Real County, Texas

Real County
Real County
County
	The Real County Courthouse in Leakey, built in 1918 from local limestone, and renovated in 1978
	Location within the U.S. state of Texas
	Texas's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 29°50′N 99°49′W / 29.84°N 99.81°W
Country	United States
State	Texas
Founded	1913
Named for	Julius Real
Seat	Leakey
Largest city	Camp Wood
Area
• Total	700 sq mi (2,000 km2)
• Land	699 sq mi (1,810 km2)
• Water	0.9 sq mi (2 km2) 0.1%
Population (2020)
• Total	2,758
• Density	3.9/sq mi (1.5/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	21st
Website	www.co.real.tx.us

Real County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 2,758.^[1] The county seat is Leakey.^[2] The county is named for Julius Real (1860–1944), a former member of the Texas State Senate. The Alto Frio Baptist Encampment is located in an isolated area of Real County southeast of Leakey.

History

1762–1771: Looking for protection from Comanches, Lipan Apache chief El Gran Cabezón persuades Franciscans and the Spanish military to establish San Lorenzo de la Santa Cruz Mission on the Nueces River. The mission was abandoned in 1771^[3]
1856: John and Nancy Leakey settle in Frio Canyon.^[4]
1857: The original Camp Wood is established on the Nueces River near the site of the former San Lorenzo mission.^[5]
1864: Lipan Apaches attack the family of George Schwander in the abandoned ruins of the San Lorenzo mission.^[6]
1868: Theophilus Watkins, F. Smith and Newman Patterson construct a gravity flow irrigation canal from the Frio River that operates for a century.^[7]^[8]
1879: Indians attack and kill Jennie Coalson, wife of Nic Coalson, and two children at Half Moon Prairie.^[9]
1881: Lipan Apaches strike the McLauren home at Buzzard's Roost in the Frio Canyon. Last Indian raid in southwest Texas.^[10]
1910: Crop farming declines in the county, livestock ranching gains prominence, in particular angora goats.^[9]
1913: On April 3,^[11] the Texas state legislature establishes Real County from parts of Edwards, Bandera, and Kerr counties. Leakey is the county seat.^[9]
1920: Camp Wood township is founded and becomes a railroad terminus to transport heart cedar.^[12]
1924: Charles A. Lindbergh lands in Real County.^[13]^[14]
1948: Farm to Market Road 337 is completed.^[9]^[15]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 700 square miles (1,800 km²), of which 699 square miles (1,810 km²) is land and 0.9 square miles (2.3 km²) (0.1%) is water.^[16]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Edwards County (west)
Kerr County (northeast)
Bandera County (east)
Uvalde County (south)

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1920	1,461	—
1930	2,197	50.4%
1940	2,420	10.2%
1950	2,479	2.4%
1960	2,079	−16.1%
1970	2,013	−3.2%
1980	2,469	22.7%
1990	2,412	−2.3%
2000	3,047	26.3%
2010	3,309	8.6%
2020	2,758	−16.7%
U.S. Decennial Census^[17] 1850–2010^[18] 2010^[19] 2020^[20]

**Real County, Texas – Racial and ethnic composition**
*Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.*
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2010^[19]	Pop 2020^[20]	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	2,398	1,940	72.47%	70.34%
Black or African American alone (NH)	20	22	0.60%	0.80%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	23	8	0.70%	0.29%
Asian alone (NH)	2	12	0.06%	0.44%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	12	3	0.36%	0.11%
Other Race alone (NH)	1	2	0.03%	0.07%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	39	79	1.18%	2.86%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	814	692	24.60%	25.09%
Total	3,309	2,758	100.00%	100.00%

As of the census^[21] of 2000, 3,047 people, 1,245 households, and 869 families resided in the county. The population density was 4/sq mi (1.5/km²). The 2,007 housing units averaged 3/sq mi (1.2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.40% White, 0.20% Black or African American, 0.62% Native American, 0.20% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 6.01% from other races, and 1.54% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were about 22.58% of the population.

Of the 1,245 households, 26.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.40% were married couples living together, 7.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.20% were not families. About 28.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.88.

In the county, the population was distributed as 23.40% under the age of 18, 5.40% from 18 to 24, 21.50% from 25 to 44, 28.80% from 45 to 64, and 20.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $25,118, and for a family was $29,839. Males had a median income of $21,076 versus $18,352 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,321. About 17.40% of families and 21.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.60% of those under age 18 and 15.00% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Camp Wood
Leakey (county seat)

Unincorporated community

Rio Frio

Politics

United States presidential election results for Real County, Texas^[22]
Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	1,643	82.90%	320	16.15%	19	0.96%
2016	1,382	82.21%	262	15.59%	37	2.20%
2012	1,236	80.52%	277	18.05%	22	1.43%
2008	1,238	76.04%	375	23.03%	15	0.92%
2004	1,314	79.88%	325	19.76%	6	0.36%
2000	1,146	76.91%	316	21.21%	28	1.88%
1996	845	58.40%	414	28.61%	188	12.99%
1992	787	47.99%	463	28.23%	390	23.78%
1988	795	61.58%	483	37.41%	13	1.01%
1984	1,004	73.34%	360	26.30%	5	0.37%
1980	832	57.26%	603	41.50%	18	1.24%
1976	448	46.23%	510	52.63%	11	1.14%
1972	483	75.23%	150	23.36%	9	1.40%
1968	290	41.25%	277	39.40%	136	19.35%
1964	255	34.32%	487	65.55%	1	0.13%
1960	377	57.73%	273	41.81%	3	0.46%
1956	350	64.70%	191	35.30%	0	0.00%
1952	450	59.76%	303	40.24%	0	0.00%
1948	156	25.32%	446	72.40%	14	2.27%
1944	163	29.69%	326	59.38%	60	10.93%
1940	126	21.76%	453	78.24%	0	0.00%
1936	55	20.75%	210	79.25%	0	0.00%
1932	89	20.99%	335	79.01%	0	0.00%
1928	479	83.02%	98	16.98%	0	0.00%
1924	300	60.24%	188	37.75%	10	2.01%
1920	111	35.92%	177	57.28%	21	6.80%
1916	14	4.93%	242	85.21%	28	9.86%

Education

School districts include:^[23]

The designated community college is Southwest Texas Junior College.^[24]

References

^ "Real County, Texas". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
^ Chipman, Donald E. "San Lorenzo de la Santa Cruz Mission". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ "John Leakey". Texas State Historical Markers. William Nienke, Sam Morrow. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ Minton, John. "Original Camp Wood". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ Michno, Gregory and Susan (2007). A Fate Worse Than Death: Indian Captivities in the West 1830-1885. Caxton Press. p. 253. ISBN 978-0-87004-451-9.
^ Lewis, Sallie. "Theophilus Watkins". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ Minton, John. "Rio Frio, Texas". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Minton, John. "Real County, Texas". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ "Site of McLauren Massacre - Leakey, Real County, Texas". Texas State Historical Markers. William Nienke, Sam Morrow. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ "The Formation of Real County" Archived December 7, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
^ Minton, John. "Camp Wood Township". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ Cox, Mike. "Lindbergh". Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ "Charles A. Lindbergh in Texas - Camp Wood, Real County, Texas". Texas State Historical Markers. William Nienke, Sam Morrow. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ "FM337". Texas Escapes. Texas Escapes - Blueprints For Travel, LLC. Retrieved December 16, 2010.
^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2015.
^ "Decennial Census by Decade". US Census Bureau.
^ "Texas Almanac: Population History of Counties from 1850–2010" (PDF). Texas Almanac. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved May 9, 2015.
^ ^a ^b "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Real County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
^ ^a ^b "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Real County, Texas". United States Census Bureau.
^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Real County, TX" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved June 30, 2022. - Text list
^ Texas Education Code: Sec. 130.200. SOUTHWEST TEXAS JUNIOR COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.