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Van Horn, Texas
Town
Van Horn in 2018
Van HornLocation of Van Horn in Texas and the USShow map of TexasVan HornVan Horn (the United States)Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 31°2′33″N 104°49′59″W / 31.04250°N 104.83306°W / 31.04250; -104.83306
Country	United States
State	Texas
County	Culberson
Area
• Total	2.84 sq mi (7.35 km)
• Land	2.84 sq mi (7.35 km)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km)
Elevation	4,042 ft (1,232 m)
Population
• Total	1,941
• Density	683.45/sq mi (264.08/km)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
ZIP Code	79855
Area code	432
FIPS code	48-75032
GNIS feature ID	1370571
Website	Official website

Van Horn is a town in and the seat of Culberson County, Texas, United States. According to the 2010 census, Van Horn had a population of 2,063, down from 2,435 at the 2000 census. The 2020 census results detailed a decline in population to 1,941. Van Horn's official newspaper is The Van Horn Advocate. The town is the westernmost incorporated community in the United States that uses the Central Time Zone, located on the same line of longitude as Cheyenne, Wyoming, and Colorado Springs, Colorado. Its earliest sunset in the beginning of December is the latest among incorporated towns in the United States, occurring no earlier than 5:56 pm.

History

Anglo-Texan settlement began in the late 1850s and early 1860s supportive of the San Antonio-El Paso Overland Mail route. Although U.S. Army Major Jefferson Van Horne is believed to have passed near the area in 1849 on his way to take command of what would later become Fort Bliss, the town is instead named for Lt. James Judson Van Horn who commanded an army garrison at the Van Horn Wells beginning in 1859. Lt. Van Horn's command was relatively short-lived, as the post was seized by Confederate forces in 1861 and Lt. Van Horn taken prisoner. Settlement was further stimulated by the construction of the Texas and Pacific Railway in 1881. The town has several buildings on the National Register of Historic Places including the First Presbyterian Church (now Primera Iglesia Bautista), built in 1901.

Geography

Van Horn is located in southwestern Culberson County at 31°2′33″N 104°49′59″W / 31.04250°N 104.83306°W / 31.04250; -104.83306 (31.042489, –104.832928). Interstate 10 passes through the town, leading east 120 miles (190 km) to Fort Stockton and northwest 118 miles (190 km) to El Paso. Van Horn is the western terminus of U.S. Route 90; from Van Horn it leads southeast 73 miles (117 km) to Marfa. Texas State Highway 54 leads north from Van Horn 65 miles (105 km) to Pine Springs and the Guadalupe Mountains.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 2.8 square miles (7.3 km), all land. Threemile Peak, elevation 4,868 feet (1,484 m), rises to the northwest overlooking the town.

• The old Eagle Field, before the 2014 construction of the new stadium, with Threemile Peak in the background
• Threemile Peak, with a white "V" for Van Horn on it

Climate

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,941 people, 607 households, and 339 families residing in the town.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, 2,435 people, 834 households, and 652 families resided in the town. The population density was 846.9 inhabitants per square mile (327.0/km). The 976 housing units averaged 339.5 per square mile (130.8/km). The racial makeup of the town was 64.6% White, 0.7% African American, 0.6% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 31.5% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 78.6% of the population.

Government

The United States Postal Service operates the Van Horn Post Office.

Education

Van Horn is served by the Culberson County-Allamoore Independent School District and is home to the Van Horn High School Eagles.

Transportation

Major highways

• I-10: Interstate Highway 10 runs along the south side of town, leading west 117 miles (188 km) to El Paso and east 430 miles (692 km) to San Antonio. The western terminus of I-20 can also be accessed 47 miles (76 km) to the east.
• SH 54: Texas State Highway 54 runs north from town, initially following La Caverna St., leading 55 miles (89 km) north to intersect with U.S. Route 62 and access to Guadalupe Mountains National Park.
• US 90: U.S. Route 90 has its western terminus at W Broadway St. (signed Bus. I-10-D). It initially follows Van Horn Dr. south out of town, leading southeast 74 miles (119 km) to Marfa and ultimately meeting back up with I-10 455 miles (732 km) away in San Antonio.

Rail

• Union Pacific Railroad

Bus

• Greyhound Lines stops at a Super 8 at the west end of Bus. I-10-D.

Airports

• El Paso International Airport (IATA: ELP, ICAO: KELP, FAA LID: ELP) is the airport with the closest commercial airline service, 116 miles (187 km) to the northwest.

• Culberson County Airport (IATA: VHN, ICAO: KVHN, FAA LID: VHN) is a county-owned public-use airport 3 miles (5 km) to the northeast.

Space tourism

In late 2006, The Wall Street Journal reported that Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon, had acquired 290,000 acres (1,200 km) of land 25 miles (40 km) north of Van Horn, including the Figure 2 Ranch Airport, to house his fledgling space tourism company, Blue Origin. A 2006 article on Space.com reported that Blue Origin was expected to start commercial operations as early as 2010, aiming for 52 launches per year from the Van Horn facility. This spaceport is named Corn Ranch.

In early 2010, NASA awarded Blue Origin US$3.7 million to work on an advanced technology, which detaches a crew cabin from its launcher if the shuttle malfunctions.

An August 2016 update reported Blue Origin was still conducting test flights with plans to begin flying piloted tests in 2017 and paying customers in 2018. Blue Origin's actual first human launch from, and return to, Van Horn occurred on the morning of July 20, 2021, with a crew of four people.

10,000-year clock

In 2009, the Van Horn Advocate announced that the Long Now Foundation was starting geologic testing for an underground space to house a 10,000-year Clock of the Long Now, on the Bezos ranch, north of Van Horn.

Popular culture

Van Horn provided the inspiration for the 2019 song "Van Horn" by alternative-rock band Saint Motel which was featured on their EP The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack: Part 1 after the band spent a night there on a recent tour.

Famed football coach John Madden put Chuy's Restaurant on the national map after a 1987 stop with his Madden Cruiser bus.

Gallery

• Threemile Mountain (on the left), looking northwest (USGS photo by George B. Richardson, 1913)
• Similar view of Threemile Mountain (left) and Beach Mountains (right) in 2008
• Culberson County Hospital and Van Horn Rural Health Clinic (2013)
• 12,800 acre Sierra Diablo Ranch north of Van Horn

See also

• Guadalupe Mountains National Park
• Guadalupe Mountains
• Kent, Texas
• McKittrick Canyon
• Sierra Blanca, Texas
• West Texas
• Beach Mountains

Explanatory notes

1. 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 can be of any race.

References

1. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
2. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
3. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
4. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
5. ^ "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (G001): Van Horn Town, Texas". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
6. "Sunrise and sunset times in Town of van Horn, December 2023".
7. "Anglo-American Colonization". The Handbook of Texas Online.
8. "San Antonio-El Paso Mail". The Handbook of Texas Online. For more on the establishment of this route, see United States Army, Corps of Topographical Engineers; Eggleston Johnston, Joseph; Bryan, Francis T.; Marcy, Randolph Barnes; Smith, William F.; Michler, N. H.; French, S. G.; Whiting, W. H. C.; Simpson, James H. (1850). Reports of the Secretary of War: with Reconnaissances of Routes from San Antonio to El Paso. Washington, DC: Union Office. Retrieved May 22, 2009.
9. Regarding prisoner exchanges including Lt. Van Horn see January 26, 1862, correspondence from J. P. Benjamin to Major General Benjamin Huger in United States War Department (1891). The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (Volume III). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office. p. 782 (and others). Retrieved May 21, 2009.
10. "Van Horn, Texas". The Handbook of Texas Online.
11. "Van Horne, Jefferson". The Handbook of Texas Online.
12. Cullum, George Washington; Holden, Edward Singleton (1891). Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.: From Its Establishment, in 1802, to 1890; with the Early History of the United States Military Academy. Boston: Houghton, Mifflin & Company. p. 400. Retrieved May 21, 2009.
13. "US Gazetteer Files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
14. "NOWData - NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
15. "Summary of Monthly Normals 1991-2020". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
16. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
17. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
18. https://www.census.gov/
19. "About the Hispanic Population and its Origin". www.census.gov. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
20. "Post Office Location - VAN HORN Archived 2012-05-13 at the Wayback Machine." United States Postal Service. Retrieved on January 6, 2010.
21. David, Leonard (July 5, 2006). "Tourism Update: Jeff Bezos? Spaceship Plans Revealed". Space.com. Retrieved May 15, 2008.
22. Gómez Licón, Adriana (March 14, 2010). "Van Horn Spaceport Gets NASA Backing". El Paso Times. Retrieved March 17, 2010.
23. McCormick, Rich (March 9, 2016). "Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin Plans to Start Taking Tourists into Space in 2018". The Verge. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
24. Cofield, Calla (July 20, 2016). "Blue Origin's Crew Capsule Aced Parachute-Failure Test, Jeff Bezos Says". Space.com. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
25. Wattles, Jackie; Sangal, Aditi; Macaya, Melissa; Mahtani, Melissa; Wagner, Meg; Vogt, Adrienne (July 20, 2021). "Jeff Bezos Goes to Space". CNN. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
26. "Clock Project to Begin Near Van Horn, Texas". LongNow.org. Retrieved January 17, 2010.
27. "Saint Motel Break Down 'The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack: Part 1': Exclusive". Billboard. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
28. "The Van Horn restaurant John Madden turned into a national favorite". YourBasin. November 7, 2021. Retrieved December 29, 2021.

External links

• Official website
• Van Horn Advocate, local newspaper
• Van Horn in the Handbook of Texas
• Historic Photographs of Van Horn from the Clark Hotel Museum, hosted by the Portal to Texas History
• Clark Hotel Historical Museum at the Wayback Machine (archived May 6, 2013)

v t e Municipalities and communities of Culberson County, Texas, United States
County seat: Van Horn
Town	Van Horn
Unincorporated communities	Kent Nickel Creek Pine Springs Plateau State Line Wild Horse
Ghost towns	Boracho Lobo
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