Nueces County, Texas

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Nueces County, Texas
Seal of Nueces County, Texas Seal
Location in the state of Texas
Texas's location in the U.S.
Founded	1846
Seat	Corpus Christi
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	1,166 sq mi (3,020 km²) 836 sq mi (2,165 km²) 331 sq mi (857 km²), 28.34%
Population  - (2020)  - Density	353,178 376/sq mi (145/km²)
Website	www.co.nueces.tx.us

Nueces County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2020, the population was 353,178. The county seat is Corpus Christi and it is part of the Corpus Christi Metropolitan Statistical Area. Nueces County is named for the Nueces River, which flows through the county.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,166 square miles (3,021 km²), of which 836 square miles (2,165 km²) is land and 331 square miles (856 km²) (28.34%) is water.

Major highways

• Interstate 37
• U.S. Highway 77
• U.S. Highway 181
• State Highway 44

Adjacent counties

• San Patricio County (north)
• Gulf of Mexico (east)
• Kleberg County (south)
• Jim Wells County (west)

History

Nueces County was formed in 1846 from portions of San Patricio County. It was named after the Nueces River.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 313,645 people, 110,365 households, and 79,683 families residing in the county. The population density was 375 people per square mile (145/km²). There were 123,041 housing units at an average density of 147 per square mile (57/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 72.03% White, 4.24% Black or African American, 0.64% Native American, 1.16% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 18.74% from other races, and 3.13% from two or more races. 55.78% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 110,365 households out of which 36.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.80% were married couples living together, 15.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.80% were non-families. 22.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.30.

In the county, the population was spread out with 28.40% under the age of 18, 10.50% from 18 to 24, 28.90% from 25 to 44, 21.10% from 45 to 64, and 11.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 95.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,959, and the median income for a family was $41,066. Males had a median income of $31,571 versus $22,324 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,036. About 14.70% of families and 18.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.00% of those under age 18 and 15.80% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Historically, Nueces County leaned Democratic in presidential elections, though in recent years has narrowly voted Republican. Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956 became the first Republican candidate to carry the county. Prior to that year, the only times Nueces County did not vote for the national Democratic candidate was in its first presidential election in 1848 for Whig Zachary Taylor, and in 1860, supporting Southern Democratic John C. Breckinridge. Since Eisenhower's election, the only other Republicans to carry the county in the 20th century were Richard Nixon in 1972 and Ronald Reagan in 1984. So far, Bill Clinton remains the last Democratic candidate to win Nueces County, having done so in 1996.

Since 2000, Nueces County has voted for every Republican presidential candidate, with only George W. Bush in 2004 having carried it by a double digit margin, and his 56.8% of the vote is also the highest for any Republican in the county's history. In 2016, Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the county with a plurality of 48.6% to 47.1%, or 1,568 votes, the closest race since 1956. In 2020, Trump won the county again with a majority and a stronger, but still narrow, margin.

Democratic strength is concentrated within the inland portion of the county, with particular strengths in downtown Corpus Christi plus the city's heavily Hispanic neighborhoods, Robstown, and communities in the western part of the county. Republicans generally do well with areas closer to the coast, particularly in the southeast suburb of Corpus Christi, Flour Bluff, and Port Aransas.

United States presidential election results for Nueces County, Texas

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	64,617	50.75%	60,925	47.85%	1,780	1.40%
2016	50,766	48.62%	49,198	47.12%	4,441	4.25%
2012	48,966	50.95%	45,772	47.63%	1,366	1.42%
2008	52,391	51.75%	47,912	47.33%	927	0.92%
2004	59,359	56.77%	44,439	42.50%	762	0.73%
2000	49,906	51.28%	45,349	46.59%	2,071	2.13%
1996	37,470	40.22%	50,009	53.68%	5,689	6.11%
1992	36,781	36.49%	46,317	45.95%	17,693	17.55%
1988	46,337	48.30%	49,209	51.30%	386	0.40%
1984	54,333	53.68%	46,721	46.16%	159	0.16%
1980	40,586	46.84%	43,424	50.12%	2,634	3.04%
1976	32,797	37.99%	52,755	61.11%	773	0.90%
1972	41,682	55.39%	33,277	44.22%	291	0.39%
1968	21,307	31.57%	39,025	57.82%	7,159	10.61%
1964	14,048	25.75%	40,426	74.10%	84	0.15%
1960	18,907	39.09%	29,361	60.70%	100	0.21%
1956	19,985	49.89%	19,912	49.71%	162	0.40%
1952	19,124	48.59%	20,156	51.21%	79	0.20%
1948	5,577	25.60%	15,240	69.96%	966	4.43%
1944	3,819	24.21%	11,091	70.32%	863	5.47%
1940	3,065	23.87%	9,740	75.84%	37	0.29%
1936	1,234	15.54%	6,597	83.09%	109	1.37%
1932	967	12.62%	6,659	86.91%	36	0.47%
1928	2,481	45.36%	2,985	54.58%	3	0.05%
1924	1,537	31.51%	3,214	65.89%	127	2.60%
1920	383	21.55%	1,246	70.12%	148	8.33%
1916	404	16.85%	1,830	76.35%	163	6.80%
1912	85	6.50%	910	69.63%	312	23.87%

Historical Demographics

In 1950 Nueces County had a population of 165,471 people.

Cities and towns

Agua Dulce Aransas Pass Banquete Bishop Chapman Ranch Corpus Christi Driscoll Ingleside La Paloma-Lost Creek North San Pedro

Petronila Port Aransas Rabb Rancho Banquete Robstown San Patricio Sandy Hollow-Escondidas Spring Garden-Terra Verde Tierra Grande Violet

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Nueces County, Texas

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Nueces County, Texas

• Nueces County government's website
• Nueces County in Handbook of Texas Online at the University of Texas
• Historic Nueces County materials, hosted by the Portal to Texas History.