Reeves County, Texas


Reeves County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 14,748, and was estimated to be 11,956 in 2024. Its county seat and most populous city is Pecos. The county was created on April 14, 1883 and organized on November 4, 1884. It is named for George R. Reeves, a Texas state legislator and colonel in the Confederate Army. It is one of the nine counties that comprise the Trans-Pecos region of West Texas. Reeves County comprises the Pecos micropolitan statistical area.

History

Native Americans

Prehistoric Clovis culture peoples in Reeves County lived in the rock shelters and caves nestled near water supplies. These people left behind artifacts and pictographs as evidence of their presence. Jumano Indians led the Antonio de Espejo 1582–1583 expedition near Toyah Lake on a better route to the farming and trade area of La Junta de los Ríos. Espejo's diary places the Jumano along the Pecos River and its tributaries. The Mescalero Apache frequented San Solomon Springs to irrigate their crops. In 1849, John Salmon "RIP" Ford explored the area between San Antonio and El Paso, noting in his mapped report the productive land upon which the Mescalero Indians farmed.

County established and growth

The state legislature formed Reeves from Pecos County on April 14, 1883, and named it after Texas legislator and soldier George Robertson Reeves. The county was organized on November 4, 1884. The town of Pecos was named as county seat.
Toyah Valley farmers George B. and Robert E. Lyle were the first Anglo settlers 1871. White settlers started arriving in the area four years later, lured by open-range ranching. For the remainder of the century, the county economy was dependent upon farming and ranching as it moved into the manufacturing and oil industries of the 20th century.
The Texas and Pacific Railway built through Reeves County in 1881, with stations at Pecos and Toyah. By 1890, the Pecos River Railway had built from Pecos to New Mexico. Toyahvale, which means "flowing water", became the western terminus of the railroad.
Balmorhea State Park was built at Toyahvale by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The park was deeded to the State of Texas in 1934 and opened to the public in 1968.
Pecos Army Air Field was one of the 120 airbases that trained the pioneer Women Airforce Service Pilots to fly military aircraft. At the Pecos installation, WASP flew AT-6, UC-78, and AT-17 aircraft in engineering tests, administrative duties, and transporting freight. The base was activated in 1942 as a World War II pilot school. The base was deactivated in 1945. At its peak, the base population of 4,034 rivaled the town of Pecos in size. Portions of the base were sold off over the years, with Pecos Municipal Airport retaining the remainder.
Pecos is the site of the largest private prison in the world, the Reeves County Detention Complex, operated by the GEO Group.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. It is the 9th largest county in Texas by total area.

Major highways

As of the third quarter of 2024, the median home value in Reeves County was $117,940.
As of the 2023 American Community Survey, there are 4,145 estimated households in Reeves County with an average of 2.94 persons per household. The county has a median household income of $56,056. Approximately 17.6% of the county's population lives at or below the poverty line. Reeves County has an estimated 58.1% employment rate, with 6.9% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 71.3% holding a high school diploma.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 14,748, 4,178 households, and 2,895 families residing in the county. The population density was, with 5,068 housing units at an average density of.
The median age was 37.1 years. 21.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 12.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 157.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 176.8 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 54.7% White, 2.0% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 16.5% from some other race, and 25.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 84.8% of the population.
88.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 11.3% lived in rural areas.
There were 4,178 households in the county, of which 37.3% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 44.9% were married-couple households, 22.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 27.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 25.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
Of the 5,068 housing units, 17.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 69.6% were owner-occupied and 30.4% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 17.4%.

Racial and ethnic composition

Race / ethnicity Pop. 1980Pop. 1990Pop. 2000Pop. 2010
White alone 5,561
3,909
3,131
2,690
1,697
Black or African American alone 358
340
238
672
224
Native American or Alaska Native alone 23
26
34
21
27
Asian alone 33
31
46
118
165
Pacific Islander alone ——0
2
3
Other race alone 36
1
3
20
39
Mixed race or multiracial ——45
27
83
Hispanic and Latino Americans| ''9,790
11,545
9,640
10,233
12,510
Total15,801
15,852
13,137
13,783
14,748

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 13,783 people, 3,839 households, and _ families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 4,640 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 77.23% White, 5.01% African American, 0.46% Native American, 0.86% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 14.85% from some other races and 1.54% from two or more races. Hispanic and Latino Americans| ''.

Communities

Cities

In 2020, Donald Trump not only flipped Reeves County, but he won the greatest margin of victory for a Republican presidential candidate since Richard Nixon's 1972 re-election at 61.1%. In 2024, Trump expanded his vote share, winning 68% of the vote. As a result, Reeves County shifted to the right from 2012 to 2024 by 53 percentage points, representing one of the strongest such rightward shifts for any county in the country.

Education

Two school districts serve sections of the county:
All of the county is in the service area of Odessa College.