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Dallas County
County
From top, left to right: Dallas panorama, Dallas Hall in University Park, Texas, former Dallas County Courthouse with the Texas flag in 2017, Las Colinas in Irving
Flag
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Texas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 32°46′N 96°47′W / 32.77°N 96.78°W / 32.77; -96.78
Country	United States
State	Texas
Founded	March 30, 1846
Named for	George M. Dallas
Seat	Dallas
Largest city	Dallas
Area
• Total	909 sq mi (2,350 km)
• Land	873 sq mi (2,260 km)
• Water	36 sq mi (90 km)  4.0%
Population
• Estimate	2,635,516
• Density	2,999/sq mi (1,139/km)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional districts	5th, 24th, 30th, 32nd, 33rd
Website	www.dallascounty.org

Dallas County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas, the state's second-most populous county, and the eighth-most populous in the United States. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the population was 2,368,139; in 2019 it was estimated to have 2,635,516 inhabitants.

Its county seat is the city of Dallas, which is also Texas' third-largest city and the ninth-largest city in the United States. The county was founded in 1846 and was possibly named for George Mifflin Dallas, the 11th Vice President of the United States under U.S. President James K. Polk.

Dallas County is included in the Dallas-Arlington-Fort Worth metropolitan statistical area (colloquially referred to as the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex).

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 909 square miles (2,350 km), of which 873 square miles (2,260 km) is land and 36 square miles (93 km) (4.0%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Denton County (northwest)
• Collin County (north)
• Rockwall County (east)
• Kaufman County (southeast)
• Ellis County (south)
• Johnson County (southwest)
• Tarrant County (west)

Demographics

2010

Per the 2010 census, there were 2,368,139 people, 807,621 households, and 533,837 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,523 people per square mile (974/km). There were 854,119 housing units at an average density of 971/sq mi (375/km). The racial makeup of the county was 53.4% White (33.12% non-Hispanic white), 22.30% Black or African American, 0.10% Native American, 5.15% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 14.04% from other races, and 2.70% from two or more races. 38.30% 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. As of the 2010 census, there were about 8.8 same-sex couples per 1,000 households in the county.

In the wider 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 US$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.

2014-2018

During the 2015 Texas population estimate program, the population of the county was 2,541,528; non-Hispanic whites made up 713,835 of the county's residents (28.1%); non-Hispanic blacks, 565,020 (22.2%); other non-Hispanics, 197,082 (7.7%); and Hispanics and Latinos (of any race), 1,065,591 (41.9%).

In 2018, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated Dallas County to have a total of 2,637,772 residents, 1,027,930 housing units, and 917,276 households. 24.3% of the county were foreign born residents. 28.6% of the county was non-Hispanic white, 23.5% Black or African American, 1.1% American Indian or Alaska Native, 6.7% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.9% from two or more races, and 40.5% Hispanic or Latin American of any race.

The median value of owner-occupied housing units was $161,500 and the monthly cost with a mortgage was $1,539 in 2018. Without a mortgage a monthly housing payment was $575. The median gross rent of county residents was $1,046 and the owner-occupied housing rate was 50.1% from 2014 to 2018.

There was an average of 2.79 persons per household from 2014 to 2018. 47.8% of Dallas County was male and 52.2% was female. The median age was 33.5 years.

Dallas County's median household income was $56,854 and about 14.2% of the populace lived below the poverty line.

Government, courts and politics

Government

Dallas County, like all counties in Texas, is governed by a commissioners' court. This court consists of the county judge (the chairperson of the court), who is elected county-wide, and four commissioners who are elected by the voters in each of four precincts.

The Commissioners' Court is the policy-making body for the county; in addition, the county judge is the senior executive and administrative position in the county. The Commissioners' Court sets the county tax rate, adopts the budget, appoints boards and commissions, approves grants and personnel actions, and oversees the administration of county government. Each commissioner also supervises a Road and Bridge District. The Commissioners Court also approves the budget and sets the tax rate for the hospital district, which is charged with the responsibility for providing acute medical care for citizens who otherwise would not receive adequate medical services.

County Commissioners

County Officials

Constables

Justices of the Peace

Courts

County Criminal Courts

County Criminal Courts of Appeals

County Civil Courts

County Probate Courts

Criminal District Courts

Civil District Courts

Family District Courts

Juvenile District Courts

County services

The Parkland Health & Hospital System (Dallas County Hospital District) operates the Parkland Memorial Hospital and various health centers.

The Commissioners' Court meets the first and third Tuesday at the Commissioners' Courtroom located in the Dallas County Administration Building at 411 Elm St., corner of Elm and Houston streets. The building was the headquarters of the Texas School Book Depository Company until 1970. Assassin Lee Harvey Oswald shot President John F. Kennedy from a window located on the sixth floor which today houses the Sixth Floor Museum dedicated to the late president's memory.

Acts of the commissioners court are known as 'court orders'. These orders include setting county policies and procedures, issuing contracts, authorizing expenditures, and managing county resources and departments. Most importantly, the commissioners court sets the annual tax rate and the budget for Dallas County government and the courts. The commissioners also set the tax rate and budget for the Dallas County Hospital District which operates Parkland Hospital.

The commissioners court has direct control over all county offices and departments not otherwise administered by a county elected official. Those departments include Dallas County Elections, Health and Human Services, Facilities Management, Parks and Open Space Program, I.T. Services, Homeland Security and Emergency Services, among others. Through their budget making powers, the commissioners exercise indirect control over the District Attorney's office, Sheriff, District Clerk, County Clerk and County Treasurer. The commissioners also set the budget for each of the District, County, and Justice courts.

Dallas County employs a commissioners court administrator who is responsible for the day-to-day management of the commissioners court and implementing the Dallas County Master Plan and the directives of the commissioners court. The current commissioners court administrator is Darryl Martin who was hired by the commissioners in 2008.

Dallas County operates several jail facilities. They include:

• 111 Riverfront Blvd (Dallas)
  • North Tower Jail
  • South Tower Jail - also known as the "Suzanne Kays Tower"
  • West Tower Jail
• Government Center Jail - 600 Commerce Street (Dallas)
• Decker Detention Center - 899 North Stemmons Freeway (Dallas)
• (formerly) Suzanne Kays Jail - 521 North Industrial Boulevard (Dallas) - population integrated into the South Tower; demolished to clear way for the Trinity River Project

The Texas Department of Criminal Justice operates the Hutchins State Jail for men in an unincorporated area adjacent to Hutchins. Corrections Corporation of America operates the Dawson Unit, a co-gender state jail in Downtown Dallas, under contract.

Federal Correctional Institution, Seagoville, is located in Seagoville.

Politics

Dallas County's post-war growth transformed it from a Democratic Solid South stronghold into a red sunbelt county that voted for the Republican presidential candidate in every election from 1952 to 2004, except when Texas native Lyndon B. Johnson successfully ran for a full term as president on the Democratic ticket in 1964. In the 2004 election, Democrats won their first countywide administrative office since 1986 by electing Lupe Valdez to the office of Dallas County Sheriff. The last Democratic countywide administrator was D. Connally elected County Surveyor prior to the office's abolition. Democrats also won three district court benches in 2004. Two years later in 2006, Democrats swept every contested countywide race including County Judge, District Clerk, County Clerk, District Attorney and County Treasurer as well as every contested judicial seat.

Starting in 1992, Dallas County began voting more Democratic than the state of Texas as a whole, with relatively narrow wins from 1992 to 2004 even as the Republican nominee won Texas easily. This trend culminated in 2008 when Barack Obama won Dallas County with a substantial margin. Obama's coattails allowed Democrats to win the remaining Republican held judicial seats. In 2012, Obama won Dallas County by virtually the same margin as he had done in 2008. In 2016, Hillary Clinton increased the Democratic margin of victory even further. She became the first Democrat to win 60% of Dallas County since Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1944, whilst under Donald Trump the Republicans failed to win 40% of the vote in the county for the first time since 1992.

The Democratic gains in the county are primarily due to the exurban migration of disproportionately conservative, Republican-voting residents to the neighboring counties of Collin, Denton and Rockwall As a result, those counties had been continuously more GOP leaning than Dallas, until diversification and continued movement of college educated whites away from the GOP has lead to those counties being more competitive. The tremendous growth in these neighboring counties was part of a larger explosion in exurban growth throughout the nation over the last decade which coincided with the real estate bust in 2007. In North Texas, exurban growth was accelerated by transportation infrastructure expansion including the widening of U.S. 75 north and the extension of Dallas North Tollway in the mid 1990s, and the completion of the George Bush Turnpike after 2001. These and other enhancements opened up vast tracts of farmland to new housing developments.

Dallas County has three openly LGBT elected county officials. Lupe Valdez elected Sheriff in 2004 and a candidate for reelection in 2012; Jim Foster, elected county judge in 2006 serving one term then defeated in the Democratic primary in 2010; and Gary Fitzsimmons, elected District Clerk in 2006.

Although Dallas County has become much friendlier to Democrats in Presidential and Senate elections since 1992, it remains a mostly Republican county in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Texas Legislature as a result of the legislature having engaged in what a federal district court has found to be illegal gerrymandering the districts to pack heavily Democratic non-whites into very few districts and split the rest of them with more conservative white areas in Dallas and surrounding counties.

State Board of Education members

Texas State Representatives

Texas State Senators

United States Representatives

Education

The following school districts serve Dallas County:

White flight meant the decrease of non-Hispanic white students in Dallas County K-12 school districts from 1997 until the 2014–2015 school year. The number was 138,760 in the former and 61,538 in the latter; during 2014-2015 county charter schools had about 5,000 non-Hispanic white students. In 2016 Eric Nicholson of the Dallas Observer wrote that the bulk of white K-12 enrollment is shifting to more distant suburban areas beyond Dallas County, and that "Teasing out causation is tricky" but that the perception of poverty, which many white families wish to avoid, is tied with race.

Transportation

Dallas Area Rapid Transit provides bus and rail service to many cities in Dallas County, with Dallas being the largest.

The Trinity Railway Express provides commuter rail service to Tarrant County, including downtown Fort Worth.

Major highways

• I-20
• I-30
• I-35E
• I-45
• I-45 BL
• I-345
• I-635
• US 67
• US 75
• US 77
• US 80
• US 175
• Dallas North Tollway
• Pres. George Bush Turnpike
• Loop 12
• SH 66
• SH 78
• SH 114
• SH 121
• SH 161
• SH 183
• SH 190
• SH 289
• SH 342
• SH 352
• SH 356
• Spur 408

NOTE: US 67 and US 77 are not signed fully along their routes in Dallas County.

Airports

Love Field, located in Dallas and in Dallas County, serves only domestic passengers.

Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport is partially located in the city of Irving in Dallas County, and Grapevine and Euless in Tarrant County.

Communities

Cities (multiple counties)

• Carrollton (partly in Denton County and a small part in Collin County)
• Cedar Hill (small part in Ellis County)
• Combine (partly in Kaufman County)
• Coppell (small part in Denton County)
• Dallas (county seat) (small parts in Collin, Denton, Kaufman and Rockwall counties)
• Ferris (mostly in Ellis County)
• Garland (small parts in Collin and Rockwall counties)
• Glenn Heights (partly in Ellis County)
• Grand Prairie (partly in Tarrant County and a small part in Ellis County)
• Grapevine (mostly in Tarrant County and a small part in Denton County)
• Lewisville (mostly in Denton County)
• Mesquite (small part in Kaufman County)
• Ovilla (mostly in Ellis County)
• Richardson (small part in Collin County)
• Rowlett (small part in Rockwall County)
• Sachse (small part in Collin County)
• Seagoville (small part in Kaufman County)
• Wylie (mostly in Collin County and a small part in Rockwall County)

Cities

• Balch Springs
• Cockrell Hill
• DeSoto
• Duncanville
• Farmers Branch
• Hutchins
• Irving
• Lancaster
• University Park
• Wilmer

Towns

• Addison
• Highland Park
• Sunnyvale

Unincorporated community

• Sand Branch

Historical communities

• Alpha (not incorporated)
• Buckingham (Annexed by Richardson in 1996)
• Cedar Springs (Annexed by Dallas First Settled in February 1841. In 1929 the community was annexed by the city of Dallas. )
• Duck Creek (merged into Garland in 1887)
• East Dallas (annexed by the city of Dallas in 1890 but was once a city of its own)
• Embree (merged into Garland in 1887)
• Fruitdale (annexed by Dallas in 1964)
• Hatterville (Merged into Sunnyvale in 1953)
• Hord's Ridge (Merged by Oak Cliff in 1887 per The Handbook of Texas )
• Kleberg (Absorbed by City of Dallas in 1978)
• La Reunion (Absorbed by City of Dallas in 1860)
• Letot (Northwest Dallas County, annexed by Dallas)
• Liberty Grove
• Little Egypt
• Long Creek (Merged into Sunnyvale in 1953)
• Meaders
• New Hope (Merged into Sunnyvale in 1953 - not to be confused with the Collin County town of the same name)
• Noel Junction not incorporated, Addison/Dallas
• Oak Cliff (Annexed by Dallas in 1903)
• Penn Springs (Annexed by Duncanville in 1947)
• Pleasant Grove (Annexed by Dallas by 1962)
• Preston Hollow (Annexed by Dallas in 1945)
• Renner (annexed by Dallas in 1977)
• Rylie (annexed by Dallas in 1978)
• Scyene
• Trinity Mills (Annexed by Carrollton)
• Tripp (Merged into Sunnyvale in 1953)

Climate

See also

• Dallas County District Attorney
• List of museums in North Texas
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Dallas County, Texas
• Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Dallas County

References

1. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved March 26, 2020.
2. ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 24, 2011. Retrieved December 10, 2013.
3. ^ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Dallas County, Texas". www.census.gov. Retrieved 2020-01-25.
4. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
5. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
6. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". United States Census Bureau. May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
7. "U.S. Decennial Census". Census.gov. Archived from the original on April 26, 2015. Retrieved May 30, 2019.
8. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
9. Where Same-Sex Couples Live, June 26, 2015, retrieved July 6, 2015
10. Estimates of the Population by Age, Sex, and Race/Ethnicity for July 1, 2015 for State of Texas (PDF), July 15, 2015, archived from the original (PDF) on May 4, 2017, retrieved June 8, 2017
11. "2018 ACS Demographic and Housing Estimates". data.census.gov. Retrieved 2020-01-25.
12. "2018 ACS Age and Sex Estimates". data.census.gov. Retrieved 2020-01-25.
13. "Dallas County". www.dallascounty.org.
14. ^ "Dallas County, TX Elections". www.dallascountyvotes.org. Retrieved 2017-12-04.
15. "Jail Information." Dallas County Sheriff's Office. Accessed September 14, 2008.
16. Krause, Kevin. Suzanne Kays jail to close in Dallas this week Archived 2012-04-12 at WebCite." The Dallas Morning News. April 14, 2009. Retrieved on June 3, 2013.
17. "HUTCHINS (HJ) Archived 2008-09-23 at the Wayback Machine." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Accessed September 14, 2008.
18. "DAWSON (JD) Archived 2013-06-03 at the Wayback Machine." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on June 3, 2013.
19. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved 2018-07-21.
20. Wallsten, Peter (2004-06-28). "Bush Sees 'Fertile Soil' in Exurbia". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-06-25.
21. Kennedy, Bud (2020-03-08). "Democrats shockingly outvoted Republicans in Texas suburbs; GOP turnout in DFW down 43%". Star-Telegram. Retrieved 2020-09-29.
22. Tavernise, Sabrina (April 4, 2012). "Census Data Offers Look at Effects of Recession". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-06-25.
23. Kim, Theodore (February 4, 2012). "North Texas Growth Sprang from Pro-Growth Policies". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 2012-06-25.
24. Cloud, John (2007-05-17). "The Lavender Heart of Texas". Time magazine. Retrieved 2012-06-18.
25. Barragan, James (20 April 2018). "Redistricting Redux". Dallas News. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
26. Nicholson, Eric (2016-05-03). "In Dallas, White Flight Never Ends". Dallas Observer. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
27. Rose-Mary Rumbley, "LETOT, CLEMENT" Handbook of Texas Online, accessed December 26, 2010.
28. "Little Egypt, TX" in the Handbook of Texas Online, by Lisa C. Maxwell; accessed 05 December 2015.
29. "Trinity Mills, TX" from the Handbook of Texas Online. By Matthew Hayes Nall. Retrieved on 31 March 2007.
30. "NASA Earth Observations Data Set Index". NASA. Retrieved 30 January 2016.

External links

• Dallas County Government official site
• Dallas County from the Handbook of Texas Online
• History of Dallas County, Texas: from 1837 to 1887 by John Henry Brown, published 1887, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
• Memorial and biographical history of Dallas County, Texas published 1892, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
• Official directory, taxpayers of Dallas County, Texas published 1896, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.
• Dallas County Code (ordinances / regulations) from Municode

v t e Places adjacent to Dallas County, Texas
Denton County Collin County Rockwall County Tarrant County Dallas County Kaufman County Johnson County Ellis County

v t e Municipalities and communities of Dallas County, Texas, United States
County seat: Dallas‡
Cities	Balch Springs Carrollton‡ Cedar Hill‡ Cockrell Hill Combine‡ Coppell‡ Dallas‡ DeSoto Duncanville Farmers Branch Ferris‡ Garland‡ Glenn Heights‡ Grand Prairie‡ Grapevine‡ Hutchins Irving Lancaster Lewisville‡ Mesquite‡ Ovilla‡ Richardson‡ Rowlett‡ Sachse‡ Seagoville‡ University Park Wilmer Wylie‡
Towns	Addison Highland Park Sunnyvale
CDP	Bear Creek Ranch
Other community	Sand Branch
Historical communities	Alpha Buckingham Duck Creek East Dallas Embree Fruitdale Hatterville Hord's Ridge Kleberg La Reunion Liberty Grove Long Creek New Hope Oak Cliff Pleasant Grove Preston Hollow Renner Rylie Scyene Trinity Mills Tripp
Footnotes	‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
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32°46′N 96°47′W / 32.77°N 96.78°W / 32.77; -96.78

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