History.
*
History of Dallas County, Texas: from 1837 to 1887 by John Henry Brown, published 1887, hosted by the
Portal to Texas History.
