Robert Lee, Texas
Encyclopedia
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 Coke County, 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 founders named the city after Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
, who is thought to have set up camp for a time near the current townsite on the Colorado River. Lee served in Texas from 1856 to 1861 as a lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
in the U.S. Army Second Cavalry, during which time he distinguished himself as a scout
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
and engineer. The population was 1,171 at the 2000 census.
The town of Robert Lee is located on the Colorado River
Colorado River (Texas)
The Colorado River is a river that runs through the U.S. state of Texas; it should not be confused with the much longer Colorado River which flows from Colorado into the Gulf of California....
. Just upstream from the town is E.V. Spence Reservoir
E.V. Spence Reservoir
E.V. Spence Reservoir is an artificial lake located west of the town of Robert Lee, Texas. The reservoir was impounded by the creation of Robert Lee Dam in 1969, with the support of the Upper Colorado River Authority, to provide a reliable water supply for Robert Lee and the surrounding...
, managed by the Colorado River Municipal Water District. From the mid-1960s until approximately 1996, the reservoir's population of striped bass
Striped bass
The striped bass is the state fish of Maryland, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and the state saltwater fish of New York, Virginia, and New Hampshire...
attracted sportsmen from across the southwestern U.S., providing significant income to the town. In the late 1990s, however, water use policies changed and the reservoir water levels were continually lowered until the striped bass population could no longer be sustained.
In addition to a once-great fishery, the area around Robert Lee supports a significant population of white-tailed deer
White-tailed Deer
The white-tailed deer , also known as the Virginia deer or simply as the whitetail, is a medium-sized deer native to the United States , Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru...
, which can be a nuisance to local ranchers and farmers, but attracts large numbers of hunters during the annual hunting seasons. A very diverse set of wildlife occurs in the area, both native and migratory. Several species of birds, reptiles, and mammals make this part of Texas their home on either a temporary or permanent basis.
There is also a rich Native American history in and around the town. Indian relics and artifacts such as arrowheads, spearpoints, and other tools are commonly found on lands near Robert Lee.
Geography
Robert Lee is located at 31°53′44"N 100°29′6"W (31.895687, -100.484912).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 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²), all of it land.
Demographics
As of the 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...
of 2000, there were 1,171 people, 496 households, and 326 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 1,026.7 people per square mile (396.6/km²). There were 658 housing units at an average density of 576.9/sq mi (222.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 89.92% White, 0.26% African American, 0.77% Native American, 0.09% Asian, 7.34% 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 1.62% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 19.64% of the population.
There were 496 households, of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.6% 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, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.1% were nonfamilies. About 32.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 21.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.85.
In the city, the population was spread out with 22.8% under the age of 18, 5.2% from 18 to 24, 21.1% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 28.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46 years. For every 100 females, there were 81.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $25,750, and the median income for a family was $33,553. Males had a median income of $30,486 versus $19,615 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 $16,672. About 12.0% of families and 14.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.6% of those under age 18 and 14.5% of those age 65 or over.
Notables from Robert Lee
- John BurroughsJohn Burroughs (governor)John Burroughs was a New Mexican businessman and the 18th Governor of New Mexico. Burroughs is remembered for honest government and introduction of the concept of a state Personnel Act to improve the quality of state workers and limit somewhat the effect of political patronage.Burroughs attended...
, DemocraticDemocratic Party (United States)The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
governorGovernorA governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
of New Mexico, 1959–1960 - Dean E. HallmarkDean E. HallmarkDean Edward Hallmark was an avid athlete, adventure seeker and U.S. Army Air Forces pilot during World War II, most noted for having served alongside Jimmy Doolittle in 1942 during the famous raid on Tokyo in April of that year...
, born in Robert Lee on January 20, 1914, served as the command pilot of B-25 #6, the "Green Hornet," on Jimmy DoolittleJimmy DoolittleGeneral James Harold "Jimmy" Doolittle, USAF was an American aviation pioneer. Doolittle served as a brigadier general, major general and lieutenant general in the United States Army Air Forces during the Second World War...
's Tokyo RaidDoolittle RaidThe Doolittle Raid, on 18 April 1942, was the first air raid by the United States to strike the Japanese Home Islands during World War II. By demonstrating that Japan itself was vulnerable to American air attack, it provided a vital morale boost and opportunity for U.S. retaliation after the...
of April 18, 1942. He was captured by Japanese forces and executed on October 15, 1942. His remains were located after the war and interred at Arlington National CemeteryArlington National CemeteryArlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, is a military cemetery in the United States of America, established during the American Civil War on the grounds of Arlington House, formerly the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna Lee, a great...
.