Beeville, Texas
Encyclopedia
Beeville is a city in Bee County
, Texas
, United States
. The population was 13,129 at the 2000 census
. It is the county seat
of Bee County. It is the site of a community college
, Coastal Bend College
.
Many of the stately homes, commercial buildings, and schools in and around Beeville, including the Bee County Courthouse
, were designed by the architect
William Charles Stephenson, who came to Beeville in 1908 from Buffalo
, New York
.
, who served as Secretary of State and Secretary of War for the Republic of Texas
. It was then called "Beeville-on-the-Poesta", with a nearby community "Beeville-on-the-Medio" seven miles (11 km) to the west. In 1859, Beeville's first post office
opened.
In 1880, the population was about three hundred. In 1886, the first railroad came to town, and the population exceeded one thousand by the end of the decade
.
Beeville was incorporated as a town in 1890, but the incorporation was dissolved the following year. In 1900, the population was 2,311. Beeville was reincorporated as a town in 1908.
In 1920, the population was 3,062. The town streets were paved in 1921. The Rialto Theater, one of the Beeville structures designed by W.C. Stephenson, cost $25,000. On Saturday, August 19, 1922, it opened with the silent film
The Three Musketeers
starring Douglas Fairbanks, Sr.. Admission was twenty-five cents for adults and ten cents for children. The theater is now used for special occasions, not the general running of motion pictures.
The Texas oil boom brought new residents to town, and in 1930 the population was 4,806. In 1950, the Beeville population was 9,348.
The United States Navy
operated the Beeville Naval Air Station, which trained Navy airplane
pilots during World War II
from 1943 through 1946. The base was reopened in 1952 as Naval Air Station Chase Field
, continuing in operation until 1992.
In 1967, the town was inundated by 30 inches (762 mm) of rain during Hurricane Beulah
.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 6.1 square miles (15.8 km²), all of it land.
, there were 13,129 people, 4,697 households and 3,287 families residing in the city. The population density
was 2,149.7 per square mile (829.6/km²). There were 5,539 housing units at an average density of 906.9 per square mile (350.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 72.08% White, 2.87% African American, 0.59% Native American, 0.69% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 20.63% from other races
, and 3.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 67.67% of the population.
There were 4,697 households of which 39.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples
living together, 19.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.0% were non-families. 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.30.
31.1% of the population were under the age of 18, 11.1% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 89.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.5 males.
The median household income
was $25,475 and the median family income was $27,794. Males had a median income of $26,761 versus $20,411 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $11,027. About 26.5% of families and 30.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 40.8% of those under age 18 and 24.4% of those age 65 or over.
operates the Correctional Institutions Division Region IV Office on the grounds of Naval Air Station Chase Field
in unincorporated
Bee County
, near Beeville. In addition, Garza East Unit and Garza West Unit
, transfer facilities, are co-located on the grounds of the naval air station, and the McConnell Unit is also in an unincorporated area in Bee County. The Beeville Distribution Center is on the grounds of the air station.
and Coastal Bend College
.
Bee County, Texas
Bee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. Bee County was founded December 8, 1857. As of 2010, the population was 31,861. Its county seat is Beeville. Bee County is named for Barnard E...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 13,129 at the 2000 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
. It is the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Bee County. It is the site of a community college
Community college
A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries.-Australia:Community colleges carry on the tradition of adult education, which was established in Australia around mid 19th century when evening classes were held to help adults...
, Coastal Bend College
Coastal Bend College
Coastal Bend College is a community college which has its main campus in Beeville, Texas, and which operates branch campuses in Alice, Kingsville, and Pleasanton, Texas....
.
Many of the stately homes, commercial buildings, and schools in and around Beeville, including the Bee County Courthouse
Courthouse
A courthouse is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English speaking countries, buildings which house courts of law are simply...
, were designed by the architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
William Charles Stephenson, who came to Beeville in 1908 from Buffalo
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
History and culture
The site was first settled by the Burke, Carroll and Heffernan families in the 1830s. It was first named "Maryville" for Mary Heffernan, then renamed "Beeville" after Barnard E. Bee, Sr.Barnard E. Bee, Sr.
Barnard Elliot Bee, Sr. was an early settler and political leader in the Republic of Texas.Barnard Bee was born in Charleston, South Carolina, the son of Thomas Bee who was a delegate to the Continental Congress. He studied law, and served on the staff of his brother-in-law, governor James...
, who served as Secretary of State and Secretary of War for the Republic of Texas
Republic of Texas
The Republic of Texas was an independent nation in North America, bordering the United States and Mexico, that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the state claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S...
. It was then called "Beeville-on-the-Poesta", with a nearby community "Beeville-on-the-Medio" seven miles (11 km) to the west. In 1859, Beeville's first post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
opened.
In 1880, the population was about three hundred. In 1886, the first railroad came to town, and the population exceeded one thousand by the end of the decade
Decade
A decade is a period of 10 years. The word is derived from the Ancient Greek dekas which means ten. This etymology is sometime confused with the Latin decas and dies , which is not correct....
.
Beeville was incorporated as a town in 1890, but the incorporation was dissolved the following year. In 1900, the population was 2,311. Beeville was reincorporated as a town in 1908.
In 1920, the population was 3,062. The town streets were paved in 1921. The Rialto Theater, one of the Beeville structures designed by W.C. Stephenson, cost $25,000. On Saturday, August 19, 1922, it opened with the silent film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers (film)
The Three Musketeers, the novel by author Alexandre Dumas, père, has been the subject of numerous films and cartoons:-Films:*The Three Musketeers, a 1903 French production about which virtually nothing is known...
starring Douglas Fairbanks, Sr.. Admission was twenty-five cents for adults and ten cents for children. The theater is now used for special occasions, not the general running of motion pictures.
The Texas oil boom brought new residents to town, and in 1930 the population was 4,806. In 1950, the Beeville population was 9,348.
The United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
operated the Beeville Naval Air Station, which trained Navy airplane
Fixed-wing aircraft
A fixed-wing aircraft is an aircraft capable of flight using wings that generate lift due to the vehicle's forward airspeed. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft in which wings rotate about a fixed mast and ornithopters in which lift is generated by flapping wings.A powered...
pilots during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
from 1943 through 1946. The base was reopened in 1952 as Naval Air Station Chase Field
Naval Air Station Chase Field
Chase Field Industrial Complex , formerly Naval Air Station Chase Field, is a former naval air station located in unincorporated Bee County, Texas, southeast of Beeville...
, continuing in operation until 1992.
In 1967, the town was inundated by 30 inches (762 mm) of rain during Hurricane Beulah
Hurricane Beulah
Hurricane Beulah was the second tropical storm, second hurricane, and only major hurricane during the 1967 Atlantic hurricane season. It tracked through the Caribbean, struck the Yucatán peninsula of Mexico as a major hurricane, and moved west-northwest into the Gulf of Mexico, briefly gaining...
.
Geography
Beeville is located at 28°24′20"N 97°45′3"W (28.405498, -97.750757).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 6.1 square miles (15.8 km²), all of it land.
Demographics
At the 2000 censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, there were 13,129 people, 4,697 households and 3,287 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 2,149.7 per square mile (829.6/km²). There were 5,539 housing units at an average density of 906.9 per square mile (350.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 72.08% White, 2.87% African American, 0.59% Native American, 0.69% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 20.63% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 3.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 67.67% of the population.
There were 4,697 households of which 39.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 19.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.0% were non-families. 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.30.
31.1% of the population were under the age of 18, 11.1% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 89.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.5 males.
The median household income
Median household income
The median household income is commonly used to generate data about geographic areas and divides households into two equal segments with the first half of households earning less than the median household income and the other half earning more...
was $25,475 and the median family income was $27,794. Males had a median income of $26,761 versus $20,411 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $11,027. About 26.5% of families and 30.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 40.8% of those under age 18 and 24.4% of those age 65 or over.
Government and infrastructure
The Texas Department of Criminal JusticeTexas Department of Criminal Justice
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice is a department of the government of the state of Texas. The TDCJ is responsible for statewide criminal justice for adult offenders, including managing offenders in state prisons, state jails and private correctional facilities, funding and certain...
operates the Correctional Institutions Division Region IV Office on the grounds of Naval Air Station Chase Field
Naval Air Station Chase Field
Chase Field Industrial Complex , formerly Naval Air Station Chase Field, is a former naval air station located in unincorporated Bee County, Texas, southeast of Beeville...
in unincorporated
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
Bee County
Bee County, Texas
Bee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. Bee County was founded December 8, 1857. As of 2010, the population was 31,861. Its county seat is Beeville. Bee County is named for Barnard E...
, near Beeville. In addition, Garza East Unit and Garza West Unit
Garza West Unit
Garza West Unit is a correctional transfer unit on the grounds of Chase Field Industrial Complex in unincorporated Bee County, Texas, United States, east of the city of Beeville...
, transfer facilities, are co-located on the grounds of the naval air station, and the McConnell Unit is also in an unincorporated area in Bee County. The Beeville Distribution Center is on the grounds of the air station.
Education
Beeville is served by the Beeville Independent School DistrictBeeville Independent School District
Beeville Independent School District is a public school district based in Beeville, Texas .Beeville serves central Bee County, including the city of Beeville and the unincorporated community of Blue Berry Hill....
and Coastal Bend College
Coastal Bend College
Coastal Bend College is a community college which has its main campus in Beeville, Texas, and which operates branch campuses in Alice, Kingsville, and Pleasanton, Texas....
.
Notable people
- Rudy JaramilloRudy JaramilloRudolpho "Rudy" Jaramillo [ha-dah-MEE-yoh] is the hitting coach for the Chicago Cubs. During his time with the Texas Rangers, Jaramillo was the first individual in Rangers history to serve more than eight seasons on their major league coaching staff. He served as the Texas Rangers' major league...
, Major League BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
player and coach - Cyndi Taylor KrierCyndi Taylor KrierCynthia Taylor Krier, known as Cyndi Taylor Krier , is an attorney, lobbyist, and former Republican politician in San Antonio, Texas. She served in the Texas State Senate from District 26 from 1985 to 1993 and as the administrative judge of Bexar County from 1993 to 2001...
, San Antonio politician, was born in Beeville in 1950. - Debra Medina, a candidate for the 2010 RepublicanRepublican Party (United States)The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
gubernatorial nominationNominationNomination is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to an office, or the bestowing of an honor or award.In the context of elections for public office, a candidate who has been selected by a political party is normally said to be the nominee of that party... - Mary Ann Rafferty, Fox News presenter and reporter
- Eddie TaubenseeEddie TaubenseeEdward Kenneth Taubensee is a former catcher in Major League Baseball.Taubensee played for three different ballclubs during his career: the Cleveland Indians , Houston Astros , and Cincinnati Reds . He made his major league debut on May 18, 1991, and played his final game on October 7, 2001...
, Major League BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
player